When I was planning my trip to Japan I was hoping to see a geisha or a maiko, apprentice geisha, somewhere. The best place to do this in Kyoto is Gion, a traditional neighborhood with tea houses where geisha still perform. But, for some reason, my friend and I didn't really have the time and forgot to go there which I really regret. But we didn't have to look far to find geishas. Because we turned into them ourselves! Well, we had a make-over to become a maiko, to be precise. We chose maiko above geisha because geisha have a very simple make-up and sober colors, while maiko are colorful and wear a lot of accessories. Information about these dress-ups are quite scarce, especially about personal experiences, so I hope I can provide a bit more information for those interested.
I had made an appointment with the studio Yume Koubou a few weeks before going to Japan. Yume Koubou is a studio that specializes in these geisha and maiko dress-ups and also organizes walking tours around town in combination with a make-over. We just opted for the make-over and photoshoot.
We booked for 11AM so after sleeping in we started searching for the studio. Yume Koubou has several locations in Kyoto, so you can chose the place which is most convenient for you. We chose the studio near Kyoto Station. But before heading there we had to search for a 7-11 to get some cash, because other convenience stores don't accept our cash cards and Japan is still very much a cash orientated country.
Inside the studio we checked in at the reception and were led by a lady to a make-up / changing room. It is basically a big room where you first need to change into a white undergarment which is shaped like a kimono. Then you put your stuff in a locker and seat yourself in front of a mirror, which were just like at a hair dressers. There were two ladies helping us. One of them did the make-up while the other one dressed us. They didn't speak much English, but enough to make us understand what was going on. First the make-up lady put our hair in a hair net. She then alternated doing both our faces; making our faces white and drawing eyebrows. And of course the gorgeous swallows tail in the neck. The eyes and lips take a lot more time and concentration so she did these separately for us.
So while she was doing my friends make-up I had to choose a kimono. There were three racks full of them, in any color imaginable. All of them gorgeous. It seriously took me ten minutes to choose, but in the end I chose a mint colored one with pink cherry blossoms. The staff girl then started dressing me, and man, it really takes a while to put a kimono on! And many many layers. It starts with special socks with only two toes, then some more undergarments, a kimono, obi (belt) and some more pieces for the belt and a lot of folding, pulling and pushing. Once it is done it feels really tight and quite heavy too, but it looks stunning. The finishing touch is a wig with accessories that you can also choose. And some wooden sandals of course.
When we were both ready we headed to the studio for photos. The photographer gives you really precise directions on where to look, how to stand and how to put your hands; everything is explained. This is a good thing because I had no idea what to do and the pictures turned out really good because of the directions. A downside is that you don't have a lot of freedom. When you are posing there are different kind of props like parasols, fans and such which they will hand to you. I am not sure if you are free to switch and chose yourself. I just let them do whatever, it was all beautiful in my eyes anyway. And then lastly the shoes of doom were presented. They were geta (wooden sandals), but of scandalous hight. All I could think while wearing them was 'Just don't fall over'. It was kind of scary, but I turend out fine, luckily! Lastly they took a photo of us together. In total about 20 photos.
In the hallway there is a cute little setting of a traditional Japanese background where we were free to take pictures with our own camera. So we had a little photo shoot of our own. When we were ready we were stripped again from our layers of kimono and put our normal clothes back on. Near the lockers are some mirrors and cleaning products to take off the make-up, you don't want to walk around town in jeans and a white face with red lips.
Back in the reception we had to choose what kind of 'set' we wanted. Or we had to choose when we entered, I don't remember exactly. But choosing a set means choosing whether you want the photos to be printed and sent to your home, them to be put on a CD or some other options. We chose for a CD set and were handed a pretty bag which included a CD, the bill and a card with our photo on it.
It is an expensive thing to do, around 10,000 yen for our plan, but really fun and unique. The photos turned out great and I was really happy with it. And the whole experience was great. If you hesitate to try it, just do it! Even though it is expensive you will be more than happy with the results. I haven't regretted doing it a single second (okay, maybe for a few seconds while wearing those ridiculously high sandals).
In the afternoon we went back to Osaka again, for another concert. By now Osaka was our most visited place even when staying in Kyoto. When we arrived at Osaka Dome, a huge stadium used for baseball, but occasionally also for events like concerts, we were quite shocked by how big the place is. But the weird thing was that there were no other fans on the train and when we stepped out there was nobody and no sign of a concert. Surprise; There was none! We had mistaken the date and the concert was the next day. So it was a afternoon wasted on the train. But at least we could catch our breath and we just had to make up for the time lost on the next day.
And now for something that is kind of off topic; my external hard disc broke. I had a lot more pictures of the photo shoot and some I made with my own camera, but they were on my hard disc and I can't acces them now. Luckily I have them backed up on another computer, but that one is still in my room in Belgium. Anyway, what I want to say is that 1. More photos will be added to this post soon 2. Always back up your HDD and have photos saved in more than one place 3. Preferably back up your photos online so you can access them at any time.
I lost some photos that I hadn't backed up yet, which is really unfortunate, but thanks to Facebook and searching through my parents' computer (which took a long long time) I found a good portion of them back. The sad thing is, the reason why my HDD broke is because I was literally about to back up those photos for when something were to happen to my HDD when I picked up my HDD and dropped it. The irony. Anyway, I hope you guys learn from my mistake!
Notes;
I had made an appointment with the studio Yume Koubou a few weeks before going to Japan. Yume Koubou is a studio that specializes in these geisha and maiko dress-ups and also organizes walking tours around town in combination with a make-over. We just opted for the make-over and photoshoot.
We booked for 11AM so after sleeping in we started searching for the studio. Yume Koubou has several locations in Kyoto, so you can chose the place which is most convenient for you. We chose the studio near Kyoto Station. But before heading there we had to search for a 7-11 to get some cash, because other convenience stores don't accept our cash cards and Japan is still very much a cash orientated country.
Inside the studio we checked in at the reception and were led by a lady to a make-up / changing room. It is basically a big room where you first need to change into a white undergarment which is shaped like a kimono. Then you put your stuff in a locker and seat yourself in front of a mirror, which were just like at a hair dressers. There were two ladies helping us. One of them did the make-up while the other one dressed us. They didn't speak much English, but enough to make us understand what was going on. First the make-up lady put our hair in a hair net. She then alternated doing both our faces; making our faces white and drawing eyebrows. And of course the gorgeous swallows tail in the neck. The eyes and lips take a lot more time and concentration so she did these separately for us.
So while she was doing my friends make-up I had to choose a kimono. There were three racks full of them, in any color imaginable. All of them gorgeous. It seriously took me ten minutes to choose, but in the end I chose a mint colored one with pink cherry blossoms. The staff girl then started dressing me, and man, it really takes a while to put a kimono on! And many many layers. It starts with special socks with only two toes, then some more undergarments, a kimono, obi (belt) and some more pieces for the belt and a lot of folding, pulling and pushing. Once it is done it feels really tight and quite heavy too, but it looks stunning. The finishing touch is a wig with accessories that you can also choose. And some wooden sandals of course.
When we were both ready we headed to the studio for photos. The photographer gives you really precise directions on where to look, how to stand and how to put your hands; everything is explained. This is a good thing because I had no idea what to do and the pictures turned out really good because of the directions. A downside is that you don't have a lot of freedom. When you are posing there are different kind of props like parasols, fans and such which they will hand to you. I am not sure if you are free to switch and chose yourself. I just let them do whatever, it was all beautiful in my eyes anyway. And then lastly the shoes of doom were presented. They were geta (wooden sandals), but of scandalous hight. All I could think while wearing them was 'Just don't fall over'. It was kind of scary, but I turend out fine, luckily! Lastly they took a photo of us together. In total about 20 photos.
In the hallway there is a cute little setting of a traditional Japanese background where we were free to take pictures with our own camera. So we had a little photo shoot of our own. When we were ready we were stripped again from our layers of kimono and put our normal clothes back on. Near the lockers are some mirrors and cleaning products to take off the make-up, you don't want to walk around town in jeans and a white face with red lips.
Back in the reception we had to choose what kind of 'set' we wanted. Or we had to choose when we entered, I don't remember exactly. But choosing a set means choosing whether you want the photos to be printed and sent to your home, them to be put on a CD or some other options. We chose for a CD set and were handed a pretty bag which included a CD, the bill and a card with our photo on it.
It is an expensive thing to do, around 10,000 yen for our plan, but really fun and unique. The photos turned out great and I was really happy with it. And the whole experience was great. If you hesitate to try it, just do it! Even though it is expensive you will be more than happy with the results. I haven't regretted doing it a single second (okay, maybe for a few seconds while wearing those ridiculously high sandals).
In the afternoon we went back to Osaka again, for another concert. By now Osaka was our most visited place even when staying in Kyoto. When we arrived at Osaka Dome, a huge stadium used for baseball, but occasionally also for events like concerts, we were quite shocked by how big the place is. But the weird thing was that there were no other fans on the train and when we stepped out there was nobody and no sign of a concert. Surprise; There was none! We had mistaken the date and the concert was the next day. So it was a afternoon wasted on the train. But at least we could catch our breath and we just had to make up for the time lost on the next day.
And now for something that is kind of off topic; my external hard disc broke. I had a lot more pictures of the photo shoot and some I made with my own camera, but they were on my hard disc and I can't acces them now. Luckily I have them backed up on another computer, but that one is still in my room in Belgium. Anyway, what I want to say is that 1. More photos will be added to this post soon 2. Always back up your HDD and have photos saved in more than one place 3. Preferably back up your photos online so you can access them at any time.
I lost some photos that I hadn't backed up yet, which is really unfortunate, but thanks to Facebook and searching through my parents' computer (which took a long long time) I found a good portion of them back. The sad thing is, the reason why my HDD broke is because I was literally about to back up those photos for when something were to happen to my HDD when I picked up my HDD and dropped it. The irony. Anyway, I hope you guys learn from my mistake!
Notes;
- Don't forget to visit Gion when in Kyoto
- When you spot a geisha though, there is always a chance it is a tourist who did a make-over similar to what I did.
- Yume Koubou means 'Dream Workshop'. Nice name for a studio
- Don't be held back by the price to do a maiko/geisha make-over. It is worth it.
- Make sure your bank card or credit card works in Japan. My friend and I had a Dutch Maestro card, which only worked in the 7-eleven, not Circle K or Lawson or other convenience stores. It also worked at most banks. But 7-elevens are generally easier to find so we usually opted for that.
- The Japanese word for convenience store is konbini. Could be useful to know.
- Back up your photos online too. It's easier to acces them from other computers. I learned this the hard way.
Posts
