Tutorial: UAE-Style Gashwa

Assalaamu alaikum, ladies! Today's tutorial is how to create your own UAE-Style Gashwa, as shown above! Also known as a ghatwa or boushiya, it's a square or rectangle of fabric consisting of several layers, one of which is flipped down to cover and conceal the face. Women wear these both with and without separate niqab. The one in the picture above is an actual UAE gashwa. The one we are creating today includes pins, but they can be removed if preferred.

First step in creating your gashwa is picking a scarf or fabric. The ones you can get in the UAE are made of a thin cotton or gauze-like fabric, which, as you can see, is very sheer. This has the added benefit of increased breath-ability, heat control, and sight. If you plan to make a permanent one, I would suggest trying several fabrics to find one you can see out of well. The scarf I used is a georgette fabric wide rectangle scarf from Al-Mujalbaba, which can be purchased here. This fabric gives an increased opacity as opposed to the cotton gauze used traditionally. However, it can be a little harder to see out of as well as warmer in the sun.

You'll want a rectangular piece:

From here, we will fold it in half, creating more of a square: 

You then fold it in the same direction one more time. I prefer a layered look, but you can also fold it so it is completely even.

You can be finished here. I, however, added pins in order to give increased stability of the gashwa due to my using a cane. If you want to add pins, you can proceed as below, adding as many or few as you wish:

Where the pins are is also where one would stitch across, if desired, but on the inside, at the point where you would wish to fold your gashwa (so you would be stitching across TWO layers, not the four as here). You could then also cut so the bottom, folded "layer" so it becomes two separate layers. 

Next, if you pinned it, flip it so the pins are on the inside of the four layers. You'll see a sort of crease: 

Then, place it on your head and flip down the upper-most layer. You can pin the bottom layer to your underscarf if desired, but the weight and construction of the gashwa keeps it on your head pretty well (it was VERY windy outside while I was filming!). Adjust as you like, and you're done!

Pretty simple! Using the scarf I used, the gashwa is so opaque that I have no qualms about being outside without a niqab underneath it. The cut and shape of the gashwa is also such that one doesn't necessarily need a separate hijab on underneath of it, unless you will be out and about when you need to pray namaaz.

Jazak'Allah khair, and enjoy!

Sajida.