Sakkou Hikizuri

Around the age of twenty-one, or, when a girl has been a maiko for about four/five years, preparations are put into place for the maiko to become a geiko, a happening which is known as eri-kae. Two to four weeks before this ceremony, the maiko wil start wearing her hair in sakkou style.

The style of kimono worn during sakkou may vary among the hanamachi of Kyoto. In all hanamachi except for Gion Kobu, the maiko wear a red collar (eri) decorated with golden speckles, which is called Akaji-no-Eri. In some hanamachi the maiko wear coloured kimono, in other they wear formal black kimono (kuromontsuki). In some hanamachi the sakkou maiko even wear a coloured kimono first, which is followed a few days later by a black one. The kimono is always crested and worn in combination with a formal golden obi though, and the nagajuban has golden decorations on it as well.

For matching hair and kanzashi, please look respectively here and here.

"Hikizuri" means that the kimono has a longer length than a usual one and is worn by geisha and maiko, apprentice geisha. What is more iconic than the geisha in her hikizuri? The hem of a hikizuri, or trailing kimono, would drape on the floor and swirl gracefully as the geiko or maiko stands, and of course, as she dances.