Lost Hawaii: Lauhala Hats

[Miulang]

Neat story from Bob Krauss in this morning's Advertiser (http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/current/ln/bob). Can you imagine only paying $3 for a lauhala hat? How many people still know how to make these hats today?

Miulang

[kimo55]

Neat story from Bob Krauss in this morning's Advertiser (http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/current/ln/bob). Can you imagine only paying $3 for a lauhala hat? How many people still know how to make these hats today?

Miulang


Just about every tutu at da PCC

a couple guys along Kalakaua

most all Samoans selling swap meet.


a haole guy; coconut bob or sumpin li dat kualoa mac farms store.

at PCC, I see them whip one out in a couple minutes, and they motion toward a collection of them, a little pile of them on da mat, they say: "yer choice, six dollah each."
and invariably da touriststs will say, "But i want THAT one!" cuz they watched it being made...

[Miulang]

Just about every tutu at da PCC

a couple guys along Kalakaua

most all Samoans selling swap meet.


a haole guy; coconut bob or sumpin li dat kualoa mac farms store.

at PCC, I see them whip one out in a couple minutes, and they motion toward a collection of them, a little pile of them on da mat, they say: "yer choice, six dollah each."
and invariably da touriststs will say, "But i want THAT one!" cuz they watched it being made...
I not talking about dakine green coconut hats...I talking about da kine dat takes hours to make and is crafted by someone who cares about the end product.

Miulang

[pzarquon]

I not talking about dakine green coconut hats...I talking about da kine dat takes hours to make and is crafted by someone who cares about the end product.So the people making hats to sell today don't care about the end product? The amount of labor required determines their quality or worth? Even the people profiled in the 1901 article were pumping them out for tourists. The fact that there are still people here in Hawaii putting these things together by hand is something to be happy about -- it's probably cheaper and easier to have 'em made by the containerload in Taiwan and shipped in.

And I don't think folks are too sorry to see the end of "peacock quill" hats and hats that use hard-to-find and probably rare ferns. 400 quills - with the feathers removed - to make one hat? That's gotta be one cold peacock. (And the bird isn't even native to the islands.)

[Miulang]

So the people making hats to sell today don't care about the end product? The amount of labor required determines their quality or worth? Even the people profiled in the 1901 article were pumping them out for tourists. The fact that there are still people here in Hawaii putting these things together by hand is something to be happy about -- it's probably cheaper and easier to have 'em made by the containerload in Taiwan and shipped in.

And I don't think folks are too sorry to see the end of "peacock quill" hats and hats that use hard-to-find and probably rare ferns. 400 quills - with the feathers removed - to make one hat? That's gotta be one cold peacock. (And the bird isn't even native to the islands.)
No, the QUALITY of the product very often means it takes more time. The "junk" that's really mass produced today looks good for a few days or months or maybe even years, but those are the kind of things that get tossed aside eventually. The quality stuff is the stuff that's handed down as heirlooms. For instance, I'm not sure I'd will a machine made Hawaiian quilt from Sears Roebuck (probably made in Taiwan)to anyone; I would probably will a Hawaiian quilt that is pieced together by an artisan using a sewing machine because each one is unique. That's the difference.

Miulang

One of the problems with our society is we are all consumers. When something breaks (as it will if quality standards are not adhered to, or if the stuff is engineered to break down), we run out to buy a new one rather than try to fix it. And I'm not exempting myself completely from this mentality, either.

[pinakboy]

i no can even find lauhala trees anymore. used to get choke in kalihi now no moa! :eek: anybody know whea get some trees. i need some leaves for some pandan rice and other kakanin recipes! hehehe :D if get extra leaves i go try make hats! :p

[Dawn Summer]

Dear Seattle--
The art of weaving a lauhala hat is not yet dead. There has been a resurgence of this craft in the last few years. The travesty is that Hawaiians are not interested in learning. I learned to weave hats from an elderly Japanese woman who now lives in Honolulu - she was raised in Kona. Most of her students are Japanese businessmen who come from Japan.

Making a lauhala hat is extremely labor intense. Gathering the leaves is a discouraging job in it's self. The leaves (when you can find the right kind of tree) are filthy and house lizard eggs and bugs - sometimes centipedes. To gather the really good leaves, you have to climb up into the tree. That is not fun - remember I mentioned bugs and centipedes? There are also thorns that grow along each side and middle of the hala. I'm lucky, I know where there is a thorn less tree. The quality of hala on the thorn less tree is not as good, however, those thorns can be merciless. Cleaning is just as much work. Each leaf is cut, washed, stripped and rolled between a press to flatten it out. After that, each leaf is sorted by color and stripped into different widths.


When you get to the point where you've visualized the end product - weaving becomes fun. But first you have to get past an enormous amount of tedious and redundant weaving.

It amazes me how I can take 25 filthy bug infested leaves and create something so beautiful and lasting. I've made 18 hats since starting in 1998 - it took me the first 14 to get my groove. Email me for pics. :)

[Glen Miyashiro]

Dawn, how many hours of work does each hat take? No wonder the good ones cost so much.

[Dawn Summer]

A lot. I've never counted it's hard to judge - the prep work is done in bulk stages. The weaving is done a few hours here and there... usually when I should be sleeping. It's a labor of love.

[kimo55]

I hear there's a lauhala weaving class coming up soon at da Bishop Museum...

[Dawn Summer]

Bishop Museum offers a basic weaving course, bracelets and fans etc. it's a good class - I took it myself.

[patrick6]

Bishop Museum offers a basic weaving course, bracelets and fans etc. it's a good class - I took it myself.
I called Bishop Mujseum and adult schools and they denied any lauhala class. Any ideas for a class

[U'ilani]

When I was at the 'Iolani Palace a couple of Saturdays ago, there were a bunch of women sitting at a table next to the ticket office (at the Palace Barracks) doing lauhala weaving. It seemed to be a regular thing they did. They were all local women--no tourists. You might give them a call and see if that was a class available to the general public.

[patrick6]

Dear Dawn Would you have the info on your teacher?

[Surfingfarmboy]

Speaking of lost Hawai'i fashions, are palaka shirts still made in Hawai'i? I own one solitary palaka shirt..the lone survivor of many I used to own...and it has gotten so worn, I'm just about ready to retire it, only to bring it out of the closet on special days. It was one I bought a long time ago at a general store in Makawao on Maui.

I've lost track where I can buy them in Hawai'i, if they still can be had. They don't seem to be as prevelant out in the ag areas of Hawai'i as I remember.

Anybody know if I can still buy one off the rack, and if so, where?

[Dawn Summer]

Patrick6 - Lau hala weaving is NOT for the faint at heart. It is hard work - yes, yielding something very special, however it is a commitment.

Yes, BM did have a lau hala weaving class some time ago...

Surfingfarmboy - An indigenous Hawaiian shirt? Forget it. Everything is sewn in Malaysia. Even the flower leis come from Thailand!

[Pomai]

Here's some a vendor was selling at the Opaeka'a Falls lookout near Wailua River on Kauai back in July 2005...

http://www.96seven44.com/images/lauhalacrafts.jpg

My GF paid $12 for the hat and $6 for the bowl, which she gave as presents to her lola (grandma).

Image hosted by www.96Seven44.com (http://www.96seven44.com)

[tutusue]

There's an older, local gentleman who auditions with me a few times a year. Each time, while he's waiting, he weaves a basket for me. Last time my asst. oooh'd and aaaah'd over it. When he was pau with the audition he sat back down in the waiting room and weaved a basket for her. He is so fast and those baskets are so treasured!

One commercial, in particular, while he didn't get the role he auditioned for, my clients loved watching him and wrote him and his lauhala weaving into the HVCB commercial.

Speaking of lauhala...has anyone ever seen a floor decoupaged with lauhala mats...as in permanently resined, rather than mats resting atop the floor? Just curious.

[lurkah]

http://www.96seven44.com/images/lauhalacrafts.jpg
Those hats sure look like they're made out of coconut fronds to me. ;)

Lauhala has a much tighter weave like in the attached photo.

[Pomai]

Those hats sure look like they're made out of coconut fronds to me. ;)

Oops. My bad. Goes to show what I know about the craft. Oh well, still thought they were nice stuff. Not as long lasting as what Miulang mentioned though.

What about Hawaiian Feather Lei crafts? My aunt who just passed was unbelievably talented in making that stuff. Luckily she passed some her knowledge on feather lei making to my mother and other aunties. Will share pics in a new thread later.

[luckdragon808]

I have recently met an old Hawaiian couple who are in their 70's both born on the Big Island now living in Waimanalo. Tutu makes some wonderful lauhala hats and teaches her craft in Kailua.

a hui hou, Chris

[CraftyCat]

Hi! I'm new to the list. Does anybody know who makes the nice kine stripping boxes for lau hala leaves ...small enough...with da razor blades, yah? I like to make some bracelets and stuffs for family. You got an address, a number, or a price? I'd like to treat myself to one nice one. I'm on Kauai but no matter where box comes from, K?

Mahalo~

Cat

[nanea lauhala]

Hi Dawn Summer,
Do you still weave hats? Who did you learn from? I learn from Aunty Gladys.

[nanea lauhala]

Hi! I'm new to the list. Does anybody know who makes the nice kine stripping boxes for lau hala leaves ...small enough...with da razor blades, yah? I like to make some bracelets and stuffs for family. You got an address, a number, or a price? I'd like to treat myself to one nice one. I'm on Kauai but no matter where box comes from, K?

Mahalo~

Cat

Hi - check out the Kauai Museum. See Margaret. Or if you are in Honolulu check out Na Mea at the Ward Warehouse. Good luck

[nanea lauhala]

Neat story from Bob Krauss in this morning's Advertiser (http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/current/ln/bob). Can you imagine only paying $3 for a lauhala hat? How many people still know how to make these hats today?

Miulang
Hi Miulang,
check out Na Mea at Wardware house and Macy Ala Moana. There are really some wonderful weavers now. They are starting to come back with the anoni designs. These hats are authentic lau hala hats woven by local people using lau hala picked from our Hawaiian Islands. If these people go through the trouble of picking and cleaning you will know that there is a lot of good energy that is in the hat.

[elemakule]

I have recently met an old Hawaiian couple who are in their 70's both born on the Big Island now living in Waimanalo. Tutu makes some wonderful lauhala hats and teaches her craft in Kailua.

a hui hou, Chris
How can I get in touch with this couple? I`m looking for a lau hala hat made in the real old style for a kolohala hatband that I just finished. I will be on O`ahu march 12th for three weeks.Would appreciate any info.

Thanks,

John

[Glen Carner]

The pictures of the palm leaf hat and baskets are not Lauhala. "Lau" means leaf and "hala" is the name of the pandanus tree. Therefor something made of palm would not qualify regardless of the width of the strip used. Here are some real Lauhala hats and bracelets using authentic techniques and lauhala.

http://www.hawaiiart.com/prodimages/medium/LauhalaHat2.jpg (http://www.hawaiiart.com/crafts/LauhalaHat2.php)

http://www.hawaiiart.com/prodimages/medium/LauhalaHatwithPinkandGreenHaku.jpg (http://www.hawaiiart.com/crafts/LauhalaHatwithPinkandGreenHaku.php)

Both of these Lauhala Hats and more authentic Hawaiian crafts can be found at HawaiiArt.com (http://www.hawaiiart.com).