Orthodox Jewish Modest Fashion Sweeping the Runway

Model in Mimu Maxi Body slip dress, Photo: Melody Melamed, courtesy Vogue

It is common practice to see more flesh than one needed on catwalks to grab the attention of the media and make instant headlines. However times are changing and women are changing. It is refreshing to see faith related fashion translating on the catwalks.

Modest brands like BARJIS  have successfully broken the perception  of modest fashion amongst the mainstream fashion circle and now more and more designers are warming up to the idea that there is a growing market out there for modest fashion.

As Vogue mentioned in it’s recent article that even the slip dress which is seen as a highly sexual garment can be layered to make it into a modern modest look on the runway. Rag &Bone gave the slip dress a modest take by layering it on top of long-sleeve shirts and slim-fitting cigarette pants, completing the look with a polished leather topper. That look isn’t so far off from how Chaya Chanin and Simi Polonsky, the Australian Orthodox Jewish designers behind The Frock, would wear the typically bedroom-designated piece.

Fashion reflects the times we live in and designers like BARJIS, Rag &Bone as well as Chaya Chanin and Simi Polonsky are listening to the market by catering for a growing market of modestly dressed women around the world.

BARJIS – AW15 Long silk tunic with silk twill printed trousers. Photographer: Takahito Sasaki. Model: Anna Baranek