São Paulo – In a country like Brazil, in which fashion generally dictates tendencies displaying legs, arms and shoulders, covering the body from head to toe is not really considered fashionable. But for Brazilian Muslims, to whom wearing a hijab, the Islamic veil, is a religious question, the act of covering their hair may also be done with style and taste. Betting on this sector, Falastin Zarruk created, in late 2010, a blog to help other women who, like her, wear the hijab in Brazil and like to vary styles.
"The proposal for the blog has started to demystify the use of the hijab. Today, the number of [Islamic] converts is very great [in Brazil], but there are few people to provide information [about how to wear the garments]," explained Falastin. "The blog is a space to provide clues as to how and how not to wear [the hijab]", says the 23 year-old, a technician in Fashion from the National Service of Commercial Education (Senac) and a resident of Canoas, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
She says that she did not wear the hijab until she spent three years living in a village in Ramallah, on the West Bank. That was the birthplace of her grandfather, who left Palestine and came to Brazil to work as a travelling salesman, married a Brazilian and raised a family, like so many Arabs who helped form a large part of the colony of descendants that are now part of the country. "I had never been interested in the hijab," she says. "When I started wearing one it was for cultural reasons, as I lived in the interior and girls wore them there. It was only later that I started wearing it for religious reasons," she said.
The blog became so successful that, in January this year, she created Fay.Z, her own brand of hijabs. Currently, the average number of orders is around 30 veils a month. The clients may choose between the models created by Falastin or may ask for them according to their own taste. Apart from the veils, she also sells pins and other accessories like buttons, masbahas (Islamic prayer beads), pin cushions and, next season, Fay.Z should also have the traditional abayas, clothes to cover the full body. The new collection should be issued in up to two months and should include a kid’s line.
The blog receives an average of 1,800 visits a month. The viewers include Muslim women seeking clues about how to wear their hijabs in their daily lives or for parties and curious people interested in learning more about the veil. "There are people from other religions that praise the blog, thanking me for clarifying the use of the hijab," explained Falastin.
To help Brazilian Muslims in the creation of "looks" with their hijabs, Falastin produces videos that show how to put on the veil, fix it with pins, etc. And for those who are in doubt, all you have to do is leave a message to the blogger. "I always try to answer the comments and requests."
Falastin explains that she has clients throughout Brazil and has already sent items to Muslim women in São Paulo, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro and Brasília, for example. The prices of the items vary from 16 to 25 Brazilian reals (US$ 10 to US$ 16). They are produced in fabrics like synthetic silk crepe, viscolycra or viscose. The latter two, according to Falastin, were not used in the production of hijabs and are a Fay.Z novelty.
Despite her work with hijabs, at her house, Falastin is the only woman who uses the veil. Her youngest sister is just nine years old and does not yet wear the hijab, which is only compulsory at menarch. Her mother was catholic and recently converted to Islam. She also wears the veil. "I believe that wearing the hijab has to come from the heart. In no way do I want to feel obliged," she said.
Service
Blog Fay Hejab
http://fayhejab.blogspot.com
Where to find Fay.Z
www.soukbrasileciadobrasilepelomundo.com/produtos
*Translated by Mark Ament
