A Silky Purple Abaya by Hafina Official

I was recently gifted a gorgeous silky open abaya from modest clothes company Hafina Official, which does beautiful dresses, co-ords and abayas in gorgeous, vibrant colours. The abaya I received was a beautiful silky abaya in a rich purple shade, with white piping and lace embellishment on the hem and sleeves.

This is the abaya - doesn't it look gorgeous? I love how silky the abaya feels and looks, and it looks quite easy to style open or closed. I love my deep, rich colours and this is a gorgeous shade of purple which you can't go wrong with.

This is how the abaya looks on me, it's quite flowy and long, which I love. I can imagine this will be perfect for the summer months when I don't want to layer too much with heavy outfits, as it is quite modest and still feels quite loose and cool.

I also wanted to show a close up of the sleeves, which I love. I really think that the lace adds a gorgeous delicate touch to it which makes it look quite girly without being too heavy or OTT.

I love how easy this outfit was to style andwear - I can imagine wearing it with a plain dress to dress up an outfit, or using it as a summer staple, which I'm looking forward to! I love that there's a good range of colourful abayas out there, which means there's something to suit everyone's tastes, and also doesn't necessarily mean that it's just aimed for people who wear hijab, but just want something modest.

Hafina Offical has a pretty range of dresses, abayas and co-ords so the website is worth checking out. Let me know what you think of this piece!

Website and Shop - Hafina Offical

Instagram page - Hafina Offical

OUTFIT OF THE DAY: The Hali H Mauve Lace Kameez

I haven’t done one of these for a while, so I thought I’d post about an outfit I wore in the winter. The outfit I wore was from a gharara outfit I've worn before, from London retailers Hali H London. I’ve mentioned before how much I loved this outfit, as well as how great the service was from this company, so was happy to wear the outfit again. This time, I was aiming for a different look, so wore the kameez, which was a loose, flared lace top with plain white trousers and heels – ideal for a dressed down look at a dawat or a fun daytime event.

This is the outfit – I love the lace detailing of the outfit, and I decided to go for a light, comfy look with this piece. I love dusky colours, and you just can't go wrong with a gorgeous shade like this.

Here what I wore with it, I kept the colours pretty similar, with a pretty purple clutch that came in handy from given to me from my sister! I love pairing simple tops with white trouser, it’s a fairly solid look that can’t go wrong and works with a lot of colours and styles. Looking at the outfit now, I wish I had added a long silver necklace, but I don’t own much jewellery and I remember thinking that the scarf may cover the neckline area anyway.

So this is me wearing it – I really liked how pretty and girly this looked without being too twee. It also makes a nice change from the bulky lenghas, ghararas and shararas I have seen everyone wearing, which looks great but can sometimes feel a bit too much (or in my case, takes more work to walk around in!) I wore this with a light coloured pink hijab which went perfectly, and felt very light-weight and versatile.

Outfit top - Hali H

Trousers - River Island

Shoes - New Look

Clutch Bag - Accessorize

Hijab scarf - Inayah Collection

I loved wearing this outfit simply because it was light, comfortable and it’s in such an appealing colour. I’m a big fan of mixing up and re-using outfits, and it also lets me add my own touch to the look as well. I got a lot of compliments for this outfit, and I can see that a lot of women are liking the how effortless it looks.

I can't wait for summer time where I'll be able to pull out some light outfits and play around with colours and styles - so far it feels like I've been hibernating in my pyjamas!

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?

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!

Hidden Pearls - A Hijab Review

I was recently sent a few hijabs by hijab and accessories company Hidden Pearl, which is a UK-based hijab, hijab accessories and gifts company. In today's day and age of shopping online, or markets and shops which sell cheap knock-off items, the issue a lot of the time is quality without having to pay a heft price tag. It's pretty ironic that for a lot of women like myself who wear hijab, hijab is so important to us, but we often end up buying cheap scarves just to make do for everyday wear, and it would be nice to find something decent-made and long-wearing.

Hidden Pearls is one of those companies which combines a good balance of business and ethics - for them hijab is not just about selling but also about being. This is reflected by how the fact that they sell a variety of hijabs, hijab pins, handbags and purses, and various types of Islamic gifts including Eid gifts which all tie in together making moments extra special for women around the world.

I also like a company who can keep their finger on the fashion pulse without charging huge prices, which is a big bonus from this company - hijab fashion is changing and evolving each year with more and more demand for variety, style, colours and materials (and after seeing it on the catwalk, it's been popularised more!) so it's great to find a company like this. Hidden Pearls sells a huge range of scarves from plain hijabs, crinkle, jersey, pom-pom, Turkish, shimmer, multi-tones, ombre, silk, floral, pearl, lace, ribbon, diamante and even glitter hijabs (and that's not even all of the list!) - so there's something for everyone, just check out their categories!

I was sent a variety of scarves from the company, and picked a group of shades which I know I'd use a lot - as you can see below I picked a lot of pinks shades!

This is the full group picture of the scarves I received - as you can see there are a variety of shades and a variety of textures, so there's something every season and occasion.

Here's a look at the crinkle hijabs I was sent, in pink and grey - crinkle and pleated hijabs have become quite fashionable in the last year or so, and it's great to see available on this site. I've been looking for a decent crinkle hijab for some time and was delighted with these, the shades are perfect for the outfits I wear, and the material is beautiful soft without being too thick.

Next up are the jersey hijabs, which I received in two colours, cream and mauve. These were made from a beautifully soft material, and again are colours I can see myself using a lot. One of the things I love about jersey hijabs is how comfortable they are, and how easily they wrap without needing too many pins or fussing about. I also love how good quality the jersey material of these actually are - I've seen a lot of cheap jersey hijabs which wear down too easily or are too thin and doesn't look nice, and I love that these are have a beautiful feel to them which really shows the quality of the scarf.

Lastly are the chiffon scarves, which I though were lovely, as they both had different textures - one was a luxury chiffon scarf, while the other was a plain chiffon scarf. Again, both are colours I wear all the time, and they are beautifully made. One of the issues I have in the summer when it's hot (the last few weeks especially showed this!) is that my head gets too hot if I use thick materials for scarves, so chiffon is perfect for the warm weather because it's breathable, light and comfortable. I also love using chiffon scarves for special events and weddings because they give that touch of luxury, which really pulls an outfit together - if you see in the close up of the scarves below, you can see just how well made these scarves are, and they're not even see-through!

I love the colours that I was sent and will definitely be using them in the future (I've already worn these a few times already!)

I really like that this is a website I can see myself buying different scarves from in the future as well, and there is a real personal touch to the customer service which really makes all the different. The scarves themselves are pretty affordable, which start from as little as £5.99 for a chiffon scarf, which I think is excellent value for the quality you receive.

The company are also releasing Islamic Gifts and Eid Gifts boxes, which are a really sweet idea of curated boxes of luxury items (and they're also launching their new Eid Presents for Kids, so keep an eye out!). Hidden Pearls is doing a regular and deluxe version of the box which offers a beautiful hijab (or two hijabs in the Deluxe box) from their luxury collection, you get a set of gorgeous hijab pins and an everyday essential hijab bonnet or ninja cap. Along with this, is also  additional items in the box ranging from chocolates, pretty earrings, a bow and other really nice stuff!

Image from Hidden Pearl website

If you're like me then you've probably seen a lot of versions of these for Christmas, Easter or New Year, but I've never really seen an Eid Box like this which is affordable. I often find things like to make a much more thoughtful gesture when giving as a gift to a fellow Muslimah, and is definitely a sign of a company helping to pave the road for the Islamic gift market.

You can purchase hijabs from Hidden Pearls from their website here.

Social Media links:
Facebook page
Instagram page
Twitter: @HiddenPearlsUK


*Disclaimer: These hijabs were given to me for an honest, non-paid review*

SPARKLY GIVEAWAYS: Saverah Women Expo '17 - Free Tickets!

Have I got a treat for you guys! I've been invited to the Saverah Women Expo this weekend, as as a treat for my readers, you all get free tickets to the all-day shopping exhibition on either Saturday 22nd July or Sunday 23rd July.

Intercontinental London O2 for 2 Days – 22nd – 23rd July inshallah giving a full weekend exposure to our exhibitors and designers. The venue is located right next to the world famous O2 arena and 1 min walk from the North Greenwich Station.
The Saverah Women Expo is recognized as the biggest Expo for the Muslim Women in UK and Europe with an expected number of more than 6000 attendees over the 2 days.
Timings of the Exhibition are:
Saturday 22nd July – 15:00 -21:00 | Sunday 23rd July – 11:00 – 19:00

There'll be over 100 exhibitors, 20 modest fashion designers, 20 speakers and lots of things to see, try and buy!

All you have to do is click on the website's ticket page, and enter Promotional Code 'SAVERAH17' and select the tickets!

Drop a comment below if you're thinking of coming to the event, and keep an eye out for me to come say hi if you attend!

Social Media Links
Social Media Handlers: Twitter @saverahevents | Instagram @saverahevents |Facebook@saverah
You tube link for advert
Facebook Event Page

Atelier Finds: A Ramadan Gift

I recently was sent a beautiful Ramadan gift by Instagram company Atelier Finds, who specialise in tasbih and oud perfume wedding favours, hijab accessories and Islamic Gifts. The company sent me a new idea of theirs, Ramadan and Eid gift parcels which would make ideal presents.

I thought this was a really lovely idea, and a great alternative to the usual Instagram pages and online sellers I have come across, most of whom usually sell outfits, jewellery or scarves. While all of these are always in demand, it's nice to see something different out there which is well-put together and relevant to my faith.

This is the box I was sent, isn't it lovely? It was so pretty I almost didn't want to open it.

It also came with a lovely card with a sweet message inside for Ramadan - personally I think it always makes a difference when a company puts in small touches like this because it shows how much they care about their products and their service.

Even thought e box was almost too pretty to open, I opened it in the end! I was glad I did, because inside were some even prettier things which I loved - two gem-stone hijab pins, a mini-tasbih and a pretty pin tin, which you can see below.

I really liked the fact that each product was a good quality, luxury product, and not just random generic things which you would find on the high street. The hijab pins are part of the real gemstone range, with the the black one being black onyx in gold vermeil (gold plated sterling silver). The tasbih was another well-crafted piece with sparkling beads and a lovely chain finish.

I thought this was a really lovely, innovative idea for Ramadan and Eid gifts, and it's something which is new to the market - it's nice to have a few pretty things like this on your dressing table or on your shelf. One of the things I loved was that these were all things I would use - the pin tin is a pretty, vintage-style piece, the hijab pins are lovely for dressing up, and the tasbih would always be used in my house.

I also love that these are all available as wedding favours - it's a really nice alternative to the usual sweets and nuts look and it's something guests can take home. The company also does ouds in different scents as well, so will be checking those out next!

You can contact Atelier Finds or buy any of the products via the company's Instagram Page, or via their Etsy Shop.