Animal Print Abayas: Five Velvet Pieces for Cooler Days

I've always kept animal print for small things: a scarf, a bag, the lining of a jacket. This month I changed my mind, because the new velvet pieces made it feel easy. An animal print abaya in velvet doesn't shout the way a shiny print can. The pile softens the pattern, the color sits deeper, and the whole thing reads warm rather than loud. Four of these just landed, plus one quieter print for anyone who wants to ease in. Here's what each one does and how I'd wear it once the evenings cool down.

Why an Animal Print Abaya Works Best in Velvet

Velvet absorbs light, so the print looks painted into the fabric instead of sitting on top of it. That's what keeps leopard and spot prints grounded. All five are open-front with straight, full-length sleeves. They layer over a plain inner dress and come off just as fast when you walk into a heated room. They work for the desert evening, the cooler mall run, and the dinner that ends outdoors.

The Leopard Prints

The Shereen Mocha Brown Kimono Band Open Abaya is the classic leopard, all over, on a mocha brown ground. A kimono-style band runs down the open front, and the shoulders drop slightly, so it hangs relaxed rather than fitted. If you only try one piece from this drop, start here. It's the most familiar print, and brown is gentler on the skin than black and gold.

Featured Product: The Shereen Mocha Brown Kimono Band Open Abaya

The Doha Brown Banded Open Front Abaya takes the print in a striped direction, with long broken lines in brown and tan. The front band flows into a shawl-style collar, and the sleeves finish in wide cuffs. That collar gives it more shape around the face than the Shereen, so it's the one I'd wear to dinner.

Featured Product: The Doha Brown Banded Open Front Abaya

The Lighter Grounds

The Rula Beige Pleated Shoulder Open Abaya flips the colors: dark brown print on a beige ground. Small pleats gather at the front of each shoulder, which adds a little volume up top and lets the rest fall straight to the ankle. Beige makes the print feel lighter, so this is the one I'd reach for in the daytime.

Featured Product: The Rula Beige Pleated Shoulder Open Abaya

The Mayada Rust Fawn Spot Print Abaya is the softest take on the trend. Cream spots, like a fawn's coat, scatter across rust velvet. The cut is simple: a flat band down the open front and wide, straight sleeves with stitched cuffs. Rust is one of my favorite colors for this time of year, and the spots keep it playful.

Featured Product: The Mayada Rust Fawn Spot Print Abaya

If You're Not Ready for Animal Print Yet

The Hana Taupe Velvet-Print Abaya gives you the same velvet and the same open-front shape, with a graphic two-tone print instead of spots. It sits in the same brown and taupe family, so it pairs with everything above. I think of it as the bridge piece: wear it for a few weeks and the leopard will feel like a small step.

Featured Product: The Hana Taupe Velvet-Print Abaya

How I Style a Printed Velvet Abaya

Let the print be the only pattern. I wear a plain inner dress in cream, chocolate or black, and I pick my scarf color straight out of the print: tan with the Doha, cream with the Mayada. Gold jewelry works better than silver against these browns, and one piece is enough. For shoes, a simple loafer or a block heel in brown keeps the look calm. Skip the patterned bag. The abaya is already doing the talking.

Related reading

• Chocolate Brown Abaya: This Season's Quiet Neutral
• How I'm Layering My Abayas as the Weather Starts to Turn
• Inside The Meadows: TAL's Summer Print Abaya Collection

An animal print abaya sounds like a big swing, but in velvet and in brown it's one of the easiest prints I've worn. Pick the ground color that suits you, keep everything underneath plain, and let the texture carry it. You'll find the new pieces alongside the rest of this season's prints in the Printed Abayas Collection.