Summer fashion for Muslim women
By Kiran Ansari
Special to the Chicago Tribune
July 3, 2008
For the many Muslim women who choose to wear modest clothing outside their homes, summertime fashion can be a challenge. Religious guidelines that suggest women wear head scarves, long-sleeved shirts and pants or long skirts are easy to follow during Chicago's long, cold winters. The challenge comes when the weather heats up and the store shelves are filled with shorts and tank tops—pieces that, without longer layers, don't work for many Muslim women.
Clothing designer Sarah Juman-Yassin found that young women who wanted to wear modest clothing on hot days had to borrow an oversized shirt from their brother's closet or wear something more suited for older women.
Too many of the lightweight long shirts sold in the summertime are meant as swimsuit cover-ups and are too transparent for women trying to be modest, she said. So, the Toronto-based designer launched her own designs on www.justlongshirts.com in 2003 and now caters to a great mix of customers.
"There are many Jewish and Christian and Orthodox women who also want to dress conservatively but were having a hard time finding modern yet modest shirts," she said.
For three Chicago-area women we talked to, finding appropriate—and fashionable—outfits is really a matter of knowing your style and choosing individual pieces that are versatile.
Tabassum Haleem, executive director of the Organization of Islamic Speakers Midwest, wants to dress fashionably yet modestly because she regularly gives presentations on Islam. The 43-year-old who lives in Naperville believes she is also representing the Islamic faith when she speaks to churches, schools and other organizations.
Haleem started covering her hair and wearing long sleeves six years ago and found designers who have the look she wants, with Ralph Lauren and Jones New York her favorites. She often opts for twin sets so she can sport the shell at home and throw on the cardigan when she goes out.
"People have this misconception that Muslim women are mandated to wear black from head to toe," she said. "When they see me in business suits with colorful head scarves it really throws them off."
Islam Ali, 22, a recent graduate of the fashion marketing program at the Illinois Institute of Art, said that the most essential pieces for a Muslim woman are solid long-sleeve shirts and tank tops in all colors. "And if a tank has a low-cut neckline," she said, "just wear it backward."
Ali, who lives in Oak Lawn, loves to shop at Forever 21, H&M, Carson Pirie Scott and Old Navy. "I don't hesitate to buy something that catches my fancy. I will make it work with my hijab [head scarf]."
Her sister, Amal Ali, 32 of Homer Glen, also loves to shop at H&M and Old Navy, in addition to www.shukronline.com. Ali, the youth outreach coordinator at the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, prefers to call her clothing style "dignified."
"You might have to dig a little deeper, but dignified clothes are out there," she said. "I don't like the term modest as it has negative connotations of being timid, insecure, voiceless—none of which I am!"
By Kiran Ansari
Special to the Chicago Tribune
July 3, 2008
For the many Muslim women who choose to wear modest clothing outside their homes, summertime fashion can be a challenge. Religious guidelines that suggest women wear head scarves, long-sleeved shirts and pants or long skirts are easy to follow during Chicago's long, cold winters. The challenge comes when the weather heats up and the store shelves are filled with shorts and tank tops—pieces that, without longer layers, don't work for many Muslim women.
Clothing designer Sarah Juman-Yassin found that young women who wanted to wear modest clothing on hot days had to borrow an oversized shirt from their brother's closet or wear something more suited for older women.
Too many of the lightweight long shirts sold in the summertime are meant as swimsuit cover-ups and are too transparent for women trying to be modest, she said. So, the Toronto-based designer launched her own designs on www.justlongshirts.com in 2003 and now caters to a great mix of customers.
"There are many Jewish and Christian and Orthodox women who also want to dress conservatively but were having a hard time finding modern yet modest shirts," she said.
For three Chicago-area women we talked to, finding appropriate—and fashionable—outfits is really a matter of knowing your style and choosing individual pieces that are versatile.
Tabassum Haleem, executive director of the Organization of Islamic Speakers Midwest, wants to dress fashionably yet modestly because she regularly gives presentations on Islam. The 43-year-old who lives in Naperville believes she is also representing the Islamic faith when she speaks to churches, schools and other organizations.
Haleem started covering her hair and wearing long sleeves six years ago and found designers who have the look she wants, with Ralph Lauren and Jones New York her favorites. She often opts for twin sets so she can sport the shell at home and throw on the cardigan when she goes out.
"People have this misconception that Muslim women are mandated to wear black from head to toe," she said. "When they see me in business suits with colorful head scarves it really throws them off."
Islam Ali, 22, a recent graduate of the fashion marketing program at the Illinois Institute of Art, said that the most essential pieces for a Muslim woman are solid long-sleeve shirts and tank tops in all colors. "And if a tank has a low-cut neckline," she said, "just wear it backward."
Ali, who lives in Oak Lawn, loves to shop at Forever 21, H&M, Carson Pirie Scott and Old Navy. "I don't hesitate to buy something that catches my fancy. I will make it work with my hijab [head scarf]."
Her sister, Amal Ali, 32 of Homer Glen, also loves to shop at H&M and Old Navy, in addition to www.shukronline.com. Ali, the youth outreach coordinator at the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, prefers to call her clothing style "dignified."
"You might have to dig a little deeper, but dignified clothes are out there," she said. "I don't like the term modest as it has negative connotations of being timid, insecure, voiceless—none of which I am!"
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