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Bahrain's young fashionistas stepped out in style in a bid to reunite the kingdom and show off the latest designs from one of Bahrain's most chic boutiques.
A cast of 18 young women of different ages, religions and nationalities dressed in a mixture of bohemian-chic attire as well as feminine and flirty outfits at Mimosa boutique in the Al A'ali Shopping Complex.
Their aim was to support the 'Unite Bahrain' campaign, share their love of the kingdom and to encourage shoppers to venture out once more.
The Bahraini-Spanish owner of the designer store, Mariam Mahmood, helped organise the event with sisters Latifa and Fatima Al Shakar.
Miss Mahmood, 26, said: "We are calling this the 'Unite Bahrain Campaign through clothing' and wanted to do something to contribute to the kingdom and play our part in bringing people together.
"It was basically meant to be a 'trunk show' for all girls to enjoy with refreshments and canapŽs and to showcase the new collection of clothes.
"It's been very quiet in recent weeks and this was a great opportunity to display the many American, Parisian and Italian designs we have on display.
"We also wanted real girls to show off the styles rather than models. We called up our family and friends that grew up in Bahrain to come out and show their love and support. Then each girl, adorning an outfit, held up a poster stating their dreams and hopes for the future - be it love, peace or education.
"This campaign aims to unite Bahrain, encourage people to make peace, come together and have confidence to visit the malls again. People really do need to start going out. Our economy is suffering and the malls right now are empty.
"Hopefully this is one small step in encouraging individuals to start shopping and just keep moving forward as life has to go on."
Miss Mahmood's former classmate, South African Meg Hutchinson, 26, from Awali, is a teacher in Bahrain and believes this is an ideal time to promote the kingdom locally, regionally and globally.
She said: "I have lived here for 15 years and I feel like a Bahraini. This is my home and what is happening right now is heartbreaking. We are hoping that events such as this can start changing things for the better.
"Everyone present was not concerned with religion or where they were from. We are all friends from different backgrounds but with similar ideas about peace. We are multi-cultural and proud."
Bahraini photographer Latifa, 23, from Jasra, contacted her friends to encourage them to attend the gathering and helped pick out the outfits for them to wear. She said: "I think an event like this is important to raise awareness, not just about what's going on, as everyone has been talking about unity ... but also to encourage more people to get more involved in the unite campaign. We wanted to create a fun atmosphere to help people through what has been a tough month and look forward."
Her sister Fifi, 18, a Bahrain School student, said: "The fashion gathering gave us girls a chance to stay positive. We are all friends with the same vision - and that is to keep the love alive in our community."
Her school friend Layla Galal, 16, from Budaiya, added: "I believe fashion is a good initiative to bring people together because it's fun and cheerful. We need to stay active, keep the peace and find the love."
