Happy New Year!...2019

Happy New Year everyone! 2018 was an interesting year, with lots of things for me to post about (boy do I need to play the catch up game!) - so watch this space!

I’m looking forward to a few things already this year, and it will be interesting to the trends, outfits and events the year brings!

Wishing you all a great year (let the good times roll!)

Love, Curly Fries
xxx

Pantone Colour of 2018: Ultra-Violet Purple

So this year's colour of the year, as declared by Pantone is Ultra-Violet - rich, bright purple (which reminds me of a Paco Rabanne perfume with the same name, I must admit!)

The colour is an unusually bright one given the last few years - but has been described by Pantone as important - "Complex and contemplative, Ultra Violet suggests the mysteries of the cosmos, the intrigue of what lies ahead, and the discoveries beyond where we are now. The vast and limitless night sky is symbolic of what is possible and continues to inspire the desire to pursue a world beyond our own. "

So that's a pretty deep, rich meaning behind that one, right?

I must admit, when I heard about this colour, I was undecided. I've always loved certain shades of purple - deep, rich aubergines, soft lilacs or mauvey shades. I'm not as keen on Cadbury purples like this one. I think I've also been put off by wearing purple too many times in the past, and am just more selective about this colour, not to mention the fact that it feels a little dated to me now compared to the softer shades I've seen a lot recently (not to mention having a purple coat in university which made my friends call me Barney!)

But I may be proved wrong yet - I'm waiting to see this hit the catwalks and shops and I'm sure I'll like a lot of what I see - here's just a few of what I've seen online that I'm liking:

When I think of the colours of the years, I always think of how this can be incorporated into Asian fashion and wedding themes. I must say that having seen a lot of purples before, I'm sure Ultra Violet will work fine with Asian bridals and formals. I also do think that this shade is flattering on brown tones, so it's definitely a good colour to work with. Here's a few ideas I saw online, I actually really like how creative some of the ideas are out there:

It will be interesting to check in on the fashion pages every now and then and see if this colour has taken anyone's fancy. Having said that though, last year's colour, greenery, didn't make as much of an appearance as I thought so it seems that it's really up to the designers and consumer's tastes as to what will make the trends!

What do you think of this year's colour of the year?

Happy New Year!...2018

I know, I know, I'm super late to the New Year message! But hey, it's still January and we're still in a dieting-joining-the-gym-phase so let's pretend I'm not three weeks late!

I've been meaning to post a whole load of things in the last few weeks but decided to take a break - not for any lack of things to post about! So watch this space, I have plenty of things to share with you all, so bear with me while I slowly but surely try to get back into regular-posting mode!

So here's wishing you all a beautiful 2018 - I'm in a floral mood so hopefully the year will start off with blossoms, pinks and pretty things!

Love, Curly Fries xx

Happy World Hijab Day 2017

It's World Hijab Day today, and I've been reading people's hijab stories, from both Muslims and non-Muslims. I love that there is a dedicated day to best way to combat ignorance, or if not ignorance then genuine questions about hijab and Islam, and to to get people to see it through our eyes.

So in recognition of sisterhood and colourful hijabs - Happy Hijab Day!

Pantone Colour of 2017: Greenery

Pantone has announced the 2017 colour of the year - greenery, It's a lovely, spring colour which I'm quite liking, although I'm still thinking about whether it's something I can incorpotate in my wardrobe. At the moment my colours range from whites, nudes and pastel pinks or deep blues, red and greys, with a touch of random bright colours!

There's also a range of 'fashionable' shades in the colour report here (and see some examples on the catwalk here) which I think will be interesting!

I've had a quick look for this colour on the catwalk, and it's surprising how many colour shades it goes with - I love the combinations I found below.

I also like that these can be mixed with bright colours like yellow and blue for a vivid look, or softer shades like blush pink, greys and white.

I'm wondering how this colour could translated into Asian fashion (is it possible that this will catch on in Asian bridals and formal wear? It will be interesting to see!). I had a quick search for something along the lines for this colour to see how it could be used, and thought it looked lovely on a lot of bridals, and even mehndi decor. I couldn't get that close to the 'greenery' shade but I found some greens which were close enough to spring green - here are just a few I found:

I'll be looking forward to seeing the colours develop in the high street and on the catwalk through the year, and also whether it filters into Asian fashion too - greenery Eid outfits, anyone?

Inayah Collection comes to Westfield Stratford

Some good news for Londoners!
Modesty-wear boutique Inayah Collection opened up their first pop-up store in Westfield Stratford last week and will remain open for a few months for constumers to see what they have (which is great after an online-only shop) and gives the chance to peruse the store's latest collection of dresses, abayahs, hijabs and jewellery.

A few blogger friends and I took a quick look a couple of days ago to see the store's collection and have a browse through all the pretty things.

The store had some really pretty outfits - whether you wear a hijab or abayah or not, there's something for everyone. There were a range of scarves in cotton, silk and satin, with some fancier hijabs in gold and silver for special events, as well as some stylish outfits - palazzo pants, dresses with capes, swishy dresses and beautifully cut tops.

I didn't get to take many pictures of the outfits instore, but these were my favourites below which I remember seeing. My friends and I were seriously in love with the colour palettes - versatile pinks, nudes, browns and creams which make for a classic wardrobe, each piece could make up a beautiful part of a capsule wardrobe for work or evenings out.

There was also a variety of jewellery available - statement necklaces, bangles and arm cuffs, which were very reasonable priced and came in a range of styles. I loved the necklaces below, they reminded me of the Indian Rajasthani style - mirrors and chunky silver for an ethnic feel. There were also gorgeous bangles with gemstones for about £10 each, in different colours which I thought would be quite popular.

I didn't buy any outfits on my first visit to the shop, but I did snap up this lovely necklace below, which I though made a beautiful statement piece. The necklaces were a little different from the usual ones I have, and I thought this would be a nice piece to wear with either Western or Asian wear.

I'll be sure to post a picture the next time I wear this to show how I styled it - I've already thought of a few ways to wear it!

Have you been to the store yet? Did you buy anything?

MAKEUP-REVIEW: Mac Retro Matte Liquid Lipsticks

I've been hearing about the Mac Retro Matte Liquid Lipsticks for a few months now, after a lot of teaser pictures online (and on Instagram!) and they were finally released in the UK last month, little by little.

I'm a huuuuge fan of liquid lipsticks (it seems to be all that I wear these days) because I love the matte lipcolours that are available, and the longevity of the lipsticks - it's perfect for a working day when you can't be bothered to, or don't have time to re-apply after a few hours or after a messy lunch.

Liquid lipsticks have become very trendy these days, so naturally I was interested when Mac also jumped on the bandwagon and released a range of gorgeous shades.

I managed to get my hands on 6 liquid lipsticks, which I've swatched below - I got a good range of colours and these are mostly about 3 swipes of each colour, so they're impressively pigmented.

From top to bottom:

Oh Lady - a rich berry/grape tone. I loved this one because it was so flattering on my skin tone
Quite The Stand Out - a warm orange-based red, may not suit everyone but looked okay on me
Personal Statement - a rich hot pink, perfect statement pink colour although a little bright
Divine-Divine - A cool baby pink, this is one of the more popular colours in the collections, although it was way too light for me and I didn't like how it looked on me at all
Recollection - A bright violet with pink tones which I liked because it's surprisingly pretty
Tailored To Tease - a deep fuchsia pink, really pretty jewel pink which would suit a lot of skin tones

Out of all of the colours, Oh Lady and Tailored to Tease were my favourites, they were really flattering on my skin tone and I loved how they looked, particularly as I can see myself wearing them a lot. I would have liked to try some more red and nude colours but they aren't available in my local shop yet, but I have high hopes after seeing how lovely these colours are.

Pros - Very pigmented, have the signature Mac vanilla scene, flattering colours and there's a very good range of colours

Cons - They're a little pricey at £21 each and they're may start feeling a little dry on the lips after a good few hours. I also found these horrendous to remove - I had to use two makeup wipes to get rid of them and they still left a faint mark!

I'm keeping an eye out for these and also want to try experimenting with them by mixing colours together, but so far I'm liking them!

What do you think of these? Would you buy any?

Happy New Year! Welcome to 2016...!

It's an eventful year, but 2015 is finally over and we're now embracing 2016! Wishing you all a happy new year, full of beautiful clothes, shoes and food!

I'm hoping to spend more time on productive things this year - less time binge-watching tv series and more time writing/reading/drawing and of course, appreciating beautiful clothes! What are your aims for this year?

I'll  also be hoping to post more regularly with some more interesting stuff, so watch this space!

THE WEDDING POST: Mehndi Memories!

Can you believe that it's been a year since my wedding?! I really can't, it seems like only a few weeks ago that I got married and moved away from my parents, and yet I'm so settled and comfortable in my married life that weirdly enough, it feels like I've always been married!

So this time last year, on this day, I had my mehndi night. which was surprisingly an emotional day but a lovely one, surrounded by friends and family. There's a lot of things which I stressed about at the time but on that day, walking in under a curtain of flowers and looking at all of my friends, a lot of that stress and anxiety melted away (to the music of Ali Zafar's Jhoom, if anyone wanted to know!)

I thought I'd do a series of memories posts this week - what I remember from my events, including my mehndi day, the good, the bad and the funny, especially as it's amazing what sticks out in your mind afterwards!

So here's a few random things I remember from my mehndi night, in no particular order, although I'll try not to complain too much! I do remember wanting to do a hundred and one things and stressing about it, and I'm only mentioning them now because a year later looking back, I really don't know why I worried as much as I did.

Getting ready
I'm lucky enough to know a lot of make-up artists and henna artists, so naturally I got my sister-in-law to spend do my makeup, which I loved. We even managed to spend a little free time in the the day where she took me out for brunch before we got ready, which helped relax me a lot. She got the look even better than I thought, I wanted simple and glowy and she managed both without making my face look too heavy or busy, and I loved the result.

It made me happy that I was able to save so much money by booking a makeup artist for my main wedding day, as it can really add up with the more functions you have. I was also glad that it looked the way I wanted without having to compromise - I've met so many women who have opted to do their own makeup or ask a friend to do it, for one or more of their wedding functions and they've looked great, so I'd definitely encourage that options for brides who are thinking about it.

My hair and the mess at the end of the day!

My jasmine flowers (which were such a headache to buy, because I wanted fresh ones!) came loose half-way through the mehndi and basically looked a mess by the end of the day - you can see them unravelling in pictures below, and the before/after of the flowers! This isn't to criticise the hair-stylist at all - I got my hair and dupatta setting done by Shamalah Hairstylist and LOVED what she did, the flowers themselves just wilted and were bound to fall down after a lot of dancing and moving around! The hair looks not so bad in the second picture, but by the time I got home the flowers had dried and my hair was all over the place!

Also, if any Londoners wants to know where I got the flowers, Vallis in East Ham, East London do them at an amazing price of £1 per string meter and they smell beautiful! A tip for any brides using flowers though, keeping them in the fridge really helped me in keeping them fresh overnight.

Even worse, when I got home, it took me ages to undo my hair and get my hair sorted out. It was actually more painful than my wedding hair was because there was a lot more extensions and back-combing involved, and worse for me because I didn't realise it would be this difficult! 

Non-attendees

A few of my friends didn’t turn up to the mehndi, which I was a little upset about at the time, although I did get over it 15 minutes into the mehndi, once the dancing started! I only mentioned this because it's inevitable that someone can't make it, or something can happen which can be really annoying - try not to let it get to you too much. A friend of mine who got married around the same time I did told me that she was pretty upset that a some of her friends and family didn't make it to her mehndi, enough that when she went home she was upset and even cried a little. You're bound to be emotional but don't let these be the last and defining moments of your Big Days, the last thing you would want to remember about your events is being upset for the wrong reasons.

It's also easy to get annoyed at the little things like these, when it's so much better to appreciate people who DID turn up and make the effort, which can really make a difference on the night! It's fair to say all of the right people turned up and it was really warming to see that they made the effort, not to mention all of the hard work from my mum, sisters and sister-in-law!

Asian Timings

I got to my mehndi venue really early, and was a bit annoyed that I turned up before the guests, particularly as it meant my brother, who was my chauffeur for the night, and I had to wait because I didn't want to talk into an empty hall. Thankfully, my photographer was already at the venue, and used this time for a quiet photo-shoot which I loved – some of my favourite pictures are from this shoot. I was also glad to be punctual because it meant I had some quiet time to myself beforehand.

Sweets and Favours

I barely saw the beautiful sweet table my sisters made and set up. I sure as heck didn’t get to eat anything from it. At least I had lots of photos of it afterwards! Similarly I had spent a lot of time with my sisters making up favour bags, sweet cones and decor boxes in a peacock print theme, which kind of got lost in the hall decor, but admittedly on the day, it didn't matter as much to me anyway.

Ghagray

We’d bought lots of jasmine strings to make into bracelets (ghagray) for some of the guests, and some of them got forgotten. Two of my friends ended up putting dolly-mixture sweet bracelets on my wrists to make up for it because we forgot to get my best friends to put the flowers on my wrist! I don't know why I look so serious in the photo below because I remember laughing about it all!

Food!
Our food got served late, which was very frustrating, as the caterers had been calling me all afternoon while I was getting ready to ask me about venue access and set-up. I actually got up from my stage at one point during a break when the guests managed to eat, to go into the kitchens and tell off the caterers. They learned their lesson and served the food on time on the wedding day though, so at least I told them off effectively!

Dancing the night away!
We managed to get some of the older ladies, the mums and aunties, up for a Beyonce dance which was fun, and it was even better when my sisters and friends joined in too. One of my friends is an amazing (and enthusiastic!) dancer so she stole the show with her moves and got me to join in as well, although I'll admit I was a lot more embarassed!

My niece and I doing twirls!

It feels pretty strange to look through some of these now and see myself all dressed up, especially because I looked pretty calm in a lot of photos and I know I was quite nervous!
A friend of mine got married a few days ago and told me she felt the same - I think it was that point after months of stressing that she walked in and decided to just enjoy herself rather than look for things that had gone wrong.

I know there were a lot of things which were missing, didn't look the way I thought or just general things I thought were needed - looking back I now know that as much as we brides love the little details. the beautiful decor, the amazing dances, it's more important to enjoy the night and being with your close ones. Above all, just sit back, relax and focus on looking good!

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?

East Shopping Centre comes to Green Street!

I happened to go to Green Street today (part work reasons, part grocery shopping, part me being nosey about the latest outfits in the shops!) and was surprised to see that a new shopping mall has arrived in the middle of Green Street, called the East Shopping Centre.

It was actually a bit of a shock to me, because I wasn't aware it was open (I had heard that there was a mall opening soon but didn't realise it was this soon) and didn't realise the scale of the mall. Of course, I took the opportunity to stroll around and look at all the shiny new shops, and loved the range of clothes shops, shoe shops, food places and dessert place I saw!

It was lovely to see a lot of bridal shops, event planning and modest-wear shops in one place, which I think will all be pretty popular for shoppers and brides to be. I was quite excited to see Aab, a hijab and abayah store which I've only seen online up til now (although the store wasn't open yet), and a few other hijab and abayah shops which I wanted to check out.

While this isn't quite the Asian equivalent of Westfield yet, I think this is a nice change from the usual shops I've seen, and I'll be popping in again to see more of the shops when they arrive.

Have you been here yet? What do you think of it?

 

 

Colour of 2015: Marsala

Colour experts, Pantone recently announced the colour of 2015 - Marsala, inspired by the earthy red colour of Marsala wine.

I love how this makes a change from the vibrant colours of the last few years, last year Radiant Orchid was the colour of 2014, the year before that was Emerald, and who can forget Oranges entering our wardrobe palettes only two years before?

I've seen this colour already trending in fashion, beauty and and accessories, and to be honest, it actually is a colour that does appeals to me. I've seen a lot of bloggers and critics who have expressed some doubts on whether this is a wearable colour, and whether it will suit everyone, but I think it is a tone which can actually be worn and gives an elegant style. I'm a big fan of dark reds, maroons and wine shades, and although Marsala is looking to be more earthier and duller in tone, there's room for interpretation and it's a flattering tone on a lot of people (in my opinion).

Below are just a few examples I've seen of this colour in the last month, I've noticed this colour become popular due to the wintry season, dark, vampy lips, red nails and dramatic dark red party dresses have all become quite trendy - I've even picked up a few darker red lipsticks and dresses myself!

I'm curious to see whether this colour will filter into Pakistani and Indian fashion this year, I can imagine that it will become a popular colour with fusion designers and designers who are based in the West. I'll reserve my judgement til I see more, but I have high hopes!

What do you think of this colour? Can you see yourself wearing it this year?

Honeymoon Travels!

Sorry all, I know I've been absent for a week (or so!), Mr Curly Fries and I went on our delayed honeymoon recently and have only just got back (and already planning our next trip!)

We decided to visit the lovely city of Istanbul in Turkey, which has always been on my bucket list of places I've always wanted to visit. I had a lot of fun in this city, and it was really a great experience, the people are friendly, there's beautiful sights to see and there's some seriously amazing food!

Here's a few snaps of our trip, I probably took over a thousand pictures because there were so many places to visit and lots of things to do, so here's a quick look - I'll be posting in more detail on my Instagram page and also my other blog so keep checking for more!