vintage wool, lace, & fog

Here is another winter look. I have, alhamodillah, started my first real career position as a Maternity/Newborn RN and have had to dress business casual for the first week of orientation at the hospital. Beginning at the end of this week, I will be in wine-colored scrubs forever. Becoming a doctor instead almost seems appealing, so that I could dress normally and just wear a white coat on top. Almost. But I think I'll pass on being a part of a predominantly socially awkward group of colleagues (love you, my people) and the fifty years of education. Kudos to you Sheerin, MashAllah.
I loved the weather today. Can you tell good weather really makes my life? The hospital I work at is downtown next to a major river, so because of the random rise in temperature, it became romantically foggy. Who doesn't love a scene of water bridges and fog with warm breezes in the middle of winter? That's right, only polar bears.
I have recently become significantly interested in fabrics and materials. It began when I became a patient care associate at a dementia unit during school. Somehow, I worked night-shift every weekend without fail for six months until I switched to an as-needed status. That experience taught me that I am not cut out for night-shift, that it is possible to fall asleep while walking, that trying to carry confused, frightened, and resisting human beings to the bathroom in the middle of the night is dangerous and back-breaking, and that after hundreds of hours of doing their laundry, the elderly population have a very solid and high quality of clothing.  This interest has transferred to my preferred Hijab fabrics, as well. Lace net hijabs look surprisingly elegant and have a vintage feel to it. I love the contrast of it with wool or tweed. Silk and silk-like Hijabs look nice with cotton blends, and chiffon-y Hijabs are the way to go for a more professional look (and they never have tassels at the end, thus, a cleaner finish).
This outfit includes an oversize vintage pullover sweater (so comfortable and also so very lovely, if I do say so myself), mint green bubble necklace from Rue 21, black lace Hijab from some Arab country, light pink chinos from H&M, satin electric blue flats from Express, and mixed bangles mostly from Primark in London, holla' at cheap and wonderful Primani. Please come to the USA and complete my life, thank you.

-A

snow & jasmine

My mother bought these tiny little tea glasses, which reminded me of when I went to the city of Izmir, Turkey (except without a handle). We were there for two weeks. After a week, instead of receiving the usual exaggerated excitation at the sighting of my aunt and I from the very enthusiastic male population, we were now greeted with a half pause, knowing glance, and then a prompt continuation of their private conversations. Proudly, we were no longer considered tourists, albeit only with the cafes and shops in our direct vicinity--and we were still given free tea/coffee and delicious meals, because they now considered us friends, instead of fools to be manipulated (or are we?). Gazi, shout-out to you. I still vividly remember your fresh lemon grilled fish from the Aegean, arugula salad, fresh toasted bread and the stories of your somewhat provocative youth. 

So back to today, a bitterly cold day. I went out for sushi, found a random hard inedible chunk of something in my sushi, and became traumatized possibly indefinitely from it--God prevent it. Anywho, I came home, put the kettle on, and made myself a gorgeous, fragrant cup of jasmine tea, generous on the honey. If you are still on that tea bag life, time to elevate yourself to the fierceness of loose leaf. Two teas I chronically love: jasmine oolong and Moroccan green tea with plenty of fresh spearmint. And, naturally, with honey, which eternally causes me to remember God every time.

-A

Art in Timbuktu

A friend of mine recently sent me some new music to listen to from the incredible country of Mali. You and I have likely studied Mali very briefly in high school World History or Cultures as the powerful and influential Empire of Mali. I know very little beyond that and what I have learned from the stories people have told me. I listened to the songs and particularly grew to like this one:

I have never been to Mali, but this song and some of the scenes in the video instantly gave me a feeling of familiarity and warmth. The more I listen to it, the more I am reminded of India. It takes me back to the dusty summers I spent as a child in the countryside with my grandparents in Southern India. In these moments, when I feel cultures transcend their geographical boundaries, I remember how small the world can really be. Even with the separations of oceans and languages, we are still only a cluster of emotions and relations. Despite man's long history of war, conquests, and violence, we are created with the same capacity to love, and the same, undoubtedly human flaws. Isn't it humbling to understand the universality of even our slightest imperfections?

"O men! Behold, We have created you all out of a male and a female, and have made you into nations and tribes, so that you might come to know one another" (49:13- The Chambers, Verse 13)

Reading more about Mali, I came across several photographers that have attempted to capture the beauty and the magic of the country. I especially liked the photographs of Vicente Mendez:

He has photographed many other countries as well. You can see more of his work here: http://www.vicentemendez.com/. Needless to say, I'm adding Mali to my ever-growing travel list. I would love to go there for work or leisure and be able to photograph and get a brief glimpse of the culture. There is such beauty in the differences between countries but even more beauty in the universality of everything that makes us so human.

-S

raspberry danishes & warm fronts

I am currently studying for NCLEX-RN state boards. Studying and I have never really enjoyed each other's presence, so when I do convince myself to spend some time with a textbook, I like to be sure to invite someone else along to neutralize the situation. Today, I took my little sisters and met up with a friend at a bread cafe. I'm not a weather expert, but I do believe we had a warm front, as it was quite--yes, warm. So, anywho, no boots for me for a change. I also decided to wear a slightly louder, yet traditional-looking floral hijab to make my life that much more exhilarating.  I normally stick to very neutral hijabs. Here's a bit of my outfit of the day taken by my greatly lacking Blackberry curve camera:

Purse: Aldo

Hijab: Tajikistan (gift)

Shoes: Nine West

Chino pants: H&M
Ring: a vintage shop

Everything else: Completely random/can find anywhere

-A

good health is a crown: HEALTH TIPS!

Arab proverb: Good health is a crown on the heads of the healthy that only the ill can see.

As Prophet Mohammad has been quoted to have said, good health and leisure time are two possessions we never notice until they are gone. The following are some health-related tips that we have learned or find important throughout our nursing and medical educations.

• tobacco is the number one cause of preventable cancer EVER.  

• dietary causes of cancer are: low fiber diet, processed sandwich meat (if contain nitrites), alcohol, preservatives and additives. This indicates that if you have the luxury of being able to purchase FRESH FOOD, and not processed, refined food, you'd be doing right for yourself and your family.  

• studies have found that having a large protein-rich breakfast is the key to glucose control, preventing crankiness and mood lows throughout the day, and improving posture and muscle tone, skin, hair, and nails. (the people who had eggs and meat for breakfast had steadier glucose levels, a more positive mood, and felt more focused than the people who had oatmeal and toast) A person should consume around 40-60 grams/day of protein, with breakfast having most of that share. Protein is found in beans, meats, eggs, nuts, and cheese. An egg has about 7 grams of protein, to give you a frame of reference, and a 6 ounce steak has about 40 grams.  Remember when back in the day, people used to eat fish, cheese, meats, beans, etc all just for breakfast? Yeah, now we eat poptarts. Or nothing. 

• studies still support this age-old phrase: Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper. You should wake up HUNGRY, seriously! Make that a goal. (Breakfast also happens to be my favorite meal! recipes to come soon)  

• water has long been heralded as the poorly-kept beauty secret of the century but its worth repeating. Don't let yourself get into the habit of choosing sugary drinks on the regular - that's not just soda, tons of "fruit" juices are packed with sugar. Water not only yields better skin, but you will feel better mentally and physically too! Seriously, water is amazing.

• check to see how much milk/dairy you and the women in your life are getting daily. Women are prone to osteoporosis and I personally know of women that suffer from its consequences in old age. It's no joke. If you don't like drinking milk, yogurt, cheese, spinach, kale, okra (yum), and eggs can be a few choice alternatives. You need about 1000 mg a day and a cup of skim milk has about 300 mg. Remember, your body doesn't make calcium on its own. Oh... yes, this applies to men too.   

• maintain a steady blood sugar level, regardless of if you are diabetic. Every time your blood sugar level becomes so low that you feel shaky or even faint, you just killed some brain cells, homie! Treat your organs right. Try not to go more than 3 hours without a small nutritious snack. How about dried fruit, nuts, or a slice of avocado on a multi-grain cracker? If you're on a budget, eat cheaper fruits like apples and bananas, peanut butter on crackers/cheaper vegs (celery, carrots) or go to an Indian/Arab grocer and buy a huge bag of almonds; that'll last for months.  

• try staying away from simple carbs, usually found in white refined foods, like soft white bread, sugar, donuts, cakes, etc. let me tell you, proper bread should not be that soft. for real.  our bodies for centuries are used to a diet consisting with complex carbs, and now in the last few decades, we have suddenly introduced these foreign, refined, and processed foods. there are going to be consequences. 

We will try to post evidence-based health tips at least monthly. Prevention is the best treatment.

-A & S

winter fashion ideas: coat styles we like

We are generally fans of longer coats in the traditional colors, like the tans and black. But recently, bright green and dusty pink are looking pretty fine. 

We've been in love with dusty pink for a little while now. We find this to be simple and feminine. Click here to see this coat.

Faux fur has recently been capturing my attention. My mother always liked fur (and animal prints), and I never could share that sentiment, but I suppose it has caught up to me now. This would most likely not be my daily coat, but I would wear this to dinner with my friends along with a loose gray blouse and black leather straight pants with some neck-breaking heels. Holla' at leg workouts. 

I loved this coat when I saw it on "The Mindy Project". If it ever comes down to my budget, you best believe it'll be in my closet.

Another green coat we love.

This coat can be found at the Nordstrom website. Click here.

Also, loving leather trims at the moment. I just bought a vintage DKNY tweed coat with leather trimming. Usually, I am cautious about leather, Sheerin pulls it off better than myself. A few leather accents work for anyone, though. Here is an example:

$50 from boohoo

This is more of a modern look that I do not normally prefer. However, I would certainly wear this, if someone felt the need to purchase it for me, that is. Pair it with lime green chinos and hot pink nails.

Calvin Klein: $140.70

I have always loved buttons and the military look for coats. This coat from Zara  is edgy and feminine, perfect for  whatever look you want to achieve. Still a bit pricey for my liking, but find it here.

I'm usually not a fan of the boxy, shapeless style of winter coats but I actually love this one.
The metal studs on the sleeves are so fun! This would look great with high waisted pants and a bright belt or skinny trousers, a loose, fun-colored blouse and a pair of heels. Can you tell that I've had to think about business attire recently? Anything to add fun to gradschool life.

- A & S

winter fashion ideas: patterned wool socks!

Currently, what I love is the look of wool. Fortunately, it is winter so wool can spend some time with the public in all of its sophisticated glory.

A friend of mine from Tajikistan was able to meet me in London during a visit with my family and with her shyly beautiful personality she brought a pair of hand-knit wool socks made by her grandmother, whom I now desperately want to employ/adopt. I find these socks to be just lovely. Perhaps, only I could mention beauty and socks in the same sentence (and even more than once, at that), but they just look and feel so exactly Russian and Persian village mixed evenly together that they are charming enough. These instantly warm your feet, make you smile every time you look down, and look so winter-spirited peaking over an ankle boot and some skinny jeans/thick cable tights. They are of a stiff and solid wool. I can't guarantee the same results, but Ebay has some similar items.

Here are mine:

-Anila

Emeralds to the Eye

For several weeks now, Anila and I have flirted with the idea of starting a blog for some of the things we love, things that make us pause. As a new project, we both knew that it would be something that we would deeply enjoy and it would give us the perfect creative outlet. Plus, I think it will serve as a much needed indulgence given the era of work/school we are both entering. We then struggled with finding a fitting name for this blog, something we knew wouldn't be easy. What would we want this blog to be about? What kind of personality did we want to paint for our blog? It came to us almost intuitively- a blog of art, in all its forms, and all of the ubiquitous places we find it. 

Naturally, we wanted to give it an appropriate title, something that would be befitting of the intentions. We were both drawn to certain words that we found beautiful, 'emeralds' being one of them. We chose 'Emeralds to the Eye' because it illustrates beauty being within the eyes of those that choose to see it. There is beauty and art in so much around us and we hope to highlight some of that beauty in this blog: the beauty beheld in words, photography, food, art, fashion, and poetry.

  

- S