Na Lei

Orchids, Ti leaf and strung Tuberose

As a hula dancer, I was taught to make my own lei as part of our lole, or costume. All dancers in my halau are required to gather and pick the components of the lei and put them together before the performance. We learned many techniques and how to used different flower and leaves. It must be well put together and very neat; able to withstand a few performances And it must look exactly how our kumu, or hula teacher demonstrated it to us.  

Strung Bottlebrush

Orchids

Jasmine

Orchids with Ti Leaf

Jasmine

Orchids, Tuberose and Ti Leaf

Floral Designs

These are samples of floral designs that I have done for events, friends, gifts, or weddings. Enjoy!

Matt & Shadi's Wedding

My good friend Matt asked me to do the flowers for his wedding. This was another challenge for many reasons; it was taking place on a boat and I was also a guest. This meant that I could not be late or he boat would not be able to leave, and I had to act as a vendor and a guests. The only request of the bride were the blue hydrangea; which are seasonal. I learned a trick of many florists; spray paint for flowers. However, I did not allow myself enough time to spray all of them! I didn't appreciate how many leaves are in one hydrangea flower. That added a bit of stress to my day! Another challenge was to keep the tall arrangements from falling over while the ship was sailing across the bay. I kept my eye on them and they did just fine!

Pomianders with roses and hydrangeas hung along the aisle where the ceremony took place.

Another memorable wedding with many lessons learned! Next time I am booked for a wedding on a boat I will be better prepared!

Anthony & Leilani's Wedding

It was an honor to do the floral designs for my beautiful hula sister, Leilani. The wedding took place at the Palm Event Center in Pleasanton, CA. http://palmeventcenter.com/ A gorgeous winery  and event center. Leilani was a vendors dream; very easy going and trusted me to create her vision. She only gave me a few requests regarding the flowers; and they were basically the color scheme and her budget.

She had quite a large wedding party and many sponsors. I made lei for each of the sponsors as well. The pomianders were made with carnations; unfortunately I couldn't find an apporpriately sized foam ball for the little flower girl; but she toughed it out!

Leilani's bouquet was made with calla lillies, roses, and differend types of orchids. I put just a few crystal embellishments into the orchids. She is quite petite, and I didn't want her bouquet to overpower her.

The ceremony took place at the winery in a beautiful room lined with oak wine barrels. I lined the floor with rose pedals and glass hurricanes with floating candles and submerged orchids.

This arrangement was one of two that stood behind them during the ceremony.

I created these manzanita tree centerpieces by cementing the branches into ceramic bases. I hung crystals and votive holders. The orchids were glued to the tree. I was surprised how long the orchids lasted on these trees; a few of them were still alive a week after the wedding!

This was at the head table; a low lying centerpiece with mostly orchids.

This was one of the bridesmaids bouquet's on display at the head table.

This wedding was a lot of fun. A bit challenging since I was the florist and a guest as well. It was probably the biggest wedding I have done so far and I loved the challenge. And best of all, I was able to do it all within her budget.

Hello Kitty series

My daughter has always been a Hello Kitty fanatic; from her shoes to her headband she is dressed in Hello Kitty gear. Now that it is so widely available at  more affordable prices it is now possible. My children always giveme great ideas for new subjects for my artwork, and she requested a Hello Kitty piece. My first thought was, "No way, that will be so cheesy". However, my sister who was also here told me, "These is going to be your most popular pieces!". So far, they have taken off and I think she's right! The Hello Kitty design is very specific and is actually harder for me to do since it has to be very exact. I am used to cutting my designs freehand, but I have to use a stencil for the Hello Kitty face so it looks authentic. The only design changes that I am able to do are with her clothing, flower and background. After studying my daughter's books for some time, I realized that she only has a limited number of poses. To keep in the theme of my designs, I've kept a plumeria flower in her hair and also done her with brown skin in a few pieces. These can all be ordered with a personalized name at no extra charge. You can purchase them on my Etsy site as well: http://www.etsy.com/shop/NaPuaDesigns

Hula Hello Kitty on Island

Brown Surfer Hello Kitty

First piece for my daughter

 

Hula Hello Kitty

Personalized for Baby Jewel

What's up with Owls??

I have no idea why owls have suddenly gained popularity in the arts and crafts world. I was commissioned to do a piece on the Hawaiian short-eared owl; Pueo. This was the name of a new baby and the piece was a gift for him. So, ever since then I have replicated my pueo design with different colors and it is now my most popular piece. I would like to think that my design is original, and is derived from an actual living owl; not some design I created to look cool and join the masses with. But, since I get so many requests for this guy, he has grown on me quite a bit!

Na Pahu

This piece was commissioned for a hula show "Hula Pahu- The Sacred Dances" featuring my halau, "Halau 'O Keiki Ali'i" led by Kumu Kawika Keikiali'i Alfiche. It showcased traditional pahu dances- the shark skinned drum; usually only used for Hawaiian ceremonies beginning in the 16th Century. This show was a showcase of traditional and new pahu dances. Kumu Kawika's hula lineage stems from George Lanakilakeikiahiali'i Na'ope and Rae Kahikilaulani Fonseca from Hilo, Hawai'i.

This piece is a tribute to all three kumu hula, with Uncle George's pahu in the back, Kumu Rae's on the left and Kumu Kawika's on the left. I took the pahu designs from photographs of each of their pahu's. Each pahu drum has been made or given to each individual kumu and holds special meaning to them. The flower lei on each side are made up of lehua flowers representing Hilo, Hawai'i. The yellow lehua was said to be a favorite of Kumu Rae. This piece demonstrates the history and culture of our halau, and as a hula dancer of Halau 'O Keikiali'i, it is always a priviledge to create art that reflects such cultural and historical significance.