Inspiring Wili Lei Making Workshop with Myrtle Wong

On Wednesday April 30th thirty five people gathered at the clubhouse for the 3rd Annual May Day Lei making event with long time HTMC Member Myrtle Wong.

Not only has Myrtle been making leis for years, but she is an inspiring teacher!  Myrtle and one of her friends Ruth Ikeda brought raffia, banana tree bark, extra flowers and greenery. The participants brought their own flowers and greenery; either gathered or purchased. Our blank canvases were Myrtle’s 2 x 4 inch boards with hooks/nails where we attached our raffia and banana bark base to begin our creations.

Before we stated, Myrtle advised us to plan a design and select materials. She mentioned that each lei can have a thriller (you can think of the thriller as the star of the show), filler and spiller, although a lei can also be made with only one plant material such as a lei made of just ‘a’ali’i or ti leaves. Next Myrtle demonstrated the wili technique of wrapping the raffia around the lei materials in a creative pattern. Although it can take time and patience to make a lei in wili style, lucky for us Myrtle’s teaching style of encouraging words and helpful advice kept us working. In the end everyone’s leis were unique and the experience was memorable.

HTMC is grateful that Myrtle and Ruth continue to share this special tradition with us at the clubhouse. This year we were especially blessed to be serenaded by Michael Tanenbaum, a professional musician whose lush guitar sounds greatly enhanced our lei making experience.

Unlike all other HTMC events this event is not held on a Saturday, rather it is the day before May 1st so that the flowers will be fresh for May Day when Myrtle shares her aloha giving her creations away at the Annual May Day festivities held at Kapiolani Park. This year a dozen or so workshop participants stopped by the park looking especially colorful in their Wili Lei.

If you couldn’t join us this year, we hope you can make it to this wonderful tradition next year! Special thanks go out to the Event Committee who helped set up an additional tent to accommodate this years larger group. The photos below were all taken by Myrtle at the event.