Count de Sang and Lady Raisu recently went to Kyoto… and partook in a most intriguing activity! What on Earth is going on here — and how can we get in on the action? Lady Raisu has the scoop:

The activity we tried is called Maiko (the one he did) / Geiko (the one I did, also known as geishas). There are some agents and tours in Kyoto that provide this experience, since Maiko (apprentice geishas) are as famous in this region as the historic shrines, temples and green tea. The Maiko / Geiko experience is getting so popular that apparently, even high-school students (both girls and boys!) try this activity during their school trips!

One of the funny parts of this activity was how we had our faces painted. (The agent’s makeup artist specializes in traditional geisha and apprentice looks.) To make the white foundation stable, a special sticky oil was applied on our face first. Then, the thin white liquid coated our face and the back of our necks. They used red color for our eyebrows and around the eyes, and made our lips very small. Since geishas should have a rather hard-featured face, they pulled up and taped the edges of my face (by my cheeks and eyes) before putting the wig (which was quite heavy!) on me. So my face must look harder than usual I guess? I think this taping trick will be useful when my facial skin loosens (more than now, I mean) so that I won’t need to have expensive plastic surgery!

Needless to say, Maiko / Geiko are for women, so it was a special case to let Count de Sang dress up as Maiko. The agent doesn’t officially allow male customers to go outside while wearing Maiko / Geiko style. I first thought that it is to protect the respectable Japanese tradition. However, the agent told us that it is to protect these male customers, as not all of them would look good with the style… and once they went out, they might get severe judgements from tourists around them!

If you’re interested in finding out more and trying the experience for yourself, check out this and this webpage.

Gallermic (visionary behind The Fashion Ramone and Narzib) recently had a photography exhibition titled “The Absentee Owner” at Magic Room in Nadiff, the intellectual Ebisu spot. Cotton Bale (who is performing at his next party) attended and took photos. She says, “It was really different from what I have seen of his work before. In the past he took mainly club photos, but this was a narrative series with portraits and figure shots.”

Gallermic’s new party, Willa, promises to be as much of an art/culture/fashion/intellectual love letter as his previous ones. I can’t get enough of the manifestos and flowery self-reflections on the new blog: “I think I am a coquettish person, or with a bacchanalia tendency, I want to faire l’amour a mourir.”

“I’m an art object and very very expensive!” – Caravaggio (in Derek Jarman’s eponymous film)
“One should either be a work of art, or wear a work of art.” – Oscar Wilde

Speaking of… Akumu Ink has started printing the La Carmina collaboration t-shirts! Designer Joey blogged: “Here is the Carmina in Wonderland design: an intricate gold print with fantastic detailing. I placed both La Carmina and her cat Basil Farrow in the roles of Alice and the Cheshire cat at a mini tea party. I even switched the classic British style of tea pot and tea cup for a more Eastern look.” Have you picked one up yet? They’re available on Akumu Ink’s website — please spread the word!