The hairstyles of Geisha have varied considerably over history. Before the time of T'ang China, it was most common for women to wear their hair down but during the time of T'ang China, it became popular to tie one's hair up. Women then returned to wearing their hair parted in the center and hanging straight down. Again during the seventeenth century, women began pulling all their hair up again and it is during this time that the traditional hairstyle, shimada, developed. This is the hairstyle worn by Geisha and means generally thatall the hair is pulled back in one section. There are four major types of the shimada: Taka Shimada,a high chignon (a kind of knot of hair), usually worn by young, single women; Tsubushi shimada, a more flattened chignon generally worn by older women; Uiwata, a chignon that is usually bound up with a piece of color cotton crepe; and a style that ends up looking like a divided peach, typically worn by maiko. These hairstyles were decorated with elaborate hair-combs and hairpins, which often symbolized status. In the seventeenth century and after the Meiji Restoration period, hair-combs were large and conspicuous, generally more ornate for higher-class women. During the Meiji restoration and in this modern era, smaller less conspicuous hair-combs are more popular. The traditional makeup of the Geisha is probably the most common feature associated with the culture because of its striking contrast to contemporary makeup. Under the influence of T'ang China, early geisha and other women of the period would dye their brows a golden yellow. Beginning in the Sixteenth century, the Geisha began using a white foundation made from rice powder that has since been replaced by a white cream. Geisha wear bright red lipstick, made from safflower extract and often worn only in the center of the lips to emphasize delicacy, femininity and the desired miniature effect. Light red rouge made from crimson flower petals was also worn. Until the Meiji period, Geisha and other performers were known to permanently stain their teeth black, the significance of which is not certain. The world of Geisha is a culture that allows Japanese women to be independent and economically self-sufficient, as they do not marry (as they would cease to be a Geisha if she did).

It is probably the only profession in Japanese which the women are consistently ranked above the men in the profession. Geisha also allows a woman to work into old age and because of the high cultural value on this preservation of traditional art and culture gives the woman an inherent value and respect that she might otherwise be unable to obtain.