Unless you live under a rock, you have seen the billboards, television shows, and magazine covers screaming that today’s fashion trends consist mostly of scantily clad women flaunting their sex appeal. Often this means that the Jewish woman must choose between dressing modestly and dressing fashionably. The “shells under” and “cardigans over” techniques are the most popular fix, but the underlying problem still remains: It is difficult to synthesize our timeless, Jewish values with the fast-paced world of fashion. Judith Frankiel, a senior at Stern College for Women, describes her personal struggle, “The truth is, during the summer months, society tells us to ‘take it off!’ It’s a challenge to wear a cardigan over my clothes in the heat.” While the rest of society is wearing short shorts and tank tops, the Jewish girls are sweltering under the weight of their shell or sweater.
You may be hoping that this article will offer a revolutionary solution, but unfortunately I don’t have one. And trust me, if there was a simple solution out there, they would be bottling it up and marketing it to seminary students and religious girls everywhere. There is however, a new outlet to turn to; I recently stumbled upon a Facebook page, Fabologie, which was created to inspire religious women to dress modestly and fashionably. Its goal is illustrated with posted pictures of celebrities and other fashion icons whose clothing fit the standard of Jewish Law. Katie Holmes, Emma Stone, Anne Hathaway, and yes, even Victoria’s Secret model Miranda Kerr, are featured on Fabologie’s Facebook page in modest attire.
Of course, the majority of us can’t afford the Dior and Valentino garments donned by these A-list celebs, but the goal is simply to inspire; if they can achieve the look, so can we! The fundamental idea driving Fabologie is that dressing tzniusly (modestly) is not necessarily synonymous with layered shells, cardigans, or wearing skirts beneath dresses. Dressing modestly can be trendy, stylish, chic, and as Fabologie’s name suggests, fabulous! The creator of Fabologie, Adi Heyman, is quoted in New York Magazine/The Buzz in an article aptly named Orthodox Jews Take Fashion Inspiration from Olivia Palermo, Apparently saying “[Olivia Palermo] wears a lot of vintage and layers… [and is] covered up in [a way] that works for the Orthodox girls.” There is nothing wrong with looking to trend-setters for modest fashion advice, on the contrary, this Orthodox fashionista embraces this method.
Glamorizing the world of tznius is, in my opinion, a much-needed addition to modern Jewish culture. As modern Jews, we carefully balance the values of two cultures, those of the secular world and of our Jewish community. On the one hand, we are told that we must fit into secular society by becoming educated, attaining graduates degrees, getting jobs, and succeeding financially while we are simultaneously urged by our Jewish traditional values to dress differently than the rest of the world, not work on Saturday, eat only certain foods, and have children right away. Dressing tzniusly and fashionably is the perfect synthesis of the two worlds, and should be celebrated by modern Jewish women everywhere.
When asked why she follows Fabologie and other conservative fashion blogs, Gabriella Benhaghnazar replies “I follow them because they add fun and couture to dressing modestly, which often is not the case. I’ve attended private, Jewish schools my entire life and tznius was never appealing to me until I found websites like Fabologie.” Blogs like these not only speak to women who perfectly adhere to the religious criteria of dress, but also to women who simply follow it for the fashion.
These blogs also encourage confidence in dressing religiously. Although the goal of dressing modestly is to embrace our inner selves and enhance our self-image, ironically many women experience a loss of self-confidence when they begin donning religious attire. One Stern student, who wishes to remain anonymous, says, “I didn’t always dress tzniusly, and I often struggle to find modest clothes in which I feel confident. It’s difficult to feel put-together, stylish, and self-confident in modest dress when it seems the rest of the world dictates that ‘looking good’ means wearing less clothes.”
Some may argue that there should not be such a tremendous focus on clothing in our Jewish culture, and to a certain extent I agree. However, our clothing is the impression we give to the world, which is one of the reasons why there is such a strong focus in Judaism on the guidelines to modest dress. I’m not arguing that everyone must strive to combine tznius and fashion; rather I am offering an alternative to the widely held perception that one has to dress in a certain way to achieve modesty. Whether it’s maxi dresses, slinky skirts, or layering that speaks to you, embrace what you love and wear it proudly.
With the winter fast approaching, we have the rare opportunity to appropriately wear cardigans over our dresses. I think we should welcome the occasion to discover which clothes make us feel comfortable, confident, and classy while still maintaining our fundamental modest values.