Rayyan's Tenth Outfit - Shirt

This shirt is a long sleeve long button up in a pale brown. I won't do a post on this scarf as Rayyan has worn it before, see Rayyan's Seventh Outfit Scarf

Here's some options

al-Farah's Shimmering Cotton Pants Sets US$29.99 We don't see the trousers in Rayyan's outfits but this would be a nice pair of trousers to wear with a shirt like this.

An option for colder areas or those who like jilbab coverage:

al-Farah's Khaki Duster in Khaki US$49.99

Rayyan's Ninth Outfit - Skirt

Here's Rayyan's skirt from this outfit, its a long dark blue godet skirt, it could be denim but I'm not sure.

Here's a good option:
100% Cotton Denim Godet Skirt US$59.95

Here's some other fun options from Coldwater Creek, both 35" long so if you are tall these are not for you. Take one of your skirts in this a-line shape and check that 35" would be long enough for you.
Piecework Skirt US$29.99
Batik-look print skirt US$29.99

Rayyan's Ninth Outfit - Scarf - Update!

Check out this wonderful option provided by an anon commenter:


Veiled by Design's Magenta & Olive Floral Print on Black 21" x 71" Rectangular Scarf for US$17.99

And the original, they are so similar:

Comment's like anons that find us another scarf option to copy Rayyan are what I would love to see more of at the blog. Anon - please contact me on the email in my profile, I would like to give you a prize for helping me out.

Apologies

Salaam alaikum, peace be upon my lovely readers. I have just moved to a new city straight after end of year assignments and exams, and started by first full time job. It is very busy and I haven't had much time for blogging. Inshallah I'll get onto some more Rayyan centered postings. Today however I'm going to show you a work outfit I built using polyvore an outfit creator. I've tried to do it on Rayyan based outfits but I find that its very difficult to get items that are both the closest to Rayyan's and are in a useful format for polyvore (they need to be just the item straight on with a white background to look good).

Click on the pictures below to get shopping details for the items. I've put hijab links at the bottom as they are what makes our fashion special and also as Star Scarves links that polyvore picks up just link to the picture with no way to access the Star Scarves online shop. As with everything in a hijab outfit, make sure to choose loose clothing items

I hope you all don't mind getting the odd off topic posting but I just find that posting a non-Rayyan outfit that I have worn myself helps me remotivate myself to make Rayyan based postings. Anyway, hear you are, please comment if you would rather I never made off topic postings.


The top hijab is a Star Scarves Brown Floral shayla with a floral print for US$13.99, which matches the dress. A shayla gives a more voluminous look so is more casual than an amira. The lower hijab is a Star Scarves Dark Brown with Embroidery Al-Amira Hija for US$11.99, it closely matches the coat color. An amira is great to throw on if you are in a hurry but its also a more conservative look.

Work out what suits your workplace best, I have personally found that a hijab in any muted color (i.e. not pink with sequins) looks formal with work clothing.

Rayyan's Ninth Outfit - Top

This is a very unflattering photo of Rayyan but gives you the best idea of this top. Most of the clothing that Rayyan wears are a bit different from what is available for sale online with hijabs. I suspect that Rayyan's wardrobe is supplied by scouring North American stores for what is modest enough for her to wear. Unfortunately I don't live in North America so I really wouldn't know the first place to start recommending shops that sell some modest items. So it's back to trying to find something similar on the net.

For the buckled wrap look I found a 3/4 sleeve top in white and red, wear them over a button-up for a formal look or a long sleeve tee for more casual. I liked both colors so here they are:
J.R. Nites Women's Taffeta Wrap Top for US$69.99

Remember if you find it an item in white you can dye it any color you like using fabric dye.

Rayyan's Ninth Outfit - Scarf

There's that neck again, put it away Rayyan! Anyway, this is a large sheer shayla which black with a floral pattern of pink and beige flowers along with leaves.

Here's the only thing I could find similar:

A large opaque shayla - Hijab Al-Muminat's Cottony Hijab with Dark Red Floral Print US$6.99

Hijab Advice

If you choose to wear hijab (i.e. covering your whole body with loose clothing and covering the hair, neck and ears) wearing a sheer scarf by itself is a risky business. If you get a couple of layers of coverage when you are tying them they may become opaque however if you have any movement of the scarf then it's see through again. Looking at this picture, if the tail was pinned at the ear and draped down at the front of the chest it would cover the neck and ear however if the wind caught it, you would expose this area. The safest thing is to get yourself a one-piece or two piece al-Amira to wear under your sheer scarves. If its cold it will add another layer to keep you warm and if its hot I would suggest you look for a hijab specifically labeled as breathable. Hijab companies are moving into more breathable fabrics so have a look at al-Hannah al-Amira from US $7.99, Queendom al-Amira from CA$14.50 and Star Scarve's al-Amira from US$7.99.

Enjoy your sheer scarves, they are pretty and available in wide range of Western stores. All you need is an al-Amira to keep you in hijab! When you are wearing a full cover Amira underneath your scarf you create some daring hijab styles or even wear a scarf that is traditionally too small to wear as hijab.

Rayyan's Eighth Outfit - Shirt

A nice long sleeve purple shirt with two breast pockets.

Here's something very similar but pricey, buy loose as its quite fitted:
DSQUARED2 Long Sleeve Shirt in Maroon from Yoox US$161.15

Something pretty in the same vein:
Fossil's Ellen Woven in Dark Purple US$58

Without pockets but modest:
Al Farah's Cotton Spandex Blouse in Burgundy US$19.99 also try plum.

Have a look at Primo Moda's range of shirts with pockets but none purple

Rayyan's Eighth Outfit - Scarf

I love this scarf, purple sheer shayla with a mixture of purple toned patterns. So I'm going to use it as an excuse to share my new obsession!

When I went to South East Asia over Summer I found heaps of pretty colorful scarves at good prices. Coming back home to New Zealand however I haven't been able to find any websites that sell these Malays scarves, known as tudung. I've been searching a lot and found a few Malaysia based websites. Most Malays do actually speak English so even if you come across a website all in Malay, they are likely to be able to help you order in English. I talked to Fadzbiz who take orders in English, use Paypal and ship Internationally. Take a bit of time to orientate round the Malay named categories to find what you like, such as Corak are floral scarves and Tudung Turki are Turkish scarves. Another thing to be aware is that some scarves are quite small, like 38" square which suit small Malay girls but not necessarily other girls. Also Malay sisters are often happy for less coverage than other Muhajabat so just be aware of looking for the right size for you.

The big news however is all these scarves are less than US$3 / £1.50!

Fadzbiz's Bawal Corak RM9

Fadbiz's Pink Tudung RM9

Rayyan's Seventh Outfit - Pants

Those trousers from Outfit Two again

These are my favourites:
Shukr UK's 100% Cotton Double Belted Flared Trousers in Chai for £28.95

Rayyan's Seventh Outfit - Top

I really love this outfit, a beige long sleeve tee topped by a sheer beige floral v-neck blouse with 3/4 slit sleeves.

Try this gorgeous loose blouse, its a bit different, but I love it!

Spiegel's Beaded Silk Blouse in Khaki Multi US$45

Over this long sleeve tee:
Anvil's Long Sleeve T-Shirt in Camel US$7.56 - $11.52

Rayyan's Seventh Outfit - Scarf

I actually have a scarf exactly like this one but in a different color, my mother-in-law bought it for me in Malaysia, Jazakallah to her. Its so frustrating to not be able to find them online, as I know for once what the same scarf that Rayyan is wearing looks like but I can't find an eshop to share with you. This is a shayla scarf with tassles, floral and geometric pattern at the ends with a sheer section in the middle with threads running through in the color of the floral pattern and shiny threads running through the whole scarf also.

Here's a photo of my scarf:

Here's some options instead:

Muslim Base's Simple Burgundy Hijab £4.99

Burnt Orange and Red Pashmina Scarf US$17.99

Little Mosque on the Prairie - Season Two

The new Season of Little Mosque on the Prairie has just started in Canada, screeening on Wednesday at 8pm on CBC! Moving from a eight episode season to a twenty episode season, is a big shift and it will be fascinating to see how the people of Mercy develop over the season. CBC has made a big push to advertise the show such as in the video above, and updated the Little Mosque on the Prairie website with more content like videos and downloads. Also check out the community page, where my blog features under "Little Mosque on the Internet" - thankyou CBC!

I'd like to encourage you all to buy a copy of Season One on DVD for CA$23.99, currently you can preorder from CBC's Online store with a release date of November 13th.

Rayyan's Sixth Outfit - Skirt

I love this dark denim godet skirt, a staple for a fashionable Muslima. I love the stitching on this one but couldn't find anything similar, here's two options from Shukr:

Shukr's Denim Godet Skirt US$44.95

Shukr's Paneled Godet Skirt US$59.95

Rayyan's Sixth Outfit - Shirt

Rayyan wears a simple white button shirt in this outfit over a long mauve t-shirt. I have never been able to find a t-shirt that long, if I find one I'll do an update.

Shukr's Formal Affair Blouse in White US$44.95

Rayyan's Sixth Outfit - Scarf

Hehe Rayyan looks a bit grumpy in this image! She's wearing a simple purple georgette square hijab with a white underscarf in with this outfit, its so simple and pretty. You could wear any hijab with this outfit as this other clothing items are neutrals.

Star Scarves' Light Purple with Sequins Pashmina Scarf for USD $14.39

Al Hannah's Solid Turkish Gauze Hijab US$9.99 in Violet

The Hijab Shop's Square Hijab in Purple £5.25



I personally have a scarf very similar to Rayyan's from eJilbab, a Georgette Hijab in Thistle US$5.99

Rayyan's Fifth Outfit

Sorry very very fuzzy picture! This outfit is the top and hijab from Outfit One and pants from Outfit Two. This shows how a few well chosen, loose long clothing items can be worn in different ways. Rayyan's outfit is a bit too revealing for me as I personally feel that when wearing trousers it is better to wear a long top that reaches to the knee (to cover the bottom) and to wear loose trousers which do not reveal the shape of the leg. Keep it modest sisters!

Rayyan's Forth Outfit - Skirt

Only image I could get of this skirt, sorry it a bit fuzzy but you get the idea. Horizontal tiered skirt from light pink to maroon with sequins.


Maple Clothing Long Skirt 39" $28

Maple Clothing Long Skirt 38" $22

Maple Clothing Long Skirt 38" $28

For more gorgeous Indian clothing like these check out Maple Clothing or Aim Craft