OUTFIT OF THE DAY: The Mauve Hali H Gharara Outfit

I've already posted before about this beautiful mauve gharara outfit I got from fashion brand Hali H, which I was really happy with. I thought I'd show what the outfit actually looked like when it was on, because it's one thing seeing it on the hanger (or on my bed), and another seeing it worn! Ghararas are trending all over the place recently, and I love how they are being styled at the moment, so really wanted to try one for myself, and this fit the bill perfectly.

This is the outfit, which was a 4-piece ensemble, consisting of a beautifully embroidered short kameez, a matching full-sleeved slip for underneath, a silky jamawar gharara pants and a matching duaptta. I wore this to a wedding of a close family friend, and the outfit was perfect - dressy enough without being super heavy, comfortable and right on trend.

This is how I wore the outfit, I didn't go too much on the accessories side (although I did go for purple eyeshadow!) - I went for pretty silver bangles rather than any other jewellery, and opted for khusay, rather than my usual heels. I do love my heels but I just felt that with this outfit, the khusay completed the look perfectly, and let me walk around in the gharara a lot more comfortably.

This is how the outfit looked on me, which looked very flowy and girly. It took me a while to get the hang of the pants and not trip on them, but I really loved how gorgeous they looked, and how elegant. I have always loved wearing lengha outfits and this felt the same - very dressy, elegant and perfect for the occasion.

Outfit - Hali H

Khussay - Green Street
Rayon Hijab - Inayah Collection

Clutch bag - Dune London

Bangles - Bees

One of the things that I liked about this outfit is that it is such a throwback to earlier generations - my husband loved the colour of this outfit, although he said he couldn't believe how old-school and vintage this outfit looked, and kept remarking that it looked like something from our parents' generation. I couldn't wait to show this to my mum when I got this outfit because I knew it would be something she would love - and indeed when she saw it on the day of the wedding, she laughed and said she couldn't believe this was in fashion now.

My sisters and I have often found that it has become more difficult to find outfits which are both reasonably priced and good quality - often you get one or or the other! One of the things I really liked about this outfit was that it really does tick all the boxes - trendy yet classic, beautiful colour, comfortable, easy to style and looked great on. I'm already thinking of how else I can wear the outfit (I'm imaging the top with plain, tapered trousers maybe) and the fact that I can dress this up or down.

What do you think of this outfit - would you wear a gharara?

Eid Mubarak - Our Eid Day...!

Eid Mubarak guys! 

I've finally got a chance to sit down and post about my Eid day, although unfortunately I didn't take as many pictures on the day as I wanted! You can check out my sisters' blogs here and here for when they post their pictures, so keep an eye out on theirs too.

First up, what I ended up wearing: My sister and I went shopping a few times locally and I also looked online for outfit ideas - we both found that there's a huge range of styles in at the moment - florals, frills, bell-sleeves, pearls, maxi dresses, flared trousers, kimonos and so much more, which meant there was a lot of choice, and made us feel a little overloaded in styles. I was pretty much open to any ideas, and didn't have anything specific in mind, which made my shopping trips easier, and meant I was less fussy about what to look at.

I ended up buying a jacket-and-kameez outfit from a local boutique called Golden Zari, which had some very pretty outfits, and is quite a popular place for formals for weddings. I haven't worn coral-orange before, and loved the beautiful embroidery on this jacket, which is actually quite heavily embellished with pearls, beading, metal-work and sequins all over the front and back too. I forgot to take a picture of the back, but here's the outfit - a short kameez and jacket style with tapered trousers.

And of course I couldn't resist posting some close-ups! I wanted to also show the gorgeous clutch bag (which was so teeny it only fit my lipstick) thatI pulled out for Eid, and my floral mehndi which I managed to do the night before Eid!

I'm pretty gutted that I didn't get any pictures of my sisters or sister-in-law at all - they all had beautiful outfits on, which looked very on-trend and colourful. I have got some pictures of all the toddler nieces looking gorgeous though, in lovely party dresses!

My mum opted for her favourite soft colours - a spring green and pink, while my niece looked  very cool in a gold kurta, paired with tan and black accessories - giving me a run for my money there with that pose!

The girls all had lovely mehndi on their hands too - I wish I had taken pictures of the little girls' hands, but these are my sister's and niece's hands which looked lovely.

My sister brought gorgeous rainbow glittery Eid cupcakes for us to enjoy on the day (cue us taking ten thousands pictures of cakes in different angles) which was a lovely touch, perfect for dessert after a huge Eid lunch!

One of the things we all enjoy about the lead-up to Eid is getting Eid presents for the kids - they look forward to opening them and we love seeing happy they get. They all got quite a haul this year, and of course my sisters and I overloaded each other with makeup and chocolates!

We had a fab Eid, the kids got balloons (half of which flew away in the sky) and spent the day in my mum's garden picking the cherries off a very ripe cherry tree and filling up buckets!

I have a few events and weddings up coming this month (July will be a pretty busy month!) so can't wait to post more pictures - so watch this space!

I hope you all had a lovely Eid weekend - what did you wear?

OUTFIT OF THE DAY: The HSY Orange & Purple Lawn Outfit

Now that the weather has been quite warm the last few weeks, it's been a perfect opportunity to make the most of it and pull out my summer outfits and lawn pieces which have been hiding in my wardrobe. I have a good mix of short kurtas, slightly older designer lawn outfits and pretty kimonos, so am looking forward to getting use out of them!

This is something I wore not too long ago, which is actually a pretty old outfit from Pakistani designer label HSY. I bought this outfit from an online Facebook group which unfortunately no longer operates, but which I manage to get for a good deal, and have gotten good wear out of!

This is the outfit below, it's pretty colourful in orange and purple and not the usual colour combination I would go for, I quite like it in this and it's pretty easy to wear.

I don't tend to wear a lot of jewellery when it's hot, so decided to keep this look simple with these colourful threaded bangles that my mother-in-law bought my from Pakistan a while back, and some easy, comfortable sandal flats - perfect for summer!

This is the outfit on me, as you can see it's a slightly older style in that the outfit is longer in hem-length, but I like how girly this looks and how comfortable. My only pet peeve with lawn is that it wrinkles very easily - as you can see from some of the rumples below! I did love the beautiful embroidered dupatta with this though, which made a lovely statement piece.

Outfit - HSY via Facebook

Sandals - Steve Madden

Bangles - Pakistan 

I haven't updated my summer wardrobe in a while, but I have managed to get a few pieces in the last few weeks while looking for Eid outfits! I try to keep an eye out for simple, printed pieces which last well and look good on, which is probably why I've kept this HSY outfit for as many years as I have! Plus I like the fact that this piece still looks by today's trends, and it's nice and colourful for summer : )

OUTFIT OF THE DAY: Peach & Orchid Purple Spring Vibes

One of my favourite things about spring and it getting warmer (in terms of fashion, that is!) is all the pretty florals, pastels and spring colours that come out of the wardrobe (and all over my instagram feed!) As much as I love cosying up to my blankets and having a good book to read when it's freezing outside, I am glad that it's starting to brighten up and slowly get warm again. The last few weeks (apart from the horrible rain) has been a lovely excuse to dress more girly and pull out some colourful outfits (and also brighten up my blogs a little!)

Hubby and I were invited to a family dinner about a week ago, which gave  me the perfect opportunity to rifle through my wardrobe for something a little different. I came up with this outfit that was given to me by one of my sisters, and stitched from loose fabric. The colour isn't something I'd normally go for - I usually love my rich dark colours, or my pastels, so the peach and purple is a little different for me. The outfit was stitched to a short-kameez style, and came with churidar pants (which I'm not a huge fan of, but it looked really cute with this outfit. I even tried peach wide pants with this outfit to see if that looked better, but it didn't!)

This is the outfit below, and how what I wore with it. I picked out silver embroidery with the bangles and shoes, and also finished off with a lilac hijab. You can see it's a little matchy-matchy with the colours, but I like it!

This is the outfit itself - the fabric itself wasn't too expensive and I've seen a variety of this design in lots of local shops (I'm pretty sure my mum has something like this too!). The thing I liked about this the most was how girly and comfortable it was - chiffon isn't usually the best of fabrics for outfits like this but this was quite sturdy.

And here's me wearing it (you can't tell in the first picture but I had a really awkward look on my face from a passerby walking past and clearly wondering what was happening!)

Outfit - Unstitched fabric made by a tailor

Bangles - Bees Jewellery

Shoes - River Island

Hijab - Aatiya London

I loved wearing this outfit because the colours were a little different to my usual tastes, and it also felt very fresh and girly on. As much as I love following fashion trends and do try to update my wardrobe when I can, every now and then I want a random change from my usual tastes and go for something different. It was also nice to have something inexpensive which had a pretty classic feel to it - I can imagine wearing this in the 90s, as well as in a few years time!

The only headache with tailoring unstitched clothes is that although sometimes it is cheaper (but not always!), getting a decent tailor is pretty hard work! My sisters and I grew up with my mum sewing our clothes for us, so we have a pretty high standard when it comes to outfits, and it can be difficult to find a tailor who can do what we want without charging us extortionate prices!

I'm hoping to have a few more outfits like this for summer (although I'll also be keeping an eye out for the next trends too!). What do you think of this - do you like the colour?

Happy New Year!…2017

Here’s wishing you all a year full of love, light and unicorn sparkles!

Here's hoping 2017 is a fresh start for us, with lots of new food, places and clothes to discover :)

Love, Curly Fries xxx

Eid Mubarak & Hajj Mubarak 2016...!

I've had a lovely, long busy weekend and have enjoyed Eid thoroughly - so of course I'll be posting plenty of pictures!

Here's a sneak peek of what I wore, hope you enjoyed your Eid and here's hoping those who were lucky enough to make the Hajj pilmgrimage will have their prayers and Hajj accepted.

Love,
Curly Fries xx

Eid Mubarak!

Wishing everyone a beautiful Eid Mubarak, with lots of food, beautiful outfits, laughter with friends and family and lots of blessed memories.

Love, Curly Fries xxx

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!

OUTFIT OF THE DAY: The Blush Pink and Jamawar Outfit

A close friend of mine got engaged a few weeks ago, and also did her nikah on the same day, so celebrated with a reception party with her family and friends. Apart from being pleased for her (which I was!) I was pretty glad because it gave me the chance to pull out an outfit I'd been wanting to wear for a while.

Below is the outfit with what I wore (which I've laid out very artfully here) - I kept it simple with the shades of pinks and silver accents. For some reason the jamawar-printed trousers look gold in all of my pictures - it was actually a very pale pink with silver print, so it did go with the outfit, not to worry!

The kameez was taken from my Eid outfit which I wore last year, and the trousers were rose pink ones which I had bought separately from a local shop, which I had not had the chance to wear yet.

I love the details which are in the outfit and the trousers - the kameez has pearl details and silver threadwork mixed with metal-work, while the trousers were a very pretty shade of pink with fine print work on it. The only thing I wish the trousers had (which it didn't) were pearl buttons on the cuff, but I can always sew these on another day!

I paired the outfit with matching pastel pink pumps and simple silver bangles from Bees, as well as a sparkly diamonte silver clutch bag, which pulled the outfit together well. I also matched a silk oyster-coloured off-white scarf to the outfit, even though the whole outfit was pink it went better with the off-white scarf, rather than clashing with a peach or coral shade.

Kameez - Designed by myself and stitched by a local tailor

Trousers - RDC London

Heels - Office

Clutch bag -  Not a clue! Bought for my brother's wedding

Bangles - Bees

Off-white hijab scarf - Inayah Collection

And of course my post wouldn't  be complete without a close up of bangles and shoes! I love my gold-coloured jewellery and kundan statement pieces, but this was more of a classic, silver look which you can't go wrong with. Simple but sparkly, perfect for an Asian wedding!

I loved wearing this outfit (even if it does look a little off in the pictures!) and was glad that I could mix'n'match something which went well together. I got a lot of compliments from friends and other wedding guest, and it was something which was very comfortable. Although I'm still getting used to the shorter hem-line look of some kameezes, I'm liking the difference in look and the fact that it's easy to move around in, looks chic and is very easy to put together.

Here's a quick picture of the bride's outfit too, I can't post the whole thing, but here's a little peek. I LOVED the colours of her outfit, which was a traditional sari in a rich blue and gold - perfect for an evening event. There was something 'Devdas' about the whole look (perhaps Aishwariya in that rich-blue sari from the film?) but it was also very classic, and went well with the gold jewellery she had on.

The main wedding event is in a couple of months so I'll be sure to post about that when it happens - but it was a lovely start to the wedding and an evening I really enjoyed!