say aloha to ola

 

i have been racking my brain to remember who made the lovely spa line i spotted at pacific home last year. the other day while flipping through smart magazine, i finally rediscovered ola and once again swooned over the modern tropical look of their holistic hawaiian spa line (the pretty lauhala packaging makes for instant gifting whenever you want to spoil someone).

many of ola's ingredients come straight from the hilo farmers market and i love how they feature the folks who grow the honey, taro, coffee, lilikoi, etc used to create their extensive product line. the website is gorgeous and, if you are are a stickler for examining labels before you buy, you will be happy to know that ingredient lists are also posted online.

there is plenty to tempt you like ola's kalo enriched face mask (taro, honey, coconut milk & kukui nut oil), hawaiian 'iliahi lotion mist (sandalwood, noni & papaya leaf extract), ocean essence bath soak (sea salt, deep sea clay & hawaiian seaweed) . . . well, you get the idea. you will want to stock up on everything and enjoy a spa day at home whenever you please. 

shop online or hit a spa near you to pick up one of ola's luxurious treats. 

polynesian ink

getting a tattoo to honor his hawaiian heritage has been on my fella's wish list for years so i know he would love these tatau tees from manoatoa. the company's mantra is to express their passion for polynesian art & culture through their clothing line so if you share that fancy odds are you will be a fan after one look at their collection.

in addition to their tatau collection it looks like manoatoa will eventually delve into the designs of tapa cloth & woodcarving which is good news for those who admire these traditional art forms of oceania and are looking for a more modern way to show their polynesian pride.

by the way, if you are interested in hawaiian tattoos, tricia allen, who is probably one of the only anthropologist/tattoo artist's on earth, published her book tattoo traditions of hawaii last spring (friends may remember that many moons ago we went up to no/cal so the fella could get footage of tricia at work for the tattoo documentary he made in film school).

definitely click over to her website if you are serious about getting inked hawaiian style (fyi - tricia hits the mainland a few times a year and her schedule gets booked quickly).

liko lehua gourmet butter

guava jelly has been my toasty spread of choice since little kid time but the gourmet fruit butters from liko lehua sound like a yummy replacement. the all natural butters are whipped up on the big island in tropical flavors like coconut, guava, lilikoi, mango, pineapple and tahitian lime with no additives and are preservative-free.

click over to the recipes page for inspiration beyond the typical bread & butter combo and delight your tastebuds with lilikoi crepes or a mango cheesecake. you may want to pick up a sampler and do a taste test to find your favorite or stock up and save with liko lehua's promotion to receive a complimentary flavor when you order 5 flavors.

flumin' kauai style

welcome to the newly instituted saturday travel post! i know i haven't been very attentive to this section of the blog lately but check in every weekend to discover off the beaten path ideas for your next getaway.

you may have heard that flumin' da ditch on the big island had to shut down for safety reasons after the earthquake last year. there are no definite plans to repair the canals which sustained damage in october's quake, so if you are looking for an alternative you'll have to go to kauai to go flumin' the old school way. 

kauai backcountry adventures (who also operates a zipline) has a mountain tubing adventure which is more like local kids did it back in the day or so my fella (who grew up surrounded by sugar cane fields) tells me (aka city mouse).

if you go that means you'll hop on your very own tube to float down the irrigation canals of the lihue plantation. the three hour tour (i kid you not, gilligan) promises ocean and mountain views and a picnic lunch when you arrive at a quaint sounding swimming hole. keep in mind that this a low key & family friendly adventure so don't expect an adrenaline rush from raging waters.

check out tripadvisor for reviews from travelers who have been there & done that.

more from sig zane

sig zane is kicking off the new year in style! i love the koi tee which is a new take on the second design the illustrious mr. zane created back in 1978.

students of the hawaiian language may want to snap up this aloha shirt which donates a portion of its proceeds to the ke ana la'ahana charter school. the design is currently 25% off but act quickly since there are only a handful left in the smaller sizes.

ke ana la'ahana ki'ikau

sig zane x kicks/hi

a clearance section also recently made its debut in the online shop so click over asap if you have been daydreaming of splashing down rainy streets while twirling one of those lovely umbrellas i wrote about back in november.

finally, 2007 brings a much anticipated collaboration with kicks/hi (word is one of the projects is with converse for bono's [product] red campaign). first up is the uluwehi keaukaha cap which is being released tomorrow. this is a limited edition so if you want to score one get yourself to a sz shop, kicks/hi in honolulu, or the cutlery (kuhao zane's new shop in hilo) on saturday.