Ben – Page 12 – Ben's Tallit Shop

Tallit questions from a baal tshuvah

Sometimes we get customers who divulge personal information when they send in a tallit or tzitzit question. This will be my first Tallit which I hope (I believe by tradition?) will be able to hand down to my son at some point (unless I am incorrect in this?) I apologize about my ignorance as I...

Tallit and tefillin bag covers and carriers: An editorial

In frum circles, until five or ten years ago, I'd say at least 90% of all men brought their tallit and tefillin to weekday Shacharit in a regular zippered tallit and tefillin bag cover made of nylon. The idea is that you need something to protect and show off your fine velvet tallit and...

Are undershirt tzitzit kosher?

Undershirt tzitzit were introduced onto the tallit katan market about two decades ago. But I suspect there were similar designs many years ago. If you open up the Chayei Adam to Hilchot Tzitzit 11, 9, the Chayeh Adam , describing various tallit katan designs and whether they would require tzitzit, writes, "And therefore one...

Putting your own atara on a tallit

Sometimes we have customers who have a special atara (tallit neckband) they want to attach. They intend to buy a tallit from us without the atara and sew on a unique atara they have from a previous tallit or made by a talented embroiderer. Once we had a customer and wanted to treat himself to...

Wearing a wool tallit katan against skin

The following is an exchange with a prospective customer who seems to be debating whether he wants to wear a cotton tallit katan or a wool tallit katan. Although I found some of his questions a bit surprising, I think the exchange may be instructive for some other people out there interested in buying...

Hechsher on Tzitzit Strings

This week we received an inquiry from a customer thinking of buying a set of handspun tzitzit strings, but first he wanted to know the difference between the two types of rabbinical supervision. Was one more stringent than the other? Hi Ben, I was wondering about the hashgachot on your tzitziot. In particular, I was wondering...

Is an Echt Turkish tallit too hot for summer?

For our customers looking for a lightweight tallit we recommend the Tashbetz, but some people want a tallit on the heavy side, a tallit they can really feel on their shoulders. This week we got an inquiry from a customer who bought a tallit from us a few years ago, and now he's thinking...

Beit Yosef and Sephardic Tzitzit

We offer a wide range of tzitzit and tzitzit tying options on just about every talit and talit katan we sell, but the extensive number of options can be overwhelming for some of our customers. This week I had a number of email exchanges with a customer who bought a tallit from us and...

Bar mitzvah tallit: Can I buy a size he’ll grow into?

This week a customer ordered a size 60 tallit for a soon-to-be bar mitzvah boy, and added a note regarding the size. Please confirm prior to processing that this is a good size for Bar Mitzvah boy, with the hope that it will last him into adulthood. Thanks, Tracey The truth is, I think Tracey should...

Carmel Tallit: Handwoven look at a fraction of the price

In Israel, Mishkan Hatchelet and Talitania (or "Talitnia") have been bitter rivals for decades. When one comes out with a new design, the other is sure to market a similar tallit. Talitania's "David" is very close to Mishkan Hatchelet's "Tashbetz", the Malchut Tallit is similar to the Beit Yosef Tallit and both companies make...

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