Charles and the Four Letter Word

I will never forget my first visit to Oahu I was so excited when I was booking the trip one of the things on my wish list was to get a room overlooking the ocean where we could relax and watch those amazing sunsets framed by palm trees. My husband Charles sitting right next to me envisioned a room in the industrial area where we could focus on business, after all, many of the Hawaiian shirts from Wave Shoppe are made in Hawaii (as well as the mainland) and that is where we were going to meet our designers who would help us create our first custom fabric.

I remember finding an awesome room overlooking Waikiki while he was busily, or should I say carefully plotting the hotel that would be most convenient to businesses he needed to visit.

Being the wonderful wife that I am and not wanting him to waste too much time on his idea of a cheap room with no view or ocean breezes as soon as he came up with his dream “work” hotel I swiveled in my desk chair leveled him “the stare” and said “We ARE going to have an ocean view”.

My husband pulled his wallet out from his back pocket and pretended to dust it off thought for a moment and said those magic words “Ok Dear”.

Don’t get me wrong he is not a “Yes” man but he realized that it must be important to me and my husband does everything he can to make sure I am happy. So we got a great room overlooking the ocean and when we opened that balcony door to the first sunset it was stunning. The next day after lunch I sprung on him the dreaded FOUR LETTER WORD I casually mentioned that I wanted to SHOP.

I know I heard him mutter under his breath “you own a freaking Hawaiian store” but he denies it to this day, so we decided to check out the shops closest to the hotel. As we walked down the sidewalk of Waikiki we found a little store called the ABC store.

It was filled with cool stuff lots of touristy stuff and of course every family and friend I knew wanted something. We weren’t paying much attention to the names of the stores but after about the fourth store my husband looked at me in horror and said we were in the same store and there was one on every block and you know he was right.

There is an ABC store on just about every corner but just to make sure I didn’t miss anything I checked them all out. Next on my list was The International Market Place which is an open-air market filled with hundreds of booths it is one of the best places to go if you are looking for souvenirs they had entertainment in the form of a band and a group of hula dancers.

My husband watched a man carve tikis while I looked at each and every booth.

The next day we visited Hilo Hatties and that is one cool store! Then the following day we finished our shopping spree with a trip to the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet with one of my girlfriends who had once said “don’t miss that place it has everything” so we went there and was amazed at everything that was offered and there were great prices too.

It was hot that day and humid as it had rained a little in the am, so after our two hour tour we were ready for an early dinner. Charles decided on going down the strip to an all you can eat crab at a hotel buffet and arrived back to the room just in time to enjoy another sunset in paradise and vegetate for a while.


If anyone know's of some other cool places to shop while on Oahu please hit me up, as we will be going back again this summer and I am sure Charles will appreciate your referral.

The Colorful History of Hawaiian Shirts

Hawaiian shirts, most often referred to as Aloha shirts in Hawaii, originated there in the early 1930s, designed and produced by Ellery Chun, a Waikiki merchant. He found himself with a surplus of old kimono fabrics and decided to fashion shirts which could be sold to the tourists. The local newspaper began calling them Aloha shirts, and Chun was quick to trademark the name.

Very soon, Chun had neither shirts nor surplus fabric, as locals and tourists alike descended upon his store and bought his entire stock. His unique contribution to Hawaiian apparel was an immediate hit and its popularity has since spread around the world. Chun, unfortunately, enjoyed a limited portion of the success, as within a few years, Aloha shirts were being mass produced by several major design labels. Most of that production was marketed as Hawaiian shirts, to avoid trademark infringement.

When World War II was over, the tourist trade in Hawaii began to grow rapidly, and by 1959, when Hawaii became a state, essentially every tourist sported a Hawaiian shirt. As a result, the shirts’ popularity gradually spread to California, as surfers quickly embraced them as a part of their own sub-culture.

Meanwhile, back in the Islands, the Aloha shirt had become synonymous with Hawaiian in another way. Through common usage, relaxing business dress standards and organized movements, the more formal business dress of shirt, tie and jacket were replaced with this new icon of Hawaiian culture.

“Casual Friday”, a practice in many businesses in the mainland U.S., actually has its origins in “Aloha Friday”, which was the day that many Hawaiian businesses and offices allowed Aloha shirts to be worn by employees. Today, however, Hawaiian shirts are considered appropriate dress for all but the most formal of events, and are considered appropriate business attire for any setting or day of the week. Client calls, business conferences and seminars, court appearances, as well as weddings and funerals… all will see many such shirts in the crowd.

The average kama`aina (native-Hawaiian or long-time resident) typically won’t wear the brightly colored shirts that many of us are used to seeing at the airport. They tend to prefer somewhat subdued colors and prints, most often either floral or of a Polynesian motif, and often in a reverse print. Reverse print is using the fabric in a way that places the prominently printed side on the inside of the garment, which gives the impression the shirt is being worn inside-out.

The typical malihini (newcomer or visitor) is often to be found wearing the less sedate prints, which sometimes are comprised of non-traditional images, such as sea creatures, automobiles or sports team logos - the possibilities being virtually unlimited. Some companies, both in the Islands and the mainland U.S., have even commissioned “uniform” shirts for their employees, sporting the company logo or products. Trader Joe’s, for instance, has made the Aloha shirt their dress code for employees.

In addition to the cultural aspect of this relatively new Hawaiian apparel item (forty years is a very short time, in the context of Hawaii’s rich history), it is extremely practical wear. Somewhat similar in concept to the guayabera of Mexico, Cuba, the Philippines and other countries with heavy Spanish influence, Hawaiian shirts are especially comfortable in tropical climates, where loose-fitting clothing is preferable. The Hawaiian version, however, usually has only pocket on the left breast, while the guayabera has two or four pockets, as well as front and back pleats, which the Aloha shirt doesn’t have.

The mu’umu’u (a long and loose fitting dress), is another form of popular Hawaiian apparel, often worn by women, although women often also wear the shirts. The prints are similar, and it’s not uncommon to see couples wear matching prints. Some women also opt for the shorter Hawaiian dresses or tank dresses, both of which are sleeveless.

While there are many suppliers of Hawaiian apparel, those whose clothing is made in the Islands or the mainland U.S., rather than made in Asia, are considered to be “authentic” and are generally of higher quality. In today’s global market, it’s sometimes difficult to source authentic products, but if you intend to wear a Hawaiian shirt or any other item of Hawaiian apparel, wouldn’t you rather it actually be Hawaiian, rather than “Made in China”?

Wave Shoppe, based in Escondido, is one of the few Hawaiian shirts manufacturers and retailers based 100% in the United States. Wave Shoppe is committed to providing the finest American Made Hawaiian clothing at the price and quality that our customers deserve.

Tips on Ordering Boys Hawaiian Shirts and Outfits

Its my experience that when it comes to choosing little boys clothing, that men, as well as women, all have a hard time choosing the proper size. To be honest, if I didn’t have a retail store that sold children’s clothes I probably wouldn’t know either. So I will just cut to the chase and give you the guys low down on selecting the correct children’s size each and every time (well most of the time).

For boys Hawaiian cabana outfits all you need to do is know the child’s age, and yes it’s that simple.  In example a garment labeled 6M is made for a child that is at least 6 months old, yet younger than the next size up. Let’s say the next size is 2, that would fit a child that is 2 years old, but is under 4 years old, which is size [insert drum roll] size 4!


So while there are some children’s garments in size 1, most children’s outfits are labeled 6M, 2, 4, 6, and 8 (which spans size 8 – 10)

Boys Hawaiian shirts are an entirely different ballgame though. Most boys shirts are labeled small, medium, large and XL and they are probably the most difficult to choose, mainly because a boys small is not the same size as an adult size small.

So what’s a guy to do? Well for me its back to the child’s age.

In my opinion a child’s size 8, which is for children 8 – 10 years old could also serve as a size small. So if I made a conversion chart it would look like this. 8 = Small, 10 = Medium, 12 = large, 14 = Children’s XL or adult Small.

While all of this is not definitive, you’re odds of choosing correctly the first time are excellent. You may also want to consider whether or not the boy is active or a video game couch potato (whereas my formulas are void)

Now that you’re an expert on children’s clothing, have a look at some of the new boys Hawaiian clothing from everyone’s favorite Hawaiian store, Wave Shoppe Hawaiian Shirts.