Nablus Soap, Hebron Glass and Tatreez: A Guide to Palestinian Craft Traditions

Long before the words "handmade" and "heritage" became marketing terms, Palestinian towns were known across the region for their crafts. Each city developed its own speciality, shaped by local materials, trade routes and families who passed their skills from one generation to the next.

Many of those traditions are still alive today, often in small family workshops that have survived war, occupation and closures. Knowing where they come from makes them easier to recognise, and to support.

Nablus: olive oil soap

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Nablus, in the northern West Bank, has been famous for its soap for centuries. Made from pure olive oil, water and an alkali, the soap is poured into large floors to set, cut by hand and stacked in tall, hollow towers to dry for weeks. The result is a plain, cream-coloured bar that is gentle on the skin. Nablus once had dozens of soap factories; only a handful still operate, which makes every surviving workshop part of living history.

Hebron: glass and ceramics

Hebron is known for hand-blown glass in deep blues, greens and ambers, often made with recycled glass, as well as hand-painted ceramics. Family-run workshops still shape vases, lamps and drinking glasses in front of visitors, and the colours have become instantly recognisable.

Tatreez: embroidery that tells a story

Across Palestine, women have long stitched tatreez, the traditional cross-stitch embroidery that decorates dresses, cushions and bags. Motifs and colours once revealed which village a woman came from. Today, women's cooperatives keep the craft going and sell their work internationally. Our designs such as Palestinian Girls and Palestine Hope are a modern nod to that same pride in identity, and you can read more in our guide to the keffiyeh pattern.

To support the makers directly, look for fair-trade shops and Palestinian cooperatives that sell soap, glass and embroidery online, and share their stories when you give their work as gifts.