Geisha

[ultramarine]

I didnt like the Arthur Golden book and recommend "Geisha: A life" or Liza Dalby's book as well.
I'm madly in love with maikos .. they wear shades of pink on their faces and their shoes have some rattly metallic thingies are called pokkuri (cuz of the sound) which are to die for!
There are tours on japan where they dress you and put make up on you just like a geisha ... for women (and men!)

 

[Elegance.Is.Refusal.]

the colour red

Before discussing matters of appearance in Geisha, it is important to note the significance of the color red. There is a word in Japanese, ko itten, which means "touch of scarlet." The word is used as an affectionate term for women, especially Geisha girls. The use of the color red in dress and makeup is very significant to Japanese society. Red is denoted as a color of beauty and happiness. Red undergarments are thought to ward off menstrual pain and keep the female reproductive organs healthy and functioning. Red is also thought to be erotic to men. Geishas traditionally wear crimson lining under their kimonos (depending on season)as well as bright red lipstick made from safflower extract and red rouge, made from the petals of crimson flowers.

from http://marian.creighton.edu/~marian-w/academics/english/japan/geisha/art.html

 

[Elegance.Is.Refusal.]

the clothes:

In the early era of Geisha, when most patrons were shoguns, the costumes that the Geisha Girls wore were very warrior-like, including large hats and decorative swords. As the culture flourished, garments became much more feminine. Geisha began to wear the traditional kimono. The color, pattern, and style of kimono was dependent on season, but the kimono was always worn in three layers (the outer kimono and two layers of undergarments), regardless of season. In the winter, Geisha could be seen wearing a three-quarter length "overcoat" lined with hand painted silk over their kimono. In the spring, the waistband that Geisha wear (obi) became very important. During the springtime, the waistband was often more expensive than the kimono and ornately decorated. The spring kimono also had a crimson lining. Come summer, the lining was removed, and the kimonos were typically of brighter colors and different designs. Again in autumn, the crimson lining would reappear as well as new colors and designs. Geisha wore a flat-soled sandal outdoors, and went barefoot indoors. When weather was bad, the women wore raised wooden clogs that are attached to the foot in the same way that the usual thong sandal is. Maiko, geisha in training, wore a special black lacquered wooden clog.

from the same website

 

[Elegance.Is.Refusal.]

i also found this very interesting and enpowering

It is probably the only profession in Japanese which the women are consistently ranked above the men in the profession. Geisha also allows a woman to work into old age and because of the high cultural value on this preservation of traditional art and culture gives the woman an inherent value and respect that she might otherwise be unable to obtain.

also from the same website.

 

[sofialuv]

i once took a japanese arts class and the teacher introduced a two tone lipstick that comes in tiny ceramic? jar. the color changes in the light from red to green gold ( i think) the jar only contains a small amount of pigment which is painted as a thin coat on the inside. you wet it and apply. he managed to acquire it in chinatown in nyc, so it's probably chinese? anyways, if anyone has more information i'd appreciate.

thanks fab fifties for the info

i don´t know if if it´s the same thing, but my brother bought me in Morocco a similar thing. It´s a terracota pot that looks as if it´s empty, but when you moist your finger and rub against the interior of the pot, a red dye comes off. Then, you just apply as a lipstick.
It´s dry, but it´s a stain that lasts longer than lipstick. It´s a lip makeup widely known there, besides khol powder.
Now there is no ink when i rub the inside of the pot, but it looks exactly the same than when it still had it.
I took some pictures:


From the side

Frontal view

 

[travolta]

^ that's beautiful. it seems very similar to the piece i was speaking of. thanks for sharing ...do you still wear it as lipstick? if so, picture please

 

[Spacemiu]

Jeremy Scott

 

[McGovLau]

That is so interesting...cause i heard my sister telling me this story once, she got a coupon for a free makeover, and when she went there it was a bunch of old ladies and she was like oh god ill just let them do it, cause she knew it would come out bad, and when she came out her roomie said she looked like a geisha. and i never knew what a geisha was till now

thanks for posting this thread

laura <33

 

[spunsugar]

i this thread, so very interesting.
i have to admit though, that i enjoyed arthur golden's book, though it isn't the most flattering of books to women.
i'm waiting for the movie to come out and see what they make of geishas. hopefully it'd stray a little further from the book and paint the geishas in a more empowering and flattering light.

 

[Lucia-]

a picture of a maiko i think as she only has her bottom lip painted!?

i also love the hair ornaments they wear

It looks weird with those lips

 

[Elegance.Is.Refusal.]

^^^ its because shes a trainee geisha when shes has completed her training then she gets both lips painted. or atleast thats how i think it works

 

[Lucia-]

Okay... If I was her I would complete my training as fast as possible

 

[tulip]

hope this isn't off topic...
My sis was telling me she saw this tv show of a Canadian/Japanese designer, who makes modern kimono's
Anyone heard of her? and any pics? Sis says their real cute and funky

 

[floatingworld]

I find Geisha endlessly fascinating!
A good movie to watch if you love Geisha is Zatoichi The Blind Swordsman. (The recent movie not the series from a long time ago. ) There is one of the most heartbreaking scenes I have ever seen in my life in this film. The scene involves two Geisha, they are practicing their shamisen and dancing while reflecting back on their lives.

 

[sofialuv]

^ that's beautiful. it seems very similar to the piece i was speaking of. thanks for sharing ...do you still wear it as lipstick? if so, picture please

Unfortunatly it no longer has ink, but the result is similar to Benetint.

 

[Melisande]

Hi from Tokyo, Travolta, I know exactly what you're talking about! (^.^) I love it too. I havent been to Kyoto in a few years, but there was an adorable cosmetic boutique in Kyoto, right in Ponto-cho where the Geisha quarters are. They sell Geisha make-up: traditional wooden combs, pigments, powders, all in quaint little Japanese containers. It's open for the public so I don't know if it is THE original brand that Geishas use, but I know they do recreate the same formulae. I dont know if there was gold in the lipstick I remember but yes, it was in a fragile little ceramic pot with a thin coating of the richest, most saturated true red pigment at the very bottom.

 

[loves]

hope this isn't off topic...
My sis was telling me she saw this tv show of a Canadian/Japanese designer, who makes modern kimono's
Anyone heard of her? and any pics? Sis says their real cute and funky

oh do find out please. i forsee a japanese kimono inspired trend coming up thanks to the movie adaptation of Memoirs of a Geisha

 

[travolta]

Hi from Tokyo, Travolta, I know exactly what you're talking about! (^.^) I love it too. I havent been to Kyoto in a few years, but there was an adorable cosmetic boutique in Kyoto, right in Ponto-cho where the Geisha quarters are. They sell Geisha make-up: traditional wooden combs, pigments, powders, all in quaint little Japanese containers. It's open for the public so I don't know if it is THE original brand that Geishas use, but I know they do recreate the same formulae. I dont know if there was gold in the lipstick I remember but yes, it was in a fragile little ceramic pot with a thin coating of the richest, most saturated true red pigment at the very bottom.

hi melisande,

thanks for the heads up! btw. do you want to trade places?
if i ever go to kyoto i'll poke around for it...

 

[Melisande]

My pleasure Travolta!

You seem to know so much about Japan, I kind of thought you were from here. Which area of the world do you live in?

Hey, look what I've found! Not sure if it's from the same store, but this seems to have some gold shimmer to it too. Apparantly, this IS what the Maiko-sans actually use, and is made of saffron. The containers are actual clam shells. (I'm very new, not sure how to add pictures, but here goes...)

By the way, I'm fascinated by Sofialuv's Magic Pot!!! I've got to get one too.

From this site:
http://www.kyoto-zou.co.jp/shop/zou/kyobeni.htm

 

[Melisande]

Apparantly, this IS what the Maiko-sans actually use, and is made of saffron.

Er...I meant safflower.