Experience Moroccan-inspired Mini Hammam at Home

We went on a two-weeks road trip to Morocco for our honeymoon last year and we are ashamed to say that we missed out on doing hammam there. It was such a beautiful and adventurous road trip though, we could not slow down exploring. We planned on doing the traditional Moroccan hammam once we got to Marrakech but because we only had a couple of nights stay there, we spent time discovering the old city - and getting lost in there was fun as well. We keep saying to ourselves that we must go back to Morocco to have a more relaxed gateaway, إن شاء الله. Now we know what we want to focus on experiencing next, we will make sure to come with one empty suitcase and a mindset to slow down. 💖 

Nonetheless, I really could not miss on bringing back home some Moroccan plant-based ingredients! Of course, I bulked up on argan oil for myself and gifts. I got them from a souq in Meknes and our biggest regret is not buying argan oil stored in glass jars when we saw street-sellers on our way to Paradise Valley- after research, they could had been the high-quality ones and straight from the makers. I also got Beldi Soap, a gooey 'black' soap that is used to cleanse the skin during the hammam session.

Moroccan beldi soap is a very interesting one because I never experienced a soap quite like it. It is very skin-softening and you can tell from the texture that it will be very comfortable to use and not drying. Mine is made out of olive paste, olive oil and lye without added ingredients (such as for scent) giving it its dark olive-colored hue and its original earthy and strong smell. Before I hop into the shower, I add a couple of drops of rosemary and eucalyptus essential oils into a portion of beldi soap that I have put aside in a tiny glass jar and give it a good mix. Additionally, I imagine spraying orange blossom / rose hydrosol on the skin before applying the soap can make the experience more luxurious and better-smelling as well.

Moroccan hammam is basically similar to getting a steam bath / sauna and then getting your skin scrubbed like crazy and then followed by our body getting pampered (body mask) and massaged. The only difference is that we have someone to do everything for us from pouring warm water and applying soap on the body. What makes the experience even more elevating is also the interior architecture aspect in the hammam place itself, some of the places are just mind-blowing. 

this is actually not a hammam place, rather an andalusian style palace outside ait ben haddou. But can you just imagine, beautiful tile and carving, dim light, steam enveloping your spa experience?! 😩

To get somewhat a similar experience at home, I run a very warm shower that is close to too-hot temperature so that the vapour can fill in the bathroom. I then apply the beldi soap with the palms of my fingers, all over and leave it for a good 10 minutes to work its skin-softening and skin-moisturizing benefit. Multi-tasking at its best, have a moisturizing facial treatment too. After 10 minutes has passed, have a rinse but I like to put on scrub gloves and start scrubbing and massaging the skin very firmly. What a satisfying feeling when I start to see those dead skin cells coming off! After that, if you have mud mask that you want to generously apply to your back / arms / anywhere, this is the perfect timing - have your spouse / close kin to help to apply it on your back for detoxifying treatment. Massage parts of your body lovingly, your legs, your arms or read a book while you wait for everything to settle. 

Rinse clean and touch the skin! Finish with your favorite body oil and body lotion / butter. 💕 Enjoy your spa day at home!

-

If there is no beldi soap handy, use ANY soap you like of course, preferably in a super creamy form or oil soap :)