A Modest Act
Middle Eastern journalist Hafsa Lodi, talks to us about why now is the perfect time to publish her first book exploring the global modest movement
What message do you want to convey through your book, Modesty: A Fashion Paradox? There are a few messages I hope to convey to readers. Firstly, that there are different levels of modesty and varying degrees of covering up, and that Muslim women’s dress codes have historically been tied to different political agendas. Also, modest fashion is not a solely ‘Muslim’ movement and that although the mainstream fashion industry may has embraced it now, modesty is far more than a passing trend or buzzword.
How do you think the modest dressing movement has evolved?
The modest dressing movement has evolved tremendously over the past decade, with modest fashion first being deemed frumpy and matronly, to now being featured thoroughly in the likes of Vogue. While there have been a number of different factors, like the rise of faith-based brands and businesses, platforms like modest fashion weeks which have helped elevate designers, and the increase in covered-up garments on catwalks, I believe the influx
of modest fashion bloggers on Instagram is what really helped catapult the appeal of modest fashion on a global scale. From their phones, women adhering to modest fashion lifestyles can now find an infinite amount of style inspiration from across the globe, and modest fashion trends like layering shirts under dresses, dresses over jeans, bucket hats or beanies in place of hijabs and beaded barrettes clipped to the sides of hijabs, have become instantly accessible and replicable. You don’t have to be Muslim, or wear hijab, to emulate these trends; they are inspiring women from all walks of life. Dressing modestly can now be on par with looking fashion-forward, and the trends are constantly changing seasonally, making the movement endlessly exciting to witness, and participate in.
Did you expect modesty to turn into a multibillion-dollar business? Does the money element dilute the message?
As a child living in the United States, adhering to a relatively modest dress code, I always felt somewhat outcast among my peers, and never expected modest fashion would become a popular mode of dressing, let alone a multi-billiondollar business. The financial incentives fuelling modest fashion are difficult to ignore – retailers are simply catering to the spending power of affluent Muslims and those who are from the Middle East. The bottom line is that these big Western brands and fashion houses are motivated by money, and not by a commitment to diversity or any desire to embrace different cultures. In some ways, this might dilute the overall message, while also taking away potential business from smaller, homegrown fashion labels who have worked tirelessly to provide designs for modesty-conscious consumers. But at the same time, the movement has helped normalise modesty in fashion, which many women, regardless of faith, are thankful for.
What did you take away from speaking to fellow modest fashion makers, Halima Aden and Mariah Idrissi?
I had the opportunity to speak to hijabi models like Halima Aden, Mariah Idrissi and Ferial Moulai, while putting together this book. Halima and Mariah have become global ‘faces’ of the modest fashion movement – Mariah was the first hijabi model to land a global fashion campaign in 2015, and Halima was the first hijabi on a fashion week runway. Both women have opened the door for Muslim women in fashion, and have inspired so many girls to pursue careers in the industry.
Thrust into the spotlight, these young Muslim women who wear the hijab are ‘visibly Muslim’, and often find themselves taking on the role of being an ambassador for all Muslim women, when Muslim women actually make up a diverse spectrum, with differing beliefs and opinions. Even Halima and Mariah have some dissimilar views. For Halima, modelling is an occupation: she’s signed to a modelling agency and takes on runway jobs with luxury designers at fashion weeks. Mariah, however, told me she wasn’t comfortable with the prospect of being both a hijabi and a runway model, and she prefers to just take part in fashion shoots, which are attached to stories echoing her opinions about topics like faith and diversity.
I think it’s important to remember that while these young women have become celebrities in their own right, and stand for important causes about inclusion and diversity, every Muslim woman in the mainstream spotlight (and by extension, in the entire world) has her own views, beliefs and set of modesty guidelines.
Modesty is subjective – every woman has a different idea of what modesty looks like. I think by mainstream standards, modest clothing covers at least, the knees and the shoulders, at most the wrists and ankles, with the option of covering the neck and head as well. But it’s important to remember that modesty is also a virtue – so how you present yourself and behave, can be modest too. Being kind, humble, calm and composed are all components of acting modestly.
How would you define modesty today? What can we do to encourage more diversity in the industry?
To encourage more diversity in the industry, fashion designers can increase their usage of coloured and plussize women in campaign shoots and on catwalks, and we as journalists and stylists can help by featuring diverse women in our editorial shoots, and on our magazine covers. Personally, I think this is especially effective when multiple models are used in group images. It’s a strong reminder that all women, regardless of age, heritage or religion, have a unique and personal place in the overall fashion narrative.
What have been the biggest takeaways for you while writing the book?
It was very interesting to learn about the historical evolution of Muslim women’s dress codes in Middle Eastern countries, and I think that readers may find some of these details surprising too – like the fact that the hijab has actually been banned in some Muslim-majority countries.
Another thing I discovered, was the sheer passion and fervor that fuels the rhetoric about Muslim women’s clothing, especially when it comes to the hijab. Women, and even men, all have their two cents on the topic, even if they have no personal experience or relationship with the hijab. Emotions rise, tempers flare and heated arguments ensue so quickly when the hijab is the subject of a conversation. It’s fascinating how a piece of cloth, and a woman’s decision to cover her hair with it can stir up such intense feelings, and as we’ve seen, even influence political policies.
One thing I learned about the overall experience, was that it takes lots of patience to be an author. I’m accustomed to the world of newspapers, where you write a couple of features a week, and see your stories in print the following week – sometimes even the following day. Putting together a book is a long, gruelling process of editing, re-writing and editing some more, before your project has any semblance to an actual physical book.
Where do you want to take the conversation to next?
I’ve been reporting about fashion for more than a decade, and have admittedly, become obsessed with it. For me, online shopping is a weekly habit, and I buy new clothes far more frequently than I should. I’d like to explore how consumerism and social media have combined together to affect the lives of millennial women in such an impactful way, leading to an excess of waste, time, money and infatuation with material goods.
Would you say female writers are supportive of one another’s work?
I can’t speak for all female writers, but I try to be supportive of others. I recently started writing book reviews, and have been focusing on reading the work of under-represented female voices, like Egyptian-British journalist Alya Mooro, who wrote her novel The Greater Freedom: Life as a Middle Eastern Woman Outside the Stereotypes, and African-American hijabi Leah Vernon, who wrote Unashamed: Musings of a Fat, Black Muslim. From what I’ve seen on Twitter and Instagram, #bookstagram is a rising trend, and there’s a niche group of female writers and readers who are focusing on diverse female authors in the realm of new and upcoming books. On their platforms, they post reviews and share their thoughts about the books they find worthy of being read – I’m hoping Modesty: A Fashion Paradox makes its way onto these lists!