Hello and Salaamualaikum!

Wow! Well this summer is just flying by. It feels like after being careful and sheltering-in-place for so long, the rising numbers of vaccinated people coupled with the declining numbers of COVID-19 cases has finally helped many of us feel safer and able to meet family, friends and loved ones after months apart.

Alhamdulillah. May Allah (S) continue to protect us and remove this terrible pandemic from our lives. May we make good choices for ourselves and our communities and move forward with more joy and appreciation for everything we’ve learned. Beyond the loss and fear (and I don’t mean to belittle that; many of us suffered loss), there are many things we all learned about ourselves throughout these past months – what’s important to us, what our shifting priorities are, where we want to focus.

We’re continuing to explore these topics throughout the summer through our “Color Your World” campaign, where we are talking about what brings us joy, what sacrifices we want to make, how we want to live as Muslims and humans, what social justices we are standing up for, and what activities (or release of activities) we are seeking to bring happiness and balance to our lives.

This month brings us the holy days of Dhul Hijjah and Eid ul Adha, with the story of Prophet Ibrahim (S)’s sacrifice and Hajirah (ra)’s steadfast faith. What can we learn from their stories, and how can we apply that strength of conviction and full trust in Allah (S) in fighting for and standing with our Black sisters and brothers, our Palestinian sisters and brothers and other marginalized and/or oppressed communities?

Another thing we’ll be talking about on the blog this month is how to relate the story of Prophet Ibrahim (S)’s sacrifice to young children and how to create engaging activities around it to help instill Ramadan-esque excitement in them. We’ll also be bringing you different ways to prepare for the holy ten days of Dhul Hijjah and a reflection about how to bring the spirit of the Day of Arafah and Hajj to wherever you are.

We’re also excited to bring you a month of wedding content – because after so many months of quarantining and cancelling weddings and social gatherings, it’s back on! How do you take wedding dresses and outfits and make them modest? What are different types of white hijabs you can wear and ways you can style them with wedding dresses? What about mehndi (henna)? What are the different types and styles out there? What are some tips for handling kids during the wedding season? And, if you have adult-ish youngsters in your life who are thinking about marriage, what conversations should you be having with them?

We’ll be exploring all this and more throughout the month, so stay tuned! Plus, we have a plethora of beautiful satin, chiffon, silk and other hijabs that work beautifully for brides and wedding guests, along with all the foundational things you need (Hello magnets! Scrunchies! Underscarves!) to achieve a beautiful hijab style, which we will be showcasing in a special post this month.

And psssssst, there is a special new hijab magnet coming at the end of July that has that sparkle and oomph to elevate your hijab to the NEXT LEVEL! Watch our blog, social media pages and the website for its upcoming debut!

Um, just writing this column for you all has got me excited for July on the blog! I also need a little joy in my life, and the work we do here on the blog is part of that joy. I’m so grateful to be bringing you stories, series and coverage of all the things pertaining to Muslim women and our Muslim communities in general. So, see you on the blog this month!

Take care, make good choices and as always, start everything by saying Bismillah!

Editorially yours,

Dilshad