The makeup developed over the last half a century emphasises classical images of feminine beauty.Odissi makeup and  ornaments                                                    Odissi dance, like the other classical genres of India, gives great importance to the costume, ornamentation and makeup used in the performance.  The woven sari used for a costume can be from any of the many wonderful traditions of the state, in particular those from Sambalpur, Berhampur, and Cuttack.  When Odissi began to be presented upon the stage, the sari was first wrapped as a dhoti to form a divided "pajama," with the decorative end design of the sari, or pallu, spread in front. In this costume design, the blouse is made from the same sari material as is the cloth draping the front of the dancer.  

The Odissi dancer wears shola pith flowers around her hair bun and it is topped with a tiara of shola pith flowers representing the spire of Jagannath temple.  Shola pith, for those not from eastern India, may be best known for the British Colonial pith helmets.  Abhinaya Chandrika, plastic fork the Sanskrit text specifically on Oriya dance, gives a great deal of detail on the makeup, costume and ornaments of the dancer.  The red bindi or kumkum on the forehead is surrounded by white painted designs representing the sun and moon, or a flower.  It specifies a brightly colored nine-yard sari, generally in red or green made of indigenous silk, a brightly colored, bejeweled Kanchula or tight fitting blouse.  A fabric is fastened around the hips from behind which define the hipline.  The belt or mekhala draped from the waist is usually made with secular silver disks strung together in three lines.workshop@gmail.  Many of the ornaments described in the Abhinaya Chandrika continue to be used in the dance as well as in daily life. Those round topped hats with a small sunshade brim were lined with pith to protect the wearer from heatstroke.com