Artizara.com is as an Islamic Clothing Company that was founded in 2004 by neighbors/friends Sarah Ansari and Asra Razzaque who had the idea of bringing Islamic wear to the mainstream market that combined modesty, Islamic Heritage and World Style.  I’ve noticed this on-line    boutique for quite a while, while looking for new abaayat to wear (I had just started wearing them full time) and was really only looking for more simple everyday designs at the time and I thought that Artizara was a little too over the top for me LOL!  So, about a year or so ago I noticed their new Palestinian themed dresses and quite recently I’ve been looking for something fairly unique to add to my ever expanding collection.  So I decided to buy the Ibtisam Palestinian Hand Embroidered Long Maxi Dress from Artizara and give her a try…Soooooooooo, without further ado, here is my review:-)

Service

I will have to say, the service was impeccable.  I ordered the garment on Friday around 3ish and received the garment on Monday.  This was quite impressive to me being as the Christmas rush makes it almost impossible to receive anything ordered that late into the week in a timely matter unless you pay an arm and a leg for 3-day or overnight shipping.  I really liked the fact that as soon as I placed an order my status was updated to shipped within a few hours.  Most companies leave your order in limbo as “processing” for at least a day or two.  But the folks at Artizara got down to business!  That alone would make me order from them again. I have to give kudos to companies like Artizara that gets your order out  in a timely matter! 

 

Packaging

The garment arrived in the standard cellophane packaging within a United Post Office envelope.  The product, when I opened it was neatly folded and when I unfolded the garment it was wrinkle free and ready to wear.  Attached was the Artizara tag and the companies label was sewn inside the garment as well.  I’m weird I guess but I like when a company attaches outside tags to your garment.  It gives it that boutique feel as opposed to the sitting in the warehouse feel that I usually get when I order an Islamic garment from an online company.

 

Fabric/Details

The garment itself is made from polyester.  It’s a substantial polyester-it reminds me sort of like peach skin (but a little more textured) It’s extremely opaque and has a hint of stretch to it.  The over garment has a sort of boat neck/ square neckline which adds a unique touch. The sleeves are straight and fitted and cuffed with white chiffon pleats.  The bodice of the garment has beautiful folds/pleats (of the same white chiffon) with the traditional Palestine weave sewn down the middle.  The weaving is what impressed me the most!  This is the real thing ladies-not the fake mass-produced stuff you see.  It’s absolutely breathtaking but extremely settle at the same time.  Most ethnic themed garments are usually reserved for eid or some cultural event.  However, I would totally wear this to jummah or dinner with the girlies.  This definitely appealed to my western sensibilities- as the company’s logo suggest it is a perfect blend of east meets west. 

 

Fit

I ordered the garment in an extra small and it fits me PERFECTLY (down to the length).  I have a feeling that the company bases it garment size on height and the approximate weight for that height i.e., an extra small would be reserved for your shorter sisters (5ft to 5’3) and the larger sizes would be for the taller sisters.  So if you are super tall but small in stature or heavyset and very short-it may be difficult to get the sizing right. The fabric as I mentioned before has a slight stretch which makes it SUPER comfortable to wear.  I will say that the fit is more like a dress rather then an abayah or an over garment.  It is A-line-ish but not as a-line as say a traditional shoulder abayah and it is  more fitted in the waist area then a traditional abayah as well. It’s definitely not skin tight, but the garment is definitely shaped and it would almost be impossible to fit anything bulky underneath it unless you went a size up.  

 

Quality

The quality of the garment is impeccable.  The garment has what I like to call that “boutique feel.” It reminds me of something that you would buy at Francesca’s Boutique. The material is quality and the surging is even and super tight and with proper care it is an over garment that you could have for years (the care instructions suggests hand wash or dry-clean only though).

 

Price

I thought the pricing for the garment was fair. It was originally $79 dollars.  However, they were running a promotion where you received $15 off your total order and the shipping was about $5.  So all-in-all I only paid $69 (shipping included) -which I thought was great for such a unique garment and the best part is that the traditional embroidery on the garment was done by Palestinian women from a women’s cooperative in Jenin, so some of the money that you spend on the garment helps those women economically AND the garment was completely constructed and put together in the USA, which makes me ubber happy!

 

Overall I would rate this garment an A+! I LOVE IT! If you are looking for a unique garment to wear albeit a conversational piece.  Then this is the garment for you.  There are a few more designs on the website that are a little more settle then this particular garment that is apart of their  Palestinian themed collection- if this one has a little too much going on for you.  All in all I had a wonderful experience with Artizara and I will definitely order from this company again.