Maiko Hair
When a trainee began her career as a maiko, one of the first rites of passage included having her hair styled in the exquisite hairstyle most associated with geisha culture. She went to the hairdresser once a week to have her hair refreshed, a painstaking process. Her hair is separated into sections, then tied into a bun. The bun is split in the back, revealing a hint of red silk.
A maiko’s hair, the miokuri, indicates her rank; as she moves from early apprentice to higher-ranking maiko to geisha, her style changes. To finish the look, geisha wore floral decorations such as kanzashi, or silver fringes called Bira Ōgi to add movement and decoration to the already delicate hairstyle. While getting the artistic hairstyle was a maiko rite of passage and something to be proud of, the process included getting used to pain.
