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About Ilgen Paydas

I am Ilgen - the marketing director of Cotton & Olive. Cotton and Olive is a small online business run by me and my husband since 2012. We are both born and bred Turkish citizens who have been living in the UK long enough to become British. Our move to the UK was due to a new role my husband has been appointed to for BP UK, back in 2005. It all started with a 3-years contract and it never came to an end. Having raised our 2 daughters- the youngest one is off to Uni this year- we are now fully involved growing our business. So here we are, proudly presenting our beautifully wholesome hammam towels and robes, bedspreads & throws naturally complemented by hand-crafted olive oil soaps from my hometown, Antakya, at Southern Turkey, right on the Syrian border. This ancient city -Antioch- has a centuries-old history of soap-making. And the ‘Olive’ bit in our brand comes right from our olive-oil soaps, as you may have guessed. Our journey just carries on naturally mingling our Turkish cultural traditions with the western flavour, creating our unique version reflected in our work. We keep adding new product variations, learning a lot on the way, making plenty of mistakes but never losing the spirit of fun and love for the product. Thank you for being here and sharing our passion. Ilgen Oct/2019

Different Types of Hammam Towels

Hi, Based on the frequent questions we received from our customers, I concluded that hammam towels and their thickness require further explanation as a guide. Cotton and Olive offers a wide range of hammam towels designed for different purposes. All hammam towels, including the thickest one available online, are still lighter in weight [...]

By |2026-07-03T11:50:55+00:00May 6th, 2026|Hammam Towels|Comments Off on Different Types of Hammam Towels

Our Values

The values we represent are simple. As a small, independent family business, we love to reflect our beliefs through our work and products. We are a Turkish couple living in the UK since 2005, and we started Cotton and Olive’s online presence in 2013. As a principle, we work only with Turkish craftspeople, sourcing all [...]

By |2026-07-19T09:59:30+00:00January 24th, 2026|News, Turkey|Comments Off on Our Values

What Makes Hammam Towels So Thin and Lightweight?

Hammam towels are well known for being extremely light and thin yet absorbent. Homeowners have recognised these qualities as a great way to make everyday living more practical and pleasant. Let’s recap what a hammam towel is first. A hammam is a flat fabric woven on looms. There are horizontal and vertical yarns crisscrossing [...]

By |2026-08-05T09:14:41+00:00May 1st, 2024|Hammam Towels, Towels|Comments Off on What Makes Hammam Towels So Thin and Lightweight?

Frequently Asked Questions About Hammam Towels

With this post, we'll try to answer the most common questions you may ask to learn about hammam towels. We're compiling this information for those unfamiliar with hammam towels. What is a hammam towel? A hammam towel is a lightweight and compact towel for drying. What sizes do hammam towels come in? They are [...]

By |2026-08-06T09:05:57+00:00November 14th, 2023|Hammam Towels, Peshtemal, Towels|Comments Off on Frequently Asked Questions About Hammam Towels