HIJAB FASHION TRENDS : FALL 2009 – NEUTRAL BRIGHTS

It’s finally time for my favorite hijab fashion season – Fall and Winter! As usual, this season features a ton of fashion trends that are appropriate for Muslimahs and the one that I’m covering first is what I like to call the Neutral Brights trend.

The Neutral Brights fashion trend is all about wearing one bright, colorful piece and pairing it with neutral items. For the hijabi version of this trend, I found a jewel-toned teal dress and paired it with neutral trousers. I finished the look with a cream-colored hijab, black ankle-boots, and a pretty cocktail ring. The result is a work-ready look that’s fashionably modest and chic.

What do you think of the Neutral Brights fashion trend?

Links:
[1] Ruffle Trim Wool Crepe Dress, $198. [2] Basile Fringed Solid Wool And Cashmere Pashmina Shawl, $78. [3] Modern Wide-Leg Pants, $24.99. [4] Sculptured Rose Mother-of-Pearl Cocktail Ring, $123.99. [5] Miss Me Fanny-9 Ankle High Boot, $29.95.

HIJAB STYLE FINDS : ABAYA

If you’ve been looking for a nice abaya that is affordable and pretty, check out East Essence. I found about 60 pretty abaya styles for under $40 each. The abayas that I featured above can be found at the links below and when you get to the site, search “abaya” or “hijabs” and you’ll find all of the other styles that they have. The abayas come in sizes XS-XXXL so inshallah, there’s something for everyone.

I think that I have to get the first abaya that I featured above. What’s your favorite?

Links:
[1] Beautiful Arabian Princess Abaya, $38.38. [2] Abaya 30, $37.18. [3] Shakeel Abaya, $38.38. [4] Aftab Abaya, $39.58. [5] Abaya 6, $39.58.

HIJAB STYLE FINDS : TIERED LONG PEASANT SKIRT

Salam ladies! WE LOVE HIJAB is back! I’ve been gone for about 3 months but for good reason. I’ll explain soon, inshallah. For now, thank you so much for sticking with me and for all of your well wishes. Please enjoy today’s Hijab Style Find…

*UPDATE: A We Love Hijab Reader let me know that the cardigan pictured above is actually 3/4 sleeve. That info is not included in the product description for the cardigan so I didn’t know that when I made this post. If you do buy it you would of course need to wear something to cover the rest of your arm (like a long sleeve black tee or something). Just a little FYI.*

Today’s Hijab Style Find, is this pretty long skirt by Chadwicks. More than anything, I love the $25 price tag (!!), but I also love the fact that this skirt has a modern tiered design and it comes in some juicy, Summery colors.

I would wear this long skirt with a white tank top, a lightweight black cardigan, and black strappy sandals. For the hijabs, I chose a stripe-printed hijab that features all of the colors in my outfit.

What do you think: Are you feeling today’s Hijab Style Find? And how would you wear it?

Links:
[1] Chadwicks Tiered Peasant Skirt, $24.99. [2] Roxy Providence Stripe Scarf, $17. [3] Lightweight V-Neck Cardigans, $20. [4] Jet Black Crystal Cocktail Ring, $16.25. [5] Anne Klein Eddie Platform Sandal in Black, $35.58+.

JODI HYLAND
WORE… Gap jeans, a flowy cardigan by Kieus, black booties, and a hot pink pashmina hijab.
TO… an Oscar party at a friend’s house.
LOVES… Forever21, Old Navy, Gap, Express, and Wet Seal.
MUST HAVE… cropped sweaters in every color, pashmina hijabs, maxidresses and dangly earrings.

Steal Erica’s Hijab Style
Links:
[1] Long Cardigan by MaxStudio, $89. [2] Mother of Pearl FLower Ring, $27.99. [3] Hot Pink Pashmina, $7. [4] Denim Trouser Jeans, $19.99. [5] Calvin Klein Nader Boots, $142.

(If you’re reading this in your email box, please visit the website to see Jodi’s outfit.)

HIJAB STYLE REMIX

This Hijab Style Remix features Rachel Bilson in an easy, casual look that’s pretty modest as it is. To make the look more hijab friendly, I added wider-legged jeans, a longer undershirt (for more coverage in the front), and of course a black hijab. Since I prefer to be a little more polished, I chose accessories that are less casual than Rachel’s, but I stayed with the color theme because I think it really works. What do you think about this Hijab Style Remix?

Links:
[1] Melina Drapey Cardigan, $34.50. [2] Azuri Feather Pashmina Shawl Hijab, $29. [3] Racerback Tank Dress, $19.99. [4] Matisse Demi Bootie, $49.48. [5] The Sweetheart Trouser Jeans, in Chrissie, $29.50. [6] Red by Marc Ecko “Vagabond” Croco Glazed Drawstring Hobo, $79.

Image Credit – InStyle

HIJAB Q&A : IMITATING THE “DISBELIEVERS”

[UPDATE: I will continue this post later on inshallah because I am too busy to sit and write it right now. Sorry for the delay.]

Rather than continuing with my post entitled “Is Hijab Overrated Part 1?“, I am going to start addressing the questions about hijab that I receive from readers. I think these posts will be really useful, inshallah, and I think that it’s really important for me to start talking about the hijab-related information that is thrown around on the Internet. If you have any questions about hijab, please contact me.

HIJAB Q&A #1: Are Muslim women (and men) imitating the “disbelievers” by wearing “modern clothing”?

I don’t want to answer a question with a question, but let’s just think for a moment: What type of clothing do you think Prophet Muhammad wore before he became a Muslim? What do you think the Muslim females of that time wore before they were Muslims?…

Any thoughts? Please leave them below in the comments and on Monday I will continue with this post inshallah.

MODERN ISLAMIC CLOTHING DESIGNER : ARTIZARA

One of my goals is to create my own line of Islamic clothing in the future, inshallah. I love the behind-the-scenes side of fashion just as much as I love the clothes, so last week I caught up with Helen of Artizara.com to find out more about their modern Islamic clothing brand and to find out what they’ll be bringing to the hijab fashion world this spring.

WE LOVE HIJAB: Where did the name Artizara come from?
ARTIZARA: The Artizara name was a brainstorm by the co-founders of the business, friends and neighbors Sarah Ansari and Asra Razzaque.


WE LOVE HIJAB: How would you describe the “Artizara Woman”?
ARTIZARA: The Artizara woman is enlightened, socially conscious, interested in the world and active in her community. She understands that the world is a very small place and that we are all alike in many more ways than we are different. The Artizara woman enjoys world style and dresses modestly since she is a believer that a woman’s worth lies in her intellect, not in the shape of her body. She understands that women form half the intellectual capital of humanity, and that they have a very important role to play in the progress of society; whether their sphere of influence is the home, their place of education, their work, or the broader community.


WE LOVE HIJAB: What is the biggest influence for choosing the clothes in your collections?
ARTIZARA: Inspiration can come from anywhere… Islamic art and heritage is a big influence, interpreted in a fresh contemporary way. We also keep an eye on mainstream fashion trends in terms of color, cut, texture and form, but add certain touches to the garment that truly make it unique and special.

Wearability and practicality is a big consideration. Every piece we design should be something we ourselves would buy, our friends and family will buy, and would recommend to others. We design each piece with the goal that it should never hang in your closet; you should get lots and lots of wear out of it, dress it up or down, wear it for work and play, at home or at a night on the town.


WE LOVE HIJAB: What is your dream for the Artizara brand? Where would you like to see the company go in the future?
ARTIZARA: We have big dreams for our little company! In a very broad sense, We would like the Artizara brand to represent in its products, all that is beautiful in our rich and ancient Islamic heritage.


WE LOVE HIJAB: What can we expect from Artizara this Spring/Summer?
ARTIZARA: This season’s collection is all about soft fabrics, relaxed and easy silhouettes that let the body breathe and move, yet look smart and dressed up.

Practicality was a big design influence this season, as was a mindset that in these tough economic times, every Artizara piece you buy, should earn its keep!

We have added functional, concealed pockets to many of our tops as we realize that life’s busy and sometimes its just no fun to fish about in your purse for those wayward keys or that cell phone!

Clever details like detachable sleeves, give the wearer different options to wear the same top, adding value to your purchase.

Coordinated scarves have been designed with every piece, and we’ve put together many ensembles, for those of you who’d rather not spend time putting together that “put together” look!


WE LOVE HIJAB: Why do your customers love shopping with you?
ARTIZARA:

[As one customer, Anbreen, wrote:] I just wanted to let you know that I have received my order and really love the shirt and the scarves too :-) Also, the packaging was done very professionally and overall this was a really pleasant shopping experience. The clothes are very nice quality and I’ll be ordering some more and recommending to my friends as well :-) Thank you again.

HAVE YOUR SAY!
Have you ever purchased anything from Artizara? What was your experience like with them and would you recommend them to other hijabis?

Dubai Street Style

A recent edition of Current TV’s Street Style series featured Dubai fashionistas. There were only a couple hijabis featured and although their clothing may have been too snug for me, it’s always cool to see hijab fashion videos in my opinion.

HIJAB APPROVED : GAP

Gap has a few long skirts for sale right now that would be really great additions to a hijabi‘s spring/summer wardrobe. In the collage above, the skirts appear to be a little too short, but they are all available in a TALL option, so they should be the perfect length for average girls.

Our favorite of the bunch has to be the Chambray Drawstring Skirt. It has that light-denim color that is big for spring, yet it doesn’t look like the unattractive, washed-out denim of the 80s. All of the skirts can be dressy (think chunky heels, wedges, and blazers) or super-casual (think canvas flats, flip-flops, and tees) depending on how you style them… Would you dress them up or down?

Links:
1. Floral Print Skirt ($49.50) 2. Dobby-Striped Skirt ($49.50) 3. Chambray Drawstring Skirt ($49.50)

THE RUNWAY :

Tribal prints were a big fashion trend for Spring 2008 Ready-To-Wear runway collections. Many of the major fashion designers showcased at least one outfit that included this trend and some of them based their entire collections around it…

1. ETRO’s Spring 2008 Ready-To-Wear collection included an eclectic mix of bright colors and bohemian elements. This dress is the most subtle piece in Etro’s collection because it includes a very small tribal print at the neckline. This would probably be hidden by our hijab, but the shape of this dress is perfect for Muslim women (with a little layering of course).

2. DKNY is always on target when it comes to vibrant city chic and this pocketed maxi-dress is a perfect example of that. I love the orange color and large graphic print on this dress. It’s trendy without being too literal and the length is great for hijabi Muslimahs.

3. DIANE VON FURSTENBERG is known for her feminine wrap-dresses, so of course she’d translate the tribal trend into an airy chiffon frock. She included a few dresses like this in her Spring 2008 collection, sometimes going the extra mile by topping them off with head-wraps.

4. OSCAR DE LA RENTA designed tribal-printed skirt suits for a sophisticated take on the trend. This one includes a collage of textures and prints with a deep red hue to make the neutral color-palette pop.

OUR WAY :

Vibrant short-dresses to wear with pants and a jacket, shrug, or long-sleeve tee. Tribal-print maxi dresses to layer similarly. And tribal-inspired accessories to easily integrate this trend into any wardrobe.

Links:
1. Tribal Print Sun Dress (£32) 2. Tribal Scarf ($4.80) 3. Dotted Tribal Bangle ($4.80) 4. Tribal Print Maxi Dress (£47) 5. Aztec Embroidery Tunic ($24.80) 6. Marciano Mediterranean Maxi Dress ($188)