Zip, buttons or snaps: which abaya closure to choose?

Zips: secure and fast, but stiff

A zip closes the whole front in one pull and leaves no gaps, which is why it is popular on closed abayas for commuting, cycling and windy places. It cannot pop open when you sit or lift a child.

Its weakness is that zip tape does not drape. On a soft fabric the zipped front can stand away from the body in a wave when you sit. The pull sits at the throat unless the zip stops lower, and the teeth can catch a scarf end if you rush. When a zip fails, replacing it means unpicking the front. Three variations are worth knowing about:

• A concealed or covered zip, so no teeth show.
• A zip that stops at mid-thigh or the knee, leaving the hem free to move.
• A two-way zip that also opens from the bottom, for stairs and sitting.

Buttons: the classic, with gaps to manage

Buttons are the slowest of the three and the most adjustable. You can leave the top or bottom ones open, they can be a feature or vanish behind a placket, and a lost button is a five-minute repair. Small covered buttons with loops look refined but take real time to do up.

The usual complaint is gaping: the front pulls open between two buttons, most often at the bust or across the hips when sitting. That is a sign of too little ease or buttons spaced too far apart, not a flaw in buttons themselves. A button level with the fullest part of the bust, closer spacing through the chest and a hidden snap between buttons all cure it. Our guide to shoulder and bust ease explains how much room an abaya needs, and kurta plackets and buttons shows the placket types.

Snaps: quick and invisible, but they let go

Snaps, also called press studs or poppers, are the fastest closure and the flattest. Sewn between the layers of the front edge they are invisible from outside, and they open with one pull, which suits prayer breaks, nursing and changing quickly.

They hold by grip alone, so sideways strain opens them. A snap front needs generous ease, and the snap at the bust is the first to give when you reach or sit. Sew-on snaps can also work loose from their stitches over time, though they are simple to sew back. Snaps pressed through the cloth by machine hold harder, but on a thin fabric a sharp tug can tear the cloth around them.

Under a hijab and a bag strap

Two everyday things test a closure more than anything else. The first is your scarf: its ends hang over the top of the front, so a zip pull or a domed button at the neck makes a lump under it and can snag chiffon or jersey. A flat snap or a small hook at the very top sits smoothest. The second is a shoulder or cross-body bag. The strap drags the front sideways all day, which pops snaps and opens gaps between buttons, while a zip is unaffected. If you carry a heavy bag daily, a zip, or buttons backed by snaps, is the safer request.

Putting it in your quote

Closures are easy to specify on a made-to-measure abaya. Say which type you want, whether it should be hidden, how far down it should run and whether you want an extra snap at the bust. A combination is often the answer: a zip to the knee with a flat snap at the neck, or a concealed button placket with snaps between. If you are still deciding between an open and a closed front, read open-front vs closed abaya first. Then add your notes to the design quote form; we confirm what is possible on your fabric and design before cutting.