Modest in style
DON’T you just hate it when you’re out shopping for a dress but the one that catches your eye is a little too revealing? I’m sure I’m not the only modestly dressed woman to have ever experienced this right? During my younger days, brands like Topshop, Guess, Roxy and Miss Selfridge, to name a few were the talk of the town. Every girl my age was crazy obsessed over these brands and I just couldn’t understand why. I was annoyed by the fact that I wasn’t spoilt for choice as these shops hardly catered to modestly dressed women. If you’ve been to any of these shops, you would know why.
When I decided to wear the hijab, I did wonder whether there would be nice clothes that catered to women of my style. But there were not many choices and I ended up wearing baju kurung, baggy clothes or layers of clothes.
But I’ve come a long way since then and so has the entire fashion industry. From high-end labels to local fashion brands, everyone is now aggressively catering to the modest fashion market.
GOING PLACES
Major labels like Zara and Uniqlo, for example, have been producing collections featuring flowy gowns and wide-leg trousers, all thanks to the rise of something called modest wear.
Modest wear can be classified as clothing that does not accentuate one’s body shape, instead it covers the body. I’m all for loose fitting, high necklines and longer hemlines because I personally believe that the way we dress reflects the degree of awareness we have about covering parts of our body. Some cover to fulfill their religious responsibility, others because it is part of their culture while for some, it might just be a matter of preference — empowerment to me is the ability to dress as we desire and in what we believe is right. Either way, we all take comfort in dressing modestly, especially on a daily basis.
There is no point denying that Mimpikita has become the brand of choice for many modestly dressed women and I’m proud to be able to help them solve their struggle in searching for such attire. And there’s something about dressing moderately and modestly that makes women confident. But of course, I cannot speak for other people but from my own experience, I always feel respected and empowered as a woman when I’m dressed in that manner.
Having to work with clients who prefer modest yet modern silhouettes also empowers me. Since I’m not good at giving speeches in public (ehem, something I’m working on), I want my voice to be heard through the dresses or collections which I design.
When we started Mimpikita, we never wanted to limit our style and aesthetic to just ‘modest’ dressing. We wanted to offer our customers the freedom to choose their own unique style through our pieces and I believe that is our strength as a brand. However, there have been times when we have received backlash from netizens (#makcikbawang) on how we styled our models on runways or campaigns. Some do not understand that we are not exactly a modest wear brand because Mimpikita is a label for all fashion-conscious modern women. As a brand that aims to penetrate the international market, we are trying to be as culturally fluid as possible while still staying true to ourselves and our identity.
We try as hard as we can to create something that is modest enough for everyone to wear regardless of their race, faith and beliefs.
In today’s fashion industry, influential designers have grown to love modest wear and it’s safe to say that it appeals to almost everyone in the fashion market. I remember when Victoria Beckham first launched her fashion house a decade ago; she had already left her WAG days behind. Her wardrobe also evolved, she replaced mini dresses with neat knee-length dresses with necklines that did not expose so much cleavage. Her current style is also modest, effortless and chic! I love how her clothes are now loose and fluid, yet so classy and sophisticated, something that I have been seeing so much of over the years in her timeless collections. And before you come at me for idolising Victoria because she is no hijabi, I honestly feel like she deserves credit for dressing modestly and we can always adopt her fashion sense for our wardrobe!
I scrolled through my Instagram feed and saw how modest wear has greatly influenced almost every global fashion week as longer hemlines, higher necklines and more voluminous fabrics dominate the fashion aesthetics, maybe not all designs but I am happy that certain designs do offer modest options — long sleeves, oversized fits etc! I took my time to catch up on Paris Fashion Week and I was so surprised to see a lot of below-the-knee and full-length looks in this season’s collections! It made me happy to see plenty of long, fluid and loose silhouettes that didn’t cling to the body but flowed nicely and added more gracefulness.
I feel like our belief in dressing modestly has influenced almost the entire world and if done right, modestly-dressed women can take over the world.
LONdON MOdESt FAShION WEEk
Moving forward, I’m excited to announce that this year, on Feb 17, Mimpikita will take part in London Modest Fashion Week (LMFW). Another milestone to add to our list for 2018 as we further strengthen our mark in modest fashion and the London fashion scene.
We missed the show last year but we are definitely ready to showcase our new collection this year. I’m so grateful because it allows us designers to be more innovative and develop groundbreaking work to be showcased internationally.
I’m nervous and thrilled at the same time but I hope we will pull through. The final touch-ups to our collection is currently being done in our workshop before we showcase it to the world and I am excited for you to see it all. I’ll take you on my journey to LMFW in my next article!