OUTFIT OF THE DAY: The Royal Blue Threads & Motifs Dress

I wore this a little while ago to a wedding reception, and decided to go for something light and chic rather than the usual bling I go for! I bought this pret outfit last year by Threads and Motifs, a brand my sisters and I have always loved because of the high quality of embroidery on their outfits, and their very wearable pieces - we each have a few of this brand's outfits in our wardrobes.

This is the outfit that I wore, a rich royal blue dress with embroidery on the front and back. The outfit came with matching churidar pants, but I wanted to go for a different look (also is it just me always getting my big food stuck in churidar pants?!), so I opted for tailored white trousers instead. I thought this would give more of a summery look, and also look quite light and playful (or otherwise make me think I'm on holiday, which is good too!)

Here's the outfit and what I accessorised with, I decided to pick out the black and gold accents, and also make use of the Valentino Rockstuds my husband bought me! I don't usually wear a lot of black, but I though these complemented the outfit and brought it together well.

This is me wearing the outfit, which was a really comfy fit on me. I really liked how light and easy this outfit was to wear, and made a change from the heavier outfits I usually go for with weddings. I also liked the shape of the hemline, which wasn't too long and gave a nice girly look to the outfit.

Outfit - Threads & Motifs

Trousers - River Island

Clutch bag - LYDC

Bangles - Warehouse

Shoes - Maison Valentino

All in all, this was a fun outfit because it was colourful and summery and very comfortable. I've always been a fan of the Threads and Motifs brand because it is fairly affordable (although I have noticed that a lot of UK shops sell the same outfits for a higher amount!) and because I have always gotten a lot of wear out of each outfit I have.

I'm also liking the brand's more floral and colourful pieces which have been coming up in their newer collections recently, such a floral embroidered and printed skirts, silk print kurta and embroidered trousers - I already have a few of these on my wish-list!

The Muslim Lifestyle Show 2016

I was lucky enough to get two tickets to the Muslim Lifestyle Show a couple of weeks ago, so attended with my sister to check out the exhibitions and shows.

We managed to spend a few hours at the Muslim Lifestyle Show, and managed to see plenty of outfits, abayahs, scarves, books, desserts, nuts, dates, various halal food companies, household goods and fittings as well as have fun with photobooths!

A rickshaw with a photobooth inside!

There were plenty of things to see, so I won't bombard you with too many images, but here's a few of the fun things I remember from the Muslim Lifestyle Show below.

Fashion & Shopping
One of the main reasons my sister and I wanted to attend the show was to see the different clothes and outfits available for sale - there were a lot of beautiful outfits on display from boutiques, and modesty-wear brands being promoted. I managed to spot designer Farrah Naaz at the show with a stand (the picture on the bottom right), and also found a range of beautiful abayahs and maxi dresses from a lot of brands who usually sell online.

Food
I'm sure you can imagine that my sister and I headed straight for the sweet stuff, and sampled lots of goodies before buying a bunch of dates, cookies and brownies. I loved The Datery, which sells hand-made chocolate-covered dates, and Mubarak, which specialises in "little boxes of treats" from chocolates to scents and candles.

Of course we had to also stop to buy some halal sweets (or five) for ourselves and family, as you can imagine, these were popular stands!

Catwalk Show
I didn't get to see a lot of the fashion show as I got to the stage a little late, but I did snap a few outfits and thought these ones by Gulshaan boutique were lovely!

Jewellery and Perfumes
We also saw a range of halal perfumes, which were presented in gorgeous bottles, and in a range of colours and scents. I also liked a group of rings being sold by one company (I forget the name!) which had beautiful chunky precious-gems in clusters of twos and threes, lovely statement pieces (third pic below).

There were people getting their henna done on hands, as well as make-up artists promoting their work - below is the amazing makeup work done by the team of bridal makeup-artist Lubna Rafiq, complete with bridal dresses from Khans of London.

There were also men's products being promoted, which was probably useful as there were a lot of family men walking around with their wives and children! I loved this t-shirt below which I wanted for my husband, as well as the beard oils bottles being sold, which was a popular item.

My sister and I also liked that there were plenty of stands raising awareness for charities and education - this stand called Let's Educated Pakistan aimed to get people to sponsor children in Pakistan to be able to go to schools, and had already set up two schools of their own.

There was also plenty of homeware and decoration available - such as these beautiful, bespoke pieces of wall art, and very pretty coasters on the right which I wanted to buy (but didn't because they don't match anything in my house!)

All in all we had a really fun time at the show, and even managed to catch a show with singer Sami Yusuf who did a series of lovely songs with a group of schoolchildren. I also managed to bump into a few other fashion bloggers that I'm friends which, who were helping out backstage at the fashion show doing hijab styling and makeup, which also made my day.

I'll be sure to look out for similar events - and there will be plenty for Eid! - and post any that I know are coming up. I thought this was a great way to bring together new products for young Muslims who want something new, as well as showcasing a range of fashion, food and charity causes to be interested in : )

Ramadan Mubarak...!

I’m a bit late in posting this (only a couple of days late!) but I’d like to wish everyone a blessed month of Ramadan, full of good deeds, delicious food and a memorable month of fasting, prayers and charity.

Ramadan Mubarak and may all of your duas be granted in this beautiful month.

Curly Fries xx

Presents from Pakistan...!

My mum recently went to Pakistan for a few weeks recently to make the most of the warm weather and clean air, and to relax while my dad does some refurbishing around the house. She didn't get a lot of chances to shop (otherwise I would have given her a whole shopping list!) but she did manage to pick up some goodies for all of us!

There's a quite a few girls in the family now (sisters, a sister-in-law and plenty of grand-daughters!) but we each got about two outfits each, plus some mehndi cones and accessories, and yummy pine nuts which my mum always comes home with, because it's so popular with my family.

I got a heavy, blingy outfit in a nude pink with blue piping (left) which I loved (and may possibly wear for Eid!), as well as a printed kurta for the summer which I though was gorgeous! I'll be styling these both soon, and will post pictures : )

KAPRAY SHAPRAY: Pretty Pastels & Churi Dupattas from Umsha by Uzma Babar

I saw these two outfits today - both by the same designer, Pakistani label Umsha by Uzma Babar  - with the same signature style, but with two different colour palattes and style that I loved equally. I saw both of these in east London with stockists Texheeb London, which carries the designer (plus a few more), so it's always worth a look when going past.

The first outfit was this lovely anarkali piece with a skirt, in a soft peachy pink with pale blue accents and floral embroidery and gold work all over. I loved the soft colours of this piece, and though it would be perfect for a summer wedding or a spring event. It's a lovely piece which can be dressed up as a bridal (it does come with a skirt) or worn by guests for a special event, which I thought would look lovely - I can image a whole wedding theme catered to these colours!

The second outfit was this bridal by the designer in a soft creamy yellow mixed with a rich red and rusty orange. I like that the heavy kameez is balanced out by a brocade skirt, but my favourite thing is probably the addition of a chunri dupatta (you can see some examples of these here - they're dupattas with printed dotted patterns for an ethnic look), which I haven't seen in years. I remember seeing these when I was younger, and I even have one hidden away somewhere which I bought for my own mehndi (and didn't end up using!), so it's lovely to see this used as a bridal dupatta. I've seen examples of chunri dupattas used in bridals in Pakistan, but not in the local stores in London, so it's lovely to see this.

I'm still deciding which outfit I like better (I'm leaning towards the pastel pink and blue one) - which one do you like more?

Bridal Shower fun - Flowers & Peach Tones

I don't always post about the parties and bridal showers I've been to the in past, but every now and then I attend a special occasion which is memorable. Most of my close friends are married (and got married before me!) so for the few who are still bachelorettes, it's a special event when they get married!

So a close friend of mine got married in the last few weeks (this is what I wore to her nikah and engagement), so I thought I'd post a few pictures of the event as it was a lovely series of occasions.

For her bridal shower, she had a pretty low-key event at her best friend's place, which was decorated beautifully and which gave us friends all a chance to chill out, eat good food and play games.

I though the decor was pretty amazing, and was very different to a lot of the bridal showers I've been to in the past because it felt so elegant and sophisticated - beautiful fresh flowers everywhere, candles on the table, hand-made decor on the wall and on the balcony outside there were beautiful cushions with lanterns and Morroccan-inspired tools. I thought this made for a really lovely, relaxed atmosphere and it was really well-put together, different from the usual pink, fluffy feathers bridal showers I've been to!

The food was all made by the bride-to-be's best friend, and she did an amazing job with the nibbles which were laid out beautifully. There was also hot food which came later, but my favourite thing was a fresh juices with fruit chunks and the lime juice drink which was perfect for the warm day!

And of course, a quick peek at what I wore. I paired a pastel pink skirt with a lace top on top of a pink one, which I thought worked well together and looked girly and flattering. It was also a really lovely, warm day so the skirt was ideal, it looked floaty and felt very cool on! There wasn't really a dress code other than being 'dressed-up' but since it was a summer's day, everyone ended up wearing a lot of floral dresses and soft colours which looked amazing together.

I forgot to take a full-length picture of what the bride wore, but she wore a lacy royal blue maxi dress with sparkly heels that looked fab - especially as she said she ended up picking it last minute! Here's a shot of the yummy cake as well, because who doesn't love cake?

I loved how fun this bridal shower was, it was a really lovely start to the wedding festivities and a nice way to relax with friends. Even though it was fairly low-key, the bride's best friend put a huge amount of effort into the food and decor, and I though this was a really lovely way to hold a bridal shower which was more like an elegant afternoon out!