Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 32, Number 11, 1 November 2015 — Becoming a Designer [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Becoming a Designer

is owner and designer for Noho Designs. She was trained and worked for thirteen years as a lomi practitioner and teacher. Herlomikumu, Maka'alaYates, was a student of the great Hawaiian kahuna, Aunty Margaret Machado. Puaoi loved her work but eame to a plaee where she wanted to be secure in her future. Her Aunty Charlotte Sullivan was an upholsterer in Hilo. She taught Puaoi the skill but Pauoi's passion was really sharing Hawaiian culture and the desire

to create new products. After a single silk-screen class at One Shot Graphics in Kalihi, she birthed Noho Designs. "I gave

myself permission to be artistic." Still, she kept her "day job" of lomi for two and a half years. "Of course," she says lightly, "I started in my garage in Kailua." She reflected on the teaching of her kumu, "it only

takes one person to create a positive epidemic." Tea towels eame first. They were

her bread and butter. She was designing, printing and selling up to 500 per month. A student of 'Ōlelo Hawai'i, she had the urge to share inspiring messages based on the belief that "health and healing starts within our homes." Simple boards, painted with a lightly scrubbed surface delivered thoughts, "Sometimes the weeds are the la'au" and her favorite, "Be the Aloha you wish to see in the world." Remembering her upholstery skills, she began to screen organic fabric and sew pillows, producing and selling 50 to 75 per month. Her inks, all water-based, are non-toxic and washable. About this time she jokes that she got "kicked out" of the garage, needing more room. Studio space became available in Waimānalo. Two good friends needed part-time work. Now her creations are Vin ten Hawai'i boutiques and she is looking into a Kailua location for a pop-up store for the holidays. She thinks it is a good way to try out a retail storefront and not go out on a limb, putting all her resources toward what may or may not be right for her. She says her end goal is to do textiles to change the perception of what Hawaiian design really is. ■

Noho Vintage Hawaiian Chic Home Decor was created to inspire happy lives through designs that promote peaceful minds and visual peaee. - Courtesy photos

Puaoi