Noor D'Izar - Review and GIVEAWAY!

An exclusive review and insight into the contemporary hijab company Noor D'izar, plus a fantastic GIVEAWAY up for grabs!

This week I had a great opportunity of reviewing the upcoming and contemporary hijab fashion company Noor D'Izar. The first thing that really drew me into researching into this hijab company was to be honest the name. It has a really wonderful ring to it and I love the fusion between the words Noor meaning 'light and beauty' and 'Izar' which is the name given to a rectangular cloth the Berbers would use to drape their heads with. The word Noor really reminded me of the verse in the Quran in Surah Noor which always eases my heart whenever I read it 'Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The Parable of His Light is as if there were a Niche and within it a Lamp: the Lamp enclosed in Glass: the glass as it were a brilliant star: Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it: Light upon Light! Allah doth guide whom He will to His Light: Allah doth set forth Parables for men: and Allah doth know all things'. Maybe the verse is a bit irrelevant to a fashion review, But I think its wonderful when something we wear or somewhere we shop reminds us of Allah and that indeed we cover ourselves for his sake.

Noor D'Izar is based in Antwerp where its founders originate from. Fatima Rafiy and Inge Rombouts who founded the company met during a neighborhood street party. Both women shared the same passion: fashion! After teaming up, the foundations were laid for a great idea! Noor D'Izar was designed and created to offer the modern muslima a new, contemporary look, and also one which enabled ease in wearing it and where the scarves were adjustable to accommodate both a casual and a dressed up look.

Now I don't know about you readers, but I always think that you can really tell the elegance and style of a company in the packaging. I know they say don't judge a book by its cover but I think when it comes to online ordering you have to do just that! I knew from the moment I received the hijab's and saw the packaging that the quality and care of the hijab's would be good. They come in wonderful slim boxes which slide out to reveal the hijab neatly folded in tissue with a small style guide on top. Hijablicious loves attention to detail so I must admit I was very pleased with such small touches!

Now onto the hijab's, having had a look on the website I was aware that the style Noor D'izar primarily offers is similar to the Al-Amira scarves which are commonly available from Islamic websites and normally bookstores, however what really does differentiate these scarves as mentioned before is the attention to detail. There are little slots between the fabrics which allow you to easily wear your sunglasses, a fantastic idea! This is something which many hijab's find difficult with normal scarf styles without their hair getting stuck in the glasses. There are also small details such as tiny metal logos of at the side which I think adds a really elegant and cutting edge look to the scarf which definitely makes it stand out from other scarves.

Now the quality. I am absolutely in love with the quality of the scarves. The fabric is made from a stretchy Jersey style material which allows the wearer to frame their face very well and as it is stretchy it will adjust well to different face shapes. Compared to the Al-Amira hijab's which I mentioned before these quality of these hijab's is no comparison, they are definitely of a higher quality. The material is very lightweight and allows your skin to breath without feeling too stuffy, also there is no need for ironing as the material retains its texture and does not leave creases, again another positive aspect.

All in all these scarves seem the kind to suit sisters who partake in sports as they do not require any pins and are very easy to just put on and take off. Also for mummies on the go to and fro with their kids and who don't have time to use pins on their hijab's, then this style and scarf is so easy to use. Similarly its looks very modest and sleek teamed up with western style clothing and as seen in the pictures can easily be adjusted, what I found is you can also wear it as an under-scarf and drape a nice thin scarf over it to achieve a trendy look, this way you can ensure that your neck is covered and not exposed, this layering method is shown in my review.

The only downside of Noor'Dizar is their prices. With the ever growing and highly competitive Hijab market in honesty I found their prices very steep and very expensive, I understand the quality of fabric being used is extremely good however with prices ranging from £34 I can imagine this as being a turn off point for many people. I do hope however that they will review their prices and consider arranging some offers and more competitive prices as the scarves are nice.


Imsar Hijab

This beautiful stonewash Hijab is very thin and lightweight and is made from a very soft material which sits very nicely on the skin. What I liked about the scarf was that it can be worn on its own, especially during summer when some sisters are looking for more breathable hijabs, and its can be layered with another scarf and accessorised as shown in this picture which we layered together to achieve a more trendy and covering look.

Izar Hijab

This is a very different type of hijab. The style is very similar to the Imsar one but this has two beautiful chiffon pieces at each end. At first I was unsure of what to do with them but there are a variety of options which you can do to suit your own style and face shape. On this model I used the chiffon bit on the hijab by draping them at the back and then bringing them to the front again and creating a round circular shape at the side which I pinned. This would look nice for a party or evening out and it has a very 50's look to it which has a sense of elegance about it.

GIVEAWAY!

IMSAR HIJAB UP FOR GRABS

Hijablicious have teamed up with Noor'Dizar to offer it readers the opportunity to grab one of its scarves for free in honour of the month of Ramadan! This beautiful Imsar Hijab as shown above is available in Stonewash and can be yours free! You can wear it alone or its great for layering and good coverage! All you need to do it to email me at samia@hijablicious.com and join Hijablicious on facebook (www.facebook.com/hijablicious) and write that you have entered the competition. In your email or facebook message, just tell me the following 'What makes Ramadan special for you'. The closing date is the 1st September and the winner will be announced on facebook and here so get your entries in ladies!


You can check out Noor D'izars wonderful range and a video explaining how to wear the hijab on their website: http://www.noordizar.be/

(Please note the opinions and thoughts expressed are my own) http://www.hijablicious.com/

Remember to join Hijablicious on facebook and twitter www.facebook.com/hijablicious for updates/giveaways and reviews and to get in touch you can email me samia@hijablicious.com

Muslim Weekly segment of review:

Author- Samia Khan (All rights reserved -Subject to copyright © )