Arab Student Association at UNT holds 1st fashion show

Chloe Moubarak, Lauryn Smith, Kiera Notman, Julene Elkhatib and Layan Abunaba pose together at the Arab Fashion Show hosted by the Arabic Language Association on Nov. 8, 2023. Photo by Aiden Gonzalez

Models strut down a catwalk in vibrant, colorful kaftans and abayas with intricate designs and embroidery. The first model shows off a white modern-day kaftan with detailed gold embroidery that went down the middle of the kaftan’s sleeves.

The Arab Fashion Show put on by the Arab Student Association and Arabic Language Association on Nov. 8 brought the colors, patterns, intricate designs and fashion of the Arab world to the university. Throughout the evening, attendees saw fashion staples from the Middle East and Northern Africa and a brief history lesson behind pieces from places like Palestine, Morocco, Iraq, Sudan and Saudi Arabia. Some of the clothing featured in the fashion show was made by vendors, like a.w.a. Designs, Palestinian Elegance and the Jordan Guys Style.

“On campus, there’s not a lot of Arab representation,” said Reem Saeed, Arab fashion show co-organizer and international studies major. "We haven’t had anything recently since the pandemic that showcases our culture.”

The show started by showcasing kaftans, a special occasion dress for women in Morocco. Hosts announced each country and its fashion, and the Moroccan host broke down the structure of the first kaftan, speaking about the different types of kaftans and their meanings. He also took time to discuss how the beauty standards that play a role in the shape and structure of the kaftan, are different in Morocco compared to the United States. In Morocco, curvier and fuller bodies are preferred, while in the U.S., it’s the opposite.

“I love the clothing that my family make and my mom makes,” said Youssef Elberrichi, director of Roots Academy and Arabic professor. “I’m so proud when I feel like I represent that and share it with others.”

After covering fashion staples from Morocco, Elberrichi talked about a traditional Amazigh wedding dress from Morocco. The bottom half of the dress was white with a slit on one side that went up to the knee that had detailed red, yellow and green designs on the edge of the slit, going all the way to the end of the skirt.

The top half of the dress was red with several horizontal diamond shapes filled with colorful lines of yellow, green, blue and an orange or green triangle in the center connected by colorful lines of the same color scheme.

“As a professor of applied linguistics, I always want to take language beyond just words but to tell the story behind it,” Elberrichi said. “And today we did that through clothing, through fashion.”

In collaboration with the Arabic Language Association, the ASA hosted a fashion show in the Student Union highlighting the diverse backgrounds and cultures found among Arab nations.

To top it all off, the wedding dress had a white shawl and silver crown with cone spikes that went across the top of the model’s head like a headband with silver cones dangling on the side. Elberrichi brought the audience’s attention to the spiked crown, and how a Moroccan Amazighi headpiece inspired the crown of the Statue of Liberty. Additionally, Elberrichi informed the crowd that during times of resistance during French and Spanish colonialism, Moroccan women carried gunpowder inside the cone-shaped spikes of the crown.

For the country Iraq, a model wore a gold salwar dress paired with a sheer black shawl with gold Arabic writing on the back of it. Owner of a.w.a. Designs and fashion designer Alyaa Azat from Dallas has been in business for more than two years. Azat works in interior design and started out by drawing on glass and glazed ceramics before attempting to draw on clothes and found her passion there. After getting support and encouragement from her friends, Azat decided to start her own business and pursue her passion full-time.

“I’m really happy to be a part of this show,” Azat said. “It’s really something nice to show everybody our culture, clothes, and everything.”

Another fashion designer who had their clothes featured in the fashion show were Bashar and Jeries Iseid, brothers and co-owners of the Jordan Guys Style from Frisco. They sell custom-designed clothing with the flags of different Middle Eastern countries on it. Those countries include Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine. Recently, their most popular product has been hoodies and shirts with the flag of Palestine due to the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Although the show's main act was the detailed and colorful handmade pieces featured on the runway, there was a message of encouraging solidarity between Arab students on campus and raising awareness about what is going on in Palestine.

“Despite all the stuff happening, we’re still prideful and we’re always going to remember our roots, our history, and our culture,” said Layan Abunabaa, President of the Arab Student Association and co-organizer of the Arab Fashion Show.