OUTFIT OF THE DAY: My Mother's Watermelon Shawl

I've always said that I get my fashion tastes from my mother, and sometimes I've gotten my outfit ideas from her too!

My mother has a much more amazing wardrobe than I do, and she's lucky enough to either have new clothes sent to her from family in Pakistan, or she brings back a few collections for herself on her yearly trips to Pakistan!

One of the other things she has that I love is her collection of beautiful shawls and scarves - they're bought from all over the places, whether it's from Pakistan or Saudi, or just high street stores like M&S and John Lewis.

I borrowed my mum's shawl not too long ago to complete my outfit - this beautiful watermelon print to go with my plain navy shirt dress and navy palazzo trousers. I love that the stripes and fruit/florals are very in right now - I've seen dresses in this kind of print on the high street and catwalks, and it's perfect for summer.

This is the shawl I wore with my outfit (although looking at this picture, the shirt dress and palazzos remind me a little of a lacha!), the shawl made a beautiful statement piece and it's amazing how one piece can make a whole outfit!

RE-INVENT YOUR WARDROBE #4: Add a Shawl to your Outfit

I've already posted before about the shawl trend, and how much I love it, and it got me thinking about the different ways I've seen this being worn. I love that it's a perfect accessory - ideal in the winter months for keeping us warms, and also making an inexpensive statement piece to jazz up a simple outfit.
I thought I'd play around with the pashminas in my wardrobe to see what kind of outfits and stylings I could create (I meant to raid my mum's cupboard for this post because she has beautiful shawls, but I forgot!) I came up with a few variations and tried them out - let me know what you think of these.

So here are a few ideas on how to wear a pashmina...

1. With a jumpsuit
I love wearing jumpsuits (even if my sister does say they look like baby's onesies), and have seen a few dressy jumpsuits being worn at weddings and Eid which look incredibly stylish. I've been keeping an eye out for a jumpsuit for myself, and I don't have a dressy one yet, but I do have a few western-style ones which work just as well.

This is a wide-legged jumpsuit (I love wide-leg jumpsuits!) I styled with a colourful pashmina and a gold belt - I was initially going to try a plain shiny black belt but loved how the gold one looked. I loved this look, and think it would be perfect for summer-time too.

Jumpsuit - Aab Collection

Shawl - Charizma

Belt - Instagram seller

2. With a kameez suit
I have a lot of simple kameez outfits which are ideal for weekends and casual events, but it's always nice to add a little elegance to it. because I wear a hijab, I don't always add a dupatta to the outfit, especially if it looks more casual without it - but I love how simply adding a printed shawl to this outfit made it look so much more stylish. The shawl I added here was just a simple one I bought from a local market but it really pulled the outfit together.

Kameez suit - Pakistan

Shawl - Queens Market, Green Street

Shoes - Love Label

3. With a maxi dress or abayah
I don't wear abayas, but I thought it would look similar to an maxi dress in the length of the outfit and the shape (although maxi dresses are more fitted, of course). I tried out a colourful maxi dupatta for this outfit, from one of my heavier suits and liked the effect when I added it to a simple navy dress. I've tried it in two different ways below - one simply draped on the left, and secondly on the right a more fitted look with a belt. I think this would have worked better with a dressier maxi dress, but I liked the look, and I think both would be ideal for summer or even for an alternative outfit at a mehndi event!

Maxi dress - Notting Hill

Dupatta - RDC London (part of an unstitched suit)

Shoes - Primark

4. With a tunic shirt and jeans
I was a bit unsure on how else to style a pashmina, until it hit me that I should try it with my every day clothes - jeans and a shirt! They say the 90s and 80s are in fashion at the moment, and I definitely remember my sisters used to throw a shawl over their dresses and tops with jeans in the 90s. So I thought I'd give this a shot and see if it would still look good (hey, fashion trends are cyclical!) and mixed one of my more colourful shawls with my shirts.

I love how vibrant the shawl looks against the simple white, and it definitely gives that fusion of east-meets-west. Again, I styled this in more than one way and loved all of them (I think the middle is my favourite, though) - and looks great whether you wear a hijab or not. I think this is a nice way to make an outfit modest, as well as give it a little colour - I also like that it adds a little uniqueness to an outfit simply by making it more vibrant.

Shirt dress - Inayah Collection

Jeans - H&M

Shawl - Gul Ahmed

I had a lot of fun playing around with these shawls and outfits, and will certainly be trying more. I would loved to have tried more styles like a pashmina with a sari (which I have seen before) but I'm terrible with wearing saris so didn't try to attempt it!

Let me know what you think of these, and which one you liked best - I think I'm loving the jumpsuit style best!

DESIGNER MODE: Farrah Naaz Clothing

I'm always looking for new designers who have their finger on the latest fashion pulse, and can provide Pakistani outfits which are fashionable and still wearable. I know I'm not the only one, as I'm always being asked by friends, family and of course, readers, for recommendations of clothes vendors, whether it is making orders online or buying from local retailers on the high street.

The problem I'm often finding these days is that while I love the range of designs on the catwalk and Pakistani designers these days, I can't always afford the hefty price tag. And similarly, while the trends of the high street are beginning to catch up with the latest fashion, they're either too expensive or don't always have quite the thing we are looking for.

I recently came across bespoke designer and business owner Farrah Naaz, who specialises in fusion fashion which caters for all tastes. I met Farrah last year and looked over her gorgeous collection, and loved what I saw - affordable fashion from single-piece kurtas, pants and shawls to full 3 or 4-piece formal outfits.

Like me, Farrah loves her designer wear, but is realistically aware that it's not economically viable for most consumers (like me!) to have or afford a wardrobe full of it.

Farrah Naaz Clothing is designed by Farrah herself, and made by a specialised team based in Lahore, which is where the designer sources her fabrics, work and stitching from. Most of her outfits are bespoke as well as ready-to-buy, and she also does heavier outfits which she designs with her customers for their satisfaction.

Here's a few of her pieces that I loved, these two that are probably among my favourites:

I love the workmanship on both of these outfits, as well as the beautiful embroidery and colours which work well together. Definitely on my wish-list!

The other piece I loved from this collection were the capes, which are very in fashion right now with Pakistani fashion. Farrah's designs are in beautiful colours and come with a slip and trousers for a very chic look - another piece which is on my wish-list.

I also loved this fusion dress, with it's zebra print fabric mixed with pretty floral embroidery, which makes for a really versatile piece.

Of course for those looking for something more simple, there's also single-piece kurtas and shirts, which range from the more casual to the more dressy, and really capture the latest trends.

These are also some of Farrah's heavier formal pieces, both of which I love the designs of because of the beautiful work and gorgeous colours. I also really like how wearable and modest both designs are - I can easily imagine wearing either to a family wedding!

For an idea of prices, roughly they are:

• Kurtas and tops start from £15
• Suits from £75
• Capes from £95
• Party wear from £115
• Heavier formal range from £315 upwards

For anyone looking for Pakistani labels as well, Farrah has also liased with with Gul Ahmed Ideas of Pakistan and brought in their latest collections which she is now selling. She also stocks Khaadi and Limelight pret and ready-wear as well as fabrics which are designed and tailored by her team.

Gul Ahmed autumn collection

I'm really glad that there's a designer out there which is UK-based and has affordable outfits, which are very in-touch with the latest trends. It's easy to fall in love with outfits on the catwalks but these can't always be found in the shops, and I know not everyone wants to order outfits online as they aren't always sure how safe it is or what the end product will be.

I'll be placing an order with Farrah soon (I'm still deciding what to get!) and posting another review of the outfit I get, but I'm really loving the range available as well as the very reasonable prices!

  

Farrah is based in Upper Norwood, Croydon, London and viewings can be done by appointment. You can contact her and view her collections on the links below:

www.facebook.com/farrahnaazclothing

www.instagram.com/farrah_naaz

www.farrahnaaz.com

Tel: 07766563911

Make-It-Yourself-Fashion: DIY Your Own Shirt-Dress

I've mentioned before that I love the latest trend of shirt-dresses, and the fact that this seems to be a trend in quite a few stores on the high street.

Although I love the fact that most of these shirts have long sleeves or are modest enough to be layered without looking awkward, I've found that there isn't enough variety out there. I've seen a lot of plain dresses and a few floral ones, but I couldn't see anything which was colourful or a little different, so I got the idea of making my own shirt dress. I've been veering towards making my own designs anyway, since I've been looking for something more unique, and thought I'd experiment a little with what I find.

I've grown up being comfortable with home-made outfits - my mum is an excellent tailor and having a sewing machine in the house was normal in our neighbourhood (a lot of our aunts used to sew as well or work for local warehouses and factories from home). It's strange to see how times have changed; when we were younger we used to get our mums to sew our salwar kameezes from fabrics bought from a local shop or market, usually with minimal work, and either wore the plainer ones at home as casual outfits, or the fancier ones for special events. These days no one does this, 'ready-'made' outfits, which was more of a luxury back then, is now the norm - it's not worth buying nice fabric if you have to spend extra to get it made as well!

Lucky for me, my mum's pretty experienced when it comes to making clothes, although as she's gotten older she sews less and either uses a local tailor, or buys us ready-made outfits from the shop or from Pakistan. Having said that, she'll still turn her hand at making the odd abayah or dress.

I'm always wandering around local shops and markets, Green Street's famous Queens Market has an amazing stall with beautiful fabrics, there's another good market my mum recommends in Romford, and there's always odd fabric shops dotted around in local areas.

I wanted something floral, so had a look around different places to get an idea of prints - these are just some of the ones I found that I loved.

These are some of the fabrics I ended up buying, you can see they're all floral prints in different colours and styles, I wanted light cotton and polyester fabrics which would be ideal for warmer weather, especially because it can be difficult to know how to dress modestly and still wear light outfits when it gets hot.

I decided to make the light green floral one on the left first  - can you believe this fabric only cost me £3?!

I gave the fabric to my mum, who in all honesty, made the outfit for me. I wanted to make the majority of it, but I didn't do much in the end (mostly because she made the whole thing in a day and didn't want to wait for me!)

She made it in a straight-shirt style, the front being higher than the bottom, with buttons along the front and full sleeves. She didn't add a collar to this one, mainly because I hate wearing collars with a scarf (one of the reasons I hardly wear smart shirts!), and also so the top wouldn't be too bulky. The actual fabric is very light and sheer as well, so the material was not structured enough to be shaped into a collar. I did love the buttons on this though, they're big and chunky, and look pretty striking against the fabric. Again, these buttons were from my mum's collection of buttons!

I was really happy that my mum made this in time for me to take it on holiday with me to Greece - it was just perfect for the weather because it was so light. The shirt itself was quite sheer so I still had to wear a top under it, but it didn't feel too layered and I think it worked quite well.

This is me wearing it on holiday, it was a pretty good fit (which sounds obvious, seeing as it was tailored for me!) and was loose enough to feel breezy and comfortable.

EVALUATION: Although I didn't make this shirt-dress myself, I was really happy with how it came out. I didn't need much fabric (I bought 3 metres to be on the safe side, and probably only used about 2 metres). The actual structure of this shirt was very simple - it's literally three pieces for the body, and two sleeves. I've already worn it about 4 times since I made it last month, and it's perfect modest-wear for me - long and loose.

I also like the fact that this was so cheap, and you won't find this anywhere else! Having said that, I know how easy it is to not bother with making outfits from fabric - I still have printed fabrics that I've bought and never got made from laziness or just the fact that getting it tailored is costly.

I'll be trying another outfit soon to make, and will definitely post results of the next one.

What do you think of making your own outfit - would you try it?

KAPRAY SHAPRAY: The Maxi Shirt Dress Trend

I've been seeing a big trend recently of maxi shirts and maxi shirt dresses recently, following on from the kimonos and long jackets I've been seeing. The thing I love about this is how easy the maxi shirts are for people like me to wear, who look for long-length dresses and tops which feel more modest and are amazingly comfortable.

I've seen these hitting the high street over the last few months now, and love the styles that are out there - a lot of them do remind me of kameezes though! 90s fashion seems to be hitting the industry - first with the marsala colours and the dark, brown lipsticks, and now these flippy shirts which were big in that decade.

Here's a few examples I've seen on the high street, and which are available to buy at present - there's lots more but the main similarities I've seen are the long styles with slits on the sides, some with buttons and some without.

I saw a really pretty floral print maxi shirt in high street store H&M, and snapped it up, as it looked perfect - it's long, has full sleeves and is very easy to wear. I wore this on a day out a few weeks ago and found it idea for the warm weather, it's slightly sheer so I wore a vest under my shirt and accessorised with a maxi cardigan, but I loved the look.

I've seen a lot of girls wearing this, and I'm not surprised, it's comfortable and it's a good intermediate for those who want to wear modest clothes or want to transition to to longer hemlines before they start wearing an abaya. And of course, it's very flattering on the figure, it certainly made me look slimmer and longer!

It's also given me the idea to make one of my own pieces like this. I haven't been able to find more printed long shirts like this that I like, there are a lot of plain ones out there and quite frankly, a lot of them were quite boring! So I've been hitting the local fabric stores and markets for some pretty, printed fabrics, and I've already seen a few that I like which I want to get stitched for summer. I'll be sure to post the results of any dresses I end up making, I love the idea of making my own and having a more of a unique touch, and would love to see what I end up with.

OUTFIT OF THE DAY: The Mint Green Maxi Dress

I've had this dress for a while, and haven't gotten much wear out of it for a while (by which I mean, at least a couple of years!) and remembered it while going through my wardrobe a week or two ago. I bought this outfit from Bombay Looks based in East London, which carried this outfit in quite a few colours - I seen a variation of this through the last couple of years in the shops, and I think there's still similar looking maxi dresses in the store now.

I was quite pleased that it still fit me (it was a little loose on me when I bought it), and it's in a lovely shade of mint/sea-green which is a perfect colour for this season and for summer. The best thing about this dress is that even though there's not a lot of work, and it's not heavy, the skirt has a lot of material and it's very swishy. It also didn't need anything underneath as it came to below my ankles and the dupatta which came with it came in handy to wear as a hijab scarf.

Here's me twirling around, I was trying to show much much volume the skirt had, and how flattering it was - it really felt effortless on. The dress was originally sleeveless, so I had long sleeves sewn on in the same colour, which really made a difference to the dress and gave it a more modest look - which I was relieved with, as there are some sleeveless dresses which just don't work with sleeves!

I'm sure you can tell I had a lot of fun wearing this dress, and took the opportunity to do a few girly twirls in it. I love the fact that it elongated my figure as well, making me look taller and slimmer, as well as the fact that it didn't need much accessorising at all.

It's not often I get to wear maxi dresses, and I'm sure I'll be getting more wear out of this during the summer - this shade of green is very on trend at the moment, and it's very easy to wear. I usually have a separate dupatta with my outfits as well as my hijab scarf, but with this dress I didn't feel the need, it felt more of a Westernised dress and was quite flowy enough that it didn't need another scarf!

OUTFIT OF THE DAY: Jumpsuits and Jackets

I've been looking out for a decent jumpsuit for a little while, and while I've seen a few designer ones, some within my budget and some a bit higher, I've been wondering whether it was worth the cost of buying a whole new outfit - particularly for a fashion trend which isn't exactly a classic look the way a kameez might be.

I've been trying to avoid buying new outfits if I didn't need to, partly because I don't get to re-wear a lot of my outfits, and partly to save money/wardrobe space. I also am a big advocate of re-wearing, re-using and re-inventing outfits, and I always try to do this with my own wardrobe in a way that my outfits look a little different each time I wear them!

So naturally when I was thinking of getting a jumpsuit/jacket combination, I realised that I already had the basics in my wardrobe. Remember this jumpsuit from my hen night and the jacket from this Eid out? Well, I'd been wondering whether I could combine the two for a hijab-friendly, Pakistani style outfit, and decided to try it the next time I had an evening out.

These are the two outfits, the jacket came with an inner slip and churidar pants, from a shop in Green Street which I'll never remember the name of (and which my husband bought for me the Eid before we got married!); and the jumpsuit was just a basic black one from Zara, although I've seen cheaper ones of these in River Island, New Look and even Primark.

 

This is how I wore it, I styled it with a jewel red hijab and paired with plain red court heels. I love wearing this shade of red and never get to wear it enough (especially red scarves, which I'm a little conscious of because it's so bright and risks making my face look a bit pink!).

It's not ENTIRELY hijab-friendly because the jumpsuit was fitted, although the jacket hides the curves a little and the legs at least are baggy. I also adjusted the arms by wearing sleeves with them (they're basically fabric tubes for your arms, literally sleeves by themselves), which I always use with short-sleeved tops because it makes a difference instead of having to layer too much, or wearing a long-sleeved t-shirt underneath. Very useful for summer times!

 

Jumpsuit - Zara

Jacket - Green Street

Shoes - New Look

Hijab - Local market

I LOVED how easy this outfit was to put together, and how effective it looked. Everything I'm wearing in this outfit was something I already had, and can easily be found on the high street in some version or another. I've tried this with another hot pink jacket that I have, and it looked pretty good too (although a little bright), and it's a good way to re-use old outfits.

I also like the fusion of East-meets-West with this look as well, there's no need for a dupatta, and it's easy to glam it up a little with a statement necklace or bangles, ideal for a night out.

What do you think of this look? Would you try it out?

Dian Pelangi's Hijab Styling Workshop at London Fashion Week

I've been busy for a few days, this week, but I haven't been lazy! I managed to catch a Hijab Styling Workshop a few days ago with reknowned Indonesian designer Dian Pelangi, as part of a showcase for London Fashion Week. It was a very last-minute, unplanned trip which I managed to go to because I was in the area anyway, but it was a great opportunity to meet other bloggers, photographers and designers and certainly other hijabi fashionistas!

I 've been following Dian Pelangi for a couple of years now, her designs are beautiful and very, very hijab-friendly, and I love the amazing fabrics, embroidery and cuts she uses. I also love the fact that each of her designs are unique from the next, and that no two design are ever the same, with a very eclectic boho-chic style to it - you can check out some of her designs here and her Instagram page here.

Part of Dian Pelangis' appeal is that she not only designs her outfits, but acts as stylist as well, and also showcases and models her outfits and designs herself as well. She's certainly built up a following from her style, which I can see is part of the ever-growing market of modest fashion and hijab styling which is becoming very big these days.

This is Dian Pelangi at the show wearing one of her latest designers from her 2015 collection, I love that it's a maxi dress that can be compared to Pakistani fashion - I can certainly imagine wearing this to a wedding function!

During the workshop, Dian showed a few ways that of tying hijabs and scarves, in a turban style, a looser draped style, and the more Arab styles as well. I don't have clear pictures because the lighting wasn't great, and the I didn't have my DSLR, and I didn't get to make a video either, but I'm sure you can find the videos online in a few days! I did manage to speak to the designer after her show to compliment her though, and also managed to get a close-up photo of her two beautful models, who were also wearing Dian's designs.

After the workshop, I also had a look at the designs on display at the exhibition in the building, which was very interesting because it had designs from all over the world.

I even managed to find a contribution from a Pakistani designer, Hamza Bokhari, whose design combined Western Style with beautiful Eastern embroidery.

I also managed to meet a few well-known bloggers who were attending the show to support Dian Pelangi, and managed a quick chat with some of them. Below are the bloggers and hijab stylists I met, I didn't get to speak to everyone and I'm sure there were a lot more:

Amena of Pearl Daisy
Yasmine of Yaz the Spaz
Nadine of Nadoona
Fatima of Muslimah Style Guide

There were definitely a few more (and I'll update as I remember!) but these were the ones I remember most, all very lovely women who were very friendly, and very helpful when speaking to them about blogging!

I definitely had a good time, it was nice to meet other bloggers and I certainly spotted plenty of style. It was a bit of a last-minute dash from work for me, and I'd like to go to a longer event in future, but it's good to see how big the modest-wear market is getting, and the different women who are part of it.