Getting Creative with the Crown Flower Lei

The crown lei workshop kumu and students, left, and a crown lei crafted in the workshop. Photos by Alice Ka’ahanui

By Dayanti Karunaratne

The crown flower lei is among the most common lei types, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t something new to learn. At last week’s Molokai Arts Center lei-making workshop, attendees learned to pull apart the petals and how to make patterns using the skirts, pods and crowns of the plant.

“To see the different styles is really amazing. When we were growing up, it was just one way; with the crowns of the flower. We didn’t do all these different styles,” MAC Executive Director Alice Kaʻahanui said.  

About 25 people attended the event at Hoʻolehua Homestead Makeke May 17. A handful of vendors at the market sold pottery, bread, plants, lei, fruit, eggs and guava jelly. It was the second part of the two-day workshop that started May 10.

Pōmaikaʻi Ah Mook Sang, who led the workshop, recalled learning the skills from her mother and aunties on Oʻahu. Creativity was emphasized.

“In Papakōlea, they were very well-known as lei makers,” she said. “There were certain protocols, but it’s more just the love and the fun of making leis.”

Ah Mook Sang encouraged people to stack the various parts of the flower in patterns. A lei made by stacking only the skirts of the crown flower is her favorite, she said, but it’s definitely not common. 

“That’s something that I never would have thought of,” Kaʻahanui said. “Pomai is one person who will make the lei with whatever she has. We have been learning a lot from her.” 

Ah Mook Sang moved to Molokai about eight years ago and started her own lei-making business — Na Pua O Luʻukia — two years ago. 

“I never did envision myself making leis as a job, but it’s something that I really enjoy,” she said. “And it’s something, culturally, that keeps me in balance.”

On Oʻahu, it can get “very competitive” with leis, Ah Mook Sang said, but for her, it’s about culture rather than money. 

“I do push, don’t get me wrong. But the support I get means more to me than the numbers. I source my material ethically. I don’t overpick,” she said. 

Her business’ name honors her ancestors and the spirit she brings to her creations. Luʻukia is a family name, and Na Pua O Luʻukia translates to “We are the flowers of my tutu, we are the flowers of the next generation.”

“My tutu wasn’t a big lei maker, but she was always about beautifying things. So, I’m trying to keep up with the cultural legacy,” Ah Mook Sang said.

The free workshops help cultural practitioners like Ah Mook Sang share their skills and bring the community together in a relaxed, supportive environment.

“It’s such a nice atmosphere. We started with the Kukui tree lei, because we knew we would be doing this under the Kukui tree,” Kaʻahanui said. “We wanted people to learn about the plants too. Like with the ti leaf, we learned how to pick them so they don’t get damaged. So, we aren’t just learning the craft, we are also learning about the natural resources.”

The workshops, funded by a grant from the Maui County Office of Economic Development, are offered as a partnership between MAC’s HĀ program, the Hoʻolehua Homesteaders Association and the Hoʻolehua Homestead Makeke. The workshops are free, but donations are welcome.

Visit www.molokaiartscenter.org for information on upcoming events or to donate.