Splurge

Beach

Winter Hood Scarf

Here are some alternative hijabi hoods for winter!

Luxury Diva $15.00--$20.00 Amazon.com:




Scala hood $45.00 Amazon.com:


These are a ONE PIECE hat/scarf combo. Try wearing a amira-hijab cap or underscarf underneath. Use for cold days out at a park or in the snow! Wear with a turtleneck or wrap the ends of the scarf around your neck.

Perfect Layering Tee!

As I mentioned previously, it's difficult to wear a t-shirt alone without tweeking it to meet hijab. But it is also difficult to find a t-shirt for layering--it has to be fit enough to not bunch up under the top layer and the sleeves should be long enough to avoid having to add arm sleeves or a jacket. Plus, they need to be a cool cool cotton to ease the heat! And they should be without any stiching or bunching or wide, deep necks!

These long sleeve t-shirts from DIVIINEMODESTEE are made especially just for layering! They're great! Cool and fitted, pre-shrunk, and a great deal! Available in various colors.

Designed for cozy comfort, style and and basic layering, this tee will become your favorite daily choice. The sleeves are designed with extra length to fall below the wrist and cut to flatter the arm. Great for layering with one or many of our Diviine Tees, this season's sweaters or wear alone. Soft touch to the skin, this is a tee you will not want to take off!

Similar to our cotton lycra material this tee will not ball up or lose it's form. We only offer quality that you expect to last with wear.

100% preshrunk combed cotton

T-shirts

I like the convenience of wearing a long sleeve t-shirt. It does not require layering which is great for a hot day. But women's t-shirts are often low cut, boat neck, or tight on the chest so they require adjustment for hijab. Men's t-shirts are so much more modest--just compare the neck of this men's t-shirt to the neck of the women's tees! And of course a man's tee is looser in fit. I know some Muslims might say women should not wear men's clothes, but I think it is fine as long as the intention is to be more modest and NOT to look like a man. What do you think?

There are products such as arm covers that women can use to extend the sleeve length.

Also, there are products called "dickies," that one can use to cover the neck and chest. Dickies are worn under the shirt and do not cover the whole torso, just the neck area:

Houndstooth

I love the black and white houndstooth print so much I couldn't choose just one item to highlight. Wear ONE piece of houndstooth print with a basic black & white outfit, adding a spice of red in the accessories. And who says a hijabi can't rock a hat or headband on her head with her headscarf, or another scarf around her neck or handbag? I say go for it. Houndstooth is always hip and classy.

Express Yourself

Express yourself with a graphic tee. Use color to show your style as well as the accessories, which you can take from casual-hip to casual-prep all with the same basic tee and jeans. Make sure your tee is at least one size up so as not to be too tight--(you might even want to try the men's t-shirt section for a looser fit!). And find an extra long tee to cover the rear (which is usually not a problem for us petite women)! Get jeans that are a boot cut or a wide to keep with the artistic graphic style!

Bohemian Sleek

A long flowing skirt is very feminine. Find one in bohemian colors and prints and pair it with understated sleek top and accessories to polish the look. Use a denim jacket to give it a more casual feel. Wear long boots to add extra height and leg coverage. Tie the scarf tight around the head and neck to add to the sleek effect. Of course you'll want to wear thick leggings/stockings/tights and a slip underneathe the skirt as always.

Liz Claiborne

I adore Liz Claiborne tunics. They are modest, feminine, stylish, and classic American. And often 100% cotton. They require little adjustment to fit into the hijab puzzle. Just add a cami and some arm covers. And if you are short, like me, even the petite length will cover your rear end. Wait for the sales or clearance to get a great deal.

Autumn Sun

A Sunny Outfit for Cool Weather



I like the versatility and the flow of this tube dress--hijabis can make use of this stylish trend easily by pairing it with a turtleneck underneath. Use two scarves for extra modestly. One scarf can be worn Spanish-style to cover the hair and the ears, while another oblong one (in a different color/shade to add more spice) can be used to cover the chest (and neck as well). Or use two scarves in the same color/shade if wanting to wear the headscarf in a typical Arab fashion, creating the allusion of just one scarf. It's fun to use brighter sunny colors in Autumn or even winter, which will actually "lighten" the look of the "heavy" layers. Again, use modern accessories in circular or angular shapes to go with the color block print of the dress and stripes on the shoes to sharpen the look of the tube dress.

Out to Lunch

I like the combo of the blue and hot pink. Of course use the hot pink sparingly and go easy on the accessories, but have fun picking and choosing from other bright and sunny colors with the bracelet, ring, or necklace. Keep the accessories in modern shapes of circle or square to match with the modern color block of the top (of which you'll want to remove the belt for modesty).

NIGHT-TIME WEDDING WEAR:



I like the high neck and the A-line of this dress. Use a shrug to cover the arms. If you can't find a shrug with sleeves to the wrist, use satin gloves to give the outfit some elegance instead of typical arm covers, which are difficult to make dressy. A ring can be worn over the gloves, or chose a matching bracelet. Use the scarf to not only cover the hair and neck but also to cover the chest if the dress seems to tight in that area.

MUSLIM COLLEGE GAL:



I like the subtle punk rock alternative style. Wear sunglasses or your cool spectacles if you need.

Weading Wear

I received a NEWPORT NEWS catalog in the mail. The heading was "What to wear to a Wedding." I am InshaaAllah attending an American style wedding for an in-law in November and am looking for an outfit. Here are two from the catalog that I like:

The first look is "Black Tie":


I chose a nude colored scarf to match the nude colored lining of the dress, thinking a black scarf would be too much.




There are long-sleeved bodysuits available at Newport News that could provide extra coverage (and support) if the shrug is too sheer.

The second look is "Garden Romance":





What do you think of the two looks? I guess it depends on whether the wedding is at night or day or outside or inside. The shoes for both outfits are not really my style but probably would be hidden under the hem of the dress anyway. But I like how Newport News had the entire outfit (except for the cardigan and the scarves)all set up with all matching accessories, which would save me the trouble of finding it all in separate places.

I don't know how the fashion bloggers such as Hijab Style put together such nice collages of outfits and insert the matching links and information. It's a lot of work and I won't be doing much of it!

Here is the relevant information on the outfits:

Garden Romance:
NEWPORT NEWS (NN)
http://www.newport-news.com
Crochet Dress, $79.00, Catalog Code: A722534
NN Lace-trim Satin Clutch, $34.OO, A721740
NN Crochet Sandal, $29.00, A712883
Crochet Cardigan, $12.00 from Soft Surroundings:
http://www.softsurroundings.com
Rose satin and chiffon scarf, $12.00 from Hijabs r Us:
http://www.hijabs-r-us.com

Black Tie:
NN Lace Dress A7G7367 $79.00
NN Lace Shrug A7G1669 $24.00
NN Satin Frame Clutch A721895 $29.00
NN Satin Sandal A722865 $29.00
Nude sequined scarf, $18.99 from http://www.hijabs-r-us.com

Just Add Headscarf

So yeah, I was thinking that I would like to dress more like a rock-star in my hijab if that's possible! I think it is. If I had not been born a Muslim, I would have become a rock star, you know. I like Avril Lavigne's style IN GENERAL (of course she, like all other rock stars--except for Sinead O'Connor) do dress trashy at times. But here are some pics where I like her style. Just add headscarf. (And sometimes some arm covers). And oh, of course add some length to her tops to cover her backside. And frontside (er, um...crotch). Sheesh.




Anywayz...I ordered a shrug from NewportNews.com for $33.00. It seems like it might be too warm, but at least it is black, long-sleeved and will cover the arm-pits and some of the chest area as long as I don't wear this lady's icky top:


There are also many more shrugs at Amazon.com. Just search for "long-sleeve shrug" or "bolero." It takes a while to navigate and search everything, but you might find something.

So...back to that rock-star style. Here are some cool arm covers (also called arm warmers) which could be worn with 3/4 sleeves or even with some t-shirts if your arms are short like mine. I love the arm sleeve look--although the ones I have (from Islamic stores) are uncomfortable. These are funky styles and give an edge to the outfit, and some even cover the hands:

black and white arm cover ebay.com

zebra print arm cover ebay.com

amazon.com from leg avenue $6

sierra trading post $32

target.com 9.99

target.com 12.99

virtual village 5.99

sporty look:
NIKE arm warmer 25.00

tree fort bikes 13.99

fancy:
virtual village 5.99


So there you have it. Some cool pieces to help complete the hijab puzzle. I know that a lot of those styles are not practical or typical, but I enjoy the options and it opens my imagination in terms of dressing and helps me express my own personal style.

Shrug It Off!

I can't find a shrug to save my life. It's a cropped light jacket that has sleeves. I need one that is lightweight cotton with long sleeves preferably with good chest coverage and no ties on the tummy area to cover up the few sleeveless tops I bought like this one from Chadwicks.dom, on sale for $15.00:
But the ones I got from Ross Dress For Less are even better than this photo because they have no stitching on the body of the dress so it is not tight in any place. Sleeveless tops are everywhere. I like the A-line dresses that I can use as long tops over pants. And instead of wearing a long sleeve t-shirt underneath or a cardigan on top, I've been looking for a shrug, but can't find one that I like anywhere, not even the Internet (unless it's a designer one over $100). I ordered one from http://www.target.com back in May and just last week they emailed me to say it's no longer in stock. Ugh. Thanks a lot, Target.Com! I've found these shrugs at some dance wear shops. These are from discountdance.com for $16.00. They will work as sleeves, but not sure if they'll cover the arm pits. I wish I could find one that buttoned on top!

There are several shrugs and boleros at Dancewearsolutions.com. Here is one that is nice looking, for $32, but so far only comes in pastel colors (I need a white one and a black one) and this is a bit warm looking:

This one from Dancewearsolutions.com is cool, for $18.00 will provide good chest coverage (and doesn't tie on the stomach which I don't like either). But it has a hood, which might or might not look odd depending on the type of outfit. I might go ahead and order this one:

Here is another one from REI.com, but it is more sporty then I need. It's called a bolero, for $35.00:

Here's a nice one from Dillards.com. But it's $80.00, too expensive for me. And it might not work for summer because I'd still need to wear arm covers since its sleeves don't go all the way down to the wrists:

So I haven't worn those sleeveless tops much this summer. I bought this white button down shirt that is a bit light and lacy which I've worn a couple of times with a couple of the sleeveless top/dresses. But I do not like the way it looks overall. I rather have a sleek looking shrug...the cropped aspect of it makes it more summer-like and feels less layered. Hmm...I'll keep looking...............