affordorable

Maybe you remember this flowy green high-front-low-back top that I wore on Eid two years ago? I expressed excitement at the anticipation of wearing it with jeans in that Eid outfit post, so #goalsachieved as this is already the second time I'm jeans-ing the versatile top on the blog.

Usually when Ramadhan rolls around I'd already be thinking about shopping for outfits for the celebratory month of Syawal, but living part-time in two cities and the resulting exhaustion from having to travel constantly between three cities (we still have to occasionally visit Shah's hometown after all) kind of take the fun out of planning Syawal fashion, though.

Thankfully I already have an outfit for the morning of Eid (fyi also the first day of Syawal) that I bought a looong time ago though, so that's one less unticked things on my Eid To-Do List!

I'm used to getting a few other modest outfits to wear for when I attend the inevitable Eid "open houses" a.k.a. THE BEST PART of the month of Syawal, what with all the Eid food and the fun of hanging out with family and friends! Unfortunately, I just don't think it's possible to find time in between my travels to do that much Eid shopping so I'll just have to rely on whatever is already in my closet, including this modest black pleated dress.

Extra read: What is an "open house"?




Generally, Malaysians wear modest outfits when attending Malay weddings and open houses, and more often than not the outfits worn to those events are interchangeable. I wore this black dress with a gorgeous bejeweled bag (really, isn't it gorgeous?) bought in Dubai's Textile Souk, paired with these rainbow glittery boots to a friend's wedding, but I can see myself wearing this getup while attending a future open house.

But perhaps sans the glittery boots though; it's just easier to wear shoes that are easy to slip on and off as, after all, it is customary here to take off your shoes before entering one's house!

black "flurry" lil thayng. My first thought upon seeing it: "Omg Missoni zigzag!" even though of course it isn't Missoni (I wish), and the rest is history.

May Allah shower your path with enlightenment and knowledge. May you be given the strength to accomplish the things you wanted to do but weren’t able to last Ramadhan. May Allah accept our fasts and prayers. Celebrate this month but remember to pray for our brothers and sisters who are less fortunate than us, who are trapped in war zones, who are not able to enjoy Ramadhan in their hardships and difficulties, and may Allah ease their sufferings and grant them the highest reward, especially in the hereafter. Ramadhan Mubarak to my Muslim Instagram friends ❤️

A post shared by Liyana Aris (@theliyanaaris) on May 17, 2018 at 12:13pm PDT

My taste inevitably changed over the years; I often overlook my old cardis as I'm now a total denim jacket gal but blazers are definitely my pick for the most versatile outerwear. It's easy to dress them up and down, plus they go with everything. There are plenty of ways to wear a blazer too: button it up, wear it open and loose, belt it, tuck it in, etc..
(Tucked-in blazer is now a thing, as I recently discovered. Also: ten points if you can name another way to wear a blazer!)

Is anyone else getting "office vibes" from this outfit, or is it just me?

I didn't even notice it while wearing the outfit but realised it much later during editing these photos. I don't mean "office vibes" in a negative way though, not at all; if I had a creative job in an office — like in a relatively formal/more serious office and not the fun Google-with-slides-jeans-are-fine kind — this is exactly one of the outfits that I'd be wearing and would even try to recreate using different pieces every now and then.

See: Another hypothetical office outfit by me

Most of the things I wear in this outfit are old yet they feel "fresh" to me as I styled them differently (see this striped off-the-shoulder button-up shirt layered on top of a white shirt & the red mules with loop hoop earrings). Aside from making more conscious shopping decisions, I'm also trying to practise another one of those how-to-be-a-more-responsible-shopper tricks: shopping from my OWN wardrobe.


The only never-seen-before piece: the statement, dark navy detailed fuzzy culottes which were a steal during last year's December sale, bought a size up than my usual for the extra length. It's one of the "fancier" pants in my closet so it's worth saving for a day when I ended up going out for a super fancy dinner with mon mec (that's "my man" in French, just feeling a lil fancy at the mo), as opposed to my usual ratty (but oh so comfy) jeans + sneakers outfit..

PS: My first time at Nobu KL, SO GOOD.



I'm looking forward to toning down these fancy schmancy pants with maybe a tee and denim jacket the next time I wear them, what do you think? Any other suggestions on how to dress down the pants?

I adore this old sequinned-sleeve black abaya so much that I've worn it countless times, especially to weddings. The fact that it's almost solid black allows me to treat it sort of like a "blank canvas", allowing various stylings to give a different result each time.

Look 1: With red scarf + leopard print flats + "Call Me" clutch
Look 2: With leopard print scarf + red/nude flats + piano clutch

PS: I even have a green version of it!




Aside from the black abaya dress, this outfit consists of my other old faves: my Louis Vuitton Speedy bag and these champagne gold mules with statement bows — bows so exaggerated that they prompted my younger brother to comment that they resemble samosas.

In case you're unsure: YES, samosas as in the usually-fried delicious savoury snack.

Now I can't quite unsee the resemblance, hence me calling them "samosa mules" from then onwards...