ISLAMIC FASHION AND MALAYSIA

That modesty can be beautiful is the message that organisers of the Islamic fashion festival in Kuala Lumpur want to send to Muslims and non-Muslims alike. The Islamic fashion festival is part of Malaysia’s international fashion week. It will show Muslim women different ways of covering themselves, says the chairman and founder Raja Rezza Shah. Malaysian designer Tom Abang Saufi says many non-Muslims equate Islamic wear to draping yourself in black. But one can be religious and fashionable at the same time, she says. Islamic wear by definition should cover everything except the face and palms. The garment should not show off one’s figure so as to not attract unwanted attention. Ms Tom’s designs include a lot of bright coloured tunics made of silk chiffon. “I don’t just dress them in black,” she says.