I don’t think the Manolo is making fun of these women. It’s kind of a laugh-so-you-don’t-cry situation.

I guess that I’d better explain the above: Why would you cry for someone who made a conscious and conscientious choice to look for different options in a style of clothing that indicates a religious commitment? I don’t think that they would generally view themselves as objects of the fashion world’s pity, as is obvious in their celebration of the very clothes in question.

to jenny: I don’t know if you’ve read ‘Lolita in Teheran’ book, but the women who lived in such a oppressing regime clearly stated that being covered head to toe is rarely a woman’s own decision. She wrote: I feel like my whole body is wanishing, I’m loosing my personality…very sad.

There is nothing modest or subtle about making women responsible for the misconduct of men, up to and including penalty of death. Nothing.

If this was the exclusive choice of the women involved, there would be no need for religious police to patrol around looking for loose hair and painted nails.

I could not agree with willowgerl more. Now that is a woman with style, grace, and poise. The drape of her outfit evokes the toga on a statue of the greek godesses in their togas, and if you compare her to the woman on the right, she looks significantly less dowdy and as if she has actually chosen her outfit for herself.
I don’t know whats up with the woman on the bottom with the crazy eye mask, but it is nice to know that bad fashion exists everywhere, and not just on our own runways and subways. At least these women have a chance for bad fashion, others are not so lucky.

I can’t believe what I am reading here. ‘So nice that they can choose colors and fabrics.’ Did you read the article? Did you see this:

“The 10-day event is being organised by Iran’s police force…”

“The exhibition was a response to recent trends among many young Iranian women towards short, tight-fitting manteaus and headscarves pushed back to expose elaborate hair styles. Earlier this year Tehran city council ordered a police crackdown against women whose dress was deemed insufficiently Islamic.”

“I would not wear hijab at all if it wasn’t the law.”

Police crackdowns on women who don’t dress according to law? So nice that they can choose colors and fabrics?

I’m sitting here and shaking my head.

I have to agree with daleth – these women don’t have a choice!
Especially when the Iranian goverment purports ideal Islamic dress for women to be plain, unembellished black or olive chadors. Go find the color in that.
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For those that may want to read more and educate themselves about the lives of Islamic women, I recommend Geraldine Brooks’
“Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women”
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0385475772/sr=8-1/qid=1153920175/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-1897583-7588842?ie=UTF8

Lordy. The Manolo wasted no time recovering from the big crash. Already- the controvercy. There has not been so much here since the Ann Coulter ads!

Jenny-
Egypt isn’t Iran or Saudi Arabia- for now . A doctor friend of mine worked at the world -famous Eye Institute in Saudi Arabia for about as long as she could stand it. One minute, you’re doctor so-and-so- the next minute you’re wearing a Hijab and being chaufeurred home lest you become a source of temptation.

Every single pic I received from her was well away from the Middle East, when they were vacationing. Even in Iran, the police are quite a bit less aggressive in enforcing the morality clauses than they used to be, because the population has just had it with this particular theocracy. This fashion show is a last-ditch attempt to give the hardliners their way. I imagine it falls on blind eyes.

While we all ponder color choices and all that, let’s also ponder that there are women whose male children have never seen their mother’s faces.

“Yeah but remember this is just an outer layer – many times there’s the latest couture under that burka or chador.”

i would not care about wearing the latest couture under my chador if most of the time i had to hide it. the person who wrote this comment and actually believes it should try wearing a chador, not showing ANY hair, not wearing nail polish etc. even if things are getting a lot cooler nowadays it’s still very strict and most women would not wear the chador if they could choose themselves. women are beautiful and should be able to be proud of their beauty and not be forced to hide themselves because men are too weak.

to clarify things: life in iran is disgusting and absolutely horrific! I have been there for a charity trip. I felt abused under all of those dark, hot, bothersome layers i was forced to wear, even so young! The men were disgusting and tacky and the women victimized. I vowed to never go there again even if my life depended on it. this is NOT Islamic dress! It is a symbol of the brainwashed, misogynistic opression by some pathetic excuses for men hiding their foolishness behind very long beards. and trust me… noone wears couture under the chadors or whtv. You must be thinking of the sorry excuse for a nation we call saudi arabia.

All should be allowed to dress as they wish