Should the woman obey her husband when he asks her to wear make-up?

Let us first of all be clear about the situation we are talking about. What the husband is requesting applies within the family home, when he is with his wife and children and not when having a party at home where men and women mix together. If so, then a woman is strongly advised by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to make herself appealing to her husband. By doing so, she helps him feel completely satisfied with what he has at home. He does not look at other women and wish that his wife do the same as them. Also, a man is recommended not to neglect his appearance. While everyone likes to be relaxed at home, wearing the same dress day after day and totally neglecting one's appearance is bound to have a negative effect on one's partner. This applies to both husband and wife. Indeed, it is a wise woman who takes care to dress well when her husband is about to return from work.

Let us take the example of hair. If a man comes home to find his wife wearing her home dress, having been in the kitchen all the time, with her hair disheveled, he is bound to compare her to other women he may see in the street, at the office or on television. He will feel something is missing in his family life. If he likes his wife to wear her hair short and she refuses, he is bound to be upset. She may protest to him that it is un-Islamic for a woman to wear her hair short, as many people believe. This is in fact a mistaken notion. It is more traditional of certain societies. If a woman wears her hair short, she commits no offense provided that she does not appear in front of men other than her husband, father, brothers or uncles. To assume that it is forbidden for a woman to cut her hair short is totally erroneous.