Creating Realistic Geisha Makeup

I hope that if you have made it this far you have taken a moment to ask yourself, "What is a Geisha, anyway?"
There are only a few websites out there that do the art justice and the rest seem to be duplicates, copy-and-pasted information.

Basically (and I mean seriously simplified), the Geisha is a woman trained in the traditional arts of Japan. She is not a prostitute, she is an entertainer, a dancer, a musician, etc.

In my quest to get a better understanding of the tradition, I found myself reading "Geisha, A Life" by Mineko Iwasaki. The 300 page autobiography of a real Geisha also includes pictures of real Geisha working and performing as well as closeups of their beautiful outfits and hairpins. I highly recommend it, especially over "Memoirs of a Geisha," to anyone who really wants to have a glimpse inside their world.

As much as I would love to go way off topic, l must remember, we are just talking makeup. :D

For further reading, check out "Ukiyo-e: 250 Years of Japanese Art" to get a better understanding of the roles and boundaries of the Courtesan and Geisha... and to oogle at the gorgeous full color plates. I'm geeking out.
The book is predominately images of wood block prints with a bit of history related text mixed in which really fleshed out the subject matter for me.