Make your own Hawaiian lei from crepe paper.
According to Hawaiian tradition, a lei is a string of flowers, leaves, shells, feathers, seeds or other items worn around the head or neck for decoration. Early Polynesian settlers to Hawaii from Tahiti likely brought the custom to the islands. Leis are often given as welcoming presents or all-occasion gifts. Today's leis can be made from paper, a custom that probably began with the early tourist trade in Hawaii. In fact, in the early part of the 20th Century, lei artists created very intricate crepe paper leis.
Instructions
1. Cut the thread twice as long as you want your lei to be. Thread it through the eye of a large needle, bring both ends together and knot it. This makes the thread twice as strong.
2. Roll out a length of crepe paper on your work surface and leave it attached to the roll.
3. Insert the needle in the middle of the end of the crepe paper and make a running stitch along the length of the crepe paper strip. Each stitch should be about 1/4 inch long. After you have sewn two or three stitches, pull the thread all the way through.
4. Gather the crepe paper into a fan fold as you sew, pushing it gently but firmly toward the knotted end of your thread.
5. Twist the bunched fan fold in a clockwise direction when you have an inch or so gathered, keeping a firm grasp on it so that it does not untwist.
6. Continue sewing through the center of the crepe paper strip, gathering the crepe paper into a fan fold, and twisting the bunches every inch or two until you have the length of lei you desire. If you run out of one crepe paper roll, simply begin sewing another roll onto your thread.
7. Sew the end of the lei to the other end and make a knot to hold it into a circle. Trim off any excess thread.
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