Posts Tagged ‘Hawaiian fancy dress’

Hawaiian fancy dress for ladies

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

garlandAs the good weather slowly starts to appear, you don’t want to be wearing bulky fancy dress costumes that overheat. With this in mind, we take a look at Hawaiian fancy dress for ladies.

Grass skirts are the ideal thing for the warmer days, and provide that quintessential island look. They are available in a wide range of colours and materials, and you can even get hold of one made of real grass.

For a sexy summer look, the perfect match for a Hawaiian grass skirt is a coconut bra, which you can either buy or make yourself from an actual coconut. Alternatively, a seashell bra top is both elegant and functional. If you don’t fancy revealing quite so much skin at the party, a range of classy Hawaiian dresses are available in traditional floral patterned designs.

Flower leis or garlands are an absolute essential for any Hawaiian fancy dress party, and add vibrant colours to even the plainest costume. No need to limit yourself to just one.

If you don’t have the long flowing dark hair generally associated with Hawaiian beauties then fear not, as wigs are available to transform you into a long haired island belle. Decorative flower hairclips and tropical hair bands will also have you looking like an island queen.

Can’t go anywhere without your handbag? Not to worry, you can even get Hawaiian themed bags, decorated with flowers and mock grass.

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Essential accessories for your Hawaiian themed party

Monday, January 25th, 2010

garlandWhen you think of Hawaiian fancy dress, the first thing that comes to mind is probably colourful garlands, or leis. ‘Lei’ is the traditional Hawaiian word for a wreath or garland, and the most popular form of lei is a chain of flowers worn around the neck, often used to greet visitors to the islands. However, a lei can take many different forms, and could consist of a series of shells draped over the shoulders, plastic beads, or virtually anything else you can link together and wear.

A perfect accompaniment to any Hawaiian themed fancy dress costume, garlands and leis are a colourful and easily customisable way of standing out at the party. If you’re the host you could even stock up beforehand and greet each one of your guests at the door with a traditional Hawaiian kiss as you present them with their lei. The presentation of a lei or garland has long been a symbol of affection for a friend or visitor, and is a perfect way to introduce partygoers to your Hawaiian fancy dress soiree.

As far as materials go, a lei can be made out of pretty much anything imaginable. You could either buy or make your own, out of fresh or plastic flowers, seashells, nuts, beads, coloured paper decorations, feathers or whatever you have close to hand. If you do choose to make your own, all you need to do is take some sturdy cotton and a needle and carefully thread through the centre of each item on the lei.

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Hawaiian fancy dress party games

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010
Hawaiian pinata

Hawaiian pinata

We all need something to enliven us during these dark winter months, to distract us from the seemingly endless barrage of snow and frozen roads, so how about some Hawaiian style fancy dress party games?

Hawaiians are well known for their sense of fun and enthusiastic attitude towards life, and this shines through in the games that are associated with the island state.

Start off by donning your grass skirts and Bermuda shorts and then grab some hula hoops and get twirling! There’s a certain knack to getting the hoop spinning just right, and you could even hold competitions amongst your guests to see who can hula the longest, or twirl the most hoops at one time.

While limbo dancing actually has the island of Trinidad to thank for its origins, it has nonetheless become a staple of Hawaiian themed fancy dress parties. When it’s time to find out which one of your party guests is the most flexible and agile, bring out the limbo pole and put some island grooves on the hi-fi.

Another great Hawaiian party game is the piñata, whereby guests attempt to break open a papier-mâché figure while blindfolded. Just make sure to remove any fragile valuables from the scene beforehand!

You will of course want to decorate your house or party hall to look the part, and you can do this with inflatable palm trees, pineapples and parrots, Hawaiian garlands and Tiki god ornaments. Mix your guests up some tropical cocktails and the grim winter outside will soon be forgotten.

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Happy Hawaiian New Year

Tuesday, December 29th, 2009

If you’re having a house party this New Year’s Eve, why not make it an occasion to remember by giving everything a Hawaiian fancy dress theme. As the snow continues to fall and festive travel plans for thousands of Britons are disrupted, bringing a little bit of tropical paradise to your own home is the perfect way to lift your guests’ spirits.

For fancy dress costumes think grass skirts, Bermuda shorts, Hawaiian shirts and flower garlands aplenty. You could even go as a man-eating shark!

If you’re feeling particularly brave this New Year’s Eve, you could even try holding a Hawaiian style barbecue amongst the snowmen in your back garden! Whether you choose to prepare your party food indoors or outdoors, Hawaiian cuisine offers a fine selection of tasty morsels for even the most conservative of party guests. Being a fusion of national dishes brought by immigrants to the island, notably Japanese, American, Chinese and Filipino, Hawaiian food is greatly varied and remarkably delicious. Barbecued fish is particularly popular and the ‘plate lunch’ is a staple of Hawaiian restaurants, consisting of two scoops of white rice, macaroni salad and an entree, such as Chicken Katsu, Beef Teriyaki or Hamburger Steak.

Give your home that typically Hawaiian feel by sprucing up the decor with a few palm trees, pineapple and coconut party decorations. A few Tiki god ornaments about the place also certainly couldn’t hurt your luck for the coming year. Round the night off with a bang in traditional Hawaiian style by setting off some firecrackers at midnight. Hau’ oli Makahiki Hou!

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Mele Kalikimaka – Happy Hawaiian Christmas

Wednesday, December 16th, 2009

grassskirtIf you fancy doing something a little different this festive season, why not throw a Hawaiian fancy dress Christmas party?

You can start by swapping the Christmas tree for an inflatable or cardboard cut-out palm tree, unless your budget stretches to the real thing. There’s no need to desert the norm entirely though – Hawaiian fancy dress can be combined with more traditional Xmas costumes, such as Santa Clause and his elves wearing aloha shirts and flower garlands, or a grass-skirted angel wearing a coconut bra.

Get in the island mood by breaking out some tropically festive cocktails and keep some tinnies cold in a palm tree table top cooler. And what would a Hawaiian themed party be without a few Hawaiian party supplies, including some novelty inflatables scattered around the room, such as a shark, a parrot, or an oversized banana?

The piece de resistance of any Christmas party though, Hawaiian themed or otherwise, is of course the food. Tantalise your guests’ tastebuds by laying on a fabulous luau of tropically themed festive foods. A succulent joint of ham or gammon garnished with mouth-watering pineapple makes a splendid alternative to the traditional Christmas turkey, and instead of mince pies, consider serving a tropical fruit salad.

If you or your guests are musically minded, you could try to add a little extra ambience to your Hawaiian themed fancy dress Christmas party by banging out a few festive tunes on a steel strung guitar or a ukulele. Whatever you do, make sure you have a very merry aloha Christmas!

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