Noticing the unnoticeable...

I’m out of my depth here. But I have noticed a bit of a change in the abayas that I am surrounded by here. I know the intention of the abaya is to cover and provide for modesty. I appreciate that there  are both cultural (ethnic), family and religious factors working together in the UAE to have generated the clothing situation here.  The reasons women and girls wear abaya are many and varied.  What I have noticed though is that the cut of the abaya has changed over my last 4 years in Abu Dhabi. I deal with a lot of women in abayas. I see them in close proximity almost everyday. I also seem them in malls and other social environments. What I have seen is that the fashion abaya has made a significant inroad into everyday wear. Lace and brocade has flourished. Colours, especially gold and white have appeared both in trim and also in vast slashes of vibrant decoration. The form has become more generally tapered.  The abaya seems to be coming of age in terms of an outright fashion statement. It is no longer hiding clothing beneath or hiding physical shape. It is no longer an amorphous blob, or BMO (black moving object) as affectionately coined in KSA, instead it has become a catwalk creature. At a mall the other day I was conscious of noticing a mother and daughter in their respective abayas. One was certainly rather plain but nowhere near BMO status, the other was stunning. From mid shin to knee was see through black net lace revealing black ankle length tights. Similarly the arm bands hung transparently over a simple top. The result was a very attractive shapely garment that was a clear fashion statement – the abaya is no longer a bolt of cloth or a sack. I know I’m not supposed to look, but that is what catwalks are for ...