'Islamic Fashion' in Europe: religious conviction, aesthetic style, and creative consumption

After a brief discussion about the emergence of Islamic fashion as a concept and how this category unsettles some of the established truths of fashion theory, this article turns to the move towards ‘Islamic fashion’ in the global South. There it is both part of the wider Islamic revival movement and of a turn towards more fashionable styles as part of the proliferation of consumer culture. Developments in Western Europe also point to a reflexive approach to religion and a quest for upward social mobility expressed through consumption. But there young Muslim women also need to take into account that they operate in an environment that has become increasingly hostile to the presence of Islam.
The main section of the article discusses how fashionable styles of Islamic dress have emerged in the Netherlands. Combining observations of changing styles of dress with extensive conversations with women wearing such fashions, the article focuses on the various ways in which the women concerned bring the worlds of religion and fashion together. Zoning in on the narratives of three young women, a number of theoretical issues central to the religion - fashion nexus are discussed: the relations between communities of convictions and those based on a shared aesthetics, the ways in which consumers become co-producers of fashion, and how their visual presence in public relates to public debate about the place of Islam in Europe.