The last few years, the new fashionable trend that came out was either accessory or beauty related. It was all about the latest cut-out leather glove or impossibly painful shoe. This year has been a refreshing new start as now all that girls seem to post or think about is gym and health related. Instagram posts of Louboutin or Chanel have been overshadowed by Adidas leggings, florescent yellow Nikes and images of girls doing their latest cross-fit moves. Macaroons have been formally replaced with kale chips and rice is practically obsolete after the introduction of quinoa to the world. This phenomenon has affected me on a personal level – I can’t even tell you how many quinoa items I bought from Qout Market in January…it started with a bag of quinoa and I ended up buying everything from pita bread versions of the protein-rich grain to quinoa cookies. My sister-in-law just laughed at me all the way home eating her real cookies from Chewy Gooey.

At the market itself, girls were dressed to the nines to buy their healthy goodies – which made me think of how buying fresh, organic clean food has now become THE most fashionable thing to do! Both Qout Market and Shakshooka Market on Thursdays have solidified their “see and be seen” status behind the shadow of a healthy food market concept. Girls and guys came prepared with perfect hair and the coolest outfits you can think of. This is fine by me, as long as they actually take advantage of all the amazing local businesses around them. I love fashion spotting at these events almost as much as buying the original products sold there. Of all the trends that hit Kuwait I have to say at least this one is beneficial to our health and lifestyle in some way other than being superficially driven (even though many people do just attend to mingle). Looking and feeling good have never been more seamlessly joined at one event.

I absolutely love seeing local businesses, whether they are start-ups or well established companies because either way we all share a sense of pride in their success and efforts to better our community, while encouraging the strong wave of entrepreneurship in Kuwait. The sweetest thing in these markets is actually seeing kids with their mommies supporting the healthy family business! Everyone has their organic goggles on these days and even skimmed milk is being shunned for the almond and soy varieties, to avoid lactose. This health craze is the reason why restaurants like the fabulous Gia have done so well – it is just as enjoyable to sit in and dress up for, as it is healthy to indulge in. To me this makes perfect sense, because as girls our obsession with fashion is directly related to how good we feel in it, and if eating healthy is fashionable, then it will be that much easier to sport our favorite pair of faded jeggings. I for one am happy to say goodbye to oily fried dishes and hello to healthy goodness for a 2014 filled with plenty of food markets and gluten-free snacks!

You can follow @qoutmarket and #shakshookamarket on Instagram. Images courtesy of @pltq8