Of the most famous Japanese beauty recipes, we will rather be interested in those that were used by beauties from the noble houses of ancient Japan. Unlike geishas, they could not cover their faces with a thick layer of white, although powder was, of course, in use, and they paid great attention to skin care.
How geisha looked after their beauty
Their recipes are simple and rational: protect your face from the sun and wind, eat healthy food, sleep a lot and keep your skin clean. This is very important if you use makeup. The girl daily washed her face with a special silk bag filled with a combination of rice bran and camellia nuts, which helped to cleanse and nourish the skin. Whole treatises have been written about the usefulness of bran in medicinal cosmetics.
Fill a small silk drawstring bag with finely ground rice bran and immerse it in very hot water for a few minutes, then squeeze. When the milky fluid seeps through it, wash your face with it with gentle massaging movements. This is both purification and nutrition.
The most popular cosmetic product in the East, where white skin is prized, is lemon... Washing with lemon water and masks with the addition of lemon pulp have survived to this day.
Geisha hairstyle
What else is a characteristic of a geisha? A sophisticated, spectacular hairstyle with a variety of accessories. The hairstyle had a symbolic meaning, like the makeup, it testified to the status of the girls. The maiko's hairstyle was made in the form of a donut raised high above the neck, decorated with ribbons and silk flowers and symbolized youth and virginity. In the traditional maiko hairstyle, a small strand of hair was pulled tightly back and subsequently fell out, leaving a small bare spot on the crown of the head.
Adult geisha tied their hair in a lower, bulky knot., decorated them with hairpins and gemstone pins to symbolize their prosperity. By the appearance of the hairstyle, connoisseurs can tell a lot about her mistress - about her age, status, position. The hairstyle is not an arbitrary fantasy, it is also determined by tradition. Such a work of art is long and expensive to create, so geishas sleep right with their hair, placing a hard takama-kuru roller under their necks: God forbid ruining the work of a hairdresser!
But hair, which is not washed often, begins to smell, and dandruff is rife. Therefore, modern geisha have dismissed all these difficulties and wear wigs with a classic high hairstyle to work. However, the geisha of the highest classes never stoop to neglecting tradition and replacing their hair with a wig, since their income allows them to use the services of a personal hairdresser every day.