"And walk not on the earth with conceit and arrogance. Verily, you can neither rend the earth, nor reach the mountains in height."

[Surat Al-Isra':37]

Random questions tag

Someone left this question tag in the comments section a couple of months ago. Better late than never..?

1. Would you rather be born a Muslim or covert and why? Born Muslim. Reverts sometimes have to deal with their families' not accepting them, and some leave Islam because they find it too intense starting everything at once without any support. I'd rather have Islam as part of my culture and upbringing. Besides, I think all born Muslims reach a point in their life when they have to either accept or reject the religion.  

2. Favourite book that is g-rated (suitable for young) The Harry Potter series.

3. If you won the lottery what would you do with it? Buy property. 

4. Most inspirational Muslimah you know. My mum! She's beautiful.

5. Number 1 thing you cannot leave home without. Keys?

6. Biggest problem faced as a Muslim teen. For me it was actually admitting that I'm a Muslim. That's kind of sad in hindsight.  

7. Coke or Pepsi? Cannot tell the difference. 

8. Chicken or beef? Chicken :P

9. Favourite ice cream flavour. Cookie dough.

10. Cooking or baking? Baking, mainly because I can't cook..

11. Perfect age for marriage (both girl and guy). This is different for everyone but for me it's always 5 years older than my age at any given time.. So 28?

12. Celebrity crush. Don't have one.

13. Christianity or Judaism. In which context..? If it's which one I prefer, they're both religions of Allah (swt) so I don't have a preference. 

14. What would you name your daughter? I'm not married so I haven't thought about baby names.. Plus I don't really want girls! 

15. What would you name your son? I love the name Harith.  

16. Colour that suits all skin tones. All colours suit all skin tones, it's finding the right shade that's important.

17. Your dream car. At the moment it's a hardtop Porsche Boxter. 

18. Characteristics your husband must have. Tall (over 5'9"), intellectual (IQ over 120), successful (over £35,000 PA), older (by 2-8 years), no previous extramarital relationships (0), prays (5 td). It would also be excellent if he does not have a Facebook page.

19. If you could change eye colour, hair colour and skin colour, what colours would you choose? I really like green eyes, but I wouldn't change anything else.

Hope you're all doing well :) 

Gucci Boston review

It has been more than a year since I bought my Gucci Boston bag so I have decided to review it for anyone thinking of purchasing one. I find these reviews helpful when deciding whether or not to buy an expensive item. 

Customer service: Perhaps it was my bad luck but I ended up with the rudest, most unhelpful sales assistant ever. Not sure if this is because it was at Heathrow (terminal 3) and she was sick of tourists or something but she had a chip on her shoulder, and I would certainly not have put up with her crap service if I hadn't been getting the bag tax-free. No idea why some designer SAs act like they own the brand but moving on.. 

Bag:

The style and size is pretty much the same as a Louis Vuitton Speedy 30. The main differences are that the Boston has more leather trim and the canvas is more like fabric than the Speedy canvas, making it less waterproof. I think the Speedy canvas is more durable overall.  

One of my favourite parts of the bag is actually the zip - it's excellent quality and makes the nicest sound when zipped xD

Although I have travelled with it, I have by no means used this as an everyday bag and it has already gotten some colour transfer from clothing. Boo. 

The leather has held up fairly well but there are some obvious scratches on the handle.  

It comes with a quality leather strap, but I rarely use it. 

There is a useful zipped pocket inside and two pouches for phone/keys etc; the fabric on the inside is cream, so is prone to get dirty.The bag itself is very well made and definitely feels like a luxury item. I know a lot of people are not keen on the 'in your face' monogram print but I personally love it. 

Value for money:

As the price goes up annually and I purchased it in duty-free last year, I paid less than the current online price of £700. Having used this bag for a year I do not think that it is worth £700, although I would probably be happy to pay the duty free price. 

Overall: 

Taking everything into consideration, I give this bag 7/10. I would recommend it if you can get it tax free, and you don't mind the potential for colour transfer or scratches on the leather. Despite it's drawbacks I think it's beautiful and it's still one of my favourite bags - I'm not planning to sell it any time soon!

Hope this review helped anyone thinking of getting this bag :)

Hijab work outfit idea #2

Smart hijab by stylishmuslimah

Since entering the world of work I have come to realise that the simple act of getting out of bed at 6 am after 5 hours of sleep is such a feat that putting together a remotely coordinated outfit is one of the last things I care about anymore. So I have taken to Polyvore to create virtual outfits in an attempt to make up for what I am now lacking in reality :O

It is not Al-Birr (righteousness) that you turn your faces towards the East or West (in prayers); but Al-Birr is (the quality of) the one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, the Prophets and gives his wealth, in spite of his love for it, to the kinsfolk, to the orphans, to the poor, to the wayfarer, and to those who ask, and sets slaves free and performs As-Salat, and gives Zakat, and fulfils a covenant when he makes it, and is patient in extreme poverty and ailment and at the time of fighting. Such are the people of the truth and they are Al-Muttaqun (pious).

[Surat Al-Baqarah:177]

Hijab work outfit idea

Hijab work outfit by stylishmuslimah

The Givenchy bag is the latest addition to my wish list :)

The meaning of life?

I started my training job a couple of months ago and I find it almost impossible to balance work life with 'actual' life. It is so easy to get caught up in the rat race of life that you begin to forget your purpose and things that are worthless start to matter to you while the reality of life starts to warp and disintegrate.  

I came across this amazing video on YouTube today, it's based entirely on the Quran which is what makes it so beautiful. I really needed to see something like this so I hope someone else benefits. 

Question to full-time workers - how do you balance your life so that your religion, personal relationships AND sanity are not compromised?! Is this even possible?

8 signs of weak imaan (faith)

It is incredibly easy to become complacent when it comes to faith; being able to recognise when our faith is sliding is crucial so that we can take steps to increase it. After all, our reason for living is to worship Allah (swt), be that through direct religious acts or through acts which have a positive impact on the world around us. In order to worship we must possess and maintain a strong imaan in Allah (swt).  

I did some research and have compiled a list below of things that we should look out for in our characters to make sure that our imaan is not weakening due to the everyday diversions of life. I hope it helps :)

1. Being heedless of prayers (salah)

Source

It is important that we take steps to properly concentrate during our prayers. Altogether, the 5 prayers take max 50 minutes out of a 24 hour day - Allah (swt) is not asking for much, plus it only benefits us if we concentrate.

"Behold, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allah, but it is they who are being deluded by Him. When they rise to Prayer, they rise reluctantly, and only to be seen by men. They remember Allah but little." 
[Surat Al Nisa: 142]

2. Feeling envious of others

Envy is self-destructive and a hated characteristic in all the Abrahamic religions. If you find you feel any sort of negative thought towards someone because of what they have, try and turn that into motivation to better yourself and be happy for the person. Also remember the transient reality of this world and the true meaning of happiness - it is certainly not in worldly gains. Be content with what you have by looking at the person with less than you, not more. Be genuinely happy for others when something good happens to them.

"Beware of envy because indeed envy destroys good deeds in the same manner as fire destroys wood." - Prophet Muhammed (s)

"None of you are true believers until you want for you brother that which you want for yourself." - Prophet Muhammed (s)

'Hassed' includes feeling happy when things are not going well for other people. 

3. Not feeling guilty about sinning...

This is a clear sign of someone lacking either knowledge or faith. If it is the first, that is easily rectified through reading. If the second - you need to analyse what you have been doing, saying and thinking recently in your life to be able to pinpoint the reason for this disregard to committing sin. It is often because you have been doing it regularly and so it has become normal to you. This is dangerous territory, so we must constantly analyse our actions and motives to make sure that we are not allowing the shaytan to trick us into wrong-doing.

"The greatest of sins is the one that the sinner considers to be ordinary" - Ali Ibn Abi Talib (a)

4. ...openly sinning & telling people about it

One of the mercies of Allah (swt) is allowing (and encouraging) us to conceal our sins from others and repent in private. We do not have to "confess" our sins to people and actually bragging about them is a hated thing to do in Islam.

"Allah (swt) will cover up on the Day of Resurrection the faults of the one who covers up the faults of the others in this world" 

- Prophet Muhammed (s)

There also are other hadiths that tell of a person being less likely to receive forgiveness for their sins if they openly tell people about them.

5. Being miserly :(

"Stinginess and faith do not exist together in the heart of a believer" 

- Prophet Muhammed (s)

Remember that people aren't just stingy with material things, we can be stingy with a kind word, a helping hand or simply in returning a smile.

6. Not concerning oneself with the suffering of fellow Muslims and innocent people

Self explanatory. I would say that this goes along with actually contributing to the suffering of others.

“The likeness of the believers in their mutual love, mercy and compassion is that of the body; when one part of it is in pain, the rest of the body joins it in restlessness and fever.” 

- Prophet Muhammed (s)

7. Not feeling anything when reading or hearing the Quran, or remembering Allah (swt)

Source

"Is he whose breast Allah has expanded to Islam, so he (walks) in a Light from his Lord (like the disbeliever)? Then woe to the ones whose hearts are hardened against the Remembrance of Allah! Those are in evident error." 

[Surat Al-Zumar: 22]

8. Seeing oneself as better than others

I've noticed that when some Muslims become religious they adopt this painfully snobbish holier-than-thou attitude where they believe that they are right, and anyone that may hold slightly varying opinions to them are deeply misguided and should go to hell for eternity. This is never a sign of strong faith. The Prophet (saw) was better than all of us and he did not act in this manner towards non-Muslims, let alone to people within the ummah. 

I know that these people may be enthusiastic about Islam but they should probably channel their zeal into working on bettering themselves as opposed to calling everyone out on every tiny thing that they do.

"O you who believe! Let not a group scoff at another group, it may be that the latter are better than the former; nor let (some) women scoff at other women, it may be that the latter are better than the former, nor defame one another, nor insult one another by nicknames. How bad is it, to insult one's brother after having Faith. And whosoever does not repent, then such are indeed Zalimun (wrong-doers, etc.)."

[Surat Al-Hujurat: 11]

There are many other signs but these are the ones I wanted to discuss. Hope you found it beneficial. Insha'Allah everyone is having a fulfilling Ramadan.

Ramadan Kareem

Just to say hope you all have a fantastic Ramadan insha'Allah with lots of reward. If you follow my instagram you'll know that I'm in Dubai at the moment visiting family which is why I haven't posted but insha'Allah I will be back on Monday :) 

Ramadan Mubarak! x

Hijabifying a look for less

I really like the look below so I decided to re-create it to make it slightly more hijab (and day) appropriate.

Source

All items used are £30 or under :)

Sequins by stylishmuslimah

(This offer is now closed.) For one week only: 10% off everything at Aab for StylishMuslimah readers!

Aab is kindly offering all StylishMuslimah readers 10% off all sales for the next 7 days! They have an excellent range of abayas, dresses and hijabs - check them out here. Hurry though, this offer ends on Friday 28th June!

Enter code 'SM10' at the checkout :)

Smart hijab outfit idea

Smart by stylishmuslimah 

I finally finished university!!!!

I wouldn't be surprised if nobody reads this blog anymore because I have been away for so long. I have been super busy with finals exams, which finally came to an end last week, alhamduli'Allah! I cannot believe that I have finally finished four years of university and that it was that long ago that I put on hijab and made a blog post about what I'm going to wear to freshers day! 

I am now off for a month and if all goes well and I pass I will be starting my pharmacy training year after that, insha'Allah. I will try to post more regularly from now on!

For now I shall leave you with some random, lovely hijab photos that  I found earlier in the SM folder. If any of them belong to you please let me know as I have totally forgotten which sites I got them from. 

This is one of my favourite hijab pictures, I was saving it to use at a more appropriate time but YOLO (joke.. JOKE!):

What awesome colour combinations:

I think high-low dresses look really nice. 

Not that hot on those jeans with boots tucked in but I just think the photo looks cool.

And some slightly classier looks to finish :)

Enjoy the rest of your day :)

Too hot for Saudi Arabia..?

 

While 'doing coursework' I came across an article about this Emirati guy who was one of three men to be recently deported from Saudi Arabia for being so irresistibly good looking that there were fears of women being driven to distraction in their presence.

 

I think that this country has finally reached a level of stupidity in a league of its very own.

 

There are several things that sprung to mind when I read the article.

 

- One, why and when did religious police get to decide upon who is ugly enough to stay in the country?  Bit discriminatory if you ask me. Then again this is Saudi Arabia we're talking about, the land where quite literally nobody is equal. I mean, why stop at women and foreigners anyway..?

 

- Two, I wonder what the Saudis would have done with Prophet Yusef [Joseph] (as) after he made all those women cut their hands.
 

- Three, that is a very nice red shmagh.

 

- Four, I wonder if any Saudi men that were present at the time of deportation were offended because they weren't being deported as well.

 

- And finally, I should probably stop procrastinating and getting distracted by these articles.

 

So what are your thoughts on Saudi Arabia's latest moronic move?

[*EDIT* It appears that this story was over-exaggerated and the men in question were deported for actually breaking the law and acting, in a manner that would be considered in Saudi, inappropriately in a public place.]

"O you who have believed, when (the adhan)  is called for the prayer on the day of Jumu'ah  (Friday), then proceed to the remembrance of Allah and leave trade. That is better for you, if you only knew. And when the prayer has been concluded, disperse within the land and seek from the bounty of Allah, and remember Allah often so that you may succeed."

[Jumu'ah:9-10]

Outfit idea

I love this top.

YSL? by stylishmuslimah

Actually WORKS: an easy way to repair dry, damaged hair with a hijab

 

I have very long, thick hair that can quickly turn dry if it is not well maintained. When I put on the hijab I discovered that it also doubles as the most effective hair conditioning mask I have ever used.  

 

A nifty trick that works a treat for dry, damaged hair:

 

In the morning brush a good amount of olive oil into dry hair, making sure you get rid of all the tangles. Plait it and then twist the plait into a bun. Wear your hijab as normal during the day and discover beautifully soft hair when you get home and take it off. It really does work, and works exceptionally well in hotter climates.

 

I also plait my hair with a small amount of olive oil before bed so it's nice and soft in the morning. This works well if you don't wear a hijab but I've found that there's something about covering the hair for a few hours that actually makes the technique work much better.

 

Hope this works for you if you're having trouble with dry hair!