Bira-bira: Dangling metal streamers which make a soft tinkling noise.Kisetsubana: 'Seasonal flowers'. The traditional flower kanzashi worn by maiko that change every month.Maiko: Apprentice geisha of Kyoto. Their training is in traditional dance, music, etiquette and conversation.
They are recognisable by their knee-length darari obi (kimono sash), long sleeves with horizontal tucks, high wooden clogs
(okobo), striking white face makeup, and rigidly styled hair.They usually wear one large hanakanzashi on the left side, smaller jewelled ornaments on the opposite side and at the back, and a floral 'bridge' arrangement or comb across the top of the head. Their costume includes subtle indicators as to the wearer's age and skill level. One of the easiest ways to tell is by her kanzashi- new or unskilled maiko wear fancier, more elaborate styles made up of many flowers, changing to a few single blooms as she becomes more adept. The elaborate ornaments compensate for her comparative lack of skill by making her as decorative as possible. Fully-qualified geisha do not need these decorative distractions, but can occasionally be seen wearing small subtle versions of seasonal kanzashi for special events.
Minarai: Stage of pre-maiko training. Although they wear a similar costume
to maiko, there are some small differences. Minarai are riotously decorative and wear densely-patterned, madly colourful
kimono. Their hanakanzashi are similar to those worn by junior maiko, although their arrangements may be a little more colourful
or fancy, and there are some designs which are minarai-specific.
Mizuhiki: Both a traditional paper craft and the material used therein.
It is a strong, flexible cord made from tightly-wound paper that is starched and given a coloured coating. It is used as a
decorative embellishment on maiko kanzashi.
Shidare: strings of trailing petals. They are sometimes misidentified as
'wisteria', but can be seen on many types of kanzashi throughout the year (the shape of trailing wisteria kanzashi is quite different), usually decorating a 'bouquet' style arrangement. Trailing kanzashi are one way of identifying junior maiko (although they do not always wear shidare so it is not an absolute rule).
Tsumami: literally, pinching or folding; the technique used to make silk
kanzashi. Folded silk hair ornaments may be called
tsumami kanzashi to distinguish them from carved or metal hair ornaments, or hanakanzashi made from wired cord or mizuhiki.
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