Crown flowers come in off white and lavender in color. Flowers bloom year round and the tree is relatively small in size and very low maintenance. Crown flower lei are one of those quiet and elegant lei. To add a little splash, one may want to twisted it with a strand of roses, pikake or pakalana lei.

It’s jade flower season again. We have some jade lei at the shop. Please call in to confirm availability (732-7668)

Lei giving (or piling 🙂 is a local tradition for congratulating the graduate after the ceremony. From photo below, we can spot many of our island beloved lei from top to bottom, they are Single Purple Orchid Lei, Black Kukui Nut and White Seashells, Candy lei, Orange and Light Purple Cigar Lei, Purple Orchid Lei, Brown Kukui Nut Lei, Sea Grape Lei, Rainbow color Yarn Lei, Black Kukui Nut Lei, Tuberose with Ilima Lei, Ti Leave Lei, Double Crown Lei, Green Paper Origami Lei, Miale Lei, Blue Ribbon Lei, White Kukui Nut Lei.

Many Waikiki hotels has lesson on lei making and other cultural activities – free to their guests. Check them out. Fun, fun, fun.

Hyatt Regency Waikiki
Lei Making Demonstration
Learn to make your own traditional Hawaiian lei. Our Hawaii family resort offers a Lei Making Demonstration every Friday from noon to 2:45 p.m. on the second floor of the Ewa Tower in back of the ground floor escalator. Visitors can take part in the demonstration and make their own lei as well.
http://waikiki.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/activities/kids/family.jsp

Outrigger Waikiki
Specialty Lei Making
Every Tuesday, 9:30 am -10:00 am
Outrigger Waikiki Lobby
Weave special lei using a technique called Hilo, using ti leaves
http://www.outriggerwaikikihotel.com/events.cfm

Outrigger Reef on the Beach
Arbor Day Celebration (Kumula’au)
(November 6, 2008)
Celebrate Arbor Day and learn about Native Hawaiian plants, with a special focus on the kukui nut tree. Guests are invited to enjoy kukui lei making and a demonstration of la’au lapa’au. Guests can also pick-up a free plant while supplies last. For more information, please call 808-924-6007.
http://outriggerreef-onthebeach.com/local_events/local_events.cfm

Hilton Hawaiian Village

Got some really different kind of lei at the shop.  Have you seen a bougenvelia lei? And what about a pikake and pakalana lei?  Don’t you love them. Flowers are grown and sawn in Kapahulu.  How nice is that?  Enjoy.

(light blue hyacinth flower lei)

We couldn’t find any light blue flower lei. We looked in our cooler and there stood the hyacinth flowers.  Let’s try and string it. Beautiful, isn’t it?

(whit orchid angle lei)

Also this white orchid lei, we deviated from the angle style a little and the result is pretty too.

It’s a lei lovers’ delight last Friday in Honolulu. Beautiful thirteen foot long lei were draped over the King’s statue to pay tribute to our King Kamehameha.  Check out the week long celebrations at the different islands.

(The original Kamehameha statue is located at Kapa’au, the Island of Hawaii. Also another Kamehameha statues are located in Hilo and the Capitol in Washington D.C.)

(green orchid, he’ee, Maile, tuberose, cigar, kukui nut)

Lei are like flower arrangements, you can either pick one off the fridge or you can order ahead. When you order ahead, the lei will come granantee fresher and nicer.  There are certain lei such as the maile, pikake, puakinikini, royal ilima, or the haku, you need to order them early anyway. Not many shops have many of them in stock.

(Green orchid, willamina orchid, angle orchid, cigar, carnation)

Since we are not your everyday lei shop, you can ask us to do a lei of a different color combination, different twist combination, shorter length for kids, and of course the haku lei – very popular for graduation, weddings and birthday celebration.Â

(haku lei)

    
More photos at PicasaWeb.com

Girls,

After you figured out the dresses, the make up, the hairs, and the accessories, etc, flower selection will be quite easy for you. You can either give your date a maile lei or a boutonniere.

The maile lei will be elegant and simple by itself or you could add some color to by doing a rose twist. The color should compliment your dress color or match you flower bouquet. Make sure it is a Cooke Island maile. The other variety is cheaper for a reason.

If you choose to present your date with a boutonniere, make sure it will match the theme, style and color the bouquet or wristlet your date is getting you. Let your date know if you would prefer a wristlet or bouquet, which mainly depend on what kind of dress you’ll be wearing. Tell him what kind of flowers and what color you like. It could be roses, calla lilies, stargazer lilies, tulips etc. Let him know what kind of dress or what color it is. His florist will be able to help him on choosing the right bouquet. If you want to be specific, send him a picture of the dress to show his florist. Some boy may be shy on asking all this information and you don’t necessary want to be over control, hint him on what kind of boutonniere you’ll be getting him, his florist may know how to compliment that. Some dresses are nice with a wristlet, and some dresses are better with a bouquet. Ask your mom and dad for their opinion. Or bring a picture of the dress to the florist for help.

Some florists may have a “pair special” where both of your flowers are from the same florist. For examples a “maile lei and red rose hand tied bouquet set” or a “white Orchid boutonniere and Orchid mix Spring bouquet set” Your flowers will sure to be coordinated without a glitch. That’s why wedding flowers arrangement are always so together because all the flowers are from the same florist – the bride, the groom, groom’s men, bride’s mate, the parents, etc. Do consider the proper size of the bouquet and wristlet. Make sure it does not overpower your dress and is not too heavy to carry around that night. Already have a bouquet, do consider an upper arm corsage to use at the dance floor. Ask for the price and ask to see if it could be discounted since you will be getting the bouquet from them.

What’s the different between a hand tied bouquet and a cascading bouquet? Does it mater if the bouquet is in a holder or tied? What about wristlet? How early should I order the flowers? Those are all good questions for teenagers who are preparing for their school prom.

More photos at PicasaWeb.com

Belows are a few popular types. They may have different bouquet names but let’s use the easy names.

Hand-tied bouquet = stems are wrapped with ribbons. More and more people like it because of its casual and natural look.
Cascade Bouquet = arranged on a holder. It has a cascade and more formal look.
Fan Bouquet = arranged on a holder that shape like a fan.
Wand Bouquet = bouquet on a stick with ribbon tail like a magic wand.
Arm Bouquet = presentation bouquet wrapped in cellophane. Similar to what ice skater or pageant winners receive.

Don’t let peer pressure get the best of you. Be yourself and exchange your flowers with confidence. Flowers and lei are exchanged as a gesture of affection at prom night or formal school dance. It is not necessary important what you give your date, but how have you considered your date when you choose your flowers. Is it important to have the bouquet be hand-tied, wand, cascade or arm bouquet? in holder or tied? roses or mix bouquet? Like Wedding bouquet, we suggest to teenage girls to choose something that they like and that will compliment their dresses in color and style. Never color match the flower with the dress, since it would blend right in with your dress and you’ll never see the flowers when you take the prom photos. Use flowers that will contrast your dress instead. For example a White calla lilies hand-tied bouquet would go well with a dark red summer dress; a lavender color roses cascade bouquet will go well with a white long dress. Do use ribbons that will match or compliment the dress. If you are making alteration to the dress, use a piece of the dress to shop for flowers. The florist will have a better chance choosing flowers to compliment your dress.

You should shop around for good prices, but more importantly for good service and product. Most florists have a book of arrangements for you to choose from. And if you want something extra special, bring pictures so your florist know what you’re looking for and price it accordingly. Work with your overall budget rather than picking the cheapest flower shop. Flower may not be the biggest items on the expense list which may include prom dress, shoes, tuxedo rental, limo rental, after prom activities. Imagine a saving in limo rental or shoe accessories budget can increase your flower budget. It’s okay to let your florist know your budget. They are flexible on picking the flower and the arrangement to meet it. They also will let you know if your budget can archive an effective bouquet or wristlet. Unlike a Wedding bouquet, which is used almost the whole day from church ceremony all the way to reception, a prom bouquet is used only for a few hours. So make sure you take a lot of photos, with you date, with your friends and tilt that bouquet forward so it show on the pictures. Don’t just lay it on the table all night. With an open end boquet, you can place it in a vase and enjoy it for a few more days. You can also hang dry the bouquet. Just tie it upside down in a cool and shaded place.

Since multiple prom and dance happen on the same day, order your bouquet early, most florists will turn away customers if they max out on their orders. It may not be okay to buy a bunch of flowers from the supermarket because you have not consider your date.