“Eid”. To me the word conjures up visions of palms painted red with henna, the excitement of new Eid clothes donned before daybreak in the rush to Salatul Eid (Eid prayers), and the aroma of “sevvayian” simmering on the stovetop.
I remember growing up in my native Pakistan among an extended family of fourteen aunts and uncles and no less than 50 first cousins, what an eagerly anticipated event Eid was. After a long month of Ramadan fasting, we would head out to the bazaar on Chaand Raat, the night of moon sighting, to buy bangles and shoes. Our Eid clothes of course, were ready long before, hiding secretly in mother’s cupboard, ready to make their debut on Eid morning. Oh the joy of seeing the sparkle of the new set of Eid clothes, showing off the latest in Eid fashion as we paraded from house to house with hugs, and cries of “Eid Mubarak”, or Blessed Eid!
After our move to the United States, the festival of Eid took on a whole new meaning. From being an event celebrated with just family, it became a community-wide celebration. The Eid breakfast with the family became an Eid brunch with 100 families from the area mosque, and the new Eid clothes were proudly worn to the convention center for Salatul Eid (Eid prayers) and displayed among 10,000 fellow Muslim Americans. Our family grew and the joy of shopping for new clothes multiplied five fold, with five shiny faces and five pairs of eager eyes sparkling when they saw their new Eid clothing on Eid morning.
Call it serendipity. The idea of starting a company to market products inspired by the rich artistic heritage of Islam, came to me one Ramadan morning as I lay in bed after Suhur. I was so excited I could not sleep! We would start with modest clothing and expand into home and holiday decor and all kinds of cool Eid gifts. Eid would be a holiday that would celebrate our Islamic faith held dear, and our American way of life adopted with pride.
Five years later, Artizara.com is making a name for itself in the world of modest Islamic fashion. Contemporary American styles were modified to meet the code of Islamic modesty and accented with embroidery and beading motifs inspired by Islamic art. Designing Islamic fashions from scratch was hard. Having our line of modest women’s clothing manufactured in a third world Muslim country was harder. But three years later we are proud to say that our line of modest dresses, long tops, mid-thigh length jackets and long skirts is truly unique. You can wear it and say: I am American…and I am Muslim. The shirt I wear is not just a long shirt, through it shines my 1500 year heritage…it is as unique as I am. I don’t blindly follow the whims of fashion dictated by corporate America. What I wear is American but it also treflects my rich and noble identity.
So, when you are shopping for new Eid clothes for yourself, or thinking of truly unique Eid gifts, consider Artizara.com. Our modest long tops and matching hijabs come in many different styles from simple to elaborate, to suit many tastes. For formal occasions, we have just introduced a line of formal dresses with coordinated hijab. These floor length formal dresses have full sleeves and modest necklines, and are accented with rich hand embroidery.
These are Eid clothes that you will reach for day after day long after Eid is past. These are Eid clothes that you will dress up for parties and dress down for work or school. These are Eid clothes that your non-Muslim friends will want to have. These are Eid clothes that will really set you apart.
From Artizara.com, thank you and have a Blessed Eid. Eid Mubarak from the bottom of our heart!
For your convenience, here are the dates for Eid-ul-Fitr through 2010.
* 2006: 24 October * 2007: 13 October * 2008: 2 October * 2009: 20 September * 2010: 10 September
