The Modest Girl

Many of my friends including myself, have a hard time shopping for clothes that are modest yet stylish. There isn't much out there for girls who like to dress conservative but still be fashionable. Below are pictures of models and some pictures of my sister and I for you to view. Y'all out there will get an idea that a 'covered' girl can still look incredibly beautiful while being modest. :)


Tips:


Tunics/Dresses: A good and simple way to dress modest is to wear a long tunic or use a dress as a tunic for your top. Nowadays long tunics are "in" fashion and they aren't that hard to find.


Leggings/Jeggings: A great way to cover your legs. Simply wear it under a long tunic or dress and your look is complete. To add more playfullness in your style, try different colors in leggings!


Skirts/Maxi dresses: I find skirts to be so  feminine and elegant. You can wear a nice long skirt with a simple top and even then you would look great. During summer, maxi dresses look so beautiful with their floral prints and light fabric. Just top it off with a cute light cardigan and your look is "modest-fied"


Knee High Boots:  Every girl should own a fabulous pair of boots, it's the best way to cover half of your legs ! :) Wear a dress with leggings and add a nice pair of boots and voila!...instantly you look amazingly fashionable yet modest.


Layering:  Layering is very important and can actually help you add variation to your closet. You can pair a beautiful sleeveless top with a knit cardigan. Or wear a nice light jacket over a sweater. This way you can buy separates and combine them with different garments.


Scarves/Accesories: Necklaces, earrings, rings, bracelets, scarves and hats all add a extra touch to the whole ensemble. It's very important to just add enough and not overdo it.


The modest runway look. Very NY style, don't you think?

Boots you SHOULD have:

A cute Maxi Dress for the Summer. You can wear a sweet, frilly cardigan to cover your arms:

Love the colors and the hat:

Not exactly my style, but I like the daring look with all the graphics going on (below):

 Going vintage on the Runway while covered:

I like this tunic. Can be worn with a [white] tank top underneath:

Queen Rania at her 'modest'. Beautifully covered:

I am loving the color and the overall style of this tunic:

Chic, yet modest:

I can wear this:

 My sister Naila and her style:

Here she is again. Gotta love the long emerald green shirt with the necklace and bohemian sandals:

My sister on her Carribean Cruise ready to have dinner in her covered, yet very elegant outfit:

 That's me, you decide:

I present to you: the Fashion Sheikhsters!

Being modest while having a good fashion sense, is definitely possible. It all depends on how you put the pieces together. There isn't much to sacrifice except showing skin, but to be honest, I'd rather embellish myself with beautiful fabrics than to become the victim of prying and lustful eyes, you see. Therefore the word "modesty". :)
At the end, beauty DOES lie in the eye of the Beholder. What do you think?

xoxo,

~Madiha

The Golden Globes 2011

My delay in posting this article is only due to my severe laziness and lack of concentration at my mom's place whom I am visiting for three weeks here in California. Why laziness and no concentration? Well, that is because as a new mom I have been sleep deprived for the past three months and now I am catching up on my sleep while my siblings and beautiful mom work on the wishes and commands of my precious baby, Mehreen. 


Watching TV with my siblings is definitely a different experience than watching it by myself or the hubby at home in Texas. I love how the four of us can be so spontaneous and opinionated without acting 'mannered'. My sister and I are three years apart. My brother and I are eight years apart and then my youngest brother and I are sixteen years apart. (!) Yes, we have a blend of different age groups, different lives; yet we still come together at the kitchen table or in front of the TV to mock, tease and laugh at each other. And in that moment of togetherness, there are no 'ages' no differences; just us.


The Golden Globes this past Sunday was such an event. We sat and watched. We talked and shared. We laughed (at Ricky Gervais) and admired (beauties + fashion!). 
Below are pictures of famous stars wearing exquisite dresses that have caught my eye, and I'm sure yours as well:

Catherina Zeta-Jones looks absolutely splendid in Monique Lhuillier ball gown. The emerald green color looks very elegant on her and I would rate her dress the number 1 dress of the Golden Globes. Isn't she gorgeous?

Anne Hathaway wearing a backless Armani Prive gown. I love the metallic color on her skin tone. She kinda looks like a mermaid here. (below):

Olivia Wilde looked stunning and perfect wearing a sequined Marchesa gown. The rusty color and the sequinces with the 'poof' gown-shape made her look very dreamy. Also, gotta love the hair. Good thing she didn't overwhelm her look with jewelry. (below):

Angelina Jolie in Swarovski-encrusted Atelier Versace gown. One word: Breathtaking. (below):

Pregnant and glowing Natalie Portman in Viktor & Rolf gown. She looked adorable.

(below):

Lea Michele wore a ruffled Oscar de la Renta gown. I am very much liking this sweet pink color and the hairstyle on her. (below):

Mila Kunis looked like a million dollar in this Vera Wang gown especially designed for her. She looked very pretty and did not overdo it. (below):

Leighton Meester wore a beige Burberry Prorsum dress with Jimmy Choo platforms.

I love how she is wearing it lightly as if she can fly away anytime. ;)

Megan Fox wore a pink Armani Prive bandage frock, which featured a sexy thigh-high slit. Only if she wasn't this skinny. (below):

Helen Mirren wore a classy gown with a Cartier necklace worth 1.6 million dollars. Whoa. She always dresses beautifully and very age appropriate. (below):

xoxo,

Madiha~

My AM Fashion Rescue

It's 3:01 am as I am sitting here typing this post. After many failed attempts of trying to make myself fall asleep, I decided to give up and start typing. Sometimes, I feel the best time for me to write is when it's completely silent and all I can hear is that one car driving by on the empty road and I wonder where that driver is heading at this time. Sleepless nights have been a part of my daily routine now. There are things in life that you plan out for yourself but unfortunately, sometimes those plans don't work out according to you. Such is life, I have learnt, or should I say, I am still learning. Some things or events that occur in our lives, we can't control, but what we CAN control is how we challenge those obstacles and how we come out of it. That is exactly what I am trying to do, either come out of it stronger than ever before, or keep fighting and asking God; why me, why me? The latter part is the one that alot of people tend to do including myself, which is normal and natural in a sense. But unfortunately it's not going to take you anywhere. I have started to make goals again, trying to get my focus back, and by doing all this, first and foremost remembering God in everything.  I read somewhere that God gives those people challenges whom he loves the most. So feel honered and get yourself together. As I am typing this, I feel like this is a therapy session for myself. I don't know how many people out there are reading this and thinking "what the heck has this to do with fashion and why does this lady keep yapping on and on.."


And the answer to your question is that writing about fashion or working on assignments is my way of getting back on track. I perceive fashion as art. It has so many forms, shapes, colors and each piece is unique and special in its own way. Becoming a successful fashion buyer is a dream of mine, and I am slowly working towards attaining that dream. But the real dream is to make a change in people's lives. Hopefully, one day when I will have my own fashion empire with the sister ofcourse! ;) (InshAllah) = Godwilling, I will have a chance to travel the world and do charity. I believe everyone has a calling in this world, some might achieve it faster or earlier than others, but it will come to you with time . Let's hope and pray that this journey will take you and I to our destination. :)
Enjoy these beautiful photographs...try to enjoy the smaller things in life.


“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”
"Fashion is architecture: it is a matter of proportions.”
- Coco Chanel

xoxo,

Madiha~



"From Geek to Chic": The Manly Man

When thinking of fashion, one automatically thinks of ladies going shopping and spending money on clothing & the latest fashion. Even the motive of this Blog was as such, but little comes to mind the fashion of our manly associates that we caretakers disregard as anything, but important. 
I am talking 'manly fashion'; the ties, the formal attire, the jeans, the socks and the shoes. Maybe it is the European in me who loves formal attire, but I've always been very intrigued by the every detail of men's wear. I love the simplicity and sleekness that goes into dressing a man, whether formal or casual. This post, I'd like to dedicate to my geek, my husband who is a very simple man, satisfied in his jeans and graphic tees - the computer programmer he is - I find his simplicity and naivety towards fashion and his innocence of not knowing (or focusing on) 'good looks', to be kind of attractive in itself  --> one of the many reasons I married him. ;)


Looking back, a couple of years ago, the geeky look would've been a total 'no no' and would've seemed totally unfashionable, but as the internet era emerged, we have embraced the geeks into our world of fashion; welcoming the dorky big glasses, tees with witty text, roughed up jeans and messed up hair as an alluring side of the cubicle working men.


Shows like the "IT Crowd", "The Office" & "The Big Bang Theory" shows the sarcasm and dry humor of clever geeks to be very entertaining! I personally love UK's 'IT Crowd' and of course 'The Office' and watch it on Netflix when I need a laugh or two! Also, you must check out the band; 'The Flight of the Conchords'. I was introduced to them by my husband [of course] in the very beginning of our marriage when I was slowly stepping into his Geeky world, trying to comprehend his love for everything 'geeky'. Here's the link to their song that you must see, called 'Humans are Dead'. I find it soooo funny!:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGoi1MSGu64


I like this geeky look with the glasses, tie and Oxford jacket:

The image on the left is a very chic twist on 'casual'. The shawl is the final touch to the mature, yet boyish look.











To reach the 'chic' in a 'geek' can only be done by a loving touch of a woman who has the sense of transforming her geek into the manly man she wants by incorporating the geeky style with the classy look; kind of like Ashton Kutcher meets Brad Pitt. I personally love, love, love Zara's men clothing. I can never get enough of the cardigans, the starched collar shirts, and the not-too-fitting yet perfectly fitted pants. 

Grow a bit of a stubble and I present to you Mr. Irresistible:

Oh, how classy you are beautiful, beautiful Zara man! The leather jacket, the ribbed sweater cardigan, the dark grayish shirt and those soft tweed pants! Told ya, they're perfect...

While I am still trying to change my 'Geek' into 'Chic', I firmly stand by my choice of clothing for men. And the more years pass by, the more classier my geek is becoming (luckily) , but the original geek can never hold back and so, we remain hopelessly geeky.

"Geekily Happy Forever..."

xoxo,

Naila~

The Royal Wedding: Part 1

On Friday April 29, I know exactly where I will be...right in my living room glued to my TV.

Reason being why is that I will be attending the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton through my television set! Throughout the years, I have been following them both on and off and always secretly hoped that one day they would get married. Prince William was my teenage crush as he was for a lot of girls who grew up in Europe. So I am very happy for him that he found his princess..and is about to complete this fairytale. There is something so intriguing about him. I personally find him to be very sincere, genuine and humble, something that many celebrities lack once they reach the spotlight!  And because he is so normal even though he actually isn't (I mean he is freakin' prince for crying out loud) he found someone who is the average girl next door with no royal or celebrity affiliations/ties.

I am talking about the future Princess of the United Kingdom; Kate Middleton! This girl is not just any girl but she is a very classy young lady. The way she carries herself and her style already shows us that she will be a perfect princess. She is beautiful yet simple (according to my brother she is hot) and her fashion sense is something that has people talking all over the world! As you probably noticed, I added 'part 1' to the title of this post. This is because up until April, I will be covering all the latest news/details on this grande wedding, so I can keep you guys posted on this beautiful matrimonal ceremony between the Prince and Kate (I think they are just soo cute!!!)

I am posting some of my favorite pictures of Kate:

(click to see larger image)

Even though no one can ever compare to Princess Diana, I still believe that Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Middleton will bring her own uniqueness to the Royal Palace and her personality & grace is something that people are going to fall in love with.

So girls, never give up on your dreams...you never know when you might end up marrying a Prince. ;)

xoxo,

 Madiha~

"In war with my closet": The Mommy Chronicles

I am sure many people deal with this chronic problem; 'the disorganized closet syndrome'. I surrender. Don't get me wrong; I am not an uber-slob and neither am I too much of a perfectionist [in some areas I am - don't ask], but my dealio with the closet has a history of rejection, from my part. As much as I love my wardrobe, my laziness kicks in the moment a plastic bag filled with contents makes it to my bedroom and stays there....for....a....while...


Until, I remember to pick it up, either put it on [the clothes, not the bag!], or then take it to my closet which isn't a pleasant journey as I am dreading to find a good spot for my new merchandise. Does this come as a shock to you? Haha! Welcome to my imperfect world of domestic living. I am human and I've got my share of laziness. That is unfortunately the reality. However, this may happen to you and I will put this out there; doesn't it happen that many times when you leave things randomly, you KNOW exactly where you've put it and you'd prefer to have it that way? As a hopeless Cancerian I grow attached to my stuff - heck, even to my people (!), but my point is, that my disorganized wardrobe may be chaotic to someone else, but it's not as problematic for me as I know where I put my things. Perhaps, I use my rationalization as an excuse - oh, boy.


I've had plentiful times of peacefulness with my closet. We used to be good friends once. I would hang my clothes properly on the hangers when done wearing, I'd vacuum the soft carpet and I would line my shoes and bags for immediate picking. We were in love; the closet & I until I found my way into laziness, which became a wonderful excuse during my pregnancy. To be honest, I did have a problem spending too much time standing in my walk-in closet, even though it's spacious, I would feel claustrophobic and I'd walk out huffing and puffing  [please do consider Houston's intense humidity - thank you]. Now, that I'm a mommy, I regret the free times I had and could utilize to my advantage. Oh well, you live and learn.


I seek to gain inspiration through this Blog and I hope that my year will be a year of 'Organization', so that Fashion won't have to suffer while I'm aspiring to be an on-the-go mommy. In the meanwhile, I'll take little baby steps to hang clothes where they belong and not overload one hanger with thousands outfits.
Maybe I'll share a picture with you once I've achieved my inner-fashionista dilemma, maybe...
For now, delight your eyes with pictures of Closet Heaven:

Very chic (below):




























I love the wooden interior, especially the wooden hangers (below):























Very cute & detailed. I'd like something like this for my daughter Mehreen when she grows up. Her current age = 2.5 month old. (image -->)






















Logged in: Jan. 1st, 2011
Time:      8:15 PM
Goal:      Organize Closet
Mission:   Hang ab-so-lu-te-ly everything

xoxo,

Naila~

New Year, New Look?

Every year when New Years comes along, millions of people make resolutions to change something about themselves. I myself am also one of them, and its not a very original resolution, perhaps you can say a very common one. I, Madiha Sheikh, hereby declare to lose 20 pounds as my resolution for 2011! Yes I said it, it's out there and I can't take it back. People who know me are probably thinking, why 20 pounds? Maybe 10 is enough? The answer is very simple, because I would want to be able to wear clothes without my flab hanging out on the sides and because I believe that high class fashion only looks good when you are fit. And to add on to my reasoning; I most certainly need to do this for myself. Through this blog I will not only talk about fashion around the world, but also about my fitness. Hopefully, this will be my motivation to finally shed those 20 pounds! 

My first inspiration came about when I was standing in the grocery store isle and noticed Jennifer Hudson from American Idol on the front cover of some magazine. She looked amazing! Much better from when I saw her on American Idol. She had completely transformed herself and was in an amazing shape. After giving birth to her son, she went on Weight Watchers and lost about 80 pounds! If you look at her now, she not only looks younger but the clothes she wears are falling so beautifully on her. She has turned into a fashionista!

My second inspiration is the beautiful Indian actress: Katrina Kaif. She always has this grace about her and I believe she carries herself with a lot of class. Her fashion sense is very much up there and she always looks good wearing anything. Standing 5'9 tall, this mixed beauty has worked very hard shedding pounds to show off her toned & slim body. For her new movie, 'Tees Maar Khan', she was asked to show her midriff for a song "Sheila ki Jawani". She went all out to give her best for this new avatar. I must say, I like the new Katrina!

Of course, my goal in losing weight is not to sound shallow and give importance to appearances "only", but I am mainly motivated to change myself internally to then bring a change in me physically, so I can feel and look good all at the same time! Much of our internal well-being is related to our outer appearance and to be fashionable in every sense, I'd advice you to take good care of yourself this year! Don't stress, laugh a lot, keep good friends and love your family.

Logging in:  Jan. 1st, 2011
Time:        7:23 AM

Goal:        Lose 20 pounds

Mission:     eat [healthy], pray and love! <3

xoxo,

Madiha~