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Vogue recently featured hijabi Instagram star Amaal Said, “a 20-year-old Danish-Somali photographer and poet” who lives in London and frequently posts stylish images of herself to social media. The profile talks about Said’s fashion philosophy and everything that makes her pictures fun and inspiring: the bold colors, fun accessories, and gorgeous scarves she borrows from her mom’s closet. But most notably of all, what makes Said stand out in comparison to other fashionistas frequently featured in Vogue is how little skin she shows.
Said is one of many “hijabi fashionistas”—that is, a Muslim woman who wraps the Muslim headscarf stylishly, paired with an equally fabulous, fully modest outfit covering the entire body save the hands and feet.
In a previous post, I discussed Dolce & Gabbana’s move to embrace modest Muslim dress in its new line of abayas, or cloaks. There, I bemoaned the fashion industry’s tendency to overlook the modest clothing lines created by actual Muslim women, from Dina Torkia to Luella and many more, designers who have not only found unique ways to blend modesty and style but also have created products to help others achieve the look.
Indeed, these hijabi fashionistas have taken the Internet by storm. They are especially prevalent on Instagram, and hail from locales as diverse as Kuwait and California. Some balance the traditional with the modern, while others go full-on hipster, their headscarves fashioned as a turbans. In addition to the strictly hijabi fashionistas there are countless modest Muslim fashion bloggers who don’t wear the headscarf but offer a host of modest outfits as inspiration for their followers.
Their collective message is clear: Modesty can be fabulous. It can be chic, elegant, edgy—whatever your personality, layers of clothes won’t stop you from expressing it.
Beyond their own desire for self-expression, these modest style mavens are turning a now-accepted norm on its head: You don’t need to succumb to popular will and show more skin to look (and feel) beautiful. Beauty need not be synonymous with provocative dress. Ignore the impulse to post images of your half-naked person on Instagram while complaining about body-shaming.
In other words: Take pride in your body by not revealing it to the world. Instead, live counter-culturally by dressing according to your own values.
For religious women—both Muslim and non-Muslim—and many non-religious women offended by society’s celebration of the scantily clad, those values include modesty. And with each of their unique and unmistakably stylish ensembles, you can’t help but also notice the demeanor of contentment and peace that seems to radiate from these modest women. They show that it is possible to reject the over-sexualization of the female body and the side effects it brings, such as insecurities about one’s body, unhealthy dieting and eating disorders, and the compulsion to cater to the male gaze. Modest fashion serves women’s need to be beautiful and to create beauty on their own terms.
Let’s give Amaal Said the last word:
I didn’t think I was allowed any sort of style when I was younger because of these restrictions, which I don’t believe anymore. I also thought I could control what men said or how they looked at me in the street with what I wore, which was a mistake. My idea of beauty has changed dramatically, and that’s because I’m forgiving myself and learning how to love myself better. I had to widen my understanding of beauty so that I could fit into it.
The post Hijabi Fashionistas Show That Modesty Can be Beautiful appeared first on Acculturated.