Good stuff

We're having some great weather here around the GTA, people are out and about walking their animals, jogging, hanging their decorations and just taking advantage of this great sunny december weather : )

It's great that it's warming up, I mean comfort wise, but environmentally it's not looking good how global warming is really changing the world.

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of my favourite winter and all year round products.


White musk perfume oil from the Body Shop, love the stuff just like so many others.
Last time I checked here in TO people were on a waiting list to get it, I did manage to buy some from the body shop in Dubai's Ibn Battuta mall, was an great and easy gift for my mom and aunt who also love it.

Cocoa butter lip care from the body shop (again) - I also picked this up the first time from Ibn Battuta's branch, it looked good and I was in need of some lip balm however it wasn't until we dropped by the supermarket and dad popped out for a few things when I discovered how good this stuff really is!!
Playing around in the shopping bags I found this stick and decided to check it out, shoving it under my veil and trying to apply it to my lips, it took a few moments until I started sniffing the scent and immediately screamed out "CHOCOLATE" .. my sister was messaging me from Toronto about the olympics which were on at the time and all I could do was reply back with "OMG. it's chocolate and it's sooooooooo good!!"
** this stuff can keep your lips moist all through the night, yummy and amazing especially if you like chocolate.


Ok, I do cheat once in awhile, I mean not all my products are ogranic (even though I do prefer the Ecco Bella line of organic makeup and cosmetics) - this body shops all in one concealer is great, using the sponge or a brush you apply it and it's so much simpler than using a liquid and power, plus it cuts time! Make sure you try it at the store and select the right tone, back in Dubai they gave me a tone which was totally off!


LUSH - it even sounds amazing!! Believe me, if you ever passed by a Lush shop for the first time it will take a few minutes to actually figure out what they're all about. (soap that looks like food and ice cream, now who invented that!)
Like other organic products their shampoos and conditioners are good, but my favourite of all is their lip service or in this case "lip squeak", it's so amazing that once it touches your skin it melts and the scent is so goooood (particuarly this one, they have a variety of lip balms by the way)
GREAT STUFF!

Here is my all time favourite face moisturizer, it's organic and does a great job keeping the skin nice and moist without feeling greasy like other creams, and it's also soft smelling and not overpowering. I just realized that Kiss my face has it's own shop, I've always picked it up from the organic section at my local Loblaws.



My favourite shampoo of all time (which to me is like GOLD) is the Himalaya Herbal: Protein Shampoo and Conditioner - for normal hair. I order it online by the dozens, there is a branch based in texas or it can be bought from other online homeopahtic suppliers.
I also use the conditioner on top of that occassionally but because it's a two in one it does it's job really well, never had a tangle since I started using it.
Himalaya Herbal is an indian all natural company with a wide range of products from vitamins to cosmetics. I tried their facial moisturizer once but the perfume in it was quite aggrivating so I quit it. I do however use some of their facial masks and scrubs which are quite good.

Wedding

Today mom is off to a wedding at five along with grandma. My aunt and myself have been invited as well but she being too busy with her children decided to cancel and I didn't feel like it especially since my sisters weren't invited. We don't know this family very well but my sisters were all anxious and excited about the news as far back as a month ago, then when they called back to ask if the card had arrived via mail we realized we didn't recieve anything which would have mention four people being invited and .. no kids - no boxed gifts (whatever that means!)

I've been to only a few weddings so far and the traditions vary depending on the cultural backround of the family, for instance arabs have a certain style - specifically lebanese, syrian and egyptian and then pakistani and indian weddings are quite different as well, I've never really been to a khaleeji wedding as they don't tend to mix very much with outsiders of their culture, and I don't believe there are hardly any who get married in the west.

With pakistani and indian weddings there are usually two parties, one a henna party done a few days or a week before the wedding and just for females. Here the women have a chance to dress up but the bride tends to stay very plain in a simple yellow shalwar kameez. Later in the evening the henna is performed on her body as well as the guests if they wish, children usually have a blast getting some henna done on their palms.

The wedding ceremony follows and there the entire family would attend, men and women. The bride would wear a gold or red traditional indian bridal outfit with all her gold and she and the groom would generally sit somewhere together side by side. If the family is religious then the bride would be on one side on a raised platform and the groom on the other and men and women would be seperated in the hall by a plain divider. I find that the south east asian culture tend to include the families as a whole, smaller children as well making it a very festive occassion.

Arabs however usually plan all womens parties, the bride would wear a western styled white gown and veil, a slight difference would perhaps be dressing her up infront of the guests with the gold that was presented to her as a dowry by the groom's family. Younger children are excluded due to the seat limitations at the banquette hall. There is a lot of socializing, dancing even by the bride along with her friends, the younger ladies and teenage girls would generally dance the night away doing traditional stepping dances known as "dabka" or even belly dancing to the sounds of arab music or nasheed (if the family is more religious). Sometimes if there is a woman who is familiar with playing the duff she will perform live on the spot -this is an islamic tradition permitted as opposed to the music. When the bride enters the hall the elderly women usually call out making a specific high pitched noise by moving their tongues (kind of like a bird) not all women can do this and it usually catches everyone's attention when they perform this tradition while the bride gracefully walks into the room.

While most people think weddings are all about the "food" I don't really see it that way especially weddings that were arranged at a banquet hall, the food is generally bland and boring compaired to the middle eastern cuisine. Occassionally community centeres, schools and party rooms are rented where food can actually be prepared by families for the weddings, this is much more enjoyable and following the dinner baklawa and other middle eastern sweets are served to the guests. Wedding cake isn't such a common tradition with everyone.

Parties usually last for 4 or 5 hours, depending on when all the guests have arrived and generally the bride's entrance will be delayed until everyone is there.

Regarding my own kurdish culture weddings are slightly differnet than that of the arabs, I've attended a few weddings when I was younger, I'd say they're a mix of the arabic and south east asian traditions where the bride actually wears white or if she is more culturally traditional she may wear a kurdish outfit, the families come from all over gathering in flocks at relatives homes in the city where the wedding is to be performed and there usually is a lot of gold presented to the bride.
Because kurds aren't very religious the weddings tend to be mixed. On the 'big day' the bride would sit on a platform and rarely move, speak or smile, I was told that if she smiled it was shameful, she had to remain very neutral and not express any happiness outwardly.

As a child I used to immitate brides while playing childish "make-believe games" by sitting politely with my right hand gently overlapping my left hand in my lap and my eyes glancing down at them with my head slightly tilted.

Kurdish weddings tend to drag on through the night with hours and hours of non stop debka dancing.

Clothing: "What am I going to wear??" is usually a big question for everyone attending the wedding, bride or guests. At kurdish weddings women wear traditional kurdish outfits which consist of a slip, sheer undergarment dress and a thick overcoat covered entirely in flashy sequins, hair is mostly left out and women take the chance to adorn themselves with all the gold they own. In arab weddings they've pretty much abandoned many of the older traditions and so all through the arab world women wear western inspired party clothes, some more revealing than others but generally longer formal gowns. Guests generally arrive at the hall in Abayah and headscarf or face veils if the makeup is already done at home, if not then everyone heads to the powder room in a bit of a frenzy doing hair, makeup and last minute touchups before entering the main hall.

Gifts: Depending on what the family specifies in the card gifts are usually offered as money to the bride and groom on the wedding day. Other household items and boxed gifts, personal gifts for the bride are usually presented to her on the henna party or any other gathering before the actual wedding.

In Islamic weddings as long as the traditions or culture does not contadict anything in the Islamic faith then it is permitted. Many muslims also prefer to follow the Prophet Muhammed (peace and blessings be upon him) and his companions' traditions, meaning a simple ceremony and sticking closely to the traditons back then.

Every country in the middle east has specific wedding traditions, for example in egypt it is well know that tents are put up on the roofs and the wedding parties are performed up there. In Yemen the streets are decorated and men dance traditional folk dance with daggers drawned in the streets.

One common tradition performed by men in many parts of the Islamic world is shooting bullets up into the air to celebrate the occassion, upon hearing it people all over will realized that a wedding is going on, foreigners who are not used to this may become startled for a few seconds wondering if there is an attack or something going on outside but they are to be assured that this is a very regular custom that goes on.

Finally the last tradition is when the bride and groom are to be driven to their home in the decorated car or limo, guests would follow in their own cars beeping every now and then celebrating, all this causes somewhat of a "beep beep beep beep" frenzy in the streets but it's all kind of fun : )

Jalabiyaat

Since we were on the topic of "clothes" I thought I'd share some lovely arabic styled Jalabiyas that many women wear on fancy occassions. There are simpler versions made of cotton and other fabrics decorated to certain degrees for wearing indoors, they're actually very practical and comfortable, still indoors many younger women and girls today have adapted more western wear (including myself ;)) like jeans, tops, skirts and sweatsuits. When visiting friends or relatives it's very much required to dress up, that's when muslim women have a chance to show off their fashion sense in all women gatherings and parties.

When I was younger I vividly remember this tradition every thursday, since in the Islamic world Friday is a holiday people often spend thursday nights as westerners do their friday night going out and socializing.


As early as seven years old I was very much involved in this tradition, the closest thing I can compare it to is an episode of "Pride and Prejudice" where the Bennet sisters run around in their slips whinning and throwing their clothes around trying to find a descent outfit for the occasion. And that is pretty much what went on in my house, I would spend the whole day after returning from school sorting through my closet trying to find the right outfit, accessories, stockings, shoes, hair clips, jewellery and handbag. It would take hours upon hours and my sister and I would ask each others' opinions over and over, then ask mom's opinion and I remember times when at the last minute before getting into the car I'd run back in and change my scarf or skirt, or grab another handbag after feeling uneasy about the one I had chosen earlier. Dad of course thought we were insane and he often rolled his eyes or shouted at us from the door to "hurry up!!!" and that we were only visiting friends and not preparing for a fashion show in Paris!

It all seems so silly thinking back at it now, but it was fun and though we've tuned down a lot since then and especially because it is so much harder to visit relatives while living in the west, everyone seems farther apart, busier and people just don't make the time, and even when they do there isn't that sense of "culture" and hospitality that I've become so accustomed to growing up in the middle east.

*sigh* That's what I really miss, the holidays, the weekly visits, the socializing in it's own special way, I believe that will always stay with me and I hope to properly present those traditions to my own guests and friends.

Visiting the Emirates mall in Dubai I saw some exquisite jalabiyaat, and amazingly even in Yemen at the Aden mall. I could not resist so I picked up a really traditional looking one with a beautiful copper and turquoise beaded bodice for around 16,000 YR (it was on sale!), I thought it was well worth my $80 though most local Yemenis would not share that opinion and they tried so hard to discourage me or at least laugh at me when all else failed. Regardless I walked off really happy with my new Jalabiyah which I look very much forward to wearing whenever a suitable occassion arrises.

Below is a selection that I picked out from a womens middle eastern fashion forum, many of the garments are sewn and hand-done in India giving that south east asian feel.

Simply beautiful ....

More Jalabiyas sold here

Abayah trends

What's up with the new Abayah trends? I had to comment about this because .. isn't this getting a teeny tiny bit out of control? You judge for yourself!

Abayah is the lose garment worn by muslim women outside the home (particularly in the arabian gulf), it is commonly black however a jilbab may come in a range of colours from Navy blue, green, beige and the like. Abayah is petty rare here in the west and with all the different cultures and nationalities you rarely see a true khaleeji abayah. Myself I used to like the shami fitted type of jilbab, my aunt used to bring some really nice ones back from her trip to Lebanon.

It wasn't until I travelled to Dubai and then I saw some truly outrageous patterns/colours/designs, some are just hilarious!

I love Abayah, don't get me wrong. Beading and embroidery were always around but in modest colours like black on black and so forth. The new trends now are all about colour, huge patterns, beading, crystal, gold, silver, sequins, fringes, rhinestones, tafeeta, feathers, chiffon, lace, you name it, they got it!!

What happened to modest Islamic plain black Abayas?? They're almost non-existant or extremely rare to find.

While browing on flickr (love that place!) I've discoverd yet the most shocking desing, the sheikh of UAE himself was on an abaya sheylah nicely displayed on the plastic model behind the glass at a shop at Wafi City. The sheikh's entire head was hand-done onto each side of the sheylah using silver sequens !Not to mention the pricey posh designer Abayas by Villa Moda, check out the pictures below, as the photographer exclaimed "abayah or party gown?

Forget the Paris Abayahs with the heavy price tags that will burn a hole in your wallet, even the others can be way over priced. When I was in Yemen, just before heading to Dubai I was off to the STC Mall looking for a descent Abayah that would live up to the Emirati 'standards', the Abayah I wore around yemen was a plain saudi kind I had picked up back in Canada, way too worn out to fit the "Dubai scene". My time was really limited and becuase of my height I began to wonder if I'd ever get my hands on one.
Thankfully, after some searching by the shop keeper he offered me "simpler" design which had a strip of beading running around the hem and cuffs, even around the bottom hem. The length measurement was good and it was fully black, at least lacked colour feathers and what not. I quickly made up my mind and grabbed the garment and handed over the 21,000 YR even though I didn't think it was worth my $100.

The Abayah has now pretty much lost it's purpose, from what I've seen it being used as a lose dragging shawl on top of the trendy tight tops and designer jeans, accessorized with the latest fashions in flashy handbags, sunglasses, makeup, mobile phones, jewellery, heels and accessories with the small sheylah worn on the head. (If you think muslim women aren't stylish then think again!! Believe me, I've seen it, they take only the finest)

Next time I get invited to a party or wedding I won't bother digging around in my closet because I might just consider......... the Abayah. ; )