There is a moment, Noora Al-Hajri says, that never fails to make her smile. It happens when she spots one of her designs being worn out in the world - at an event, in passing, in the flow of everyday life. “There is something very special about spotting a design being worn,” Al-Hajri tells SceneStyled. "It reflects how the pieces move beyond the studio and become part of a woman's own story."

That sense of an afterlife - one beyond the maker, beyond the display - sits at the heart of KHAT Al Abaa, the Qatari fashion brand Al-Hajri founded in 2020. As its designer and CEO, she has spent the past five years reimagining what the abaya can be: a garment shaped by intention, creativity, and personal expression.

The brand's guiding phrase - “defying the ordinary” - is central to her work. For Al-Hajri, it translates directly into how each piece is imagined and constructed. “We focus on distinctive silhouettes, unexpected fabric combinations, and thoughtful details that elevate each piece,” she explains. The result is a design language she describes as simultaneously bold and minimal: clean foundations interrupted by expressive interruptions, whether through texture, structure, or an unexpected embellishment.“Rather than over-designing, we focus on highlighting one key feature within each piece,” she says. “This allows the design to remain clean and wearable, while still feeling distinctive.”

Al-Hajri draws inspiration from an unusually wide range of cultural sources - American, French, Italian, Chinese, and Qatari heritage all feed into her work - and filters them through a distinctly Qatari lens. ‘The Desert Whispers collection,’ for instance, found unexpected resonance between Native American culture and Qatar's own Bedouin heritage, connecting two traditions through shared themes of storytelling and connection to the land.

“In many ways, this reflects the spirit of Qatar itself,” she says. “A place where different cultures come together. KHAT mirrors this by merging diverse inspirations into designs that feel cohesive, modern, and universally relevant.”Every aspect of a KHAT piece is considered from its earliest days. Fabric selection begins alongside the initial concept, guided by colour, texture, and the overall mood of the collection. Al-Hajri has built an extensive archive of samples over the years, and when local sourcing falls short, she travels to find materials that feel singular to the collection. Embroidery, custom-designed buttons, and hand-drawn prints developed entirely in-house are among the signatures that distinguish her work.

The brand's clients are primarily women across the GCC who understand the cultural significance of the abaya, but, as Al-Hajri notes, the international audience is growing. “We want women to feel confident, comfortable, and completely themselves when wearing KHAT,” she says. “Each piece is designed to create a sense of ease while still feeling elevated.”

Customers can adjust designs - adding lining, modifying a slit, refining a detail - so that each piece feels precisely their own. “By combining a strong creative identity with this level of personalisation, each KHAT piece becomes not just something worn, but something that reflects the woman herself.”
Al-Hajri is thoughtful on the subject of modest fashion and what it means today.

“Modern modesty is about expression and choice,” she says, pushing back against the idea that modesty and contemporary style exist in tension. At KHAT, she sees the abaya as something fluid and evolving - capable of moving effortlessly between day and evening, tradition and innovation.Five years in, the brand is finding alternative outlets of creative expression. A sunglasses line marks its expansion beyond abayas, and Al-Hajri hints at further developments ahead - though she is excitedly cautious about what to give away: “I don't want to give any spoilers away. There are some exciting times ahead.”

The longer-term vision is global: a brand whose name resonates well beyond the Gulf, whose pieces carry meaning wherever they are worn. But the legacy she is most focused on building is more subjective.

“KHAT is about a feeling,” she says simply. “When women wear our designs, there is a visible shift in confidence and presence. The legacy we hope to leave is that sense of empowerment and individuality - where KHAT is remembered not just for the pieces themselves, but for how it made women feel.”

That, she suggests, is what fashion is ultimately for. “It reflects personality, mood, and identity without needing words.” She hopes her designs, in this case, speak for themselves.