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SHAWL REVIEW: PLAIN SCARVES

Friday, February 16, 2018


Assalamualaikum

Hi guys, this started when one of my friends ask me where do I buy my plain shawls from. With so many brands in the market, so many sizes, shapes, prices, it is so hard to choose! So girls or boys (buying for a female not to wear :P ) this is when I come to the rescue! I feel like Wonder Woman already, well, the hijab wearing one. =) Either that or I am trying to find meaning for my recent shopping spree…so when people tell me off for buying to many tudung, I tell them it’s for research. So clever *flip tudung*

Before I start, since these reviews are based on my own personal opinion (some are the opinion of my friends), It is only fair that I tell you what my personal preference are. In an ideal scenario, I would love my shawls to be almost opaque, heavy (not too heavy...just enough for a beautiful drape), flowy, made of something that doesn’t make me go pekak (girls you know what I mean eheeem) and around roughly 0.68m x 2m in size.

Without further ado, let’s review the shawls that I have come across so far (alphabetical order):


Alhumaira Contemporary 
(Basic Deluxe) - RM49
Size: 0.69m x 1.8m
Claim: Made of Poly-Georgette Chiffon which you would love for it’s beautiful drape and luxurious feel.
My opinion: The shawl is heavy, flowy, slightly slippery and almost opaque. It feels luxurious. Exactly what I love in a shawl except for its length It’s not a wide shawl. My fault that I don’t see the measurement before I buy it. On the bright side, this shawl helps me built a habit to always check shawl measurement before I purchase them. Other than that, I am also not a fan of the slippery type material. Personally, I find it hard to get this shawl to stay in place.

Cakenis 
(Perak) - RM135
Size: 0.69m x 1.96m (This one I assume...based on Lush Satin Duo measurement from Zalora)
Claim: Easy to wear due to it being Broochless Just Hook
Opinion (Del): The broochless thing is brilliant. You know how our peniti always seems to disappear from our pin box....this shawl will solve that. No more brooch no more peniti. However, by analysing how the hooks were positioned, we came to know that the shawl is design to be wrap to the left so people who wrap their shawl to the right like Del, will find it awkward. In addition to that, we are also of the opinion that the sewing of Cakenis shawls need to be improve. They weren't swen properly....you know, the kind yang tertarik-tarik, will not be perfectly straight no matter how you iron them? yes that kind.

dUCk 
(Georgette) - RM130
Size: 0.68m x 1.75m
Claim: dUCk’s Georgette Premium Basic scarf is a lightweight fabric with woven polyester. With its slightly textured crepe surface, it drapes beautifully and creates a very elegant look that’s perfect for both formal and casual wear.
My opinion: Exactly as advertised. Exactly exactly. I could not explain it any better than what's already been laid out on the website. It stays in place too...you know how you look so proper and pretty with your shawl in place every morning but when evening comes, Masyaallah sistur, tudung dah ke belakang semua; this will not happen with this shawl. It stays in place! gila tak gila! However, this is not a wide shawl. All dUCks are not.

dUCk
(Matte Satin) - RM130
Size: 0.68m x 1.75m
Claim: dUCk’s Matte Satin Silk Premium Basic scarf is a lightweight fabric with less slippery finish and creates a very elegant look that’s perfect for both formal and casual wear.
My opinion: It's Satin but it's matte. Look all dress up with casual wear and look elegant in formal event. I love the material of this one. I have always like satin shawls as they look elegant, poise and luxurious but since I am shy in public, I never like the shiny part of satin shawls. It sorts of.....draws attention to you. So when you have a satin, which is matte, I'm sold! =P


dUCk
(Mixed Crepe) - RM130
Size: 0.68m x 1.73m
Claim: Crafted from high quality mixed crepe, Easy to wear and style, this scarf is definitely a must-have!
My opinion: I bought mine through my friend. Regretted it the moment I first saw it, touched it. The material looks berbulu. and it does not feel good on my hand. I can actually feel the bulu. Haha sorry I keep using bulu but I don’t know any English word that could describe this perfectly. (Btw, Fath said it's not bulu but hampas like that)

dUCk in general
Among all the brands on this list, dUCk is the rookie in the scarf industry but originating from FV, this is no ordinary rookie. Anything dUCk introduces would become trend. Metal label plate, eyelash hemming, style card, box with ribbon, everything! This is a brand that knows business. Having said all this, I've sold all my dUCk. yup, even georgette and matte satin one. Although the quality is there, I just don't prefer shawl that is less than 1.9 m.



Ereka Jusoph
(Orked) - RM29, RM100 for 4!
Size: 0.7m x 1.9m
Claim: made of highest quality chiffon, feather light, soft and easily shaped.
My opinion: It is definitely light but it is most certainly not soft…it feels rough on my hand. I don't know maybe because I compare it with Jasmine so yup this is a bias review. However, Ayu, Del and Afella love this one. One time, Ayu almost left hers at my home, she run upstairs while saying “Shawl lain takpe, Ereka tak boleh,” It is just me guys. I am being picky.



Ereka Jusoph
(Jasmine) - RM35, RM100 for 3!
Size: 0.7m x 1.9m
Claim: made of high quality premium chiffon that’s not only 90% opaque but flowy as well.
My opinion: The moment I lay my hands on Jasmine, I know that this is the one, finally, I've found the love of my life! So drama right...but can you blame me? Remember my ideal shawl? Jasmine is exactly that. It’s heavy, almost opaque, flowy and long. What more can I ask? I had strangers coming to me complimenting my shawl calling it "cantik" which is a major compliment for a plain shawl because honestly plain is plain. So when someone say a plain shawl is "cantik", it must be the material and how it drapes beautifully. Fath call it "classy and posh"...and did I mentioned it's cheap?! Yes RM100 for 3!

Ereka Jusoph in general
It's cheap. The cheapest in this review but cheap doesn't necessarily mean bad. Jasmine is cheap but Jasmine looks classy. So far, I've never been disappointed with Ereka Jusoph's quality. Their shawls are always sewn neatly no compromise and I love that they're practical too. No fancy packaging, no fancy metal label just a perfect neat shawl. However, if you're shopping online, please be wary about the colours of the shawl. It is super off from the actual product.


Radiusite
(ARIA) - RM49
Size: 0.68m x 1.84m 
Claim: Aria shawl is a lightweight fabric with less slippery finish and creates a very elegant look that's perfect for both formal and casual wear
My opinion: To comment on the claim, I must first ask this question. When Radiusite say less slippery I need to know with what they're comparing with. If they were comparing with Satin Shawl, of course Aria is less slippery but if they're comparing Aria with other normal basic shawl, Aria is definitely not less slippery. In fact, Aria is on the slippery side among all the scarves I have. Having said all this, this is the only shawl that I can tolerate it's lightness (I prefer heavy shawl), slipperiness and it's length. haha. I guess I just love Radiusite unconditionally :P The thing about Radiusite is, you can seriously trust them on quality. Their shawls are so neat, I find it a waste not to have one (okay two) in my collection.


TudungPeople 
(Aisya) - RM69
Size: 0.65m x 2.0m
Claim: Made of heavy chiffon, Aisya shawl is a simple, minimal, high quality piece with beautiful drape and flow.
My opinion: Aisya is also among one of my classy looking shawl. In fact, it is exactly what it claims to be. It is heavy which is a cue for beautiful drape and flow, it certainly scream high quality. Seriously, the one who writes on TudungPeople's website need a raise. They were spot on! If you were to compare this with Ereka's Jasmine, both are heavy, but Aisya is a teeny bit lighter and less opaque but Jasmine comes in limited colours whereas Aisya, being under TudungPeople, well, TudungPeople just love to spoil us with choices and yummy colours weren't they? :P



TudungPeople 
(NLuxe) - RM59
Size: 0.55m x 2.0m (M), 0.65m x 2m (L)
Claim: Thin & opaque, Soft but has that slight stiffness so that it falls nicely but still holds in place, Does not need dual layer to cover neck, Simple, minimal high quality piece with good workmanship.
My opinion: The website says it's stiff; it is most certainly is and I am not a fan of stiff. So again, please, trust the website. :'P Other thing to note, if you look closely into the picture above, you would notice that this shawl is labelled with that crystal thingy, not the traditional cloth label or the metal ones. and well, if you are anywhere as lazy as I am (I toss my shawl into washing machine without any laundry net), well, this shawl is not for you. :P



TudungPeople 
(MUNA) - RM72
Size: 0.65m x 2m 
Claim: Made of soft textured chiffon. Flowy and easy to care for with minimal ironing needed, this modern and sophisticated shawl will be your best travel hijab, or complete your casual TPootd
My opinion: I told you that the one who writes on TudungPeople's website need a raise right? I did right? because again, they were spot on! TudungPeople experimented with this material because this is not like their normal plain chiffon, this one is slightly textured, which is so so cool. Cool as in chic and also cool as in sejuk. However, this shawl is not really ironless or need minimal ironing, in fact, for me, this is among my high maintenance shawl. I think because the texture is a bit slippery and as we all know, slippery material gets crumpled easily.


TudungPeople in general
This is a brand that really know their target market, tudung people. Look at the lines they have for just basic plain shawls! They have Numa, Hawa, Safaa, Nluxe, Aisya, Muna, light, heavy, textured, flowly, very opaque, slightly opaque, ironless, whatever material you like, they have it. With so many choices, you're bound to find your perfect shawl, the one that you can acah-acah was designed for you.They're the most consistent brand I've ever come across.It has always been about producing quality scarves and promoting the right way to wear hijab. Furthermore, I believe we all owe it to TudungPeople for introducing wide shawl and chest-covered hijab style. It's common now but when TudungPeople started, the idea of covering ones chest was rather uncommon. So when this beautiful girls started carrying that style, a lot of us were inspired. At least that's how I started.

***

That's all for now. till the next review :P

13 comments :

  1. Waalaikummussalam! First time buying "branded" shawls and was searching for reviews, and I have to say, your post answered all the queries I had with the shawls I had intended to buy! :) Great post, keep it up!

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  2. Hi! I really appreciate your review. It really helps in my decision making.

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  3. hi dear, im faizura from team Radiusite, may i have your igs ?

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    Replies
    1. Hi Faizura, here goes https://www.instagram.com/athirahfauzi/

      thanks! <3

      Delete
  4. Hi Athirah, thank you for summarizing reviews of the branded shawls & scarves for women. I believe your post is going to help many girls looking forward to buy plain scarves. I wonder if plain Pashmina stole can be used as a wrap/ hijab.

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  5. Hi Athirah .. your post really help girls looking for their dream scarves. Thank you. Hope you can suggest which plain shawl out there for traveler which no need to iron..

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    Replies
    1. Hi Bie, thank you for being sweet. <3

      As for shawl for travelling, if you're looking for a completely iron less material, TudungPeople's Safaa and Calaqisya's Air scarf would be perfect for you.

      Having said all that, I personally don't wear iron less shawl, jersey/lycra just looks weird on me haha. So what I would normally do is I iron my shawls before I pack and keep them properly (tak lipat kecik sangat to avoid bekas lipatan). After much trial and error, I love the new TudungPeople's Muna the most for this method, they hardly creased even though I put them in a fully packed luggage.

      Another option would be pleated shawls. I am still doing research on this so will update more once that is sorted. <3

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  6. Thanks for your reviews . May I ask , I’m looking for shawls yang tak jarang , so Kalau erekajusoph punya jasmine/orked tu Kalau selapis je jarang tak ? Or do u need to do dua lapis supaya tak jarang . If jarang , can u please recommend me chiffon shawls yg letak selapis pun tak jarang ? Sorry for the trouble

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    Replies
    1. Kalau orked i rasa material die lebih kurang georgette chiffon so mmg kene double kan tapi kalau Jasmine I memang highly recommend. <3 Another one hari tu I baru kenal is Lisa by TudungPeople...yang ni pun high opacity level jugak.

      Hope this helps! And may Allah reward you abundantly for your effort to cover up better. <3

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  7. This is very helpful! Thank you indeed. I basically have the same preferences with you when it comes to shawl. I prefer it wide, long, opaque and ironless but not a jersey/lycra kinda girl since material tu tak compliment bentuk muka (long sigh) as well as kain tu sejenis tangkap bulu easily (i got few cats thats explained), so after reading your shawl review, I can easily shortlist shawl too try. Definitely going to try Muna from TP. If you tried Mayesa from Umma, I want to know your review about it. Thank you again sistur!

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  8. Hello Athirah, awesome review on plain shawl! Do you have other brand that you would recommend? something that emphasize on simplicity and style. I've stumbled upon Just You recently from their pinktober event. tried if they're good?

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