Glamour By Fatima: The Headscarf Makes It's Comeback...

For those with a willingness to experiment and a desire to stand out from the crowd, the humble headscarf makes its return, pushing the tuban aside and taking on a casual air. Look over all the trends for spring 2012 and those which are being carried into autumn/fall 2012 and you’ll find amongst them revivals of 1930s, 1960s and 1970s fashion. While not all of the fashion revived from each decade are compatible, the headscarf certainly is. And so 2012 provides something of a perfect opportunity for the headscarf to become fashionable yet again!!

Read more to check out some amazing styles...

The 1940s headscarf

New Zealand designer Karen Walker’s spring / summer 2012 collection played not to the 30s, 60s or 70s, but instead to the 1940s – and a particular part of it at that. Karen Walker’s take on the fashionable headscarf for 2012 sits more in-line with 1940s Rosie The Riveter iconography.

The wartime image of the tie-up headscarf is one that implies the woman who is feminine but tough. It was a style born out of the hard work of necessity, but one that came to signify a new role for working women of the era.

Marc Jacobs played so a similar style in his S/S ’12 collection, though also offered up a style more in line with the sports fashion trend and a sweat-band.

The 1970s headscarf

The 1970s might currently be in a state of fashion revival, but it was a decade that itself borrowed motifs from an earlier period of fashion: the 1930s. So with the 70s revival well underway and the 30s revival simmering until A/W ’12, it’s the version of the 1970s headscarf that we look to in 2012.

Here we turn to siblings Nicholas and Christopher Kunz and their Nicholas K label’s S/S ’12 offering. A collection both urban and modern, Nicholas K S/S ’12 took a long and flowing approach to the headscarf. In my opinion is has a very Islamic vibe to it.. See 3rd pic

Ethnic head tie

The prominence of the headscarf in S/S ’12 isn’t limited to when it’s worn in line with decade-influenced trends. Ever true to fashion, the headscarf is interprete through the lens of ethnic fashion in 2012. Here, the likes of Kevork Kiledjian have turned to West and Southern Africa, taking inspiration from the traditional head tie.

The turban isn't quite dead

I started this blog stating that the headscarf replaces the turban as the fashionable headpiece for 2012. And that’s certainly true, but it’s not to say that the turban has disappeared from the scene altogether .. it’s just no longer the main piece of choice. If it’s still your thing for spring, look to Anna Sui’s S/S ’12 collection where tones were made to match.

The Religious Headscarf

Headscarves may have specific religious significance. Observant married Jewish women, for example, are required to cover their hair, often employing scarves, known as tichels or snoods, in compliance with the code of modesty known as tzniut. Headscarves were also worn by married Christian women in medieval Europe, and even by some of the unmarried. This head-covering habit is better known as a wimple in English.

Headscarves and veils are most commonly used by Muslim women. The Muslim religious dress include burqa, chador, niqab, dupatta, and others. The Arabic word hijab, which refers to modest behaviour or dress in general, is often used to describe the headscarf worn by Muslim women. Some reasons for Muslim women wearing the hijab would be for modesty and allowing a woman to be judged by her morals, character, and ideals instead of her appearance and being made a sexual object.

Here are some great looks for Spring/Summer 2012 ..