Fashion Trends & Passions: Pashmina Shawl Statements Pieces

This is something I've been seeing a lot lately, pretty pashmina shawls being used as statement pieces. Not just any old shawls either, I've seen a whole range of embellished, embroidered and velvet ones which I love - perfect for the winter weather too!

If you haven't seen these, here are just a few examples I've seen below - I've even seen gorgeous velvet heavy shawls incorporated into wedding outfits which look amazing. I also really like the fact that some of these shawls are styled with belts for a fitted look, which look really chic - with dresses, short kameezes and even jumpsuits.

I'm really liking a lot of the trends out there at the moment which include contrasting, or making shawls pop out with bright colours against a neutral surface, which can really pull a simple outfit together.

I'm lucky enough to have quiet a few outfit which come with beautiful shawls and dupattas, which are statement pieces on their own. I always have loved the idea of a colourful dupatta with a plain kameez suit (something my sisters and I used to do a lot when we were younger! Net dupattas, anyone...?) so I love that this is back in again. I also find these quite modest - great for a draping on your shoulders or arms if you want a looser look.

I've been looking for a a reason to pull out a few of my pashminas for a while and have been playing around with a few that I already have - luckily a lot of my winter suits have beauttiful thick shawls for me to use. This is an older outfit I have from Pakistani label  Charizma, that I got the chance to make use of recently. I really like this brand because it's pretty reasonably priced, and really comfortable. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get this directly through the website (but looking at the decent prices on their website, I'm tempted to order now!) but I did order this through Brandcentral.pk who are quite reliable.

This is me wearing the outfit, I wanted to use a belt for this but thought it wouldn't go with the embroidered kameez. No heels this time, just flats and a plain hijab!

I really loved the colourful design of this outfit - I'm not sure what I like more, the outfit or the pashmina! I'm definitely going to use the shawl for a more plainer outfit though (jumpsuit, plain abayah, any ideas?) to see how it looks - I can also imagine a light simple white kameez for summer with statement shawls.

What do you think of this trend - would you wear this? There are quite a few vendors out there with these trend and it's pretty easy to put together from your own wardrobe!

DESIGNER MODE: Allechant by Sehar Khosa

I've recently fallen in love with the long, flowy and beautiful designs of Allechant, based in Pakistan, by designer Sehar Khosa. I love the beautifully made dresses, a lot of these are maxi dresses which have a very pretty cut to them, rather than a lot of designs which I've seen lately that don't really have that 'swish' to them as they don't use enough material.

This is a recent example of their heavier work at a mehndi, which I absolutely adore, I love the pretty colours which are embellished so richly. I'm waiting back on an email to the designer asking for a picture of the full outfit, so fingers crossed they'll send it (although they may not due to their own image protection policies.)

Image taken from Allechant Facebook group

There's a lot of maxi dresses by this designer, which look beautiful on and which I'd definitely recommend you to have a look at, simply because they look so elegant and well-made. They're not tremendously cheap, but the price range I'm seeing seems to start from around £200  for an average maxi dress (although the price goes up, the heavier it is, and is most likely to cost more such as the outfit above), which are still quite a reasonable prices compared to a few other designers.

I also love the fact that a lot of these outfits can be made hijab-friendly without taking the look of the outfit away, or even just made modest. I have a lot of friends (and my sisters!) who always are on the lookout for designs which they feel comfortable in, yet also glamorous, and this for me definitely fits the bill.

The group isn't just restricted to their designs either, there's snippets about celebrities, style tips and fashion ideas as well which I find makes the group interesting as it shows that the designer is trying to keep up with trends and what is popular.

What do you think of this designer's clothes? Would it be something you would consider buying?