Eid Outfit Inspos!

It's that time of the year - the struggle to look for a decent Eid outfit! I've been browsing around online as well as looking in the shops for a decent piece (or three!) to catch my eye. I thought I'd post a few of the pretty pieces I've seen online as inspiration, even if I don't end up going with them.

#1 - This lovely embroidered Eid collection by Nida Azwer

I do like Nida Azwer and her formals (I even have a couple of outfits by this brand!), the outfits are pretty, wearable and strictly non-fussy. This collection dropped last month, and I loved the pretty pastel tones, gorgeous worked dupattas and simple cuts of the all of the outfits. The outfits range from £60-90 for the simple printed kurtas, to £200-400 for the worked formal pieces. I have to say though, as much as I love this range, it does feel a bit much to shell out a couple of hundred for what is essentially a simple-ish range.

#2 - Nishat Lawn UK Kurtas

Nishat Lawn is an excellent quality lawn brand which has finally hit the UK this month, and which I'm loving right now. The company sells a range of ready-to- wear outfits and kurtas, as well as unstitched material, and something for the kids and men to wear as well.

I've already got my eye on a few kurtas, if not for Eid then for summer wear, as the pricing is really reasonable and perfect for the summer - most of the kurtas start from around £25 and even the luxury wear is very reasonable at around £45-65 per outfit.

#3 - Elan's 'Nuit de fête' collection

For a little more luxe in our lives, Elan comes to the rescue. The new collection just released today (and half of it is already sold out, so don't hold your breaths!) - but some of it is just darn pretty.

Shimmering fabrics, bead fringing and something a little Parisian about some of these outfits which really makes them look chic. But again, this is a pretty pricey collection, ranging from £250-600, which may be a bit too much for some of us mere mortals, even if we do manage to get hold on any available pieces! Here's just a couple of their pieces, you can see the rest of the collection here and the advert for the collection here.

#4 - Agha Noor at Westfield City, Stratford

Agha Noor finally has opened up a shop for us on East London, with a glossy, sleek shop in Westfield City, Stratford. I made a visit a couple of weeks ago to look at their pieces and liked what I saw - a lot of summery embroidered pieces which are light, girly and easy to wear. Unfortunately I haven't been back to look this week so I'm not sure if they have had any new deliveries of outfits yet, but it's worth a look! Outfits range from about £28 for kurtas, while the full suits are from £50-80.

#5 - Hali H Eid Collection

Hali H is a company I quite like because their outfits look amazing in person, and I have personally had a really good experience with this company! Although I ordered online via Instagram, they have a physical store in Tooting, London so you can check out their latest collections as they come in. Here's a few which caught my eye, they have pretty kameez suits as well as heavier lenghas and ghararas in lovely colours.

I will be posting some more outfit inspiration soon so don't worry if these aren't what you're looking for!

I've been looking online at a few websites, as well as the growing number of Instagram companies which sell outfits, so will be doing a separate post on those soon. I've seen a number of sites selling designer wear, and would love to explore affordable outfits soon so will be posting a few ideas soon!

Have you bought your outfit yet? What do you think of these?

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 : )

Hina Rasim's Eid Extravanganza at The Landmark Hotel

You may have seen my previous posts over the last couple of years of Pakistani designer clothes vendor Hina Rasim's Eid Exhibitions (you can see my posts here and here), so I was looking forward to seeing the latest designs at her 5th-year anniversary which was held last weekend.

The event was held at the beautiful Landmark Hotel (which is a beautiful venue in itself, highly recommend a visit if you are around the area!) in the hotel's Drawing Room. As with the previous exhibitions, the room was beautifully decorated with flowers, candles and gorgeous bridal outfits.

There were quite a few different Pakistani designer outfits on display, which each designer on a rack - there were a lot of big names such as Suffuse by Sana Yasir, Elan and Farah Talib Aziz (as well as a lot more!).

There was also a good mix of heavy formals and casual kurtas, and fusion pieces which I liked. By the time my friends and I got to the venue, some of the collections had already sold out, so it was an idea of how busy it was!

These pieces below especially caught my friends' and my eye  - the first is Shehla Chatoor, which was a kimono piece with beautifully intricate work, the second is a Dr Haroon outfit which looked perfect for a traditional mehndi outfit, and the last one was a really pretty peplum piece by Elan Official, which was covered in pearls and embroidery for a pretty, summery look. These pieces all ranged from £950 - £1500, so not cheap but pretty much what you expect for a designer piece.

I didn't take too many pictures of the outfits this time round, mainly because I was requested to keep it minimal to protect the designers and their pieces, but here are a few of the snaps from Hina Rasim official instastory which I'm sure she won't mind me sharing!

I really liked this gorgeous wrap by Nida Azwar, which was covered all over in gold gota pieces, and came with a black plain jumpsuit to wear inside. I'm not sure I'd wear the jumpsuit (maybe in white?) but I loved the look of these jacket. Unfortunately it was outside my budget at £850, but it's nice to dream, eh?

The exhibition also showcased jewellery by Tanaya Couture, whose pieces I have come across before and looked amazing up close. These were pretty popular because of the bridal necklaces, and to be honest a few of them caught my eye too!

There was also another exhibitor, which were sunglasses by JiaElle - embellished and blingy statement pieces which were quite popular. I quite liked some of the sparkly pieces with stones on the front, but didn't get any - these ranged from about £60 upwards.

I think we all loved the flowers and decor by Essential Wedding Couture - it all looked very grand and beautifully done, and made amazing wedding decor inspiration.

I always like going to exhibitions which sell Indian and Pakistani designer outfits, because even though I don't always end up buying something, it's great to see the outfits up-close and judge for myself the quality. We don't always get to see whether an outfit is really what it appears from the catwalk or promotional photos, and I have been surprised in the past (or pleasantly surprised!) when a designer's collection looks different from my expectations in the past - which just goes to show that pictures can be misleading!

I'll be keeping an eye out for more exhibitions as Eid comes up, and will post more as I attend - it's a pity that some of the prices for Pakistani designer pieces are going up, but I'm on a hunt for affordable brands and will post when I do find them!

COPYCAT DESIGNS & DRESSES #14: The Elan Silk Collection Replica

I haven't done one of these in ages, have I? I'm guessing because I haven't bought many outfits in a while, let alone replicas, and there's so many vendors out there booming across Facebook, Instagram and various online forums that I wouldn't know where to start these days! I've also tended to lean less towards replicas these days - partly because half the time a copy of a designer outfit (especially a heavy one) costs the same or more as the actual designer piece sometimes, and also partly because I hate bad copies of outfits which I end up not liking, especially when I compare it to the original.

I also think that there are enough reasonably priced outfits out there which are unique and not copies, which look amazing, and always look to support smaller businesses and affordable prices.

Having said that, sometimes I do get the urge to splash out on a designer outfit which catches my eye - unless I can't get hold of it, of course! One of outfits I really wanted to buy last year was a piece from the Elan Silk Collection, which was released a few days before Eid and was impossible to get - online orders were terrible or kept selling out, and I only saw an actual piece in real-life in a local shop about a month ago - way after Eid!

Nevertheless, I've always loved the designer below, which I've been keeping an eye out for - I love the colour of the outfit and the stylish print, which I think is perfect for warm summer days.

I've seen a lot of replicas of this collection all over the internet and all over the stores, and some of them were pretty crappy or just not worth price. My sister and I went outfit shopping about a week ago, and I stumbled across a copy that I loved - it was a mostly printed cotton outfit with some embroidery at the bottom and colourful pants and dupatta - and looked pretty much the same as the original to me.

This is my version, bought from local store Dhanak Fashion, at a bargain price of just £30! There were a few other designs in the store (such as Maria B replicas too) but none of them really appealed to me as much as this.

Here's a close up of the kameez - I love that the printed details doesn't look 'off' like some outfits do, or look badly made. Although the original outfit collection is made of silk, and this is made of cotton, it's a very nice, soft cotton which feels lovely on and is still ideal for warm weather. I also love that the back had a great design to it as well - not exactly the same as a original but it works for me.

This is the hem of the outfit, which also had some embroidery. The original doesn't really have any embroidery but this doesn't look odd but it blends it well and just adds a touch of embellishment that I like.

So this is the suit I got from Dhanak Fashions - I love that pants look the same and the dupatta too. I'm also glad that there's no lace inserts or tulip salwars for this outfits - I love lace pieces but it's not always modest for my preference, and I'm not a huge fan of tulip salwars for every outfit.

I'm sure I'll get an opportunity to wear this very soon, and will post when I do! It's pretty rare these days for me to find a cheap outfit which isn't cheap quality - these days my sisters and I find that the good outfits are never below £80-100 for even a casual piece, and the designers are always more. I'm looking forward to summer time when I'll get to pull this out, and I'm sure that the colours will look great.

Some people have said in the past that it's not fair on the designers to have replicas in the fashion industry, and I do agree with this where it hurts their business, or where credit for their work is stolen. However I also think it's not fair on customers to have to pay a high amount to get a designer outfit they like - which is why the replica market has been created in the first place. Replicas will always be a contentious issue - however I am very careful about who I approach if I was to get one, and would always recommend to readers to check who they are buying from before they pay.

All in all, I did think I got a good bargain with this outfit though - what do you think of it?

Junaid Jamshed comes to London..!

Reknowned Pakistani designer Junaid Jamshed opened his latest store in east London last weekend, via brand merchants Janan, just in time for Eid shopping!

My mum's a fan of this brand, she's bought some of the suits Junaid Jamshed before in Pakistan, and loved the quality of the suits - so it was only natural that we'd want to check the store out when it launched.

The one thing which really struck me about this store was the decor - I love the wooden panelling, the Moroccan-inspired walls and the beautiful dark wood, which makes such a change from the usual white flooring and bright lights I've seen most boutiques have!

The store itself also has a good range - women, men and children's ready-made outfits, unstitched fabrics, perfumes and ouds as well as a jewellery range.

The clothes themselves are great for summer time, gorgeous prints and embroidery and right on trend - shorter kameezes with beautiful hems, cropped pants and a variety of colours.

 All pictures courtesy of Junaid Jamshed PR group and do not belong to me

I'm waiting to see what else comes to the store over the next few weeks, so far we haven't bought anything yet (mainly because we're keeping an eye out for potential Eid outfits!) but I'm sure we'll snap something up soon!

I noticed the fact that there's also a bunch of other stores which have opened around the world in Pakistan, America and Dubai, which shows what a global brand this is, and also how wearable their clothes are.

What do you think of this brand? Have you seen anything which has caught your eye for Eid?

OUTFIT OF THE DAY: The Khaadi Blues and Floral Prints

I've mentioned before that I'm a fan of the Khaadi brand, mainly for their cotton and lawn suits which are ideal for summer. I've been pulling out my lawn suits now that it's getting a lot warmer, and have been getting more wear out of them now that weekends are busier!

I bought this outfit a few months ago from the Khaadi store in Westfield Stratford (which was luckily on sale!) and thought this was ideal to wear to an iftar dinner this weekend.The outfit was pretty colourful so I didn't bother wearing anything to accessorize, although I did manage to dig out some colourful shoes to match which I'd forgotten about!

I love the print on this kameez, and it was the reason why I bought this outfit - my favourite part is the back with it's motif of flower bunches all over. The kameez itself is a high-low style as well, which is more ideal for today's trends, and is finished off with a lovely hem.

I loved wearing this outfit - it was a really nice fit and looked really slimming on me (although that may be down to the fasting as well!). I wore a nice deep red lipstick with this, which I went well with the outfit. The pants were also a great fit (slightly cropped but not indecently!) and nice and airy for the summer weather!

You can see the floral print all the back, below, which works well with the floral sleeves and the dupatta, which tied it all together.

The best bit about this outfit was that it was a light enough material for summer, but not sheer at all. I never used to wear lawn material before because it either looked sheer, or the material would 'stick' to you and feel slightly papery - the quality of lawn these days have improved!

What do you think of this outfit? Have you bought any outfits from Khaadi before?