Lunch date in New York

Posted on January 4, 2011
Filed Under Sabrina's Style, Stepping Out, The Closet, Winter Wear | 10 Comments

Armed with tissue boxes, and little packs of Vitamin C powder to spike my water with, Uzma, BIL and I hit the road and headed for New York on Sunday. Since every sneeze felt like a near explosion of mucus and brain matter, I went back to wrapping my hair for the trip. I met Uzma for breakfast at our hotel Monday morning with my hijab tied properly, but after an hour of ringing ears, and neck suffocation, I just couldn’t take it anymore. The weather outside was sunny, but the wind was pretty fierce, so for my lunch date with Uzma, I wore a long skirt with tights AND over the knee socks, a dress, and a sweater with an Aztec-y print that I love. The dress-over-skirt ditty happening under the sweater does provide full coverage (per my religious guidelines and the weather) but is too body-conscious for my personal taste to wear out of the house, so I added the sweater to my outfit, as opposed to using it as a supplemental piece. Since the sweater is open in the front, and there was A MAJOR RISK!!! of exposed stomach/waist/BOOB! area, so I took a little pin that I use for my hijab, and pinned the front of the sweater closed from the inside out so that the pin wouldn’t show. Had I not done that, I would have been clutching my sweater shut all afternoon, and You Guys know how much I hate NOT BEING HANDS FREE!

Hijab, Target
Dress, Isaac Mizrahi for Target
Skirt, Shopbop.com
Sweater, H&M
Earrings, Target

Sick day

Posted on December 29, 2010
Filed Under At Home, Sabrina's Style, The Closet | 6 Comments

I woke up this morning with a full-blown cold — a sore throat, headache and throbbing sinuses. I was feeling so suddenly under the weather that as much as I enjoy going to the dentist (yes, I’m one of those people) I had to cancel my appointment this morning because I couldn’t be sure that a giant string of phlegm wouldn’t rocket launch from behind my uvula, out of my mouth, and land atop my dentist’s tiny magnifying goggles. At one point, I decided to tough it out and go to the grocery store, but by the time I got home, I felt so dizzy I was seeing spots. I had lunch plans with bff Tina this afternoon, but didn’t want to cancel so I sent her a text message warning her not to hug me when she came over. Of course when I saw her, I both-hands-up, full-throttled my body into her arms. Whoopsies. Since BIL is here, I need to have my hair covered in the house, and be clad in something a little more appropriate than my Virginia Wesleyan pajama pants, but when I came home from the grocery store, I felt like everything I had on (hijab included) was suffocating my face off, for realz. I changed into a relaxed skirt and oversized tee, decided to wrap my hair, and tie a scarf around my neck, which served a dual purpose of keeping me appropriately dressed around BIL, and kept my neck warm since I wasn’t feeling well. And of course, obnoxious amounts of jewelry always make me feel happy, so a few extra bracelets and vintage earrings felt quite medicinal.

Hijab, Target
Green Pashmina, a gift from my dad from Qatar, or a gift from Little BFF’s mom from London. Sorry, I forgot!
Earrings, vintage
Skirt, a gift from MIL, Forever 21
Top, Trouvé in TBD at Nordstrom
Bracelets (right hand) Target and gifts from The Boss, Nordstrom (left hand) H&M, watch from Target, and Swarovski crystal bracelet was a gift from my best friend Juhi
Rings, Cross Armour Ring at Shopbop.com, other ring, H&M
Save the Wild Things T- shirt, thrifted

Casual and classic for a birthday luncheon

Posted on December 28, 2010
Filed Under Daily, Sabrina's Style, Stepping Out | 9 Comments

My dear friend’s daughter just turned a year old, and the little girl’s birthday celebration was a lunch-time affair held at a community center. I wanted something that was casual enough for lunch, but a little on the sophisticated side since A) This was a special day for the family and B) I knew there would be at least 50 people there. I opted for a casual-chic-meets-classic-style ensemble with a basic, and always easy on the eyes, black and white color combination. I paired a slightly casual patterned bottom with solids on top, and added a blazer to polish off the look.

Hijab, Target
Blazer, Aryn K at BlueFly.com
Skirt, Rachel Pally at Shopbop.com
Necklace, Target
Earrings, gift from MIL

Family dinner

Posted on December 27, 2010
Filed Under Daily, Sabrina's Style, Stepping Out | 4 Comments

My sister Uzma and BIL prepared Thanksgiving Dinner Part Duex on Saturday night, so The Boss and I, along with my mom, Little BFF & Co., and BIL’s sister and her family enjoyed an evening of good food, great company, and lots of talk about retainers. Long story. I don’t like having to get dressed up when I’m at home because that’s my time to hang around in my sweats while my parents periodically ask if they should bring me more marshmallows for my hot cocoa. But since this was a dinner party put together with great love and effort by Uzma and BIL, I figured I had to wear something other than my electrifying pink velour suit. Apparently, showing up to a dinner party with SEXY written on your butt is not socially acceptable in many places outside of the Bronx. Or the east side of Chicago. I decided on a long black skirt, and oversized top that’s a modal and polyester blend, which gives it a dressier feel than some of my ultra baggy cotton tees; the yellow hijab was for a touch of color. My shirt is actually gray, though I realize the lighting here makes it look a few different shades of blue. It’s my fault. I didn’t quadruple check the lighting like I normally do before I handed the camera to The Boss even though he specifically asked me to. Oops. About eight pictures in, our teeth were chattering, and just as I realized that the white balance and ISO settings needed to be tweaked, I heard that dessert was on the table, and someone brought pie. And that was the end of that.

Shirt, H&M
Skirt, LNA at ShopBop.com
Hijab, Mango
Earrings, Target
Necklace, Target
White bracelet, BCBG
Other bracelet, Target
Black Turtleneck, Lush, BP at Nordstrom
Over-the-knee socks, Urban Outfitters
Ankle booties, Fashion District, L.A.
Watch, Michael Kors at Nordstrom

Comfy-casual at the movies

Posted on December 20, 2010
Filed Under Sabrina's Style, Stepping Out, The Closet | 5 Comments

The Boss and I went to the movies with some friends on Friday, and since it was in the low 20s, I bundled up enough to survive the short walks we’d have to do outside: apartment to car, car to theater, theater to car, and car back to apartment — mammoth jacket I wore during these walks, not pictured. Since we’d be in a heated theater for two hours I didn’t want to wear a sweater, or anything too bulky so I decided on a simple plaid shirt (always a great option for effortless comfort) topped it with a slightly oversized hoodie, and paired with stretchy wide-leg jeans, a few simple accessories, and riding boots.

Plaid shirt, aerie (I love this shirt because it has what I like to call a butt flap. The back of the shirt is several inches longer than the front so it covers your butt! BUTT FLAP!)
Hoodie, aerie
Boots, Frye at Nordstrom
Jeans, thrifted
Necklace, Target
Bracelets, Norstrom, Forever 21
Ring, a gift from a friend who went to Argentina
Earrings, Target
Hijab, New York & Company

My road trip uniform

Posted on December 17, 2010
Filed Under Sabrina's Style, The Closet, Travel | 1 Comment

When The Boss and I hit the road for our cross-country drive from L.A. to Connecticut, we packed our car to capacity. So much so that it felt like the doors of the car could burst off the hinges at any moment, go thundering down the highway, and find their final resting place in some vast desert along Rt. 40. We filled the car starting with all stuff we wouldn’t need until we got to our final destination, and the stuff we did need (clothes, jackets, cameras, lenses, film, batteries, the cooler, a first-aid kit, and the lumbar support that was used off and on throughout the trip) was all kept in a place that was more easily accessible. And by “easily accessible” I mean, we still had to contort our bodies to reach essentials, and risked finger loss as we used the SHOVE AND SLAM! method any time we opened a door.

For the four and a half days we were on the road, The Boss and I shared a little carry-on-sized piece of luggage, which meant that the amount of space for clothes, shoes and toiletries was limited. Before we left, we knew that the further east we went, the colder it would be, so layers, and jackets were a must. If you’ve been watching our road trip recap videos, then you’ve probably noticed (by now) that I essentially wore the same stuff the entire week. I AM NOT ASHAMED. Because of space constraints, and because no one likes a high-maintenance road-trip buddy, both The Boss and I had to pick a handful of items to squeeze into our little suitcase.

This is what I packed:

Two oversized, long-sleeve shirts in neutral colors, which I layered a couple of times because the wind felt unbearable.

A pair of really comfortable jeans (a staple item for any road trip) and a long skirt, which I packed as my slightly nicer item in case we went out to a sit-down dinner one night (we did) and it also came in handy when we had lunch with Rishi’s parents.

An oversized hooded sweatshirt for an extra layer of warmth, comfort, and style

A lightweight hijab in a feminine color to offset the neutral color palette of my clothes

The ONE hijab I was going to take on this trip (any more than would have been over-packing in my mind) was crucial to my sanity, and subsequently to The Boss’s as well, though he might not have been aware of it at the time. Lord have mercy on a man whose wife is having a bad hijab day. Because I knew the hijab I picked was critical to the stability of our marriage, and I knew from the planning stages of our trip that I could not, I WOULD NOT wear a tightly pinned, fitted, perfectly ironed hijab every day FOR FIVE DAYS. Ironing is the bane of my existence, and in terms of comfort, I couldn’t sit upright with a five inch gap between my neck and the headrest because I decided to knot a GIANT BUN in my hair for the duration of our daily 10-hour drives. I needed something that, even if slightly wrinkled, could still look bohemian casual-ish, and not bum-on-the-street-ish.

And my last two items:

A long, navy-colored belted trench coat in a cotton-blend. This is not a cold-weather jacket per say, but more like a sweatshirt that hits well below the knee. I’m comfortable in it as long as the temperature doesn’t drop below 43, so it was a good item to pack for this trip. Obviously, I haven’t worn it since I got to Connecticut; it’s 11 degrees right now.

And finally, the shoes on my feet were my TOMS

I also had my rain boots in the car for any rain along the way. I wasn’t too concerned about not having a rain coat, but I don’t do well with stepping in puddles.

Shirts: Left: Trouvé in TBD at Nordstrom, Right: Forever 21
Hijab, Target
Jeans, Joe’s at Bloomingdales
Skirt, Macy’s
Jacket, Converse One-Star at Target
Shoes, Toms.com

My Thanksgiving day outfit

Posted on December 3, 2010
Filed Under Sabrina's Style, Stepping Out, The Closet | 5 Comments

With the cold weather in tow, and still significantly under-slept, I had to force myself to iron my hijab (okay, The Boss did it) and get dressed for Thanksgiving lunch/dinner with The Boss’s family. Even though I had a headache the whole day, being with family (albeit my family through marriage) was a nice reminder of some of the East Coast perks we’ll get to take advantage of now that we’re here.

Hijab, Target
Earrings, H&M
Boyfriend cardigan, Mossimo at Target
Embellished tank, Mossimo at Target
Brown ankle booties, Fashion District, Los Angeles
Herem pants, a gift from MIL from Egypt
Socks, CVS!
Bracelet, Target