Setelah mencuci rambut, saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.

In Indonesian, the subject is often omitted in a time clause like this when it is clearly the same as the subject of the main clause.

So in:

Setelah mencuci rambut, saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.

the understood subject of mencuci is saya.

A more explicit version would be:

Setelah saya mencuci rambut, saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.

Both are correct. The version without the second saya sounds natural because Indonesian often leaves out information that is already obvious from context.

Indonesian often leaves out possessive words like saya, -ku, nya, etc. when possession is obvious from the situation.

Here, if I am washing hair, it is naturally understood to mean my hair unless context says otherwise.

So:

• mencuci rambut = washing hair / washing my hair
• mencuci rambut saya = washing my hair

Both can be correct, but the shorter version is very common and natural.

This is especially common with body parts and personal items.

Menaruh means to put, to place, or to set down.

It comes from the root taruh. When the meN- prefix is added, the initial t drops:

• taruh → menaruh

This is a normal sound change in Indonesian verb formation.

So:

• taruh = put/place
• menaruh = to put/place, in standard active verb form

A learner will often see this pattern with other words too:

• tulis → menulis
• tutup → menutup

Menaruh is the standard active verb form in formal or neutral Indonesian.

In everyday speech, many speakers also say taruh directly:

• Saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.
• Saya taruh sisir di meja rias.

Both can be heard, but menaruh is more grammatical in careful standard Indonesian.

So a simple way to think about it is:

• menaruh = standard/written/neutral
• taruh = often more conversational

Because di marks a location, while ke marks movement toward a destination.

In this sentence, the comb ends up at/on the dressing table, so the phrase gives the location where it was placed:

• di meja rias = on/at the dressing table

If you used ke, it would focus more on movement to that place:

• ke meja rias = to the dressing table

After verbs like menaruh or meletakkan, di is usually what you want when naming the final location of the object.

Usually it means on the dressing table in this context.

The preposition di is broader than English in/on/at. Indonesian often uses the same preposition for several kinds of location, and English chooses the most natural one in translation.

So:

• di meja usually translates as on the table
• di rumah = at home / in the house
• di sekolah = at school

The exact English preposition depends on context.

Meja rias means dressing table or vanity table.

It is a noun + noun combination:

• meja = table
• rias = makeup / adornment / beautifying

So meja rias is literally something like beauty table or grooming table, but the natural English meaning is dressing table.

This kind of noun combination is very common in Indonesian.

Indonesian does not use articles like a, an, or the.

So sisir can mean:

• a comb
• the comb
• comb

depending on context.

Also, possession is often left unstated when it is obvious. In this sentence, it is very natural to understand sisir as my comb even though my is not said.

If you want to be more explicit, you could say:

• sisir saya = my comb

But the shorter sisir sounds perfectly normal here.

Yes. Meletakkan is also a very common verb for to put or to place.

For example:

• Saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.
• Saya meletakkan sisir di meja rias.

Both are correct.

Very roughly:

• menaruh = put/place
• meletakkan = place/set down

In many contexts they overlap. Meletakkan can sound a little more formal or a little more explicitly like placing something somewhere, but both are natural.

Yes. Indonesian is flexible here.

You can say:

• Setelah mencuci rambut, saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.
• Saya menaruh sisir di meja rias setelah mencuci rambut.

Both are grammatical.

The version with setelah mencuci rambut at the beginning sounds a bit like setting the scene first: After washing my hair, ...

The version with it at the end may sound a little more like the main action comes first and the time information is added after.

The comma is common and helpful because Setelah mencuci rambut is an introductory time clause.

So this is good style:

• Setelah mencuci rambut, saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.

In less careful writing, people may leave the comma out, especially in casual contexts, but using it is clearer and more standard.

Yes. Sesudah and setelah both mean after.

So you could say:

• Sesudah mencuci rambut, saya menaruh sisir di meja rias.

Both are natural. In many contexts they are interchangeable.

Some speakers may feel small differences in style or preference, but for most learners it is fine to treat them as near-equivalents.

Yes, it is very normal.

Indonesian often says simply:

• mencuci rambut = wash hair / wash one’s hair

You may also hear:

• keramas = to wash one’s hair / shampoo one’s hair

So depending on context:

• Setelah mencuci rambut...
• Setelah keramas...

Both can be natural, though keramas is more specifically about washing/shampooing the hair.

That is the usual Indonesian word order:

Subject + Verb + Object + Place

So here:

• saya = subject
• menaruh = verb
• sisir = object
• di meja rias = place/location

This is very common in Indonesian. English often works similarly:

• I put
  • the comb
    • on the dressing table

So the structure is quite straightforward for an English speaker.