By 2018 saw a melange of wondrous looks from the catwalks of London, Paris, Milan, and New York that have inspired an innovative re-interpretation of modest fashion.
Fashion divas and the Hijabi-next-door all found some way of incorporating the latest trends into the ever-evolving wardrobe of the “hijabista”!
And because there’s nothing fiercer than a Muslimah dressed to the nines, yours truly is going to give you a run down of the most popular trends for 2018, the year of animal prints, faux leather, and aviator sunnies!
Ice Cream Color Palettes
Pastels were a big hit this summer and continued so throughout the year on both sides of the Atlantic! Fantastic news for us all, as the look suited every figure and skin shade.
Versions of the pastel trouser suits of Michael Kors and Hermes were available on the summer high street. These ice cream color palettes worn in coats, skirts, and dresses were a popular look with the stylish brand, Modessa UK, and if head-to-toe pastels aren’t your thing, then perhaps pops of pastels courtesy of beautiful heads wrapped in turbans and hijabs may be the way to go. Modessa UK, Crystal Daiva, and Modest Trove showcase these looks perfectly.
Bring Out The Animal In Me
Jungle-inspired prints, my favorite accessory of the year, turned up en masse via prints on scarves, dresses, and anything else you could wear! Animal prints made popular statements on the catwalk this year with Dolce and Gabbana’s flowing, giraffe-print dresses, and Max Mara’s layered leopard-print look which wouldn’t have gone amiss in any hijabistas wardrobe. We had fun with farm-yard animals too, as modeled by @shazaira! Animal-prints adorned hijab-wearers near and far, with our very own Amani Al-Khatahtbeh demonstrating the look with spunk, under her trademark black baseball cap!
Leather Me Up
The leather look, implemented by all grand designers in various forms, such as Lowe and Sonja Rykel’s leather dresses, were readily taken on board by high street and independent designers this year. The faux and genuine leather filtered down to us mere mortals via off-the-peg bikers jackets, A-line skirts, and the ‘go with everything’ leather leggings. Worn alone or combined, they work in a sophisticated and rock-chick sort of way. Amirah Badr on Pinterest, entrepreneur/model Crystal Daiva, and Hoda Yahya, the original biker girl/filmmaker, all sent this style into the hijab diva stratosphere.
Got A Love Like Denim
Denim, a staple of any girls wardrobe, saw us through Spring and beyond. Double-denim made a comeback as orchestrated by Tom Ford, Kenzo and Fendi. That was translated through the personal styles of travel blogger @shazaira in a relaxed, light, denim jacket, teamed with ankle-zipped skinny jeans for a popular, casual, double-denim look. Marwa Khalifa also made double denims appear effortlessly cool with reflective sunnies.
Pops That Color
Paint-pot, popping color allowed us gregarious hijabis to express the fun side of our personalities. Thanks to Versace and Marni, our use of color was mixed with traditional garments from our parent’s homeland, combined with high-street buys. Scientist/blogger, Dr. Fatumina, hyped up the street vibe with an oversized yellow jacket, whilst lifestyle blogger, Fatima SAB, mixed up bright colors with ethnic textures and prints perfectly; trends that echoed our play with color this summer.
Silk, Silk, Baby
The luxury of silk was never far away thanks to Moschino, Gucci, et al! Scarf companies and bloggers everywhere satiated our love for this fabric, and variations on how to rock silk.
Asadaay (aka aspiring_nomad), She Enchanted (aka sheenchanted), and @befrolicious all encouraged our love affair with silky fabrics. Oh, and we can’t forget the phenomenon of the scarf known as ISHU, made popular by celebrities due to the fact that it allows the wearer to become unrecognizable when someone takes their photo with a smart phone or uses flash photography.
Sheer Magic
Sheer fabrics were draped across the models of Joseph, Miu Miu, Fendi, and the U.K.’s beloved Top Shop in the form of transparent dresses, long and short. Nothing was taboo for us hijabis as we re-interpreted the transparent with layers of tulle over ballerina skirts teamed with Doc Martin-style boots, leggings, and whatever funkiness added on top. Crystal Daiva and FatuminaMusic both owned the trend, turning the sheer and revealing into uber-cool punk, and urban street-chick hijabista style!
Pleats To Meet You
Sacai, Balenciaga, and Joseph all made sure that pleats were in every high-street store this year. It didn’t matter what size you were; there was a pleated variation to suit even those of us who were told our backsides couldn’t carry it off. Well, weren’t the traditionalists wrong! Pinterest catalogued our want and desire to buy and wear pleats, while Genć Tesettür from Turkey, and @mohtshema exemplified how to pull this look off with flair!
Ain’t Nothing Rusty About Rust
The color rust as well as trench coats reinvented as ‘The Dress’, courtesy of Louis Vuitton, Dior, Celine, Alexander McQueen, Lowe, and Max Mara made an easy transition into the hijabis wardrobe. Modest Street, pictured classy and business-like in River Island’s version of their twin trend plaid trench coat, while Sagaleeyaa shows us how to work the trench coat and turban combo. Fly With Haifa, mixing a rust jersey with black jacket and accessories, @hijab-moderne-style with a textured long cardigan, and @hijabfashion with detailed coat and trouser suits all demonstrated how versatile these trends could be.
All That Glitters Is Gold
Metallics and silver tones were a trend for the more adventurous of us. Balmain’s top-to-toe metallic, almost holographic suit, and Giorgio Armani’s oversized silver box coat allowed the rest of us to accessorize with metallics, or dare to wear skirts, dresses, or trousers! Modest Trove catalogues the best looks with models wearing gold metallic pants and metallic pleated skirt. I’ll vouch for this trend, as I’ve lived in a metallic pencil skirt and pastel pink chunky knit, teamed with leather-look leggings when I want to be cozy, but trendy!
Cuties In Capes
Givenchy, Missoni, and the effervescent Vivienne Westwood all produced capes as we hijabis globally scooped up, covered up, and had fun with it. Modest Street wore her cape with a very 40’s feel and Shein U.K. have a very affordable and festive cover up, so take a look!
Logos, Logos, Logos
Logos! We loved them this year, and they were all over our baseball caps, sweatshirts, T-shirt’s, and anything else that could be branded with one. Fendi, Prada, Gucci, and Versace, all made logos hip. Mipsters and hijabistas made the look their own with sports branding, with By.mimi and @saimasmileslike advertising for Unapologetically Muslim on Instagram. @nabiilabee has her own brand of sweatshirts and models the logo trend with ease. @dinatokio and @modestrove all championed the logo embellished garment, giving the loud and proud approval to show off their favorite brands.
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2018 has been an expressive year for modest fashion, exploding on and re-interpreting catwalk fashion in a way like never before. We have had the chance to set trends, instead of just following them, and looking at this past year, it appears that self-expression is the key, and anything goes so long as you accessorize it with confidence. So work it, sistas! Work it all the way into 2019!