Top Ten Hijaabi Fashion Tips

Oh hijaab, the mother of all topics...

1) Don't wear bright red nail varnish . Nail varnish and hijaab is just not a good look . Perhaps go for more natural shades ( i.e your natural shade)  at least it won't mess with your wudhu and you won't have to be the last one to go and pray because you spent half an hour trying to remove it . Late, dazed, stinking of nail varnish remover isn't the kind of trend you want to set in the masajid

2)The maxi dress. Do go flowwy try a little colour but please stick the neon and the wild prints on your 'I'm going to try to wear hijaab properly' sign. Mind you some  of them are are really see through, wear something baggy underneath  otherwise its like you just walked out in tights.Or better yet an abaya or a khimar would really do the job properly

3) Undercaps are your friends . If your old school ( like me) you may risk going without it otherwise its staple hijaab wear. It keeps those strands of modesty tucked away neatly. Word of warning please, please don't tie it too tight your ears have a right on you too! Unless you like seeing clumps of hair fall out when you take your hijaab off

4) The chin pin - my old foe. Theres nothing like a safety pin sitting snugly beneath your chin right? Wrong. The chin pin is a wholly unnecessary irritant that brings the risk of neck scarring with it

5) The shoes. Even the shoes. Yes the shoes. Buy whatever shoes you like within reason but please factor in time taken to put shoes on and take them off especially on days when your tight squeezed to find time for salaah. Seriously those pair of boots could be the difference between khushoo and the two minute sprint saalah ( if we can call that salaah)

6) If there is anything that speaks louder than your clothing then its your mouth.Yes I know its a toughie may Allah give us all strength to rectify our condition. But we need to be weeding out those unnecessary conversations if you catch my drift.

7)Ears, hair,shoes and well of course it has to be necks. We're all told about covering your head and your body but the neck seems to get lost somewhere in between. Whether it's see through or deliberately draped its not particularly flattering to your hayaa  with scarfs that leave little to are too little. This is a small practical step that we can take to improving our hijaab. Remember a see through hijaab is permissible so long as the fold makes it opaque

8)Brooches, rings and sparkly things. As a women I have to say we need to stop behaving like magpies. There are actually rulings on this in terms of how many rings or bracelets you can wear or if you can wear them at all but I think in some( I emphasize some rare) circumstances you can deem what is appropriate. If you find that an undue proportion of men are staring at the mahoosive rock on your finger( or even if they aren't) it may be time to reconsider

9)Some of the best fashion statements are made by loud, confident individuals. We've seen the age of the bright red lipstick the bizarre haircuts and questionable clothing. Faith over fashion. Don't cower away in embarrassment because your wearing the dreaded hijaab you should exude confidence. A kind of natural confidence that pours forth because your comfortable in knowing that what you wear pleases the one who created you. It is a shy and retiring grace and a loud statement of faith it is ultimately a balance as with all things.

10) Wrap it. It is the over complication of hijaab which has been its downfall. We are wearing two , three or even more scarfs and yet our bodies are not covered. Be easy on yourself fellow sister just wrap your scarf draw your cloak , smile and be done with it.

General Advice
-Carry extra safety pins
- Secure your scarf properly on windy days
-Don't wear a scarf with a thousand tassels in a lab. In general scarves are not a fire hazard but tassels get stuck everywhere from zips to Bunsen burners
-You don't need to iron a crinkle scarf( you'd be surprised at the amount of people who don't know this)
- Don't over complicate things by making unnecessary lists (whoops, seems like I did it again)
- Don't be the sister who wears hijaab and sins publicly. Don't get me wrong we are still human and we do make mistakes but don't be the sister to publicly drink and smoke etc . Don't be the reason that other unhijaabed sisters say ' well why should I wear a hijaab at least I don't do xyz'

And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their khimār over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husband, their fathers, their husband's fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women, or the slaves whom their right hands possess, or male servants free of physical needs, or small children who have no sense of the shame of sex; and that they should not strike their feet in order to draw attention to their hidden ornaments.
Quran 24:31

Those who harass believing men and believing women undeservedly, bear (on themselves) a calumny and a grievous sin. O Prophet! Enjoin your wives, your daughters, and the wives of true believers that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad): That is most convenient, that they may be distinguished and not be harassed. [...]
Quran 33:58–59

Oh and final note , if you're considering to wear hijaab but you don't see the point as in you're already a good person this is just a gentle reminder. Allow the goodness of your heart to pour into your actions and allow it to encompass your sitting, your talking, your waking, your sleeping, your eating, your clothing for the sake of the One who fashioned you.