the Happy Coconut » Aloha Wear

Meaning of the “Lei” – Here’s one for the Holidays!

Surfa Aunty — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 01:00:05 +0000

In Hawaii, the “lei” is a traditional part of Hawaii and is given at many events, special occasions, and is a way of showing, respect, love, congratulations, and is also a way to welcome visitors to the islands.

Traditionally leis are made out of many different flowers and now many lei makers are using leaves, shells and other plants, beads, and nuts to decorate the lei.

Here is a silk flower lei with poinsetta and a white flower called tuberose. Get ready for the holidays and contact us to order – Email: wishiwere@themarketplaceshops.com.

How Aloha Shirts are Made

Sushi Monster — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:34:20 +0000

Local clothing manufacturers have been making Aloha shirts and dresses in Hawaii since the 1930s. And although modern computer technology has greatly changed the way designs are created, the actual manufacturing process of the shirts themselves today hasn’t changed all that much. It is still a labor intensive process that requires great skill at certain stages of production. We visited a shirt maker in Honolulu to shoot some video of the various phases of the shirt manufacturing process.

That electric blade in the video is freakishly sharp. At another manufacturer a few years ago, a worker accidentally touched (barely) the blade while it was on and it caused a seriously deep flesh wound. Scary stuff. But it gave me a new appreciation of the kind of time, effort, and skill that goes into making a simple shirt.

The real fun in shooting this video was having an excuse to go to the North Shore to eat shave ice (not that we really need a reason, but it is kinda far) and to go eat and drink at Zenshu. I was especially excited to go back to Zenshu to try out their new Natto Menu with happy hour Kirin beer. Anyways, we felt kinda touristy wearing the aloha wear for the video, but it was fun!

This video was produced by Hawaiian Outpost with special thanks to ZenShu Sake-Sushi-Sports.

Piko Clothing Line inspired by the Spirt of Surfing

Surfa Aunty — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:14:41 +0000

To the ancient Hawaiians, the piko, more commonly known as the navel, was seen as the source of life, and tied you to your lineage. Much like how surfing, the sport of Hawaiian Kings, has been passed down from generation to generation. Over time people, faces and places have changed, yet throughout these changes the true spirit of surfing has remained the same.

Thus, Piko is a clothing line inspired by the legacy of Hawaiian Surfers who are truly unique individuals. This is attributed to their love for life and respect and loyalty to their ‘aina, ocean, and ancestors. Piko reflects the style, culture and tradition of the Hawaiian Surfer.

See more designs: (click on shirt)

Hawaiian Clothing Photo Shoot

Sushi Monster — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:23:40 +0000

We always have fun at our photo shoots. Over the years, we noticed that there is a fine line between a good shoot and a not-so-good one. The main factor is not how attractive the models are, but the chemistry between the models. It’s not even enough for the models to feel comfortable with each other. They have to actually like each other so that they have fun during the shoot.

With models who never worked with each other before, the shoot always starts slow. The models may smile, but they won’t laugh. They’ll hold hands and stand close, but they’ll look nervous. Eventually, if the models are compatible with each other, they’ll start to relax and have fun.

The photographer can help this process along a great deal. If the photographer jokes around in a way that makes the models laugh, it goes a long way in accelerating everyone’s comfort level with each other. If everyone is having fun, it shows in the pictures. The real payoff, however, often comes in the next shoot a few months later. With everyone used to each other, those shoots start quick and are loads of fun. It’s hard to imagine being on the beach with models and thinking, “Wow, I get paid for this?!?”

This Hawaiian clothing video was produced by AlohaFunWear.com.

This photo shoot video features Angelanette and Jason who worked with each on previous shoots. The photographer, Geralyn (www.hokuliiimages.com), also worked with them before so they all knew each other quite well. This shoot called for a third model who we had yet to find. So one weekend we all headed out to a night club to hang out and see if we could find another model. Angel, determined to find a model quickly walked up to a bunch of dudes drinking beer and flirted with them. She came right back and told us she secured our model for the shoot. As expected, this shoot got off to a bit of a slow start but Geralyn and her assistant, Wes, did their thing and soon had the models goofing around and hamming it up for the camera. It sure was fun and we look forward to the next photo shoot!

Ironing an Aloha Shirt FAST!

Sushi Monster — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:06:48 +0000

I dunno about you, but I am not particularly efficient when it comes to ironing clothes. Of course, I’ll carefully iron my dress shirts so I don’t look like a barbarian, but in general I try to avoid ironing because I basically suck at it. But what amazes me is that various Hawaiian clothing manufacturers contract out their ironing of their shirts and dresses. I can’t imagine ironing stuff all day, but I have seen people do it. They must get paid by the shirt because they can blast through a shirt in well under 30 seconds. I filmed a guy demonstrating how to iron a shirt super fast. He did it in 22 seconds, and this is not even his job!

This Hawaiian shirt video was produced by AlohaFunWear.com.