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Continue ShoppingAkalei Designs is Hawaii's only designer of handcrafted Kumihimo beaded Hawaiian Lei. With over 100 unique designs we were recently awarded “Best Beaded Lanyard” from The American Kumihimo Society (2023) for our complex braid structures. In addition our silk Hawaiian necklace is being showcased in a commercial for the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement Pop-Up Makēkē Market. And another positive compliment was three of our designs were selected in a juried art exhibit in Oahu by The Hawaiian Handweavers Hui. This public recognition reflects how our unique and high quality necklace lei are gaining attention. All our designs are handcrafted on Maui. We are unique in that we are able to incorporate aspects of floral lei into modern forever lei using glass beads with designs normally only seen in the shell lei made famous on the island of Ni’iHua (The Forbidden Island).
Hawaiian Beaded Necklace Lei Rope - Green Glazed with Purple (25")
Blending of colors is done in floral lei and also using glass beads. Here we blend two color of green (Semi Glazed Rainbow with Toho Honeydew Semi Glazed) and two hues of purple (Light Amethyst and Plum Gold Luster) for a unique effect. We placed the green matte lei design on the outside for the desired affect of green lei emphasis. This Hawaiian Beaded Oimatsu Rope is made using 16 strands of beaded rope cords. There are over 8000 beads loaded onto all cords that are woven into this amazingly solid design art piece using a wooden Japanese braiding stand called a Marudai. An acrylic magnet provides extra strong hold to help it stays secure this on the neck.
The process of creating an Oimatsu Rope™ or similar Continuous Beaded Braids (CBB) entails much more than could be imagined. The process begins with loading hundreds of beads onto cords, these are then wound onto bobbins, braided, massaged very carefully, removed from the Marudai braiding stand and finished with end caps. One wrong move and the entire braid crumbles - much like a soufflé. However, these solid stunning and comfortable necklaces are made using thousands of glass beads or other materials such as pearls, semi-precious gems, and gem stones, to create necklaces or bracelets.
These necklaces feel wonderful to wear and require little to almost no care by using a slightly moisten clean towel with a tiny bit of dish soap every few months to keep it. dust free and bright. Due to the durability of the glass beads this necklace will last for years. Remember to treat your jewelry with care! I highly recommend that you remove your jewelry when sleeping, showering, or swimming to avoid damage. You can also mix and match with different lengths of similar Lei or try the Forbidden Island inspired necklaces in that collection (see sample photo in this item).
Akalei Designs make great gifts for woman and men! Akalei is the Hawaiian word for "bead reflections" which describes this unique style only available here on Maui. We specialize in designing a wide range of modern yet classic Hawaiian looking lei. Ideal as a gift for a holiday, birthday, wedding or anniversary. Please email info@akaleidesigns.com to inquire about custom products for that special occasion.
Akalei is Hawaiian for "bead reflections" which describes this unique necklace lei design style available only here on Maui. We specialize in designing a wide range of modern yet familiar Hawaiian Lei for woman, girls and men.
Kumihimo is an ancient Japanese braid making technique that results in beautiful and strong interlaced cords. This art form goes back hundreds of years as braids were made for use in armor of Japanese samurai warriors. In modern times these braids are designed as obijime that are worn as a belt with a kimono.
It is my goal to provide you with a long lasting, beautiful piece of jewelry that you will enjoy wearing for years to come. I take great care in the construction of my pieces to ensure just that. Please note: colors may slightly differ from their appearance on your display, as it depends on your monitor settings.
Send a message with questions or comments. Thanks for stopping by!
Aloha Aku and Mahalo Nui Loa.
Randy
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