Spring Summer 2010

Maxi dresses, head scarves, and geometric mosaic prints from a Japanese fashion house?  Antonio Marras took us on a Middle Eastern adventure, not surprising as the starting point for the collection was Freya Stark, an English writer and Traveller of the Middle East.  It was a tale of two parts with bright bold colour block looks preceded by beautiful printed maxi dresses and that stunning large check trench.

I love how even in the very Islamic patterns there were still elements of the Japanese aesthetic in the indigo blue and white prints.  An harmonious marriage of cultures that didn’t look in the least bit contrived.  Kenzo is always a go to fashion house for jilbab style maxi dresses and loose fit, so there’s not a lot more Marras could have done to speak to us ladies this Summer.

Cultural Combinations

I guess the Japanese, English, Arab mix isn’t such a strange one after all, well  it is something very close to my heart.  It’s rather lovely to know it can be done so beautifully too!

(images: via style.com)

A Drop Of Colour…

…Goes a Long Way In Winter

It’s still freezing here and getting a little bit grey. The perfect antidote would be one of these beautiful Kenzo coats with colours that remind me of all things jewelled and delicious. The shapes are oversized and modest with a kind of blankety feel to them. And if like me you have nothing in the coat funds department we can all bask in the warming glow of these lovelies.  If that’s got you in the mood for a jilbab then check out Maysaa for a beautiful selection (even if I do say so myself!)

(images: style.com)

Perfect Hijab Style

Layers are the perfect remedy for covering up, and as a hijabi you become quite an expert. This season designers created beautiful layered looks, from being wrapped up in knits at Kenzo to simple maxi dresses and jackets at Dries Van Noten. Who’s layers do you love?

Islamic style meets risque sheer fabrics at Kenzo

So now you’re in a Japanese mood let me introduce you to Kenzo’s Spring/Summer 2009 collection. Pretty florals and floaty, lighter than air, dresses to sum it up. The dresses had layers, illusions of layers, and layers of print so you can pretty much tell I was in love at first sight. Most of the dresses were more than a little see through so not exactly hijab friendly in that respect, but the shapes were utterly Islamic.

Kenzo creates elegant silhouettes with stunning drapery

Drapery

The asymmetric drapery works really well here, but I’ve not yet found a way to make one shoulder dresses work for Muslimahs. But basically this is showing you how a maxi dress can look elegant whilst concealing your shape.

Prints

I’m not usually a fan of prints, let alone floral prints, but I do love these. Somewhere between vintage Japanese and English heritage they are subtle and modest. You need something that’s not going to break your concentration during prayer and I think this mix of print and plain are simple enough not to.

The dress to the left shows perfect asymmetric drapery and it’s completely opaque. Now it’s just a question of having the cash!

Tops

There were also a beautiful selection of short dresses (or as I like to call them tops) on offer on the Kenzo catwalk. The mixing and layering of prints take these simple silhouettes to a new and more interesting design.

See below…

Islamic Style: Loose feminine dresses/tops at Kenzo

A lesson Learned

Hmm, what have we learned here? Well aside from the reminder not to wear see through chiffon I think we can say that dresses with strips of fabric don’t have to look like gypsy skirts and that’s always a good thing. The gypsy style had its moment but this feminine floaty reincarnation is far more subtle and sophisticated. And when it comes to my dream wish list, I’m definitely away with the fairies. Kenzo fairies of course.