38 | MAY 19 • 2022 

OUR COMMUNITY

A

t just 17 years old and still a senior 
in high school, Sofia Bat Sarah 
has no plans for marriage in the 
immediate future, but you might still 
catch her on occasion wandering around 
wearing a tichel (head scarf). That’s because 
she wants to make sure that the tichels 
she’s creating are as comfortable as she’s 
promising her buyers. 
It all began when Sofia saw some images 
of Judaic jewelry online. It tickled her crafty 
side, and she was instantly inspired. 
“I love that kind of stuff,
” Sofia said. “It’s so 
beautiful. I decided to try making my own.
”
She began tinkering, creating and selling 
her handmade jewelry last year. She makes 
necklaces with the star of David or “hamsa” 
hand, Mizrachi-style earrings and bracelets, 
and much more. 
“I have something for everyone, 
Ashkenazim, Sephardim, I even custom-
design,
” Sofia said. 
Soon after she started selling her jewelry, 
she came across a TikTok account with a 
woman demonstrating how she styled her 
tichel. Adept at the sewing machine since 
she was a young girl, Sofia immediately 
decided to try creating a stylish tichel herself.

“I was shocked when I saw how much 
tichels cost!” Sofia said. “They usually 
run from $27-$30+! I decided to make 
them more affordable and available, with 
significantly cheaper shipping options.
” 
Sofia’s tichels cost between $5-$15. (And 
yes, that’s with up charging a little so she can 
still make a profit!) 
She buys 3-4 yards of fabric at a time, cuts 
the fabric into squares or triangles, and then 
crimps or sews the edges. Each yard of fabric 

yields two tichels. Tichel-making takes Sofia 
about one to two hours while her jewelry 
takes her between 20 minutes and three 
hours, depending on the piece. 
Sofia, who prefers to be known by 
her Hebrew name, grew up in Detroit, 
Hamtramck and Warren, knowing very 
little about her Jewish roots. A few years 
ago, she attended Menorah in the D and 
had a marvelous time. Soon after that, she 
joined Chabad in the D for Shabbat and 
was “instantly hooked.
” When she attended 
Shofar in the Park in Royal Oak, it was 
the first time she had ever celebrated Rosh 
Hashanah. 
“I’ve been exploring a lot recently,
” Sofia 
shared. “
And that was the start of it all. I love 
checking out other synagogues and have 
since moved to Oak Park to live closer to the 
Orthodox community.
”
Her parents and two brothers are 
supportive, but according to Sofia, her 
family is also still getting used to these 
changes. 

A BRUSH WITH HATERS
Unfortunately, after posting her first few 
TikTok videos that explored different parts 
of Jewish culture and traditions, Sofia was 
“doxxed.
” Neo-nazis found her full name, 
address and phone number online and 
began posting her details on numerous sites, 
inciting others to harass her virtually. Her 
phone was always “blowing up” with nasty 
messages. Some people even turned up at 
her house. Sofia called the police but was 
advised to “just block them” and told “we 
can’t do anything unless you’re physically 
harassed.
” 
After this scare, Sofia deleted all her 
social media accounts, except for her 
business, changed her phone number and 
became extremely private about sharing any 
information publicly. That’s also why she’s 
uncomfortable sharing her photo publicly. 
Despite this extremely distressing episode, 
Sofia continues to create her Jewish-themed 
jewelry and her tichels. She is grateful that 
there has been such a positive reaction 
to her tichel sales, which only began in 
February/March of this year. 
“I’ve sold over 100 already,
” Sofia said 
proudly. She gets the word out through 
social media posts and her new website 
judaicabysofia.square.site. 

Detroit’s Youngest 
Tichel-Maker

ROCHEL BURSTYN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Sofia’s jewelry

Hand-made 
tichels

COURTESY OF SOFIA BAT SARAH

