Hawaiian Leis

Hawaiian leis have a long tradition as a gift of Aloha. Leis are used to honor a guest, celebrate a career or life, and to recognize milestones along the way.

Leis come in a wide variety as you will see here. There are basic single orchid leis that are the most popular. Many leis take hours to sew and used intricate folding of each petal and bloom.

Hawaiian leis come in various colors. Purples, whites and lavender are the most common. Light, jade green orchids are also used.

For special events such as graduation we color infuse the petals while still on the stem. This creates colors not typically seen in nature such as blue or red. Color leis are often selected to match school colors for the grad.

Leis are also made with leaves. Ti leaf is the most popular. The leaves are harvested and then treated to make them supple. Ti leaf leis can be tightly braided. Or ti leaves can be woven together in an open style to resemble a maile lei. Maile leis are made from a vine that is gathered in the wild. It can take hours to clean which adds to its cost.

Inexpensive leis are also made from kukui nuts. While the tree grows throughout the island the labor to harvest, polish and drill kukui means it is only cost effective to bring them in from The Philippines.

Fragrant leis are made from ginger or tuberose. The fragrance can be quite strong. Fragrant leis are not so long lasting as orchid leis. But we pack them with a special treatment to help them stay fresh in the one or two day trip with FedEx.

Leis sell out during graduation season so if you do not order a week or two in advance you may not get the exact lei you wanted. We will let you know if your selected style is not on hand but ordering early and choosing a future date for us to deliver will give the lei makers time to get your lei ready.