The first lei I ever learned to make was a lei ʻilima. I remember sitting down with a needle and thread, picking up each small golden blossom one by one, and quickly realizing this was going to take a while. It was tedious. It was time consuming. And it taught me something I have carried ever since — that the most meaningful things ask something of us. That patience is its own kind of love.
This piece, Nā Lei ʻIlima, is a celebration of that love. It features several lei incorporating ʻilima in different styles of lei making — wili, kui, hili, and haku — each one a different expression of the same intention.¹ Wili, which winds and wraps materials around a base in a corkscrew twist. Kui, the most familiar style, where each blossom is pierced and strung one by one onto a thread. Hili, a method of braiding one type of material together. And haku, a braided style where flowers and foliage are woven together, with kī traditionally used to bind the back.¹
Alongside the ʻilima, this piece features maile, palapalai, and kī — plants that have adorned our people in ceremony and celebration for generations.² Maile, a leafy vine with a woodsy scent, sacred and open-ended, traditionally draped over the shoulders of those being honored.² Palapalai, a delicate fern connected to Laka, goddess of the forest and hula.²
One lei in this piece pairs ʻilima with pīkake — a flower that is not native to Hawaiʻi, but one that many of us grew up with and that fills our memories with fragrance. We acknowledge that lei making has always evolved, shaped by the people who practice it and the flowers they hold dear. This pairing is an honest reflection of that — native and introduced, woven together with the same care and intention.
Because that is what lei making has always been about. It is not just a craft. It is the act of gathering what grows around you, what you love, and what you want to give — and weaving it together for someone else to wear. Every strand is an offering. Every blossom chosen with someone in mind.
This artwork will also be featured at Merrie Monarch — a week-long festival honoring King David Kalākaua's vision for perpetuating Hawaiian traditions, language, and arts.³ See our full Merrie Monarch 2026 collection and find us at the festival here.
We hope this piece reminds you of someone you love — and maybe inspires you to make them a lei.
E mālama i ka aloha.
References
- Kamehameha Schools — Nā ʻano hana lei: Types of lei-making
- Keola Magazine — Adorning the Dancers: Understanding the Plants of Hula
- Merrie Monarch Festival — Official Site