Modest Fashion
Travel really helped me understand what I really need and what is extra, which helped me downsize my wardrobe when I got home! I am sharing four useful tips to help you take the same steps and downsize your wardrobe and I have three recommended books to motivate you too!
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On Today's blog, I have invited Luisa Kearney from The Online Personal Stylist to share some of her fashion expertise on building a capsule wardrobe especially for the modestly dressed traveller. Her tips will help you pack smarter, lighter and with fashion in mind! Luisa will take it from here:
Deciding what to pack for your travels can be very difficult. Quite often you end up packing too much or you don’t pack the right items for the destination. There’s nothing worse than getting caught out and not having what you need when you’re far away from home. We’ve all been there – forced to suffer for the duration of our travels feeling uncomfortable because our clothing and footwear aren’t suitable for the climate we’ve visited. This is why building a capsule wardrobe for travel is an excellent solution to your packing problems.
It is a small collection of comfortable pieces that you can pack in your suitcase each time you travel to make everything so much easier.
We’re going to look at the basics of forming a capsule wardrobe and more importantly, how to create a modest capsule wardrobe. If you don’t like to show off too much skin or you plan to travel to countries where it is deemed disrespectful if you don’t cover up, this article will provide you with a valuable insight into what to wear for those situations.
The phrase “a wardrobe full of clothes but nothing to wear” is proof that you don’t need an endless choice of clothing items. You just need items that you will actually wear. The great thing about building a capsule wardrobe is that you can personalise it to suit your needs. Some people even decide to create several micro capsule collections – one for each different occasion. If your life is very varied and requires you to have appropriate outfits for different events then curating a specific collection of coordinating pieces can make it easier to look well put together at all times. You may choose to create a capsule collection for office wear, travel, summer fashion, winter, and for special occasions. The choice is endless but this method makes shopping and organising your clothing much easier and more cost-effective. So, if you were to put together a conservative-fashion capsule wardrobe for travelling, you must first decide on what you will need to include. If you don’t travel at all in the winter months then there is no point adding winter wear to your collection. If you travel all through the year then try to maintain a balanced number of items for each season. Ideally, you don’t want to have lots of clothing items just for the summer and then nothing to wear during the cooler months. Personally, I’d recommend trying to build 2-3 outfits for each season. A couple of pairs of trousers/bottoms, a couple of tops, 1-2 cardigans/jumpers and 1-2 pairs of shoes. Don’t forget that you can always mix and match garments from each season! Creating a really streamlined capsule wardrobe for all four seasons can only be done properly if you stick to a strict colour palette.
Putting together a collection of clothing, footwear and accessories especially for your travels will make packing and shopping for future travel clothes much simpler. The first and most important thing about putting together most types of capsule wardrobe is to decide on a colour palette. What colour theme are you going for? The biggest mistake that a lot of people make when trying to pack for their travels is mixing colours and patterns. Adding in the bright coloured, statement piece that you have just bought for your summer holidays can cause a bit of a headache if it doesn’t suit anything else you intent to pack. Adding “structure” to your travel packing sounds boring but it is the only to guarantee that your travel wardrobe is practical, comfortable and functional.
To start building your colour palette for your capsule wardrobe, you must take into account these 3 things:
1) Your natural skin tone type (this will determine which colours, patterns and tones will suit your skin tone).
2) Which seasons are you packing for? This may be a contributing factor in deciding which colours are best to pack.
3) How easy and stress-free do you want your capsule wardrobe to be? If the idea of colour coordinating your clothing makes you feel uneasy then stick to a minimalist colour palette.
As a professional stylist, I encourage my clients to explore different colours and tones that suit their natural complexions. However, if I was to put together a simple capsule wardrobe list to suit the majority, it would mainly consist of items in black, white, grey and beige – but mostly black and white. Yes, this is a very basic colour palette and if you were to work one-to-one with a professional or if you have a good idea of what colours suit you already, I am sure you would be able to come up with a much more complex blend of tones. Personally I’d recommend building a conservative capsule wardrobe using these tones:
These tones suit the majority of people and are the easiest to mix and match. Plus, these shades can be worn all through the year!
Finally, what do you add to your capsule wardrobe? What items should it contain? Well, for the conservative dresser here is a list of stylish but elegant options to include:
Bottoms: Black jeans, White jeans, Indigo jeans, Harem pants, Dungarees & Silk pyjama trousers
Tops: Long sleeve top, Vest top, T-shirt, Cardigan, Hooded jumper
Body Covers: Maxi dress, Kaftan, Jumpsuit
Accessories: Large shawl, Cross-body bag, Tote bag, Jewellery (your choice).
Footwear: Sandals, Trainers/pumps and Ankle boots.
Author:
ONLINE PERSONAL STYLIST was founded by Luisa Kearney, a professional fashion stylist and editor who is passionate about providing women with an education in fashion, style and the ability to curate luxury fashion (ethical and sustainable) whatever your budget. Through Online Personal Stylist’s fashion blog and paid online personal styling services, your perfectly styled wardrobe is just a click away! Online Personal Stylist supports cruelty-free fashion and cosmetics, as well as encouraging its audience to upcycle and reuse clothing they already own.
Let's talk shoes today. Walking during travel is given and some days you will walk until you don't feel your feet anymore. The most amount of steps I take are taken during my travels. I track my steps through the health app on my Iphone btw! In this post, I have a few recommendations for shoes during travel. I break them based on the seasons: Fall/Autumn shoes, Winter shoes, Spring Shoes and Summer shoes. These are all very comfortable shoes that I wear on my travels. I actually don't have that many shoes, but I have enough to switch it up. I only buy new shoes every three years and only when we is completely worn out and I love that. I prefer to invest in a pair that would last than a cute, cheap one that would hurt my feet or get worn out after wearing it twice.
I am a loyal customer of clarks shoes for years now. Each pair of shoes from there usually stays with me four years and I usually wear the same two the whole season. My shoes colours are safe so they go with everything I own even the very bright outfits I have. I wear these with trousers and dresses.
Clarks still do the same exact brogues. The ankle boots are slightly different. Here are the closest two I found online. Keep in mind I had mine for three years now that's why the exact boots are not avilable. I LOVE them though!
By the way, do yourself a favour and buy yourself some shoe horns. I actually pack the short one with me when I travel because these shoes can be a pain to put on and take off. I have the long one in my flat. It's one of the gifts of life that makes putting shoes on or taking them off SO EASY! My friends always like how I offer it to them when they visit!
When I went to Romania last January, I knew I would spend a huge amount of time outdoors walking and exploring. I didn't want my feet freeze off in that VERY cold winter, so I just took one pair of shoes with me that I wore. It was my leather Ugg boots! The style I have is not the usual cuddly ones that Uggs are known for. I have the ones that are leather on the outside and fluff on the inside. I live in London and it rains most days, I don't buy any shoes that are not good for rain!
The only downside of these boots is that they are very outdoorsy, so going to restaurants in these always feels weird, so I got another pair of Ugg leather boots since the first ones were very comfortable. I got them two years later, but still! They are more stylish and have a little comfortable heels, but also SO warm. I wear them with dresses and when I know I am spending time indoors. Though they get a little too warm for indoors in some places that blast on the heating.
Travelling with boots is tricky, so if you are taking one make sure it's the only one you are taking! Take another ankle boots or a walking shoes in case if you want to change it up.
Here are a few leather Uggs that are very similar to the two I use. The Jane Uggs are the brown stylish ones I have.
The shoes I wear the most are my clarks walking shoes and the brogues I mentioned in the Fall shoes. They are basic, comfortable and cute! I can wear them for HOURS without getting sore feet thankfully.
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The Clarks brogues are the exact ones I have. The other sporty/walking pair isn't there anymore so I found you the closest possible ones!
The summer in the UK gets surprisingly hot for leather some days, so I was obsessed with my colourful pair of Toms! I know they aren't suitable for rain and heat, but they were perfect for all the none rainy summer destinations I went to in the summer such as Greece, Italy, Portugal and Malta. They were so comfortable and perfect for the million hours I walk. I also loved my sea salt sandals, especially that you can wear them in the beach while swimming! It really freaks me out walking on the ocean floor for some reason and having those sandals on was just perfect!
Note: Please don't sacrifice your own comfort for fashion. Your poor feet are the only thing that should matter to you!
Ps. I didn't even realise I had those many photos of my shoes and floors! hehe. They came very useful for this post!
- Modest Dresses For Travel and Gorgeous Holiday Photos
- Practical and Reliable Duffle and Tote Travel bags for your solo travels
- The Vlogging Camera I swear by (Review for Canon G 7X)
- Eight reasons every Muslim woman should travel solo at least once
Note: if you are considering buying any of these comfortable, cute shoes for your travels, please consider getting them through the links provided in on this page. That will give us a little commission with no extra cost to you. These little commissions help this blog grow and continue. Thank you for your support.
Today's post is a fashionable one. Since I have been following some gorgeous fashionistas on Instagram, I really wanted to look amazing with maxi flowing dresses on my holiday, so last summer I went on a little bit of a shopping spree and got a few things from various brands and this post is about the pros and cons of the brands I got dresses from. This is not a sponsored post, but the links on here will give me a commission if you decide to buy something using them, which will be great for both of us! :D
Let's start with the most obvious modest dresses brand Inayah. I have only got one dress from them. I got a modest white lacy dress for my friend's all white hen do dinner in Santorini.
Pros: It was a pretty and a good fit.
Cons: It had a little slip in the back, which I had to sew to close, but it was a very quick fix. It was also a little see through, which I thought was pointless, especially that the whole point of their brand is modesty, so I wore something underneath it. In this case it was ok because the weather was a little cold. I would have struggled if it was proper Summer in Greece!
Touché Privé is a Turkish brand and I ordered from them based on my friend's very positive encounter with them.
Pros: Their shipping from Turkey to the UK was great and I was really happy how quickly they shipped it and how quickly it arrived. My issue started with the DHL in the UK, who messed up big times with rescheduling the delivery and it was just weird drama. I had to wait two weeks to get it. All was DHL's fault though. The dresses that I ordered were very stylish and I always get complimented on them. The clothes are reasonably priced and good quality. The fabric is great for Fall and Winter.
Cons: I mostly liked the clothes I ordered except for two tops. The fabric was just weird and the design looked so bad on me. I got in touch to return them or exchange them, but the brand wouldn't respond to any of my calls or emails, so I just kept them and donated them. Them going MIA on me made it a little sad because I would have bought from them again. I would only recommend them if you are sure you aren't returning anything and keeping whatever you are buying. I wouldn't buy white from them though because just like with Inayah their white dress is see-through and that's not great for a hot Italian summer. Their fabric is not amazing for Summer.
SheIn is an online brand that kept popping in on my Facebook, so I caved in! It was also my first time buying from them. I told you I went all in with my shopping spree. All I could think of was Instagram photos with flowing dresses.
Pros: The thing I liked about them is that they had long sleeves maxi dresses that were not see-through or had cuts and slips. They actually delivered on modesty and style. I just wanted to wear one piece without layering. Portugal was going to be hot in July and I didn't want to melt. The dresses looked really pretty and people always want to know where I got the dresses from. In the photo, I was in Portugal and I was stopped by another tourist, who complimented me. Such a good feeling! Please compliment your girl friends!
Cons: Their shipping took much longer than promised. It took over three weeks for the dresses to arrive. I almost missed taking with them to holiday because they took so long to arrive. The brand apologised, but it was still not my favourite. The quality is as you expect for a very cheap price. The zippers are really poor quality. Usually when dresses are that cheap, that's what you get.
I then saw a sale on Asos and just kept buying. I think it was the most amount of clothes I ever got in my life. I am on clothes probation now though. I haven't bought any clothes since the summer, so you should be proud of me.
Pros: The thing I like about Asos is that they are reliable and sell a few brands in one place. Not to mention the next day shipping is just great!
Cons: The only issue is that most of their maxi dresses need "hijabifying", which just means adding extra layers to make them Islamically modest like wearing a long sleeves top underneath the sleeveless maxi dress or leggings for the maxi dresses with slips, which I made work.
- Practical and Reliable Duffle and Tote Travel bags for your solo travels
- The Vlogging Camera I swear by (Review for Canon G 7X)
- Eight reasons every Muslim woman should travel solo at least once
Note: if you are considering buying any of these modest dresses for your holidays, please consider getting them through the links provided in on this page. That will give us a little commission with no extra cost to you. These little commissions help this blog grow and continue. Thank you for your support.
Malta is a gorgeous island and having few pretty outfits to match is a must! I tried my best to look stylish while modest. I also needed to pick light outfit so I can survive the island's summer heat. Thankfully I visited Malta end of May, which meant that the weather was still beautiful and breezy. Hope you like the outfits!
PS. All outfits were packed in carry on, so that's fantastic if you like to travel light!
The great thing about Bosnia and Herzegovina is that I didn't feel out of place with my modest wear. Lots of local Muslim females were dressed similar to me, which meant that everyone is used to it. It felt great. It's good to be accepted like that. Here are some of the outfits I wore there during early Fall in September. It was surprisingly warm! Hope they give you some ideas for your next trip!
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Santorini is such a gorgeous Island. It is also the perfect backdrop to photos. I think I got the most Instgram likes on the outfit photos from Santorini. Here's what I wore the beginning of April. It was actually colder than expected (10-17 C), so I didn't feel warm with any of my outfits. They are more suited for the summer. Hope you get some inspiration! Ps. All was packed in carry on! :D
Top: Basic light jeans jacket from H&M
Neck Scarf: Primark
Skirt: Next. I added the black panel at the bottom to make it Maxi
Top underneath: Basic light jeans jacket from H&M
Sunglasses: ASOS
Dress: ASOS
Dress: ASOS
Top: H&M
Jeans: American Eagle
Shoes: Clarks
Dress: American Eagle
Dress: Inayah
By the way, You can pin these looks to your Pinterest board!
When I was packing for my Croatia and Bosnia trip. I only packed 7 outfits in a carryon bag to last me 11 days. Plus the weather was warm. So, I packed the lightest clothes that could be suitable for my hijab style. The details of outfits are under them! Hope they give you some ideas on what to pack for your next trip!
Outfit Details:
Jersey head wrap from Kuwait + Cotton scarf + Light long sleeves top + Cotton pants from Next
Outfit Details:
Jersey head wrap from Kuwait + Cotton scarf from Sri Lanka + Light long sleeves top from H&M + Cotton pants from Next
Outfit Details:
Jersey head wrap from Kuwait + Cotton scarf + sleevless jumpsuit from New Look+ Long sleeves cotton shirt
Outfit Details:
Jersey head wrap from Kuwait + Cotton scarf + Dress from American Eagle + Cotton Leggings
Improvised Modest Swimsuit: Water proof leggings and long sleeves top + scarves + Waterproof socks
Improvised Modest Swimsuit: Water proof leggings and long sleeves top + scarves + Waterproof socks
