What is a tallit

What is a tallit ?	Why wear a tallit ?	What does the 7-8-11-13 Windings pattern mean?	How to put on a tallit ?
Who wears a tallit ?	How are the Tzitzit tied ?	Tell me more about a kippa

What is a tallit ?

The tallit (also pronounced tallis) is a prayer shawl, the most authentic Jewish garment. It is a rectangular-shaped piece of linen, wool, or silk (and sometimes, now, polyester) with special fringes called Tzitzit on each of the four corners. The purpose of the garment is to hold the Tzitzit.
Most tallitot (alternative plural: talleisim) have a neckband, called an Atarah, which most often has the blessing one recites when donning the tallit, embroidered across it.

Why wear a tallit ?

The Lord said to Moses: Speak to the Israelites and instruct them to make for themselves fringes on the corners of their garments throughout the ages; let them attach a cord of blue to the fringe at each corner. That shall be your fringe; look at it and recall all the commandments of the Lord and observe them, so that you do not follow your heart and eyes in your lustful urge. Thus you shall be reminded to observe all My commandments and to be holy to your God.[Numbers 15:37-41]

The purpose of the tallit, then, is to hold the Tzitzit, and the purpose of the Tzitzit (according to the Torah) is to remind us of God's commandmens.

The tallit is worn for morning prayer, during the week as well as on Shabbat and other holy days.

Who wears a tallit ?

Generally, a Jew who has reached the age of majority (in most communities, this is 13, though in some communities, girls reach the age of majority at 12) wears a tallit.

There exists a custom of not wearing a tallit prior to marriage. This custom is not widely practiced, however, in large measure because it prevents one from fulfilling a commandment between the age of 13 and the time one marries.

How are the Tzitzit tied ?

Tying Tzitzit is a Jewish art, a form of macrame. A hole is carefully made and reinforced in each corner of the tallit. Through each hole, four strands are inserted: three short strands and one long strand. The longer strand is called the shammash and this is the one which is used for winding around the others.

To tie the Tzitzit, line up the four strands so that the three of equal length are doubled evenly, and the fourth strand is lined up at one end with the other seven ends. With four strands in one hand, and the other four in the other, make a double knot at the edge of the fabric. Then take the shammash and wind it around the other seven strands seven times in a spiral motion.
Make a second double knot, with four strands in one hand and four strands in the other. Then wind the shammash around the seven strands eight times and make another double knot. Wind the shammash around eleven times and make a double knot. Finally, wind the shammash thirteen times around the ramaining seven strands and make one final double knot. When done correctly, the Tzitzit will have 7-8-11-13 winds between the double knots.

What does the 7-8-11-13 Windings pattern mean?	There is a number of interpretations for this pattern of windings. One interpretation is that each set of windings corresponds to one of the four letters in God's name. Another interpretation employs Gematria, Jewish numerology, which assigns to each Hebrew letter a numeric value: aleph is 1, beth is 2, gimmel is 3, and so on. In this second interpretation of the windings of the Tzitzit, the numbers 7-8-11-13 have special meaning: 7+8=15, which in Hebrew is written yod-hay, the first two letters of God's name (the Tetragrammaton); 11=vav+hay, the third and fourth letters of God's name. Hence, the first three windings "spell" God's holy name. Thirteen, the last set of windings, is equivalent in value to the word "echad" which means "one". Hence, all four windings can be interpreted to say "God is one". Yet another interpretation holds that when we consider the windings between the knots, 7, 8, 11, and 13, the first three numbers equal 26, which is numerically equivalent to the Tetragrammaton, and the remaining number, 13, is equivalient to the "echad" ("one"). Hence, the windings tell us that God is One. If we take the sum of the first three numbers (7+8+11) and equate that with God's name, then the 13 which remain can also be interpreted to reflect the 13 attributes of God, as articulated by Moses Maimonides and set to verse in the Yigdal. By still another inerpretation, the Gematria value of the word "Tzitzit" (tzadi-yod-tzitzit-yod-taf) is 600. To this we add the eight strands plus the five knots, totalling 613 in all. According to tradition, God gave us 613 Mitzvot (commandments) in the Torah. Just looking at the tallit with its Tzitzit, therefore, reminds us of the commandments, as the Torah says, "You should see them and remember all God's commandments and do them".

How to put on a tallit ?	Open tallit and hold in both hands so you can see atarah (the collar band on thich the blessing is often embroidered. Recite the berachah:

	BA-RUCH A-TA A-DO-NAI E-LO-HAY-NU ME-LECH HA-O-LAM A-SHER KI-D'SHA-NU B'MITZ-VO-TAV V-TZI-VA-NU L'HI-TA-TAYF BA-TZI-TZIT Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who makes us holy with commandments, and has commanded us to wrap ourselves in he Tzitzit. Kiss the end of Atarah where the last word of the blessing is embroidered, and then a beginning where the first word is. Wrap the tallit around your shoulders, holding it over your head for a moment of private meditation. Adjust the tallit on your shoulders comfortably

Tell me more about a kippa

The kippah is a head-covering. It is also called a yarmulke in Yiddish and often rendered "skullcap" in English.

The Torah does not mandate a head-covering. Hence it is not a mitzvah (commandment) and there is no berakhah (blessing) recited upon putting it on one's head.
It is likely that the custom of covering one's head derives from the attire of the High Priest in the days when the Temple in Jerusalem stood. The High Priest garb included a head-covering. When the Pharisees democratized Judaism and taught that each person is like a priest to God and each table an altar, the custom of wearing a head-covering was transferred to ordinary people as a means of expressing awareness of, and respect for, God throughout one's day.
The Talmud (Shabbat 15b) puts it this way: Cover your head so that awe of heaven will be upon you."

The term "yarmulke" has been explained as yireh melekh (fear or awe of the King).

It would seem that the custom of wearing a head-covering grew slowly, over time.
Originally, the kippah was worn for prayer, religious study, and while eating. By the 1500's, it was universally accepted among Jews as the proper dress throughout the day.
Today, some Jews cover their heads throughout the day (except when bathing and swimming); others while praying, studying sacred texts, and eating; others not at all.
In liberal synagogues, both men and women will cover their head or not, as is the custom. In Orthodox synagogues, only men are required to cover their heads.

While wearing a kippah is not a commandment and there is no accompanying blessing, for some, the morning blessing oter Yisrael b'tifarah ("...Who crowns Israel with glory...") serves as a sort of blessing.

A kippah may be made out of fabric or crocheted. It can be decorated any number of ways, with embroidery, needlepoint, fabric paint, applique, or designs knitted into it in the case of a crocheted kippah. The designs may be geometric or might include the wearer's name.