My Eid - Eid with the family!

We had a lovely Eid celebration this week, wand it felt like a busy one with lots of family and guest all congregating my my mum's! We had a fantastic meal (as always) cooked by my mum, with lots of giggling children, dressing up, photo-taking and gifts, made complete with some sunshine!

For Eid this year I wore this gorgeous peach suit from Pakistani label Sapphire Pakistan, which my husband picked up from Pakistan a couple of months ago. I absolutely loved the colours when I first saw it, and thought the work on it was really decent quality. I'm a fan of Sapphire Pakistan, and it was one of the places I asked my husband to stop at while in Pakistan - I only wish I had bought more of their pieces! I also loved that it came with a lovely silky dupatta, which had a pretty print on it, and both the dupatta and the suit were embellished with pearls. What I particularly liked was how well stitched the outfit was, and the fact that the pearls were sewn on properly - no half-hanging-by-the-thread pearls or damaged seams!

I also thought I'd make an effort this year wear some decent jewellery too (in past Eids I've worn minimal jewellery pieces!). So on one hand I wore some pretty glass bangles with pearls all over from Pakistan, which came from my mum, while on the other hand I wore a 'haath panja (a hand harness) piece which was sent to me by my mother in law. I loved how these looked, and they went wonderfully against my outfit.

As usual, the kids in the family bought the outfit game and rocked it - I loved all of what they wore. There was a lovely mix too, two wore pretty ghararas, one of my nieces wore an Afghan-style dress from Pakistan, and two wore party dresses! And of course, they all wore the cutest shoes!

Here's a peek at some of the food we had - this is only one table (we had another one full of more food!) and which we fully enjoyed. Even though it was straight after a month of fasting in Ramadan and we were stuffed, we ate well and enjoyed it!

My sisters and I have created a tradition of gifts over the years, if not always for each other, then we try to get them for the kids of the family. It's well worth it when we see how excited they get, and gives them something to look forward to as well! This year I received an abundance of chocolate and makeup. One quirky present we all liked was pretty mugs for each of us with our initial on it, which was a nice idea.

Eid was a fun day for us, full of silly jokes, games and of course sweet treats. We usually try to spend the next day doing Eid too but some of us had work the next day, and a lot of us wanted to catch up on sleep, getting energy back and get into routine again after all the madness!

BOLLYWOOD ISHTYLE: Alia Bhatt's Vintage Wedding Outfits in Raazi

I'm a bit late for this one, as the film came out about 10 months ago! I thought I'd post about the outfits from Bollywood hit Raazi, starring Alia Bhatt as a spy called Sehmat, as I loved the outfits she wore. The costume designers were Maxima Basu and Bhagyashree Dattatreya Rajurkar, who have designed for other period movies (think Padhmavaat!) so it's not surprising these are pretty.

The first outfit was the Sehmat's wedding gharara, which is vintage gorgeousness! The film is set in the 70s, and I love how the outfits reflect this (not to mention this faux wedding photo below!)

I loved the details of this outfit, not to mention the contrasting green dupatta, , the gota kaam (the gold fabric sewn on), and the beautiful jewellery. I'm sure my mum would be able to relate to a lot of these pieces, as a lot of it is reminiscent of her time (although perhaps some of this is a little more glamorous that some brides at that time!). The makeup is dressy without being too much, and works well with the red lips.

The next outfit is the sari worn in the bride's 'rukhsati' or 'bidaai' scene, which is when she is leaving her parents to go to her new home.The character wears a simple baby pink and light blue sari, which is accessorised with a separate dupatta for her head, as well as pretty jewels. I thought this was more cute than gorgeous, but it does go with the Alia's look for the movie, and certainly does look a little 70s to me!

What did you think of the costumes in this movie? And did you like the gharara or the sari more?

BRIDAL COUTURE: Yellow and Pearl Inspiration by Samreen Vance and Dhaani Official

This is a campaign I came across recently, which caught my eye because of the unusual colour combination - but it was one I really liked! Pakistani model and actress Sara Loren modelled for Samreen Vance jewelry company, and Dhaani Official (who outfitted her) and I love the results. There was a heavy presence of yellow to compliment the jewels, which I think looks stunning - yellow and grey, as well as yellow and orange, which make perfect mehndi bridal inspiration!

The jewels are mainly kundan (gemstone) and pearl, with a vintage look to some of the pieces. I'm not a fan of overly embellished naaths (nose-rings) as I'm a fan of the delicate, thin ones, but I love these pieces - each one looks elegant without being overly blingy (although I think this is helped by the makeup being balance well with the jewellery).

I'm also a fan of the outfits themselves - the colour combinations look beautiful together, particularly the grey and yellow (although my sister did once say the combo reminds her of boiled eggs!). Each outfit is quite vibrant but also has a slightly 60s look to it, with mirror work, beading and gota work (the strips of material sewn on in patterns) that reminds me of an older era.

What do you think of these colours - would you wear them? A campaign I really like - where the jewels are equally as gorgeous as the outfits!

Sukhman & Hernoor - A Floral Boutique

It's great when your favourite bloggers and fashion influences put their hard work towards something beautiful and create something that we can all have. Two of my favourite influencers, Sukhman and Hernoor have put their amazing tastes and creativity to use, and have launched a beautiful collection of outfits through their new brand, Sukhman & Hernoor. Each item of their collection is carefully designed, with hand-selected fabrics and gorgeous cuts, and is a beautiful fusion of Indian and British tastes to suit everyone.

"Sukhman & Hernoor offers a range of ready-made apparel designed by the Grewal Twins with a spirit of understated simplicity and elegance.

Their dual identity as British Indians, their affinity for travelling, and the diversity of cultures in their home city of London all play their respective roles when it comes to taking the sister's style ideas to the design drawing board.

Each fabric is hand-selected by Sukhman & Hernoor and all garments are exclusively designed and made with care and precision in London, UK."

One of the things I really like about this brand is how much care has gone into designing and creating the outfits in the collections - you can see how much love and work has gone into it, and for me, it makes such a difference to have a unique outfit than just an ordinary mass-produced outfit. Each of the outfits from this brand have their own story - perfect for special occasions.

Here are two outfits I've seen which are love - both are beautiful outfits which I loved as soon as I saw them.

Firstly is the Gulbargh collection's Rose Garden Dress, which is beautiful floral print maxi dress. If you know me, you will know I love my maxi dresses, and I love floral ones even more - so this is right up my street.

One of the things I love about this dress is how elegant yet simple it looks - it's all about the cut and the luxuriousness of the fabric - I can imagine this being perfect for a summer wedding, or a registry outfit to make for an elegant look.

Secondly is the Gulbargh's collection the Rose Garden Sharara, which harks back to the vintage years, and also reminds me a little of the 'Pakeezah' style years in old-era India, which you just can't go wrong with. As with the previous dress, the beautiful floral and roses print looks lovely - perfect for a daytime summer wedding!

BRB, trying to convince my husband to hand over his debit card.

The brand also did a collaboration with jewellery company Sahib Jewels recently, which was a beautiful photoshoot of gorgeous jewellery to set off their beautiful floral collection. I really like that the pictures below show how well the jewellery and the outfits work, and make a classic look which can be dressed up or down for a beautiful look. I also love how the outfits and jewellery speak for themselves, and look seriously glamorous.

I'll be looking forward to seeing what this brand grows into, especially when two seriously talented people like Sukhman and Hernoor are at the forefront! I love that this is something which is so culturally relatable for me - not just Punjabi, or Asian, but also as something which reminds me of our roots and our fusion tastes - both British and Asian. I also really love that these outfits are pretty modest, which is always a worry for me - but in this case I can easily see myself in these!

Social Media links

Instagram page - SukhmanHernoor
Facebook page - Sukhman & Hernoor
Email - mail@sukhmanhernoor

Eid Mubarak...!

Eid Mubarak all, and hope it's been a fab weekend! I've been loving all the outfits I've seen people wear on Facebook and Instagram, and can't wait to post my photos!

Hope you all had a lovely celebration, and wishing you all a wonderful weekend of food, family and fun this Eid!

Love, Curly Fries xx

Saverah Women Expo '17

I recently attended the Saverah Women Expo 2017 at the O2 Arena, which was a weekend featuring a collaboration of vendors selling scarves, modest and Asian outfits, jewellery, halal food, skin care products and makeup, and Islamic art and stationary. There was also a series of seminars and workshops, fashion shows to see the latest collections by different brands, and even a nasheed concert to enjoy.

I only managed to attend one day of the event, but I had a good browse at the shopping hall, caught a catwalk show and managed to speak to lots of other bloggers and vendors, which was a really fun-filed day!

I  managed to get a good look at the vendors who had outfits and scarves available - I often see a lot of outfits and modesty-wear from online websites or Facebook/Instagram groups, and it's nice to see some of these brands up close and see whether they are as nice as they look!

I managed to find a few vendors which I wanted to list, as I get asked a lot by readers about UK-based brands which are reliable, and I thought some of these had some really nice outfits!

First are Traditional Images London, who carry a lot of Pakistani designer pret wear, such as Khaadi, Maria B, Agha Noor, Sapphire, Gul Ahmed and Threads and Motifs (all brands that I LOVE!), which I was really pleased to find!

I also really liked the dresses by Amore Mio, a brand which sells dresses and modesty-wear which I thought were really pretty.

I also liked the abayas by Avyaana Abayah, which had some really chic pieces that caught my eye - I really like that these incorporate current trends like frills, bell sleeves and rich materials.

There were also pretty scarves available by Aidijuma, a Malaysian brand which had scarves for a very reasonable price (from £5.99 upwards), and beautiful dresses and abayahs from designer Jenny Tyayawati who also had her pieces on the catwalk as well.

Lastly were pieces by Haiqah UK, which was a range of dresses, abayahs and scarves, as well as some more luxurious pieces by Sana Zinga, whose pieces I thought were beautiful, with lovely fabrics uses and interesting cuts.

I'm a big fan of jewellery from Pakistan and India, but it has to be decent quality pieces, as there is also a lot of junk out there too! I also came across jewellery vendor Artisan Jewels, whose pieces were beautiful, and who I bought a few things from (post coming soon on that!).

We also came across a halal makeup brand FX Cosmetics, which was developed by two scientists to be properly wudu-friendly, which I thought was really interesting. I liked that there was a huge range of products available, and there were some seriously pigmented eyeshadows and highlighters which I loved!

Halal skin-care company Tamese & Jackson were also at the exhibition - have a read of my post to find out more about them!

I also found a really cute stationary and card company Islamic Moments, which had a range of products that caught my eye (and naturally I bought some cards and notebooks from them!)

I also managed to catch a fashion show with a few brands showcasing their collections, with a range of modesty brands and Asian fashion-wear. I loved the colours and styles of these pieces, although I would have liked to have seen some more dramatic pieces as well.

And of course here's what I wore, a kimono with off white separates (which were the comfiest pieces ever!), and accessorised with a colourful yellow bag!

It was also nice to catch up with the other fashion bloggers while I was at the exhibition - here I am with Modest Seamstress (here and here) and also Be.Hijabi, both of whose blogs and social media accounts I love!

The Saverah Women Expo was a pretty fun event, although I do feel that more could have been done to interact with customers and people who attended, as a it took a while to get busy (although this is also down to the bad weather that weekend as well!). I was really glad to find a lot of new designers, vendors and sellers, and managed to make my purse a bit emptier by spending on a few things too!

Pakistan Fashion Week London 11 - 2017

Last week saw the 11th Pakistan Fashion Week London, which showcased a range of Pakistani designer's latest collections. I loved the last one which took place last year, and it was interesting to see how a lot of the designers who have returned had gone for a different look.

The event took place at the beautiful Lancaster House, which involved an exhibition for people to buy clothes and accessories, a two-day catwalk show and a ceremony with the Pakistani flag being sent to Pakistan's first ever embassy at Lowndes Square in London.

I wasn't able to attend the event, but was luckily able to get pictures from the official event photographer Shahid Malik and get a glimpse of the outfits! I won't be posting all the photos, but you can see more here and here.

Agha Noor
These were lovely metallic shades of gold and nude - I liked most of these, very wearable!

Aisha Imran
These were in a range of lengha styles - short and long tops, peplum tops and flared out skirts. Some of them are a little busy for my liking but I did like the colours used.

Amour Faith Hope
A range of summery prints, these look ideal for daytime wear, for a more Western look. I'm not sure I'd wear all of these but I did like the summer/holidays vibe to them.

Aminah Badar
A gorgeous nude and neutral-coloured collection, with a good mix for formal pieces and heavier bridals. I do like these, but they just feel too similar to designs already done - Faraz Manan, Elan and Farah Talib Aziz have all done these kind of styles - maybe it's just me? I did like the first two pieces though, which look a little different.

Asaaleh
Apart from the first piece, which is not bad, I didn't like any of the pieces in this collection. Nothing feels original or pretty, although that may just be my own personal tastes.

Ayesha Aejaz
This was an interesting black and rose gold/nude collection, where the designer played with shapes and hem-lines - some of them work, some of them don't. I do like the fact that these can be worn as formals though, and don't feel overloaded with work.

Cheena Chapra
I really liked how colourful this collection was - rich silks, bright colours and beautiful statement dupattas. I think these would be perfect for a mehndi event, and love how they seem to be inspired by the older periods like the 50s and 80s.

Diva by Sana Rashid
I'm not usually a fan of two-toned fabrics, but it works here. I love the mix of the colours with the intricate embroidery here - and how nice are those headpieces?

Gogi by Hassan Riaz
This is pretty wild - a bright red and black collection which seems pretty dramatic and high fashion. Maybe not so wearable, but it does showcase the designer's imagination!

Hamna Amir
This was a jewellery collection, which the focus being on longer-hanging necklaces. I do like the fact that you can layer these though, and loved the earring and necklace set on the end right.

Khaas
This was a collection for formals and everyday occasions, which I like because it's nice to see something on the catwalk which is wearable (and doesn't need alterations!). There wre a lot of floral embroidered pieces and simple cuts, which you can't go wrong with, really.

Khushboo by Qazi
This is a pretty, colouful collection ranged ranged from formals with heavy work, and lenghas with colourful dupattas. I thought some of these were pretty, and can imagine these being worn at weddings in Pakistan as well as the UK as well.

KJ Jewellers
This was another bridal jewellery collection, althoughI will say some of them were a little much for me - I did think the diamond sets were lovely though.

Lajwanti
I thought these were nice, but not amazing - the work doesn't stand out to me, and the outfits feels a little similar to the brand's designs from the last few years.

M Couture
While I like some of the designs for these, I really didn't like the colour combinations, I feel like there were some colours which were slightly mashed together. I did like the first outfit though, which looks lovely with a cape.

Maheen Khan
I thought these were very stylish, with a East-West fusion that made them look simple but elegant.

Maria B
I thought this was a fun collection, which mixed colourful prints and embroidered pieces well.

Mazz Jee
I don't usually post about men's clothing (because I know nothing about it) but though this was an interesting collection - the designer paid tribute to founding father of Pakistan Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah with his pieces.

Miral
This was a luxurious, dark-coloured collection with lots of gold and glitter accents. I thought these were nice as formals, and can imagine wearing these.

Moazzam Abbasi
I thought this was a pretty, summery collection, with lots of cotton and white shades which I can imagine being quite comfortable!

Nihaan by Amna Bibi
This was a really stylish abayah and modest-wear collection, which I liked because I haven't seen many abayahs on the catwalk when it comes to Pakistani fashion. I also liked the mix of jumpsuits with wraps, which I can imagine wearing myself.

Noor By Sadia
I thought these were pretty, but none of the pieces stood out for me particularly. There's a lot of light colours and shorter kameezes which look nice though, and look pretty as bridals.

Rizwan Ahmed
This is another collection which looks pretty, but doesn't stand out amazingly to me, although I did like the theme of gold and red in this collection.

Sana Safinaz
This was a pretty bright colllection with black beading and embellishment, but I think it worked well, giving a fusion East-West look ideal for parties or weddings.

Shamaeel Ansari
This was quite a boho-chic, summery collection - I can imagine these pieces in Zara or Mango! I liked the floral prints and accents on these, and thought it was an interesting mix of rich fabrics and softer colours.

Shazia Kiyani
I quite liked some of these pieces, and the collection had a very royal feel to it which I thought looked good.

Shirin Hassan
Another colourful collection, these would look great as mehndi bridals. I like the fact that there's a range of lenghas and wrap-style angrakha dresses, which are lovely for mehndi and dholki events.

Sonia Mahajan
I thought this was a fun collection, and really liked these pieces - there's a of fun colour and rich fabrics which works well.

Umar Sayeed
This collection had a very 70s, hippie look to it which is different from the designer's usually heavy pieces, although I'm not sure whether I'd wear these.

Umsha by Uzma Babar
This designer's bridals has become pretty popular over the years, with a lot of brides going for the layered look. The designer continues this theme with this collection, with a lot of gold and silver embellishment involved.

Zeshan Bariwala
This was another bridal collection which ranges from gold and red bridals, to the softer shades of grey and pinks. I liked some of these, but didn't think they would be pieces I would wear as a bridal myself.

Credits:
Event Directed by Riwayat
Commissioned by Pakistan High Commission, London
Head Stylist - Nabila
Consultant Advisor - Maheen Khan
Hair and Make up - Saima Kiran
Choreographer - Hajira Ahmad of EBH
Official Photographer - Shahid Malik
PR - Enigme Internationale