Taqwa of TAQWA IMAN - Muslimas Oasis

title: Taqwa of TAQWA IMAN

I came across Taqwa Iman recently and was impressed by their modest, universal appeal and unique style. I was pleasantly surprised when sister Taqwa emailed me for an interview on MO mashaAllah and jumped at the chance to feature her company. I hope you enjoy learning a little more about Taqwa Iman, the modest clothing store that’s all about you.

To begin with, please tell our readers a bit about yourself, how you got into fashion and briefly what Taqwa Iman is all about.

Taqwa Iman is about ending frustration. The typical retailer does not cater to Muslim women or modest dressers. The current trends and fashion fads are about looking sexy and creatively revealing different parts of your body. Long skirts, long sleeve tops, non-sheer clothing, loose fitting clothing are all items that are difficult to find in a typical retail store. Most modest dressers do not have the typical shopping experience. We often find ourselves going from store to store to find items that we can actually wear. If we find a long skirt in one store, we often have to go to several different stores to try to find a suitable long sleeve top to wear with it. Often, we can not find something that is completely modest so we find ourselves having to buy a bigger size to create looseness or buy an under top to create sleeves. This can be frustrating. I am a young Muslim woman who understands this frustration. So, at the age of 26 I set out to end it with the creation of TAQWA IMAN. With each item that we produce, TAQWA IMAN is about giving women clothing that meets their modesty beliefs and their sense of style.

Give us an idea of the process of creating a garment. From inspiration to sale, what exactly goes into a skirt or a top from Taqwa Iman?

When I first began TAQWA IMAN, I immediately developed a great appreciation for fashion designers and the garment industry. Many people do not realize how much work goes into making one piece of clothing. The first part of the process begins with an idea; a simple sketch. From there, you spend time searching for the perfect fabric for the piece. When you are a small clothing company this part can be a little daunting because you may not have access to the fabric that you need. This sometimes requires you to scratch your initial idea or start over. In fact there are many times during the process of designing that you have to start over. Patient is golden in the world of fashion. The next step in the process is to have a pattern created for the sketch. From the pattern, a sample gets created. Depending upon how the sample looks and feels, you may have to start over. In seeing the sample you may notice that there are certain elements of the design that needs to be improved. If the sample meets your satisfaction, you then begin the process of grading the garment. Grading means to create the different sizes that you will offer for the garment (i.e. small, medium, etc.). After the grading is completed, you then go into production where you actually begin to make the garments that you will sell to the public.

Wow mashaAllah I just gained a greater appreciate for Fashion Designers myself! Tell us some of the more interesting places you get inspiration for designs.

Inspiration comes from everywhere. Fabric, trends, a movie, a decorated room, or even a flower. As a designer everything is inspiring.

Are your garments designed and manufactured all in one place? Where is Taqwa Iman based?

All of the TAQWA IMAN garments are designed and produced in the United States. From the pattern maker to the sewing contractor, we utilize the talent and skills of the local community. I am really proud of this fact because TAQWA IMAN contributes to the betterment of the economy. It may be a small contribution, but it is still significant to the people we work with. If fact one of our sewing contractors is a mother. Sewing garments for us and other companies such as mine, allows her to work from home and be with her children. That is a wonderful thing.

That is truly a wonderful opportunity you are giving that woman and her children. The name can be a huge part of a companies identity, especially a clothing line. How did you come up with the name?

To dress modestly everyday takes faith. IMAN. For many women, who dress modestly because of their religious beliefs it also takes God-consciousness or TAQWA. So, I think the name of our company fits the people we design for. Taqwa Iman also happens to be my first and middle name :)

What makes Taqwa Iman different from other modest brands?

At TAQWA IMAN we love to put a modest twist on current trends to allow our customers to wear the styles that they adore but to do so with confidence that they are not straying away from their beliefs. Our last collection also featured a lot of beautiful bold prints and youthful colors that some modest brands tend to shy away from. We believe that dressing should be fun and one should enjoy what they are wearing so we try to make sure that our clothing captures this. Unlike, most modest companies we also sell shoes and accessories in addition to our clothing and scarves. This allows our customers to do one stop shopping; to put together a complete outfit with a few clicks of the mouse. To assist, we provide modest fashion tips and complete outfit ideas on our site.

Tell us a bit about your team. Do you each have a different concept of modesty or do you have a shared passion for modesty in individual style?

I wear many hats at TAQWA IMAN and am involved in every facet of the company. However, I do have contractors and volunteers who are involved with different aspects of the company. Their concepts of modesty and style vary.

Has there been or are there plans for a Taqwa Iman fashion show?

TAQWA IMAN had a fashion show when we first launched. InshAllah, in the future we plan to definitely do more.

What about conferences and trade shows, can we find your line at any of these?

Yes, at the last two ISNA conferences TAQWA IMAN had a booth in the bazaar where we created a wonderful mini shopping experience for our customers. At the bazaar, women were allowed to try on our products, sign up for our newsletter, watch the video of our fashion show, and receive a free gift just for stopping by. We also went to Canada earlier this year for MuslimFest. We always have a lot of fun at the conferences meeting our customers and acquiring new fans. We plan on participating in several more conferences and related events next year, so any woman who is attending such an event should definitely look for us. We may be there! Also, if anyone is interested in having TAQWA IMAN attend their event or participate in a fashion show, they simply have to contact us and we will surely try to be a part of it.

Obviously your line is aimed loosely at Muslim women, however your models are not the typical, traditional, perhaps stereotypical muslim women and your website doesn’t have a strong Islamic feel. Tell us a bit about your approach. Describe your target audience.

To some people’s surprise, there are many women who dress modestly who are not Muslim. There are women of various different faiths and backgrounds who believe in the beauty of modesty and dress everyday following modest guidelines. For example, some non-Muslim women completely cover their hair when going outside and there are others who have to wear dresses/skirts that cover their knees. A great example of this are the women in the reality television family the Duggars. Due to different religious beliefs, non-Muslim women may have different dress restrictions that they must abide by, yet they still face the frustrations that Muslim women face everyday when they shop. TAQWA IMAN is for them as well. Modesty is a beautiful thing that every woman should follow, so we do not exclude anyone. We are for all women and we try to create a shopping experience that reflects that. As our homepage states, we provide “Chic modest clothing for everyone”.

Do you have plans to expand your line? What can we expect from you in the future?

TAQWA IMAN definitely has plans for growth in terms of our clothing line and our brand. We can not disclose the details, but we suggest anyone who is interested to sign up to our newsletter, Facebook Fan Page, or Twitter groups. After our website, these are the first places where we announce any new exciting additions.

What sort of feedback have you gotten about your line? What has surprised you?

Almost 100% of the feedback has been positive. Many women love our styles and appreciate them and even more so when they see them close up. We have been surprised to receive orders from as far as Singapore. However, this should not have been a surprise since we ship everywhere. And we love our Singapore customers; they are so nice :)

Can you offer any advice to aspiring modest-fashion designers out there?

Patience and hard work are key.

MashaAllah thank you for your fantastic answers! I love your outlook. Finally, tell our readers who are interested how they can connect with you (website? facebook? twitter?) and what else you want us to know about Taqwa Iman.

Website: http://www.TaqwaIman.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/TAQWA-IMAN-Inc/135478153672

Twitter: http://twitter.com/TaqwaIman

Phone: 1-888-My-Taqwa (1-888-698-2792)

Email: ContactUs@TaqwaIman.com

TAQWA IMAN is about you, the modest dresser, and we can not survive nor grow without your support. There is a saying that when people experience something bad they tell everyone they know, yet when they experience something good they rarely tell anyone. If you appreciate what we are doing, please spread the word and tell your friends and family :)

The views put forth by our Authors are the views of the individual and do not represent the views of Muslimas Oasis or those associated with Muslimas Oasis in any way.

Comments

4 Responses to “Taqwa of TAQWA IMAN”

Author

Date

Comment

Pam Mace

January 16th, 2010
11:31 am

wow! what a great idea. i remember trying to find clothing for you Emma, in NZ. impossible to find anything suitable for a young woman in a western style. not difficult….impossible! even when we drove an hour or so away to Auckland where a shop had been recommended. they had lovely scarves, but impractical to dress in just scarves or in arab-style, older woman clothing.

i wish you well with your work, Taqwa Iman. how wonderful that you have an open view for all women, muslim or not. often, businesses that are begun by a person unable to meet their own needs, become very successful because there are so many others out there with the same need.

i will tell people i know, who shop online, about your store.

thanks to muslimsasoasis for making this info available, too.

Author	Date	Comment
Tabassum Z. Shabbir	January 18th, 2010 4:53 pm	Umm Hend, well written report on Taqwa Iman website. I am already impressed from this website and I do recommend it to my friends too! Overall I really enjoyed this article :)