How can I look Japanese without surgery?

Question

Okay, first off I would like to request that no one says "What's wrong with you?! You should be proud of your heritage!" I know. And really I am. :) I'm Irish and Greek and I love that.

But the reason I'm asking is because I'm going to Japan soon and I don't want to stick out like a sore thumb.

All's I'd like is makeup/hair/clothing suggestions. Things that I can change back once I come back to America.

For hair I know I'd need it black and straight, which is something that I can do. But does anyone have any suggestions for Japanese hairstyles that would make one appear more/actually Japanese?

And eyes- my eyes are very dark so that's good, but any tips on how to make them appear more "out of my head" so to speak would be nice. And how to make them wider. (I have Greek eyes, so they're fairly wide.)

My facial structure is somewhat similiar to Japanese, I'd say. My nose and mouth are small, and my eyes have a larger-than-average space between them.

I just want to look more Japanese from a distance so I don't feel so different, I hope you can understand and I'd love and appreciate any answers. :)

Also anyone know how to make one look shorter? (lol) xD

Cheers, Kyrstin

Answer 1

What you are requesting is a bit difficult in the height question.  I guess you could slouch a bit?  But I don't recommend it, since you might get used to it, and it would look good while you're walking.  So please stick to your own height, it would be fine.  It would be a bit strange, and slighlty insulting [sorry to say].    

Your hair could be a variety of colors.  The Japanese people have dyed their hair into brown, wine red, orange being the most popular, some have gone blonde as well.  Black is the original color, and is probably most common around middle aged people though there are still some younger people with black, natural hair.  However, most of the students have died their hair orange.

As for the haircut, it seems to be layered, and usually there are bangs.  For bangs, you could either cut straight across and trim it down a bit.  Or you could get side swept bangs.  Another option would be to [this sounds a bit strange], but to have the right side, left side, and middle a bit longer while the hair above your eyes are cut so that it won't fall before your eyes [if you understand what I mean?].  You could cut the sides so that they stand out obviously [like a straight cut across, with bangs that are cut straight across].  Most hair, I think, is about midlength and not too long.  It seems like the shorter haircuts are gaining popularity.  Most asian haircuts seem "jagged" and a bit messy?  Your hair doesn't have to be straight, it could be slightly curled, as some people like curling their hair.  If you curl it extremely, then it would stand out [as in, if you have slightly curled, large curls, then it's fine].  

Their clothing is usually mismatched, but creative.  It's colorful and usually doesn't really "make sense".  However, wearing normal clothing [being just a plain shirt and jeans] is fine too, it's just not as common as it would be in America.  Most shirts have some English phrase on it that makes no sense.  So maybe if you wanted something that'd look Japanese, you could either by it in Japan on the first few days, or find something colorful and doesn't really "make sense" in America.  I recommend not wearing anything too revealing, because the Japanese are usually modest.  So try to refrain from sphagetti straps or extremely short shirts/pants [you could wear skirts that are mid-thigh, but not those that have half your butt sticking out].

Skin tones range, most Japanese are seemingly pale, but some have gotten tans because of the trend of looking "Californian".  A variety of styles of makeup is avaliable, and I'm not really sure how they would do it.  But it seems like the shade red is pretty commonly used.  Like you could apply mascara and eye liner, but then the eye shadowing is a light pinkish red?  Usually there is a bit of blush, and the lipstick seems to be extremely close the the color of the skin.  I'm not quite sure in this area.  I'm not sure what you mean by "out of my head", but you could probably use a darker tone of eye shadowing and more eyeliner and mascara to seemingly have them appear more obvious.  

Have fun and good luck!!

I hope this helped a bit.

Answer 2

Forget it. Japanese people are smarter than that ! They'll know you're a gaijin soon as they see you. And can you speak Japanese at a native level ?

JUST BE YOURSELF !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 3

just be yourself. plus theres lots of foreigners in japan. its not like they are gonna stare at you like your some sort of monster.  

Answer 4

Let's put it this way: things you NEVER noticed about yourself before will be noticed by Japanese people (although they will be too polite to say so). Face it, you look different. Whether or not you "stick out" or feel uncomfortable depends on your own state of mind.

If you are going there to live and want to get "the look"--that I'd understand. Just go and observe for a month. Then you'll have a better idea of what is cool and what isn't. But you will never look Japanese, no way.  

Answer 5

You really don't have to make yourself look like another race to fit in. In fact, it might even be more insulting to the locals, like you're mocking them. Just be yourself, seriously. The Japanese will love you, as they tend to be very welcoming to foreigners and love anything "exotic" (and Westerners and Western looks are "exotic" to them).