Katsura: Geisha Dreams

Visiting Katsura Photo Studio was probably the coolest thing I have done since coming to Tokyo. Katsura specializes in traditional Japanese culture in photography, which basically means that if you want to dress up like a Geisha, Samurai, or Maiko you come here, they dress you up, and then they take your picture. I found a coupon in a magazine and, after a lot of “thinking about it,” I decided what better souvenir could I bring home than the memory of spending a few hours as a Geisha (makeup, kimono, wig, etc…) and the proof of my experience in a dozen or so pictures.

When we (Katie and I) got to the studio, we had the choice of dressing up as either a Geisha or a Maiko (Geisha in training). Although we have way overstepped the traditional age limit of a Maiko, sixteen, we chose to dress up as one because they get to wear flowers and antique decorations in their hair. Once our kimonos, hair pieces, and poses were chosen, we were whisked away to a dressing room where we put on little slips and had our make up done.

First, they put our hair up in nets and then taped our foreheads in a way that made our eyebrows stand up. It was a little uncomfortable to have people pulling and taping my face in place, but it's a small price to pay to be a Geisha.

We were very pampered. Between Katie and I, five people were involved in our transformation. The staff was young and hip. The girls there went crazy over Katie's and my curly hair. The whole experience was really surreal. Because we couldn't speak Japanese and the staff could speak only the very basics of English, we just sat there always unaware of what would happen next. Having so many faces and hands puppeting me around the room was strangely liberating.

Having taped my eyebrows into position and secured my hair, the makeup artist went to work applying the white makeup. The application process felt more like a massage than anything else. I don't know what it is about Japanese fingers, but they have a delicately magical touch. The first thing she applied was some kind of clear, sticky base. My guess is that this base helps keep the makeup moisturized and elastic on your skin so that it doesn't crack. The white makeup is applied to your face, neck, chest, and back using a luxuriously soft brush.

Once the white makeup is applied, your face becomes a blank slate for the artist to create the famous Geisha angles, shadows, and funny shaped eye brows. She created contours on my faces using a very, very, light pink powder and liquid makeup. She also completely transformed my eyebrows using the same techniques of pink under black. It was really magical to see my face go from white and globby-looking to a sophisticated Geisha, well, Maiko, that is.

The makeup counter

Once my makeup was done I was moved to the kimono fitting area. Dressing in the kimono took two people, several minutes, and a lot of skill. There are no zippers or buttons on a kimono. Layer after layer is tied into place using various sashes and strips of cloth. The kimono was very heavy and very tight, but I quickly felt really comfortable in it. Look at how my eyebrows have changed! I love how alive my face looks, despite it being painted completely white. If you ever dress up like a Geisha/Maiko you should remember that you should never, I'll repeat, NEVER smile with your teeth. I caught myself smiling in the mirror and my teeth were a grotesque, neon yellow next to my perfectly snow white skin.

Here I am after several minutes of being tied down and wrapped tight.

Here I am: Maiko Amanda. Check out my little shoes. I wish I could say they were comfortable.

This is a really good one of Maiko Katie. She picked a really beautiful kimono. It had butterflies flying all around it.

After our photo session in the studio they let us go outside and hang out in their little garden for a while. Katie took this picture of me. I look somber.

Very Sweet

Coy

Challenging

Prima Donna

Come and Get Me Boys

So the neck paint is a really important part of the Geisha makeup. The lower the unpainted little patch of skin goes, the more seductive you become.

Sisters

The Katsura experience lasted over three hours. It was unforgettable. After the photo session and the walk in the Japanese garden we removed our kimonos and went to work taking off the makeup. I was still washing white makeup from my ears two days later. We have at least 100 photos-- if you would like to see them, please watch the slide show below.