![All about Modest Fashion]()
by Purba | Sep 27, 2020 | Top Trends |
A woman in modest outfit. Courtesy: Photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels
Modest fashion? From Jakarta to Dubai, London & soon even Miami, runways around the world are showcasing higher neckline, longer hemline, longer sleeves and looser cuts. This is Modest fashion!
The term modest fashion refers to a fashion trend of wearing less skin revealing clothes with stylish design. Although the exact interpretation of modesty varies across culture, religion and country. Beyond the various thoughts all agree on the idea that modest fashion is mainly focused on introducing the trend fashionably with the requirement of their faith, personal comfort and choice.
Origin of Modest fashion
Modest fashion can be seen throughout many different time, periods & culture. Although Abrahamic religions have more influence in modest lifestyle. Many Christian, Jewish, and Muslim women practice the veiling of their head, with Christian women wearing a head covering, Jewish women wearing a tichel, and Muslim women wearing a hijab.
However historically it can be connected with medieval clothing. Besides Robes, shawls and intricate Kaftans of 14th century Ottomans and Farthingale skirts of Elizabethan England could be considered modest.
Market of Modest Fashion
Having rich history behind modest fashion is now endorsed by global fashion brands and retailers, and was set to become a $450 billion industry. However, in 2018 modest fashion was considered as a $250 billion industry. According to Pinterest UK, modest fashion searcher increased 500% in 2019. More designers are restoring to longer and more flowy designs. The industry was expected to increase by 51% by 2019. According to the Global Islamic Economy Report, the Muslim fashion spent alone in the UK is estimated to reach £226 billion by 2020. Names like Dolce & Gabbana, H&M, Uniqlo have also entered modest fashion segments. Other brands, including DKNY, Tommy Hilfiger, Oscar de la Renta, Monique Lhuillier, Zara and Mango, have produced special collections for the Ramadan holiday.
Fashion Week/ Fashion Show based on Modest theme
A lot of fashion shows have been organized based on modest fashion theme. Muslim cities like Jakarta, Dubai & Istanbul have already organized fashion week successfully. Middle east country like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Israel, Palestine, UAE, Turkey and African countries like Morocco, Algeria etc. are coming forward in support of modest fashion. Western fashion cities are also approaching with this theme. In February 2017, London hosted its first-ever Modest Fashion Week, featuring more than 40 labels showcasing styles that ranged from maxi dresses to hijabs. Israeli fashion company Modli which has mainly US based market also featured modest fashion items.
In 2018, the Islamic Fashion & Design Council (IFDC) has partnered with Milan Fashion Week (MFW) to host a modest fashion party. Miami fashion week based on modest fashion was also about to be hosted in 2020 but due to Covid19 pandemic they expect to reschedule it in 2021.
Contradiction & Misconception about Modest Fashion
For many people, Modesty is a modern taboo. It is the object of ridicule and scorn. Some believes Modesty inhibits freedom and it is the product of centuries of “Patriarchy”. Although the most important part of this development is that modest clothes are worn outside of a religious context. It depends fully on the consumer how they are accepting modest fashion. Most of the modest fashion are designed for both religious and non-religious consumers.
Once you put aside the misconception that modest fashion is only tied to religious and religo-ethnic desires, many of the fashion experts recommend quick to stress that covering up doesn’t have to equate to looking boring or avoiding trends. Currently many scholars are working and studying with this growing phenomenon such as British professor Reina Lewis from London College of Fashion.
The need for Security
Another theme found in the new modest fashion trend is the need for security. One of the primary functions of clothing is physical protection from the elements. However, clothing’s most significant purpose is more protection of a person’s dignity and privacy which inspires one’s spirituality. In an increasingly polarized and uncertain world, many women claim a need for extra “armor” to protect them from the unforeseeable.
The situation of the #MeToo movement has also materialized insecurity between the sexes. This rising tension is redefining relationships and social conventions.
Modesty Wear for Men
Hijab lines created by luxury brands such as Dolce & Gabbana and frequent shows in places such as London, Dubai and Paris, modest fashion is being bigger than ever for the ladies.
However, men have not been forgotten when it comes to trend-led modest fashion. In 2018 London Modest fashion week clothing targeted towards modesty wear for men. Hooded jubbah, denim khandoura, shemaghs, modest prayer hats and swanky sandals displayed on the center stage to an expectant crowd of media, bloggers and fashionistas. Alia Khan, the chairwoman of the Dubai-based Islamic Fashion and Design Council (IFDC) said: “The opportunity is in studying this area and catering sincerely to it. I predict this is the next area of growth we will all be hearing a lot more about.”
What’s Next?: Trend of modest fashion
The next stage for modest fashion lies in diversity: The diversity of men & women who are choosing to dress this way, as well as an expansion of designers, influencers and platforms that this department will seep into. It is expected that major retailers will collaborate with modest designers and more modest fashion events that live offline and empower women in person. Experts believe it will continue to grow naturally, as it caters to a particular person, not a culture or a religion.
Source: (Wikipedia, Forbes, Who What Wear, Arabian Business, TRT world, Khaleej Times, Miami Fashion week, IFDC)
If you are interested to know the modestwear trends of 2024, you can go here and read our exclusive article!
The trend report is taken from WGSN, so get a sneakpeak asap!
Shariful Islam Akash
Department of Textile Fashion and Design (TFD)
Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX)
Batch:45
by Purba | Sep 27, 2020 | Top Trends |
In this world, a lot of genius artists have come, a lot have achieved fame and reputation. When we talk about fashion, and art can be a subject included there. Fashion includes every trending thing, every aspect valued by mass people. If we go into history, we will find out ancient clothing via artworks, like Vincent Van Gog’s own portrait or ‘Salvator Mundi’ by Leonardo. It’s a matter of fact that some of the artworks represented the mindset of painter and creator, their design, and their aspect of clothing. To know more about the trending life of then, we need to know about the artworks and artists, their inspiration, their aspirations. Let’s begin the journey with Leonardo da Vinci, a mystery of all time.
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci-this breathtaking name is shortly known as Leonardo da Vinci, a mystery for all time in the history of art! Whenever you say the name Leonardo, you get a face in your imagination, a man with a long crooked nose as the headmaster of Hogwarts, long hair and beard like Rabindranath Tagore, wearing a cap over his head!
That’s what Google shows us, little do we know his secrets that he hid well his nature, the brilliance of his mind! What we get to know is a little portion of his work (fewer than 25 artworks have survived) from his notebooks. People are always trying to dig up this brilliant person’s life, wanting to know more about the secret massages he left behind in his works. His motives have been the holy grail for the person who is looking at the artworks of Leonardo for the first time. Work represents the master, a secret represents a brilliant mind.
If you want to read another one of our uncommon article about Chemistry and fashion, you can go here!
Although we are not going to discuss the mystery, we will be talking about his early life, his family, his early training, and his companions.
Leonardo was born from a reputed family’s son and a peasant. His full name has a meaning. It means Leonardo the son of ser Piero from the city of Vinci. A name revealing the identity of his father. His father had 6 wives and 12 children born from the 5th and the 6th mistresses. Leonardo had a very distant relation with his siblings because of the age gap. He was the eldest of all.
He had received an informal education in Latin, Geometry, and Mathematics. He has recorded some events from his childhood in his notebooks, about a kite being an omen for his writing, terrified and curious about cave while exploring the mountain and the observation of water, writing and crossing out the river. His early life has significantly caught the eyes of historians. The fruit reveals the tree, but here the fruit and tree were so mysterious that the historians tried to look back at his roots, still, they found a little information about his keen eyes and observation power. His notebooks revealed his vast interest in anatomy, cartography, painting, paleontology, etc. He revealed a few when he was alive. The story of his early life bears a great deal of historical guess.
At the age of 14, he was brought at Florence where his nature turned to bloom day by day. He was appointed as a Garzone (studio boy) in the workshop of Verrocchio, the leading painter, and sculptor of his lifetime. At the age of 17, he became an apprentice of Verrocchio sharing the studio with some other apprentices who became renowned artists of their time later like Botticelli, Perugino, Ghirlandaio, Lorenzo di Cardi. He had command over theoretical and technical skills like drafting, metallurgy, metalworking, chemistry, leatherworking, mechanics and woodwork, drawing, painting, sculpting, and modeling because he immersed himself in diverse training. His training paid off and he had created a world of science with the help of crafts. His odd thoughts with the touch of art became the science of these days. It’s still unknown if he had put all his efforts to learn those skills but it is said that he had a gifted intelligence as well as a thrust for the unknown. As a result, we see a lot of architecture drawing in his notebooks. His painting structure was so much different than other artists of his time.
It is said that once Leonardo worked with Verrocchio in ‘The baptism of Christ’. It is said that Leonardo’s painting was way superior to his master and Verrocchio put down his brush, he never created an artwork again. Though it is an apocryphal story later when the parts drawn by Leonardo were examined, a new brush stroke pattern with a new color mixture was found. This proved his genuine talent in the field of artworks. He probably had worked as a model for his master as some artworks were drawn by his master had similar figures and the structure of his body was similar to them. His first artwork was made of pen and ink drawing in 1473 about the Arno valley which was cited as the first pure landscape in occident.
According to Vasari, young Leonardo was the first to suggest the Arno river as a navigable channel between Florence and Pisa!
Throughout history, Leonardo has been named as the prime example of the Renaissance, a man of universal Genius of all time. His unquenchable curiosity and inventive imagination have made him one of a kind. His approaches were very futuristic for his time. Many historians are still searching for the hidden motives of Leonardo throughout his very few leftover artworks. The journey is compared with the Holy grail quest, a quest for the light of truth!
Sabiha Moon Taha Department of Textile Fashion and Design, Bangladesh University of Textiles,
TFD-45
You can also read another of our premium article on Fashion in the 21st century here!
And if you want to read another one of our premium case studies on Fast Fashion Vs Slow Fashion, you can go here!
![All about Modest Fashion]()
by Purba | Sep 27, 2020 | Top fashion news |
When do you think about Eid or Puja what comes first in your mind? Isn’t it about your dress up and makeover! Yes, it’s all about fashion. Nowadays, our clothes are more or less festival based.
Now if we are talking about fashion, we should know it’s all begun with “Nipun”, in 1973, officially a fashion industry in Bangladesh. The next milestone was “Aarong”, founded in 1978. Basically, our industry is based on festivals. The fashion houses make the most money during Eid-ul-Fitr, Durga Puja. The rest is during the Pohela Boishak, Falgun, Valentine’s day. In every festive season, this fashion trend changes. As many trends emerge, every designer tries to grab attention with his unique works.
Now if we look back the past two years we can get a clear picture of how these trends changed.
Female friends out shopping together
In 2018. Loose pants, loose trousers, side-striped trousers paired up with regular T-Shirt was enough for men to create a trendy and casual look. Hawaiian shirts, bowling shirts in pastels, and of course long blazer significantly reminded us about 50s’ style. For women, heavy abaya style dress or salwar suit flared shararas, embellished bottom, cigarette pants were trendy. Young ones preferred light color with a natural look. Again, the color blocking techniques really boomed that year. There were three ways: monochromatic (one color throughout the entire outfit in different shades), separate (contrasting colors mixed garments), and stand-alone (one color-blocked garment). 2018 was full of dramas for makeup. Black eyeliner took a dramatic turn, just trace it around both eyeliners, wing it out at a dramatic angle. The cat’s-eye flick got a new look. In 2018, metallic makeup in all shades was very trendy.
But those trends had to change in 2019. We can see changes in the pattern of the garments. Animal motifs were hugely used in pants, jackets, bags, scarfs, and so on. Patchwork was highly recommended. It was used in jumpsuits, pants, and more. As colorful as it is creative. Different types of shoulders were seen like puff shoulders. Dazzling bright colors and prominent bold patterns were really mind-blowing. Abstract prints were also popular and loved by young girls. The neon display was also on the rise with appealing hue and simple block prints. Girls were very fascinated about the different cut of a blouse like sleeveless, high collar, boat neck, Koli cut, choli cut, contrast blouse, etc. The young generation was much interested in local fabrics. Bold colors for makeup were used in 2019. Pink eyeshadow had gotten softer in tone and formula, making it easier to wear. It was more haphazard, messy-but-cool looking undone-but-done, far from perfect makeup is a thing.
In 2020, this pandemic situation, our fashion industry is highly affected. Still, we are trying to go with the flow. In this Eid, printed lawn dress, embroidered chiffon, or printed silk were preferable. For pants, fringe trouser pants, cigarette pants, bell bottoms, tulip pants, pencil pants were highly demanded. Kurtis with floral motif or shirts; asymmetrical design, digital mixed prints, silk tunic were chosen by young girls. Slim fit Punjabi with Islamic motif, sleeve & button plate with separate fabrics were seen. This year cool and deep dyeing shirts are classy as check shirts. For a casual look, jeans or trousers with combo patches, T-Shirt or shoulder tape two pockets shirts pair up with light color loafers/snicker/chinos are perfect. Polka dot, geometric pattern is trendy this year. Easy, breezy, and breathable handloom fabrics are suitable for this festive season. Handloom fabrics dyed with organic vegetable-based dyes are used which have been ethically sourced, last much longer, they are eco-friendly and comfortable. Soft lightweight kurtas, saris salwar kameez earthy shades of indigo, mustard, fawn, terracotta, and henna are more preferable. For makeup, this year all you need to do is line your lower lashes with either the same color or lighter shade than the one of the top. Forget a bold red lip, rather go for a bright pink lipstick. Matte will be much convenient than a creamy one. Animal paint on your eyelashes will create a super creative and cool look.
So, this is about our fashion trends which changed gradually. As we wear yellow in Falgun, red in valentine’s, colorful and vibrant something in Eid or puja, so the fashion changes. In so many years our style, choice, trends changed in many ways and hopefully, it will keep changing.
What more can I say, for me – Fashion is a festival in its own way.
Ria Debnath
Department of Textile Fashion and Design, Bangladesh University of Textiles,
Id: 2019-1-6-001
