Trendy hijab style is far from basic black

While some Muslim women are making global headlines by refusing to comply with a European ban on the burka, those in countries with no such restrictions are taking their sartorial expression of faith to another level.

Brightly coloured scarves, decorative details on garments and shoes with wedge heels are just a few key items fashion-conscious South African Muslim women will be wearing this season.

They are followers of the global hijab style movement, who say they adapt aspects of mainstream fashion trends to Islamic wear without compromising their cultural values.

Cape Town blogger Tasneem Jaffer, 21, said: "The word hijab is commonly used to refer to the headscarf, though that is not the only meaning.

"The requirement of hijab is to cover your body in a way that does not reveal the shape of your body, and the clothes should not be transparent. The body parts that are allowed to be revealed are the hands, face and feet," she said.

Sameera Badsha, 24, who co-owns a Durban boutique with her sister, said wearing patterned and brightly coloured headscarves was one of the simplest ways for a woman to individualise her look.

"I've always been one who loves fashion and when I began wearing the headscarf, I still wanted to keep my personal style, so I adapted it in a more modest way.

"I started wearing more trousers, blouses, skirts and tops with three-quarter sleeves," said Badsha.

"I try to make my outfits more fashionable and follow the mix-and-match trend by wearing stripes and maybe a brightly coloured scarf," she said.

Jaffer, who said she first became aware of the hijab style movement when she started wearing a headscarf in 2009, agreed.

"I think it would take me a full day to count how many headscarves there are in my house. I have scarves lying around in shelves and drawers, hanging in cupboards and on rails.

"My best friend is a black headscarf, which I wear often; it is one of my basic clothing items," said Jaffer.

"When I'm in my house, I seldom have a scarf on, but when I leave home, I'm rarely without one."

It is not compulsory for a practising Muslim woman to observe hijab at home or around immediate family and female friends.

Although the abaya - the traditional long, flowing and usually black dress worn by some Muslim women - is the garment most associated with observing hijab, Jaffer said it was certainly not the only option available to fashion-conscious women.

"Adapting to hijab is much easier than one would imagine. To 'hijabify' a mini-dress, I would add jeans and a cardigan or long-sleeve top.

"The great thing about hijab style is that we're not wearing anything out of the ordinary. We are wearing clothing all females wear, just in a different way," added Jaffer.

However, those who prefer to wear the abaya can also choose from a range of different styles.

Aneesa Omar co-owns a Johannesburg-based women's Islamic-wear boutique with her family. She said they opened the store seven and a half years ago when she, her mother and sisters noticed there was a gap in the South African Islamic fashion-design market.

"We realised that ladies were becoming more religious, yet wanted to remain trendy and fashionable," said Omar.

"In the past, garments were basic and lacked detail, so we added stylish cuts, exquisite embroidery and more detailing on the abaya.

"Our designs change seasonally, following international catwalk trends, which we adapt to the modest garment," she said.

Omar, who designs the boutique's range alongside her mother, said the store used Indian and Arabian imported fabric and haberdashery to produce locally made garments.

In this way, she said, customers could keep up with international trends at local prices.

She said customers could also design their own abaya.