::*) Charmed (*::

A’a i ka hula!

Aeon Fashion, LotD, Reviews, Sponsored

Happy Aloha Friday, my friends!  I get to share a beautiful new ti pa’u with you, a traditional hula skirt made from ti leaves.  It’s all in mesh from Island Style Designs!  Leave the grass skirts behind, and please please please let’s not talk about the abomination of coconut bras.  (although you may want to see the note on coconut bras at the end of this older post).   

  • Island Style Designs — Hula Girl mesh hula outfit (Maitreya/Physique fitmesh/standard 5 rigged mesh sizes) (includes mesh ti skirt, white top, hibiscus haku lei with ferns, kukui necklace, plumeria lei, and hibiscus flowers for your ear — all of the items that you see here except for the kupe’e and kakau, the anklets/bracelets and tattoo!)
  • ::*) Charmed (*:: —  plumeria kupe’e (anklet and bracelet) (from Ti-Leaf skirt, 30cm, Pearl)
  • Juna Artistic Tattoo — Haka tattoo woman
  • BellePoses — Hula Baby 6 (mirror) pose (marketplace link) exclusive for the The Avenue

And yes, I know that the haka is Maori in origin, but the tattoo has many common themes across Polynesia… besides, I  like it.

Also, that lovely traditional canoe behind me?  It’s a wa’a kaukahi, a single-hulled canoe with an outrigger.  This lovely one came from Tiki Tattoo, purveyor of lovely island decor.  This is a really lovely piece, and was a gift to me from a dear friend.

This is such a lovely hula outfit.  Nickki at Island Style Designs has really outdone herself!  You’ll definitely see me in this at summer dance events.

A’a i ka hula, waiho i ka maka’u i ka hale!  Dare to dance, leave your shame at home!

Aloha kākou, my friends!  A hui hou!

Reflections

Aeon Events, LotD, Reviews, Sponsored

I am so excited to share the latest offering from Nickki at  Island Style Designs with you!  Nickki has created a gorgeous swimsuit and pareo combo with a fantastic shiny metallic texture.

In the daylight, it looks like this: (note: advanced lighting and materials must be enabled!)

The outfit is fitmesh, and comes rigged for Maitreya, both SLink, all three Belleza bodies, both EVE bodies, TMP, and Altamura.    The strapless suit features some lovely pink lacing in the back, and a subtle green/red/yellow shading for the floral pattern.

Where this suit and pareo really shine (so to speak) is in the dark with some interesting lighting effects.  I waded into the water with my pareo still on, and added a little extra lighting to make the suit really shine.  You can see the lights really reflected in the suit.

I really loved the pareo, but did finally take it off to just show the suit on its own.   It’s somewhat lower cut at the hips, giving a lovely slightly retro feel and look.

We’ve seen body-specific fitmesh explode into SL, and while there has been a lot of materials-enabled textures, we haven’t seen lots of reflective clothing.  This is gorgeous, and is sure to be an attention-getter at parties.

Stop on by the new Island Style Designs and take a look today!  Mahalo!  A hui hou!

 

 

Ki and kakau

Aeon LotD, Reviews

Welina mai kākou!  Aloha, my friends!  I wanted to share with you a little outfit that I’d put together for last week’s tattoo event at Eden. This features a lovely ki pa’u with plumeria lei from ::*) Charmed (*:: and a lovely body kakau from [Ab.Fab] .

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Traditional hula pa’u (skirts) are made of leaves of the ki (or ti) plant, split along the central vein and tied together.  In ancient times, the breasts would be bare, although modern ‘sensibilities’ put an end to that.  A ‘kini top, pareo, or mu’u mu’u might be worn nowadays.  NEVER would you wear coconuts!

::*) Charmed (*:: offers flexi ki/ti skirts in three different lengths – 30 cm (shown), 50 cm (knee-length), and a long version.  Each comes with a choice of plumeria colours for the lei, haku lei (headband), and kupe’e (wristlets and anklets).

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Kakau is the traditional form of tattooing from Hawai’i.  Kakau often would take geometric or naturalistic lines, and typically represent heritage (family/clan) or personal attributes.  Typically, women received kakau on the face (for fertility), and on/about hands and wrists, ankles and feet.  Full-body kakau on torso, legs and arms, such as the lovely Aroha from [Ab.Fab] , were reserved for the men-folk, but I do believe in crossing those boundaries if I want to.  Aroha comes in standard tattoo layers as well as Omega, Belleza, Maitreya, and Slink appliers.

HulaKakau_c045

Hula, of course, simply means “dance”, but always tells a story.  It is a beautiful form, and if you ever have the chance to visit the Merrie Monarch festival in Hilo in the spring, you will see some of the most amazing hula in the world.

Mahalo, my friends, be filled with aloha!

Oh, and just one more little bit, found on the interwebs:

“The use of coconuts for bras in Hawaii actually goes back quite a ways. Until horses were introduced to the Hawaiian islands by Europeans, Hawaiian kings and their knights had to travel on foot, with an accompanying woman to assist them by knocking together a pair of half-coconuts to produce the “clippity-clop” sound. This is also, incidentally, the origin of “knockers” as a synonym for breasts.”  – cmkeller

Mahalo!  A hui hou!