Our founder, Meleana Estes, was recently featured on CBS Sunday Morning in a segment honoring May Day and the culture of lei here in Hawai‘i.
Meleana learned the intricate art of lei-making from her grandmother, or Tūtū, and later published a book called Lei Aloha to celebrate those traditions. “She was very intentional. I feel like my Tūtū would think about it for three days prior, you know, as she'd start gathering with intention for that one person,” she shared.
She reflected on the role lei plays in our lives. “Really, a lei is your expression of aloha. Your love,” Estes explained. “There's never a wrong time to give someone a lei,” Meleana said. Today, people wear lei for nearly every occasion, from weddings to funerals, to airport pickups and beyond.
The segment also shed light on the challenges lei makers face today—from the decline of local flower farms to a growing reliance on imported blooms. Meleana’s work continues to emphasize the need to preserve not only the cultural practice of lei making, but also the industry itself, which is increasingly threatened by the rising cost of land for flower farming and the labor required to support it.
Photo: Honolulu Magazine, Aaron K. Yoshino
The piece also featured our dear friend Andrew Mau of Island Boy Shop, whose contemporary take on lei exhibits a creative solution to the growing scarcity of available resources. Their stories together highlighted what we already know: that lei is alive, evolving, and still deeply rooted.
