Review - Downton Abbey Edwardian Style Abaya

I've been waiting to publish this review. I've been racking my brain about what to accessorise it with. Do I have a ring that matches?  Not sure. A necklace? No, that might be too much against the lace bodice. What about a demure bracelet? I have none. Argh. Then I was on the phone when my mum mentioned something about Downton Abbey and straight away I knew the perfect accessory to style up this abaya would be my best English china, a cup of tea and plenty of English-esque cakes and biscuits; in particular a traditional shortbread. I went out right away, stopped at Miss Maud and picked up some mini tarts and jam drop shortbread for props. I then drove home flashing visual ideas in my mind of how I could incorporate them into the review photos. 

Problem was I got home, ate the bloody things and felt too full and bloated to stand in front of my camera, taking pics of my pregnant stomach plus the recent layer of biscuit that I added on top of it. FAIL. I did manage to stave off my hubby and baby girl away from the platters long enough to get a few snaps in and then saved a mere three biscuits to use in pics the next day. Somewhat of a success I'd say. 

And on to the reason why we are really here... This:


N A Exclusive Abayas isn't new to my blog. I have reviewed for them before - if you would now kindly cast your eyes and memories back to this post about an awesome black sequinned abaya they sent me. It was a pretty popular one for obvious reasons. (Obvious reason being it was gorgeous). 

This time around I choose their white lace/grey abaya duo - a replica of a Roselle abaya (N A specialise in designer replications, custom pieces and turning sketches into reality in pretty much any colour and material).


The overall style is extremely elegant and very old world in essence. I'm a big fan of the draping shawl style of the sleeves. Underneath are normal semi-fitted abaya sleeves, whilst an extra layer of chiffon is brought over the shoulders to the front to drape over not only the entire arm but also down the flank sides to the ground. They're even large enough to completely cover the front section of the dress, but I doubt anyone would wear it that way because it would cover up and conceal the main feature of this abaya which is of course the mix of grey chiffon lined with charmeuse silk and the white lace embellished with pearls and beads.


I ended up rummaging through my the bits of jewellery strewn across my house and found a white multichain necklace that matched the abaya perfectly.


It also gave me a chance to don the ring my husband bought me recently in Egypt. No other outfit seemed to match it but it moulded in quite nicely with this one.


My Burleigh china, given to me by my mother. Coincidentally they're currently having a 25-50% off sale, which is going to help me because my cat broke my teapot and I've been meaning to replace it for years.


Tea & biscuits anyone?


Check them out now - they are currently having a big sale on abayas and will also give you 5% off when mentioning "Miss Hijabi" while ordering. Try getting this abaya in a different colour. I think the white lace with pink chiffon would be awesomely girly!


Digging into those partly English roots of mine for a while was fun! What are your thoughts on the review? Do you admire the abaya?