Margo’s voice caught. “It gets me emotional. Making lei is spiritual for me.” She took a few deliberate breaths and the room full of students grew silent. We had gathered to learn the cultural art of Lei, the practice of using the gifts of the earth to express gratitude, honor, and respect. The short tutorial […]

Polynesiacs paparazzi were in full force. When I stepped toward the stage, camera in hand, I was only one of scores of fans hoping to capture the perfect picture. Phones were in the air, recording every second of the Tikiyaki Orchestra’s mesmerizing moods. The exotica was exhilarating. Like all the others, I was elated to

“So you’re a full-time Tiki artist?” I asked. David grinned. “Pretty much. I’ve been a full-time artist forever, but I happen to have a day job.” Creating art in the Tiki world likely won’t pay the bills. But David has found a way to balance his passions and his livelihood. David designs furniture for a commercial

“Why the hell don’t we just do it?” Duke asked Amy. “Why don’t we write a book about collecting vintage Tiki?” Duke and Amy are lifelong Tiki collectors. Their collection spans three and a half decades. They started in the mid-90s when the Revival was still organic. Back then, you had to search for Tiki

“It’ll all be okay.” Amid incomprehensible loss, it’s our nature to offer worn-out platitudes like “You’ll get past this” or “You’ll rebuild.” “There must be a bright side,” or “You’ll find love again.” The truth is, we don’t know. We say these things because it’s too painful to be present with loss. We think offering

Janis loves freaky. Tim loves Tiki. Together, they’ve created the Alani Kai, the perfect blend of both. If you conjured up two Goth teenagers from the Addams Family, gave them the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo for a set of wheels, and tossed them into the middle of “The Tiki Caves” (the Hawaiian vacation episodes

Would you create a paradise for zombies? Zach did, but not for the undead zombies that haunt your dreams. Building a paradise for the living dead would be a questionable pursuit. No, Zach created a paradise for his love of the palatable and potent potation type of Zombie. You know, that beloved 1934 Don the

Aloha shirts don’t make Eric dizzy. You’d think he’d have been classically conditioned with all that spinning around, but no. Eric wears a different aloha shirt every Friday from Memorial Day to Labor Day. It’s a tradition he’s kept every summer for ten years. He calls it Hawaiian Shirt Friday. To celebrate, he puts on

Elvis missed his chance. The Witco bed that he could have purchased for Graceland now lives down the hall from Kim’s Nauga Hydaway. Cross my heart and hope to die. It’s not a fairytale. I just can’t help believin’ that Elvis likely considered, maybe even tried out, the same bed that now belongs to Kim.

I grew up thinking pirates were bad guys, but I might be wrong. Although Matt “Tikiman” Willis is part land pirate, part collectibles dealer, and part heart-happy agent, he’s all aloha. As a self-described pirate, Matt’s relentless quest for tiki artifacts and Hawaiian collectibles has lasted decades. He’d literally leave his pirate ship (his houseboat