Maybe only intelligent women understand why this is a worrying trend
Well, I've got a degree from an elite university and am completely unphased a) by the rise of a trend termed 'modest fashion' and b) that a major high street retailer uses this to showcase a relatively 'modest' number of the clothes in their very large range of stock.
I imagine they welcome any publicity this thread has generated. It is, after all, free advertising, A significant of the women who have come to this thread have said that they find these clothes attractive and useful and would consider buying them.
I think some of the generalisations made about religion, patriarchy, fashion, language and women's choices very sweeping.
I suppose the one thing that I do wonder is how many of those contributors who feel offended and/or threatened by this small range of clothing, know women who - for reasons of faith - opt to wear clothes that expose very little skin.
I work in a multi-cultural city and a number of my female colleagues do wear clothing of this type. They are my friends and I like and respect them just as much that I enjoy the company of those colleagues who will undo a shirt button or two, or wear a keen length skirt. I also have one or two male colleagues whose appearance is influenced by their faith. (Many Muslims are rather more likely to have beards though as with the hijab, it's partly about culture and there seems to be relatively little said by the Prophet.) It seems to me that on so many important levels, my religiously observant colleagues are the same as secular ones. (We talk about children, sport, holidays, work-related gossip.) Perhaps, despite the jokes we share they are a little more serious and reflective on some subjects and may rate the importance of extended family/community more highly. But for me that's a plus.
I am more frightened of Islamophobia than Islam. I don't feel threatened by a major retailer showcasing a few longer skirts and polo-necked and describing them as 'modest'. I understand that there may be some people who feel the existence of these garments could mean that it's less easy for them to wear lycra crop tops.
But I do think that in the UK lycra crop tops and short skirts are going to be co-existing with longer, looser outfits. Some men are going to be walking about shaven and bare-chested and with low slung jeans. Others will be wearing long tunics and baggy trousers. That's my world and I'm comfortable with it.