Buying a new wig is overwhelming - even for those who have been married for decades! After all, it’s a huge investment and there are so many factors to consider (and so many things that can go wrong!)

Gitel Rosenzweig, a Brooklyn-based shaitel macher, has lots of experience working with shaitels - and she gives great advice too!

Here she shares her tips on choosing a wig stylist and purchasing a shaitel. Although she focuses her advice towards brides, everyone can benefit from these invaluable tips:

Buying a wig is one of the toughest decisions attached to getting married, especially because the rest of the wedding related choices to make are just for one night. A bride’s wigs are expected to last every day of every week for the next couple of years at least. The wrong choices can make her miserable until all the problems are fixed (if they are, hopefully, fixable).

If you are a new bride, make sure to check out the Bellabusta modest gown gallery for some vintage and modern wedding dress inspirations!

That being said, I will also add that every new wig has a break-in period, when you get used to the wig and figure out all the little nips and tucks and snips that have to still be done. This applies even to custom made wigs and women who’ve been married for years. Every new wig is a new experience. As many times as a bride can practice taking a wig off and putting it back on, this break-in period can’t start until after the wedding, when she will start to have it on her head on a regular basis. Unfortunately during sheva brochos, she has little or no time to stop in at the sheitel macher to discuss these problems, or drop off the wig for a couple of days for an extended repair. Inevitably, she may be miserable for the entire first week, or longer, until she can bring it into her stylist.

Making the right choices and decision will hopefully ease the transition. Below, I’ve come up with a few guidelines for each of the steps.

-Who to go to:

This is going to potentially be a very personal experience, hopefully not too traumatic for the kallah, so who you go to is as important as which wig you pick. The most obvious choice is your mothers sheitel macher, but its not always the best. She may be able to transition from her 40-something clientele to a 20-something’s style and taste, but its not just about the cut. Its also about personality, compatibility and communication, and if a kallah is not comfortable expressing herself and her opinion, she may come out of the whole experience with the wrong results. If a girl has a long relationship with her mom’s stylist, that just might work.

Of course, you have to trust the stylist’s knowledge completely, so many girls choose to cut their wigs with someone who has been cutting their hair for years. This could be a potential disaster for two reasons: First, no matter how much experience they say they have, styling hair is very different from cutting wigs. The distribution and direction of the hair and construction make everything about a cut behave differently. Second, if the wig is not bought and cut in the same place, a problem that arises from the cut (such as a thin spot in the construction) may be argued by the manufacturer as the stylist’s fault, and therefore not covered by whatever guarantee the sheitel may have on it. This could turn out to be a very expensive mistake, involving removing and replacing hundreds of dollars of hair.

Take into account everyone’s past experiences, and all the opinions you can absorb, but make sure to value the opinions of people who have similar personalities to you, so that the stylist they got along with can potentially work for you too.

Other important things to consider in choosing a sheitel macher are: responsiveness (getting called back on time), her work schedule (making sure it allows you to visit enough times without taking too much time off from school and work), and finding out that she carries the brands to you’ve heard about and are interested in seeing. These are all important, but personality should make the final decision for the kallah.

-What you need:

Every kallah has to start with at least two options. In the event that one is in the shop for repairs, washing or any other reason, she needs to have something else to wear, especially during sheva brochos. For those who choose in advance to live in hats, only one wig may be an option, but giving that one wig in for service has to be planned very carefully around events and when it will be needed back. 

Also, the kallah has to decide how much hair she wants to cover, leave exposed, or if she wants to cover her hair at all. Your sheitel macher should not be asked to “pasken halachah” for you, but rather facilitate your level of observance in the most natural and beautiful options. Your decisions will also determine if you are looking at full wigs, pony wigs, falls, hat falls, yarmulka/kippa falls or any other options. Discuss with your future husband or parents what you want or need to do before going to shop for wigs, so that you can rule out unnecessary options right away. Still, remain flexible until you try things on, because what you think you want to buy just might not look good on you. Try to visit a couple of married siblings or friends and try on their fall to decide if you look good in a headband, or pony wig to make sure that is a look for you.

Once you’ve decided what you’re shopping for, you have to decide where to shop. Very enticing ads with attractive sale prices are hard to ignore, especially when private stylists are quoting double and triple the price. These are great places to visit to try on different styles to help you decide about falls vs. wigs, but never make an impulse decision on the spot. Make sure you have seen at least one more brand of expensive wigs before you buy from any of these sale brands, so that you know the difference in quality when you shop. Many of these places will hold a piece or two for a say or so, so that you can go elsewhere to try on and then call or come back with a final decision. They will most likely not let you leave the premises with any wig though, without full payment. In this case make sure you can get your money back if you bring the wig back uncut, or you may get stuck with store credit only, and be forced to buy from a brand you don’t want.

You may be told, by one or more stylists that you should custom order, or need only a custom. You can always get a second opinion from another stylist, but here are the main reasons for needing a custom order: #1. Unusual colors, such as extreme reds, multi-tonal blonds or very ashy (absent of all red) tones are difficult to find and may be low in stock. These are just rare in the european hair supply, and even rarer in cheaper supplies, such as asian hair. (How many chinese girls do you know with red or blond hair?) #2. Unusual sizes may need to custom order because most standard wigs don’t fit you. Your size can also be affected by trying to stuff thicker-than-normal hair underneath your wig, so ask if cutting your hair will help the situation at all. Smaller than normal caps can be easier to adjust a stock wig down to your size, but extra extra large heads just have to accept their fate. #3. Unusual hairlines can seriously affect your fit too. Having a very low or very high hairline, while you may not have a massive head, can make your measurement difficult to fit. Beware of sales staff that tell you to ignore it because the cut will cover it up: a strong wind will expose that cover-up completely. Often these problems can be solved by going a size or two larger and then adjusting the cap in all other areas of the head except the hairline, but these special coverage issues may call for a custom order too. Get referrals from people with the exact same issue, who were happy with the resolution their stylist had.

A second tip sheet from Gitel is coming up on the topics of: budgeting (how much should you really spend on a shaitel?!) and choosing that perfect wig.

About Gitel Rosenzweig: Gitel has been in the wig styling business for over 10 years working with all types of wigs, including her own special line of custom designed wigs and falls. Using only the finest hair and years of experience, she works with every individual face to make you look your best. Gitel Wigs is located at a convenient location in Flatbush. She can be reached at (718) 758-1022 or (347) 262-7443.