BUSINESS Sun Financial Group is pleased to announce the association of Allan R. Feuer Sales Representative • Corporate & Personal Insurance • Disability • Health • Annuities & Pensions 0 Sun Financial Group 20300 W. 12 Mile Rd. Southfield, MI 48076 352-9700 IN PAIN? NEED A CHIROPRACTOR? DILLMAN CHIROPRACTIC CLINIC 5755 W. Maple, Suite #107 West Bloomfield 626-3030 25950 Greenfield Oak Park 968-3977 Dr. William Dillman hilsum misses & misses petites contemporary fashions Spring Wear Arriving Daily HARVARD ROW MALL 11 Mile Road at Lahser 354-4650 ARE YOU PAYING TOO MUCH FOR INSURANCE??? AUTO 1 IHOMEI • multi-car save 15% • AARP member save 20% • safety save 10% • over 55 years old save 10% • clean record save 20% (last 3 years) you save 65% • non-smoker • Over 50 (AARP) save 10% save 35% you save 55% FOR MORE INFO - OR A FREE QUOTE Michael Mostyn 473-2949 THE MASTER TAILOR CUSTOM FASHION CLOTHING alterations for men & women 737-8060 WE SPECIALIZE IN SERVICE I ORCHARD LAKE • WEST OF KMART • S. of 14 Mile 58 FRIDAY, MARCH 17, 1989 The Sheitel Machers Detroiters no longer need to head east to visit wig makers. JOANNE ZUROFF Special to The Jewish News T wenty years ago, the religious Jewish wo- men of Detroit journeyed regularly to New York, visiting thier wig makers — "sheitel machers" — for new purchases. A few local women dabbled in selling wigs, but lacked the clientele to remain profitable. Things started to change 14 years ago, when Chanchie Frankel, who had studied in beauty school, moved to Oak Park and started selling syn- thetic sheitels. She also cut and styled wigs for her clients. She started to lose money and gradually eased out of the business. But Frankel did, in fact, pave the way for what has become a booming occupation in metropolitan Detroit. Orthodox women no longer need to shuttle back and forth between New York and Detroit to see the sheitel macher. A burgeoning local Orthodox community has created a market for sheitels. An estimated 400 Detroit area Jewish women cover their hair for religious purposes. "Sometimes, right before the holidays, I can get six new wig customers a day," said Channie. Snow, a native Detroiter who studied wig styling in New York. "Women come to me from Cleveland, Toronto, and small towns throughout the Midwest." Snow, one of two local wig makers, launched her business right before Rosh Hashanah two years ago and has been busy ever since. Tova, another local native who lives in Israel but returns to Oak Park twice a year to make sheitels, noted, "On my recent trip in November, I had a list of 75 women waiting for appoint- ments. Clients were due from Cleveland and Toronto, and several brides-to-be were scheduled for appointments." When Joyce Kokon arrived in Oak Park in 1982, she im- mediately noticed the need for a local sheitel macher. Equipped with formal train- ing and several years of ex- perience garnered in New York, Denver and Los Angeles, Kokon set up shop. However, she describes her work as "less a business and more of a sideline." Most sheitel machers agree Sheitel macher Chanie Snow makes a wig to fit Sandi Roskind. that the market of Orthodox women who cover their hair is rapidly growing. Today, even young women who grew up in modern Orthodox homes and whose mothers didn't cover their hair, choose to observe this mitzvah. According to Orthodox Rab- bi Reuven Drucker, of Young Israel of Greenfield, "A woman is mandated by Torah to cover her hair when in the presence of men; this is con- sidered a gesture of modesty on the woman's part, and like all laws of modesty, it is a recognition by the individual that a person can be over- taken by momentary desires and that there is a higher be- ing to whom she is responsi- ble for her behavior." Today, several wig manufac- turers based in New York supply a majority of their wigs to the Orthodox market worldwide. Most of these com- panies are owned by obser- vant women. The creators of these enterprises are general- ly creative women with ex- perience in working with hair and wigs. Georgie and Yaffa, owners of two companies that bear their respective names, are known for their wig styling courses, which last about three months and offer com- plete training. Seminars, that act as refresher courses and industry updates, are also of- fered by the two women twice a year. The courses and seminars attract sheitel machers from all around the world. Most wig companies show from 30-50 different wigs in their line. They carry syn- thetic wigs, human hair- synthetic blends and human hair wigs. The synthetic product used today is Elura. These wigs are the least expensive and are easy to care for but might have an unnatural sheen. The Elura are also sensitive to sweat and break when rubbed against a wool collar. Sensitive also to heat, they should not be worn near an oven, which makes them im- practical for Shabbat or Yom Toy. Next in line are the blends