Men Wear Lava Lava's

Recently I have had a large number of big guys coming into my store asking me if I carried lava-lavas’ for men. I have always replied I have sarongs and most of those guys browsed the sarong section and then quickly left the store. Last week yet another man came in and he took a look at my sarongs and as he was headed for the door I politely asked him if he could spend a minute or two letting me know exactly what the difference was between sarongs and lava lavas.

He told me he was a Samoan and that the men wore lava-lavas. We spent the next 15 minutes discussing lots of interesting things about the Samoan culture including the shortage of quality lava-lava found in our growing Samoan population here in North County. The main difference between our sarongs and lava-lava is that a true lava-lava is not just a piece of material that does not look too feminine, nor should it have any tassels hanging off of them. Lava-lava is just a piece of material that is folded and tucked in at the waist. The sarongs we carry in our store are brightly colored (like our Hawaiian shirts) and more suitable for a luau or as a cover -up for a swimsuit. But for use a lava-lava my friend told me it is considered “too frilly” for a Samoan looking for a lava-lava.

He also let me know that Samoans have 2 kinds of lava- lava one is for daily use which they fold at the top to keep in place and the other is a more formal lava-lava that has a built in tie at the top to secure the lava-lava in place the one I was showed was of a sea green color and not a flower in sight. I was informed that the Samoan people have strong ties to their family, community, culture and church and that they dress accordingly so it was important to have formal lava-lava for formal occasions. It was such an interesting conversation that it got me motivated to share this information with our customers and to research the history of the sarong. Continue reading Men Wear Lava Lava's

How many different ways can you write about a Hawaiian shirt?

Today I was sitting in my comfy chair enjoying all the sun and warm weather (its 84 degrees today) and contemplating writing a Blog post about Hawaiian shirts and then it dawned on me, how many different ways can you write about a Hawaiian shirt?

I did some Web searches hoping to see what some Island authors have written lately but it appears that most of the writings are just a bunch of gibberish. So I turned my thoughts inward and started looking at the shirt I am currently wearing.

My Hawaiian shirt is an oldie but goodie, I believe its one of the very early shirts produced by Wave Shoppe in Southern California. If I were to describe it I would say that it is light grey in color with splashes of medium grey in the background, burgundy/rust colored foliage, turtles and outrigger canoes.

Now we have the condition of the Hawaiian shirt, in which I should mention is made out of polycotton. I think for a shirt that has been washed at least once a week for the last 6 years that it is in wonderful shape. Sure it has a few lightly frayed edges, especially near the lower hem, its still a cool and comfortable shirt to wear. This garment even has the original coconut buttons!

So there you have it, a post about Hawaiian shirts that’s actually honest as well as original. Penned while

sitting in paradise!

No the Hawaiian shirt is not made from mauna loa macadamia nuts

Pictured is a really cool Hawaiian shirt in an red color and an air brushed look.

While it has absolutely nothing to do with the Mauna Loa macadamia nuts that you eat, this beautiful shirt IS named after the famous volcano in Hawaiian called Mauna Loa.

Since the shirt is a lava red color the naming convention was only appropriate.

Product Link: Mauna Loa Hawaiian Shirts

These Hawaiian shirts from Wave Shoppe are made for high quality cotton and are very affordable. Cut and sewn in the USA

Men in Their Hawaiian Aloha Shirts

Me and my wife cruise up and down the coast and check out those sporting around in their Hawaiian shirts on a regular basis.

We do this in part because we are always keeping an eye out for a design idea to add to our line of Hawaiian shirts for men which in part is challenging because we don’t make the standard designs that you see at the hundreds of other retailers selling Hawaiian apparel.

We figure that if you are man enough to wear a colorful Hawaiian aloha shirt then the gloves are off when it comes to boldness. Bring on the Aloha bruddah!

Featured today is a Hawaiian shirt with pineapples and what makes this shirt stand out (aside from eye popping color) is that the detail in the pineapple is incredible, it looks like you could almost eat it. We see a lot of Hawaiian shirts with designs that look nothing like the real flower or fruit so this one is refreshing to say the least.

We look everywhere, the boardwalks, on highway 101 the quaint shops that speckle the coastal shopping areas, the beaches, and even the roadside racks that carry a few name brands that are seemingly on sale every day of the year.

The island of Maui is bigger than a Hawaiian shirt

The island of Maui, or Maui  as the locals refer to it, is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands weighing in at a whopping at 727.2 square miles of paradise!

While Maui is not the largest of the Hawaiian islands it one of the more picturesque and boasts some of the finest snorkeling on the planet.

So how does a Hawaiian apparel manufacturer pay homage to such a beautiful island?

Thats easy, you commission a mens Hawaiian shirt that encapsulates all of the beauty of Maui, of which includes beautiful island flowers and foliage, and appropriately name it the Maui Hawaiian shirt!

Product link: Maui Hawaiian Shirts

Hawaiian aloha shirts and when a turtle is not blue

The name of a shirt does not necessarily mean things are as they first appear. When a Hawaiian shirt is named "blue sea turtle", it may very well mean that the Hawaiian shirt is blue and has sea turtles on it. And not that the turtles are blue (like in the image)

Why sea turtles? Many Hawaiian shirts for men often contain turtles an petroglyphs and other ancient symbols. While offered in two colors, todays featured shirt is blue, with turtles of course.

Product link: Hawaiian Shirt with Sea Turtles

One Armed Bandits and Hawaiian Aloha Shirts

All over the world you will see men wearing a Hawaiian shirt which are sold all over the world. Be it the mainland, the Hawaiian islands and even in the UK, people display their love for the sometimes very loudly printed Hawaiian apparel.

You can spot them at a party, on the beach and even pulling the levers on the one armed bandits. Buy them at a store you are most comfortable with, but we prefer Hawaiian aloha shirts from Wave Shoppe because the fabric quality and construction is very good and we also like that they are cut and sewn in San Diego.

The Dress that Really Doesn’t Moo

Muumuu dresses are probably one of the most misunderstood of all Hawaiian dresses. This garment does not moo like a cow. Muumuu are the original dress of Hawaii and they are just that, a dress. The Hawaiian muumuu dress depicted above is made from cotton, has 2 hidden pockets and is cut in a mid-calf length. Made in the USA

Product link: Hawaiian Muumuu Dress

Indigo Dress goes Hawaiian

Indigo is a color of its own and not to be confused with blue, though most people cannot distinguish blue from indigo. This is a spectacular looking Hawaiian dress with a beautiful Polynesian themed design. Printed on a luxurious rayon that has extremely nice hand. Cut and sewn in the USA.

Product link: Indigo Blue Long Hawaiian Dresses

Wear a Eggplant Dress

Eggplant is popular around the world and renowned for appetizers and entrees, but this post is not about actually eating or even wearing a eggplant as a dress. Its all about a long Hawaiian dress that has an eggplant color in the design. This rayon dress has great hand and its made in the USA. Get one today

Product link: Eggplant Long Hawaiian Dresses

Pineapple Lei Dress Hawaii

Pineapple lei dress Hawaii made from an exotic and silky soft rayon with will make you feel like Hawaiian royalty. What’s more symbolic than a long dress with pineapple and flower that’s like a beautiful lei, great for weddings.

Product link: Black Long Hawaiian Dresses

The Little Black Dress with Aloha

A little black dress is an evening or cocktail dress, cut simply and often quite short. But its rival, the long dress, is often spotted in many luxurious and exotic places such as Hawaii, especially in Maui.

This particular little black dress happens to have pretty hibiscus flowers on it and is made from cotton. This garment may be purchased online. This dress is made in the USA

Product link: Long Hawaiian Print Dress