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Reflections: Beauty
Concepts
Makeup and sheitel tips. For a listing of
makeup artists and sheitel stylists, see
LookingGood.htm
Note: For
information on Sheitel construction and maintenance tips, scroll down
tothe articles by Aviva Rizel.
 For summer beauty tips, see
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-18522-NY-Jewish-Bridal-Examiner~y2010m5d4-Summer-safe-bridal-beauty
Day to Evening Makeup
in Just 7 Steps
Step
1 Clear off.
To remove flakes of eyeshadow or mascara
that have made their way lower on your face throughout the day, dip a cotton ball
into translucent powder to wipe away the makeup particles on the parts
of your face where you don’t want them. To get rid of raccoon eyes,
dampen a cotton swab and run it under the lower lash to remove mascara
and eyeliner that has spread beyond where you want it. If that doesn’t
do the trick, use eye makeup remover
Step 2: Dewy does it.
If
you a reapplying mascara, try keeping slightly damp cotton swab behind
the lashes during the application for a dewy look.
Step 3: Neutral ground.
Start by applying a neutral shadow over the
entire eyelid. Add some dramatic impact by lining you eyes with a dark
shadow applied with a fine brush.
Step 4: A Touch of Shimmer.
Apply shimmer on the center of the upper
eyelid and the inner corner of the eye to help brighten the eyes,
giving you a more awake look.
Step 5: A rosy glow.
You can also apply a bit of
shimmer about your cheeks after touching up your blush for glowing
appearance.
Step 6: Keep your lips sealed.
For long-lasting lip color, try a stain
formula. Avoid getting it on fingers by using an applicator and
blotting. Keep your lipstick confined to your lips for the night. To
prevent the color from bleeding, apply translucent powder along the
outer edge of the lips. You can use a small brush, a clean eyeshadow
applicator, or a cotton swab for the purpose.
Step
7: Ready, set, shine!
To make your lips look a bit
plumper, dab a bit of petroleum jelly or lip gloss in the center of
your lips. For all over lip shine, spread evenly over lips
Beauty Concepts and Concoctions
Makeup
has been around for thousands of years. It is even referred to
in Nach 
in
terms of color used around the eyes. While it has
always been around, it was not
always as easily procured as it is today. During the
eighteenth century, both
men and women applied makeup made out of wax, which necessitated
screens
to shield them from the direct heat of the
fireplace. Without them, their faces
would have melted, not the effect they aspired to. The wax
filled in scars left by the pox. Some speculate that the
phrase, "Mind your own bee's wax" actually stems from this
practice. To split hairs further, some interpret it as a
friendly warning to someone whose wax was imperiled by heat, while
others believe it was used as a verbal slap to a woman who stared at
another's makeup.
Beeswax
is still a major ingredient in cosmetics today. Another
useful bee product is honey.* For an easy moisture mask at very low
cost, make your own -- out of honey and bananas.
Mash a ripe banana and mix it with 3 tablespoons of honey.
Cover your face (but not your eyes) and leave on for 10
minutes. Rinse off with warm water.
During
colonial and Victorian times, women would often concoct
their own lash coloring out of lampblack, burnt cork, or
burnt hair curlers and apply "salves" to redden lips. A
Victorian lady, however, would not want to admit to the use of "paint,"
as makeup was called. So cosmetics were applied
surreptitiously.
Commercially
produced makeup did begin to appear around the turn of the previous
century, and makeup came out in public in the 1920s. Many
women made their fortunes in the new cosmetics industry, including some
Jewish immigrants. Unfortunately, cosmetics did not come
under official regulation until 1938. Until that point, many
of the products contained seriously dangerous ingredients.
One of the most notorious was an eyelash dye, Lashlure, that
caused burning to the eye that caused permanent blindness for some and
even one death.
The
first commercially produced mascara was sold by Maybelline in the form
of a cake (much like soap) that required a wet brush to be used to
apply it to the lashes. Mascara was also available as cream
and a liquid, but all forms required a brush for application.
A mascara wand had been patented in 1939, but the use of that
tool only took off in the late 1950s.
Apparently,
the area of face focus of the intervening years shifted to the
lips. In fact, during World War II, cosmetic manufacturers
convinced the government to allow them to continue to manufacture
lipstick even when products used in its production were at
the time reserved for the war effort. There was
even a shade of lipstick designated for women serving in uniform,
designed to coordinate with the official colors. 
Aviva
Rizel Answers Your Sheitel Question
hi!
I hope you do not mind my asking you this question.
Do you suggest that a kallah get a custom wig for her first wig? (my
friend's daughter has connections and can get it at a good price.) is
there any
disadvantage to doing so? (as compared to getting a semi-custom wig out
of the
box)
thanks! Mrs
G.
Dear
Mrs. G.,
Mazel tov on your daughter's engagement and
thank you for your
question. Many women have asked me the same question when
they are on the market for a new sheitel. I normally
discourage most women from purchasing a custom wig,
as they are much more costly, and not that much more advantageous to
semi-custom wigs. The main reason I do so is
because if one orders a custom wig, she is
typically obligated to purchase it, even if she
is not satisfied with the finished product. Another
factor is that the hair quality is usually identical to high-end
semi-customs. If one does proper research, then she is likely
to find a semi-custom that is right for her.
If she cannot find a semi-custom that she likes, there is another
option. Often, when ordering a semi-custom from a large
company, one is able to "special order" a semi-custom wig.
This means that she can specify the color, cap size, part (right,
middle, left, or multi-directional), as well as the hair type
(silky straight, straight with body on the bottom, wavy or curly,
etc.). A special order wig is the same price as the
semi-custom model, and one is not obligated to purchase it.
The only disadvantage to a special order wig is the time
constraint. Such a wig will take up to 8 weeks to be produced
and shipped. At that point, the customer may not be satisfied
with the wig and will have to start the process over.
Fortunately, she is not under any obligation to buy the
unsatisfactory wig.
A custom wig (as mentioned in my archived article, "Sheitels 101") is
good for a woman with an unusual color, an unusual texture (very tight
curls, for example), an irregular hairline or an extra large or extra
small head size. But please beware that even if one has an
irregular hairline and orders a custom wig, the cap often will not
cover perfectly. This actually happened to me as a kallah and
I alleviated the problem by cutting bangs and angles that cover it
strategically, but it made me doubt the virtues of a custom
wig.
In conclusion, I find that for the majority of the population, a
semi-custom wig is a sensible purchase that can be styled to look just
as beautiful as a custom. Perhaps you can use your daughter's
connection toward a discounted semi-custom. Hatzlacha
Rabbah! (P.S. Be sure that your daughter uses a patient and
knowledgable sheitel macher who can teach her all the tricks a kallah
needs to know about her sheitel!)
-Aviva Rizel
Sheitels 101
By Aviva Rizel
One
of the most taxing decisions a kallah endures is choosing her first
sheitel. All sheitel machers know that when servicing a
kallah, we must be patient and informative. Even with the
most considerate sheitel macher, a kallah can leave her salon even more
confused than when she walked in. This is due to the plethora
of information surrounding a sheitel. It behooves all kallahs
to do a little research before scheduling a sheitel
appointment. I have put together below a crash-course in
purchasing a sheitel. It is only the “lecture” part of the
course. The supplementary “lab” is given at your local
sheitel macher’s salon, where she will guide you in exploring sheitels
hands-on. We’ll start with the basic components
that distinguish sheitels.
The Cap
The cap of your wig will contribute to its
comfort level. Some wigs have an open weft, which means that
the rows of hair are held together by columns of elastic
strips. The (minor) benefit of this that I personally have
found is that you can reach through the the cap to scratch
your head.
Aside from that minute benefit, most women
find a stretch cap to be more comfortable. It is made of a
lightweight, tightly-woven elastic mesh and conforms easily to the
unique shape of each woman’s head. There is also a
super-light weight stretch cap, sometimes known as “stocking stretch
cap.” Customers who purchase wigs with this type of cap rave
about the comfort of it. While it is exceptionally
comfortable, it is also exceptionally delicate, calling for special
care in washing. Most higher-end wigs are made with a stretch
cap. Freeda Wigs, for example, updated their entire
inventory from open weft to stretch. Some of the less
expensive companies have a stretch cap in one or two of their models.
The Top/Scalp
Most wigs these days have a skin
top. A skin-toned material is in the cap of the wig by the
part of the hair. The more economical type of skin top is simply a
strip (sometimes wide, sometimes narrow, depending on the company) in
the place where the part is. This means that if the
skin-toned strip is on the left side, the wig should not be parted on
the right side. While you can direct the hair that way, the part would
reveal the netting rather than the skin tone.
Certain wigs have the skin-toned material
spanning the entire top of the wig. This is known as a
multi-directional wig. It can be parted on the right side, left side,
off-center, or in the middle. But that does not mean that you can
easily direct the hair any way you like. Some customers
become frustrated when they attempt to comb the hair to the part it
differently themselves because the hair flips back to the original
part. The hair will only stay parted if it is blown dry in
the new direction. So your best bet is to get your sheitel
macher to style it to the new part. Multi-directional wigs
are generally more costly though, and a lot of customers find that they
don’t change their parts around. A wig can still be beautiful
and natural looking without being a multi-directional wig. Each kallah should consider all of a
wig’s features before making her decision.
Various Tiers of Wigs
1) Out-of-the-box wigs include Yaffas,
Georgies, Michals, Judys and others. This type of wig is more
affordable than semi-custom or custom. The cap is usually
open weft, and adjustable one-size-fits all. The hair may be
synthetic, blend (50% synthetic/50% human), or 100% human.
The human hair of an out-of-the-box wig is typically Asian and it has
been heavily treated. The hair is stripped of its color, and
then dyed. It is also treated with various
chemicals. Some customers of mine do not like the hair
because of its not-so-natural feel, yet others insist on an
out-of-the-box because of its low maintenance. The hair is
able to hold style better and for longer. This makes it a
smart choice for the budget-conscious because it is less expensive to
purchase, and costs less over its long-term maintenance.
Out-of-the-box companies have made great
gains in many of their wigs. I’ve seen some companies
products evolve over the years to look and feel like a higher end
wig. Some have a stretch cap with a multi-directional top,
and some have less processed hair. I have noticed, however,
that they still shed more than a semi-custom or custom wig.
This means that an out-of-the-box wig should not be thinned during the
cutting process, because hair will fall out on its own.
2) Semi-custom wigs are the kind that I
encourage most of my customers to purchase. Some well-known
semi-custom companies are Freeda, Allegria, and Shevy. A semi-custom
wig has hair that is extremely natural to the eye and to the touch
because it has not been stripped of its color and then, subsequently
dyed. The hair quality is typically the same as a custom wig.
Many caps are stretch caps and come in
Small, Medium, or Large. It is recommended to purchase a wig
that is slightly snug because it stretches minimally over
time. The hair is usually hand-sewn, strand, by strand on the
top part of the wig, and machine-sewn throughout the rest.
Some companies offer a wig that is entirely hand-sewn, for slightly
more money. I find that such a wig is comparable to a custom
wig, for a fraction of the
price.
Fortunately,
it is quite simple to shop around when purchasing a semi-custom
wig. Find out the company, make and color, then compare
prices. (According to halacha, you should be honest with the
sheitel machers about your intent to gather information before
committing to a purchase.) Additionally, if you know of a particular
brand that you are interested in, but do not know of a sheitel macher
that sells it, call up the company and ask if there is one in your
area.
3) Custom wigs, by definition, vary from
piece to piece. A woman buying a custom wig chooses the hair
texture, and length. The cap is fitted or molded to match the
woman’s hairline. Hair samples are taken to ensure a perfect
color match. An owner of a custom wig has something that is
unique to her head shape and hair color.
With this said, I do not encourage the
average customer to purchase a custom wig. Firstly, they are
more costly than a comparable semi-custom wig. Secondly, the
customer is obligated to purchase it once it has been
manufactured. I, for one, was unhappy with a custom wig that
I purchased as a kallah. I chose the hair texture and type,
only to find that once it was made, it tangled often. I was
also unsatisfied with the cap. It was made to match my
hairline, yet it never lay right and I always had to be sure that the
hair covered my temples.
A good candidate for a custom wig is someone
with an exceptionally large or exceptionally small head, someone with
curly hair, someone with red or ash blond hair, or someone with an
extremely asymmetrical or irregular hairline. (It is
important to note that everybody has some asymmetry and irregularity
within their hairline.) For those of you readers who are
candidates for a custom, but do not have the budget for it, do not
dismay. With a little research, and a lot of patience, you
may be able to find a semi-custom that meets your needs.
With the above information, you are armed
and ready to begin your quest for your first sheitel. A
beautiful, comfortable sheitel will help you perform the mitzvah of
covering your hair b’simcha. Wear your sheitel with pride—as
a queen with a crown that befits her noble station!
Aviva's Wigs is located at 525 Chestnut Street Cedarhurst, NY 11516 Hours; Tuesday through Friday 10am-3pm, Sunday 11am-3pm and by appointment
Call: 516-256-WIGS (9447) Visit online at http://www.avivaswigs.com/
Your Perfect Sheitel Style
By Aviva Rizel
When
choosing the cut for your new sheitel, there are two things to
consider: what will flatter your face, and how to avoid looking
“wiggy”. This article will attempt to answer both
questions. Check in Part I to find which face shape is yours,
and learn which cut will look best one you. Then go on to
Part II to make a good sheitel look great with tips toward a natural
look.
Part I “Which Cut Will
Flatter My Face?”
Oval: An oval face shape
has the most options because almost any haircut will flatter
it.
Whichever length you choose, cut layers
around your face. The layers and angles fall out between your
cheekbone and chin length. A good way to decide how short to
go is by determining which is your best feature -- your
cheekbones, mouth or chin. Have your stylist cut the angles
and layers the same length as the feature you want to
accentuate. If your sheitel has thick hair or curly
hair, avoid a blunt cut like a severe bob.
Long or Oblong: This
face shape can be mistaken for an oval shape since it is essentially a
longer, possibly thinner, oval.
A long face can look good with a medium
length. Very long hair (more than two inches past the
collarbone) will make a long face appear even longer.
Close-cropped hair will also elongate a long face. Instead,
opt for medium lengths, with styles that add width. You can
create width for straight hair with bangs. Long, side-swept bangs are
very modern. Chin-length bobs are also ideal for you because they
create the illusion of width. Curls and waves also add width, but avoid
short layers that add volume on top.
Round: A round face is
not necessarily a large face. It is round if there is less
cheekbone definition or fuller cheeks.
Your best bet is a style that falls right
below your chin. Soft, graduated layers are also a great because they
make your face appear slimmer and tend to remove width from the sides.
Bangs are flattering, but keep them long or sideswept. Wispy
and tapered ends are also flattering (and current). If you
opt for a short sheitel, avoid a single-length, blunt cut.
Square: A square face’s
strongest feature is its angular and wide jaw-line.
If you have a square face, you'll want to
balance out your features by use of texture. Texture can come
in the form of curls or choppy ends. You can also get away
with short, spiky cuts or long, sleek styles with layers that start at
the jaw-line and continue downward. Avoid chin-length cuts
and blunt-cut bangs. These will create a harsh look, and a
square face does best with a style that softens.
Heart: A heart shaped
face will have a pointier chin that extends past the
jaw-line.
Your chin tends to be the focal point of
your face. Draw attention to your eyes and cheekbones by drawing the
view upward with side-swept bangs (these act almost like arrows to your
eyes or cheeks). Some soft angles just below the eyebrow will
also serve to balance the focus of your face. If you have a
short sheitel, keep the top layers soft and long. If your sheitel is
long, go for wavy layers that graze your cheekbones. Avoid
blunt-cut bangs and harsh, choppy layers.
Part II “How Can I Have a Natural
Look?”
The cut is a key component of a natural and
flattering look. A cut that is very current, and flattering for every
face shape also happens to be a great natural look for a wig. It is the
side-swept banged, long-layered bob, which will make your sheitel look
good and do wonders for your face. If you have a long
sheitel, have the ends cut in a slight U shape, with the hair around
your face subtly shorter than the hair in the back. When long hair is
cut in a blunt straight line, it tends to look unhealthy, overgrown, or
even gothic. A subtle U shape softens the lengthy look.
Keep the shape natural with a smooth
top. Your sheitel will look best if the hair on the very top
of the cap (around the part) lays flat. No matter what face
shape you have, you should not get short layers around the top of your
head. I like to use a trick to keep the top from having too
much height. I smooth down the hair by flattening the “roots”
with my hand or with a brush over the hair, and I run the blow-dryer
while it is very taut against the cap.
A subtle way to make your sheitel look less
“wiggy” is by styling in a crooked part. It can either be a
straight line that is slanted toward one side, or it can be a few hairs
in one direction, and a few hairs in the other (all within a one-inch
zone, otherwise this will look too messy).
The last way to make your wig look more
natural is by feeling natural in it. If you are in the mood
for a ponytail, go for it. If you feel like today is the day
to go wavy via mousse, scrunch away. Try to wear your sheitel
the same way you would wear your hair. So don’t throw out
your clips and scrunchies. They can find a second life in
your sheitel.
To return to the
top, click Reflections
For a listing of
makeup artists and sheitel
stylists, see
LookingGood.htm
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