This pareu features our Hilo One print on Natural material with Yarrow and Avocado ink.

Hilo One

The names for our hometown, Hilo Palikū, Hilo One and Hilo Hanakahi, make up the three districts fronting Hilo Bay. Hilo of the Upright Cliffs begins at the Wailuku river and goes north until Laupāhoehoe. Hilo One starts at the Wailuku river and embraces the black sand beach until Wailoa river. Hilo Hanakahi is the area on the east side of the Wailoa river.

We celebrate our hometown! Referred to as Hilo One, “the sands of our birth," we honor this town, our company’s birthplace. The streets are the webbing of our community.

We pay homage to this fair city on the bay.

KAʻAPUNI PAREU

Long before opening shop, we collected sarongs from the Pacific but especially our favorites from Tahiti and Samoa.  The simple rectangular cloth inspired me to create ones with imagery reflecting our islands and culture.  That was the beginning of our company.

The term kaʻapuni is often used to describe traveling around, like encircling an island or traversing the globe.  From our perspective, the Hawaiian Islands sit at the center of the Pacific Ocean.  Flying to other islands and the continents is a fairly common activity.   “Kaʻapuni Pareu” is an expression describing our use of this simple cloth as it travels with us wherever we go.