Verna and Bob's Weblog

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Silent Service Aloha Shirt

reyns-sub-shirt.jpgOne of the two new shirts to Bob’s Aloha shirt collection is this nice print which is a tribute to the United States Navy’s Submarine Service. These beautiful denizens of the deep look really sharp as they are depicted in framed panels on the blue shirt. Click on the thumbnail for a closer look.

This article from Midweek.com came out in August of 2006 when the collection was announced:

Military Service Inspired Aloha Shirts

Reyn Spooner introduces two new military service-inspired aloha shirts: The Silent Service design features the evolution of the U.S. Navy Submarine Service and highlights the USS Bowfin, the 63-year-old submarine now on view at Pearl Harbor. The shirt is available on a blue or khaki background and in pullover or full button front style

Spooner introduced Vintage Propellers at the same time – Bob’s looking for one of those also.

November 10, 2008 by Apparel Military

Hawaiian Apparel – Mahimahi

mahi-mahi.jpgThis is really a colorful print of some Hawaiian Mahimahi (dolphin fish) on one of my dresses. The fiery orange background almost glows in the dark. According to Wikipedia, it is very common to see the word Mahimahi spelled as two words (mahi mahi) or as a single word separated by a dash (mahi-mahi). Each of these variations is wrong. The true Hawaiian spelling of the word is as a single word. the correct spelling is Mahimahi and it is pronounced “ma-e-ma-e.” Click on the thumbnail image for a closer look.

July 12, 2008 by Apparel

More Verna’s Hawaiian Prints

hibiscus-print.jpgThis one is on a dress I really like. The hibiscus flowers are typical of Hawaiian prints and I love the turquoise color. Click the image to see full-sized.

Wikipedia has this interesting history about “Aloha Shirts” . . .

The modern Aloha shirt was devised in the early 1930s by Chinese merchant Ellery Chun of King-Smith Clothiers and Dry Goods, a store in Waikiki. Chun began sewing brightly colored shirts for tourists out of old kimono fabrics he had leftover in stock. The Honolulu Advertiser newspaper was quick to coin the term Aloha shirt to describe Chun’s fashionable creation. Chun trademarked the name. The first advertisement in the Honolulu Advertiser for Chun’s Aloha shirt was published on June 28, 1935. Local residents, especially surfers, and tourists descended on Chun’s store and bought every shirt he had. Within years, major designer labels sprung up all over Hawaii and began manufacturing and selling Aloha shirts en masse.

July 7, 2008 by Apparel

Verna’s Hawaiian Prints

After I decided to post some of Bob’s Hawaiian shirt prints on the website, Bob noted that I had some colorful prints that deserve some attention too. So here is one of Bob’s favorites (and mine too). Click on the image for the super-size.

surf-hibiscus.jpg

June 30, 2008 by Apparel

Bob’s Hawaiian Shirts – Cuckoo for Kokopelli

cuckoo-koko.jpgWell, that’s the name Bob gave to this pattern. We bought this shirt in Arizona last year during our excursion along Old Route 66.

The colorful pattern includes icons from Native American folklore and a variety of reptiles, birds and animals thought to be associated with the ancient Anasazi fertility and agriculture god. Like most fertility deities, Kokopelli presides over both childbirth and agriculture. He is also a trickster god and represents the spirit of music. Click on the image for the wallpaper-sized version.

June 25, 2008 by Apparel Culture

Avalon 1998

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