MIRROR MIRROR ON THE WALL!

Soo late with this post...but as usual life took over. As you know, I was apart of the Hijab Fashion week South Africa. It took alot of preparation for just 2 days of awesomeness, and I will speak more on that in my next post. Well more likely share loads of incredible pics.

Look forward to amazing photography by Luthfiyyah Rahman Nana...check her out on instagram: lulu_london_


This post is all about the Mirror Mirror segment, of the Muslimah Lifestyle Expo, that was part of the Muslim Lifestyle Fest.

Mirror, mirror, on the wall...we all know how that story goes. We learn from a young age, that beauty is loved and very much desirable, and the beautiful princess and her charming Prince live happily ever after. Reality however, is, well...Reality! Our stories are far more complicated! Or.... is it?

Mirror Mirror was more than an apt name for our segment. It is all about our internal dialogues, the things we tell ourselves, to the way we feel and view ourselves as women whether we are standing in front of that mirror or not.

The Muslimah expo as a whole, was well rounded, encompassing difficulties women face today, single, married, widowed, divorced and at different ages or journeys in life. We had amazing ladies on stage share their experiences and wisdom with a beautiful audience, before we came on....to help rewire our thoughts and internal dialogues.

Our hosts were the very talented and vibrant Tasneem Valley and Roshan Isaacs. I absolutely loved their chemistry on stage. If you were there, you know exactly what l mean;)

Tasneem is an amazing hijab and apparel stylist, makeup artist, is multitalented as she is beautiful inside out and a Mum. She spoke of how we don't wake up looking glamourous or feeling beautiful everyday...that we are often multitasking, leading essentially very busy lives, and can often reach a point, where are our internal dialogues become less than positive.

She then introduced us to Roshan Isaacs, who is absolutely inspiring and a wonderful person. 

Roshan Isaacs  continues to break boundaries and pave new pathways for the modest fashion industry and it was an absolute pleasure to meet her. Both presenters made being on stage and in the audience absolutely fun!

  

For our segment, 5 modest Muslimah bloggers on completely different journeys in their lives had been chosen. I was one of them. We were tasked with styling just one garment piece from a local modest wear designer, with items we already own, incorporating one key trend to take you from 2017 into 2018. 

It is impossible to dress fashionably in designer pieces from head to toe, unless you are Angelina Jolie or Olivia Palermo ...Truth be told, not even they can afford the items they wear, everything is sponsored.

Our driving point, was to show that we can look red carpet or fashion week ready without breaking the bank, doing it with panache and modesty and all while being on trend and in sync with our personalities. It was also about rewiring thoughts and feeling beautiful inside, as you do outside.

Here are the 5 bloggers, and the trends were: Asymmetrical, metallics, ruffles, streetstyle with flair, incorporating trends as a niqaabie.

Leeyah who owns her own online boutique: Leeyas boutique on instagram is a blogger, amazing at Arabic calligraphy and currently studying our beautiful Deen, is also a foodie and a quirky, gorgeous and humorous fashionista. Her trend was asymmetrical.  The designer she chose was Fb designer apparel. 

She wore an assymetrical khaki green sleeveless dress from fb apparel, teamed with a tulle skirt, frill sleeve top, cigarette pants, silver broques and a lime green scarf knotted to the side. Her look was mesmerising, unique and showed off her fun personality!  Leeyah is a minimalist at heart, and her make up too was kept fresh and minimal, always a sure way to glow!

Here's her look...

Tips: The asymmetrical trend is not just for clothes, try this trend in your jewellery  and scarf too. Get mismatched earrings sold as a pair from outlets like Lovisa or opt for a scarf style that has details on one side . Keep your look minimal when incorporating this trend in your garments. Embrace neutral colours with a pop of colour or use the same colour head to toe. 

I was next in line. As you all know, I am a blogger, hijab stylist, fashion designer, make-up artist and a Mum with a corporate background.

My trend was the metallic trend, and I chose a pair of wide leg metallic look pants from a 3 piece set created by a very talented and amazing designer Sadiya Orrie who creates under her label of love Demure b S . I love these pants, super comfy, well made and shhh, they are elasticated...they had just the right amount of metallic appeal that was subtle and went well with my straight cut rose gold sequin dress. 

Following the 3 piece rule, I included a 3rd item. The white cape jacket  was my 3rd item, in a perfect neutral white, and with the tailored shape, and no extra details, it kept the look minimal and crisp. A matching scarf and rose gold metallic pointy shoes kept it on trend.With all the neutral tones going on, yes..metallic can be a neutral too, I got to play with colour and went for daring lips and a burgundy bag.

Tip: consider your metallic a neutral if they are silver, bronze or gold..ground them with Matte neutral colours that are lighter in hue or play with matte metallics and bright bold colours. Try incorporating the trend in an accessory, if you don't have the courage to wear it in a seperate like pants and tops or dresses. Try a metallic scarf  tied to your bag, have fun with metallic shoes, bags, phone cases or patches you can pin onto your clothes.

Next up was Shaakira Nalla, a lifestyle blogger, avid Makeup enthusiast, foodie, and Accountant in the making. Her blog is Pout and About

She is a beautiful, confident and strong young woman, who contributed largely behind the scenes with organisation for the event, and I absolutely adore her style. Her trend was "ruffles". She chose a crisp white shirt with ruffle details at the neckline and cuff, from the The house of Bespoke by WH, designed by Waseefa Hutton. Shaakira paired it with a cupcake skirt, burgundy obi belt, leggings, scarf and a pair of brown boots. Her scarf style was a turban knotted to one side paired with braided hair. She chose beautiful design lines that perfectly suited her silhouette. Here is her look:

Tips: ruffles are a big trend right now, but done in the wrong way, can look dated. Once again, keep your look minimal and your ruffles big. Include a garment with large ruffles in one area such as your neckline, sleeves, hemline or even a scarf with pleated edges to give that ruffle look. Shaakira was able to balance ruffles in two areas, because the ruffles wern't oversized. Either way, keeping the look minimal will draw emphasis to the ruffles in a classy way. Here are some great ideas:

Modesty by Bash in her ruffle piece

Next was Nadia Pather who owns her own boutique "Ethereal Guide Boutique" in Hurlingham, Sandton. She is a hijab stylist, a Mum, an instagram blogger, and an entrepreneur. Her boutique houses a number of local designer brands and she chose one of her personal favourites, that reflect her unique style. Nadia's trend was street style with flair and she chose a statement top from Bubulia threads by Tasleem Bulbulia. She paired it with asymmetrical denims, a knotted turban, hoop earrings, tan boots and a tan backpack.  This was street style at its best!
We unfortunately don't have a pic of Nadia wearing it... But this was the same design lines as worn by her...

Tips: take your q from modest bloggers as they are the major influencers of street style,  so much so, they even inspire runway fashion. You can follow their rules or switch it up to suit your personality. Street style is fashion forward, when it's worn in a way that defies the norm...think the "way" you wear it, rather than "what" you are wearing. However adding a few interest elements like a statement accessory, an on trend statement top or pants can take your every day basic look to Street style queen.

Veiledbeautyza in her street style with flair

To finish off our segment, beautiful niqaabie Jo'Hara Hassem took to the stage. She is a Mum of 3, a journalist, make-up artist, instablogger to Irresistible me and a digital and social media marketer. 

She spoke of the difficulties and stigmas that niqaabies are faced with on an ongoing basis, as well as its beauty, maintaining a beautiful life and perspective as a niqaabi without losing sight of our individuality.

She chose to wear an elegant, structured, glamourous and comfortable abaya designed by Yasmin and Sumaya of  The Abaya Collection SA. She also proved that what you wear under the abaya can be fun, trendy, exciting and just as glamorous too. As what you wear under is for you and your spouse, and affects how you feel and see yourself. Taking care of that element will also help to elevate your internal dialogue to a more positive outlook.

Jazak'Allah Womenish team for inviting me to be a part of this ground breaking event. It was beyond my expectations and helped me grow in ways I never knew possible as a person, fashionista, and as a Muslimah.

Tasneem Valley stunningly dressed by @Zamaan

JazakAllah so much MS. Roshan Isaac's for capturing our moments! Lots of love! 

The womenish team went above and beyond what was required to ensure the success of the event, and I have no doubt that they will continue to break boundaries and explore new frontiers. Every team is put through a few paces, and its strength is revealed in tackling issues head on and that's exactly what we got with the Womensh Team...strong, real, confident, dedicated, and inspiring women! Become apart of the Womenish team...click here: Team Womenish and follow for more of their future initiatives...

Huge Thankyou! Meet the members!

Jazak'Allah Ayesha for the comfortable venue for our meetups, keeping us clued up, positive and everything in between. Ayesha pictured below in the black scarf with Team Womenish Volunteers.

To Fatima of Zamaan_sa for your priceless advice, and inspiration, you are a true fashionista through and through! Pictured below with Ms Roshan Isaac's.

To Nafisa for your constant support, positivity, encouragement and invaluable mentorship.
Nafisa Ismail below pictured with Moonira Baig.

Jazak'Allah Tasneem for all your love, kindness and advice, you are an overflowing source of inspiration. Finally! we met! :)

To Roshan Isaac's for all our pics and a wonderful presence that made being on stage feel so natural. Was great to finally meet you!

To Nadia for assisting in every way you could, you are an amazing friend! Loved our burgers and mocktails after the show;)

Jazak'Allah Leeyah makes me proud to call you my friend, for our mutual listening to each other to feel comfortable on stage and alot more:)...

To Shaakira for my on stage glow;)(I definitely over did the bronzing.... Eek!) and your overall kindness, you are the bomb.com!

JazakAllah Jo'Hara for all your kindness, your advice and saving my lashes;), its always wonderful chatting with you...
I look forward to a flourishing friendship with each and everyone of you!

A special Thankyou as well to our insanely talented videographer Varisha Singh.... You can check out her amazing work on Instagram... Vareee


P.s. lets not forget Uncle Idrees Khamisa, Mubeen and Mr. Abdul Manack.....JazakAllah soooo much! :)