Tips on how to wear a scarf or a shawl by Leyla Navab

Wearing a scarf with any outfit will add color, fun, elegance, uniqueness, and flair. A pair of jeans with a plain top immediately looks chic by adding a scarf or a shawl. The always fashionable French people love silk scarves and shawls and know how easily one can pull an outfit together to make it simply sophisticated.

Any simple outfit with a scarf can become an entirely new outfit. People will think you have a new wardrobe by simply adding a couple of scarves to compliment the items you already own.

A scarf can be used as a pocket accent on your favorite blazer or jacket. It can be used as a hair accessory to keep your hair pulled back on a hot summer day, and it can become a fun sash to wrap around your waist.

There's nothing tricky or difficult about wearing a scarf or a shawl. A scarf with a simple bow is already very Parisian and fashionable. Simply draping a shawl around your shoulders is enough to make your outfit elegant and original.

There is no one way to wear your scarf or shawl. Have fun with it and enjoy it forever because it will never go out of style and you will always be chic.

One Shawl, Different Looks

Purchase this Purple Iris Shawl here

Purchase this Purple Iris Shawl here

Constructive Criticism

I love to do a lot of market research and I'm always looking at the work of other silk artists and fashion designers. I sometimes become deeply inspired by the color, design, and skill of artists and designers; however, I also become disappointed to see a lot of mediocre silk art posing as "unique", "labor intensive", and "high-quality". It seems to be that individuals practicing silk art become scared of stepping out their boundaries or afraid of creating something that will overstep the boundaries of the "commercial".

As artists we should have the courage and sincerity to give each other honest criticism and to help each other grow artistically. Giving each other sugar-coated criticism or praising something that does not deserve praise is damaging to our work and our skill growth.

I admire the courage and the effort that it takes to take up silk painting but I believe that it's important and necessary to take skill-building classes, give each other constructive criticism, and support each other by being sincere and honest.

My experience at the Paseo Arts and Holly Fest

I participated as a vendor in the Paseo Arts and Holly Fest, which happened December 17th and 18th at the Paseo Colorado outdoors mall in Pasadena. This mall has a lot of space in between the retail stores and the booths were located in this space. The promoter was very nice and he had volunteers to help vendors set up and to take down the booths.

The name of the show has the word "art" in it but the vendors did not match up to the title. There was a variety of vendors and some were artsy and some were not. It also seemed that the people at the mall were there as frequenters of the mall and not because they were interested in the Paseo Arts and Holly Fest. I didn’t have any customers that were interested in art.

I do not consider this place a good place for artists because the retail stores were offering high discounts and customers wanted discounts from me, which I could not afford to give. I cannot compete with retailers. This was not a good show for fiber art artist like me.

This experience helped remind me how much I have to research the shows I participate in before I sign up.

However, I met a great artist at this show and I am so happy that I met someone like her.

Shibori is the perfect accessory!

Our shibori scarves are a fantastic and versatile accessory. The intricate pleating gives this scarf its unique beauty and sophisticated appeal. We have pictured several of our shibori scarves for you to see how great they look and how easy they are to wear. The fur brooches are made by Leyla Navab as well, if you're interested in them, shoot us an email.