Issue regarding what is obligatory for a woman whose husband has died

Question: Sister L. M. asks: What is required of a woman whose husband has died?

Answer: The waiting period (‘iddah). The hadiths mention what she should refrain from, and she is required to observe five matters:
The first matter: She must stay in the house where her husband died and she was residing, remaining there until the waiting period ends; which is four months and ten days, unless she is pregnant, in which case she exits the waiting period by giving birth, as Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) said: : [Al-Talaq:4].
She does not leave it except for a need or dire necessity; such as visiting the hospital when ill, and buying her needs from the market; such as food and the like—if she has no one to do that for her—and likewise if the house collapses, she may leave it for another, or if she has no one to keep her company and she fears for herself, there is no harm in that when there is a need.
The second matter: She is not permitted to wear beautiful clothes—neither yellow nor green nor anything else—rather, she wears clothes that are not beautiful, whether black or green or otherwise; the important thing is that the clothes are not beautiful. This is how the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded.
The third matter: She avoids jewelry of gold, silver, diamonds, and pearls, and the like—whether necklaces, bracelets, rings, or the like—until the waiting period ends.
The fourth matter: She avoids perfume, so she does not use perfume, whether incense or other perfumes, except when she is purified from menstruation—specifically—then there is no harm in her using some incense.
The fifth matter: She avoids kohl, so she does not apply kohl, nor anything in the meaning of kohl for beautifying the face, the specific beautification that may cause people to be tempted by her. As for ordinary beautification with water and soap, there is no harm in that. But the kohl that beautifies the eyes, and things similar to kohl that some women do to their faces, she does not do that.
So these five matters must be observed in the case of a woman whose husband has died.
As for what some of the common people may think and fabricate: that she does not speak to anyone, that she does not talk on the telephone, that she does not take a bath more than once a week, that she does not walk barefoot in her house, that she does not go out in the light of the moon, and the like of these superstitions, they have no basis.
Rather, she may walk barefoot or wearing shoes in her house, attend to her needs in the house, cook her food and the food of her guests, walk in the light of the moon, on the roof, and in the garden of the house, take a bath whenever she wishes, speak to whom she wishes in a manner that is not suspicious, shake hands with women, and likewise with her mahrams (relatives one may not marry), but not with non-mahrams. And she may remove her head covering from her head if there is no non-mahram present.
She does not use henna or saffron, nor perfume in her clothes or in the coffee; because saffron is a type of perfume. It is not permissible for her to be proposed to directly, but there is no harm in indirect hints. As for explicit proposals, that is not allowed. And success is from Allah.