Hawaii Tribune-Herald Island Beat Thursday, November 17, 2016 11 MAHALO To our Customers and Friends Ace Hardware &R̆HH%HDQDQG7HD/HDI )RRGODQG.HDCDX *HQNL%X̆HW .HDCDX1DWXUDO)RRGV / /'ULYH,QQ /HPRQJUDVV5HVWDXUDQW /RQJV 3LD+XW 6DGRUUD)ORUDO'HVLJQV 6XEZD\ 6XGVQ'XGV 6XSHUFXWV Comes in all Sizes; Jeanette Kaulukukui, who makes children’s rocking horses; Soda2Art, who makes recycled sodacan jewelry; Miss Mary Q, who makes educational items for children; and Chris Graper, who makes koa pens, boxes and ornaments. Additional new vendors include Klassy Kustom Designs, Rana Minemoto, Mele Menehunes, Aloha Kine Imua Apparel, Hopper’s Art & Hopper’s Big Island Stitch and T&T Creations. Sasaki says she spends her year visiting trade shows and craft fairs, scouting a variety of vendors with the best homemade items. “Previously, this show used to have a lot of Asian crafts but I’m trying to broaden the spectrum to include more diversity,” Sasaki explains. “I look for things that are different — things that I think people in Hilo would like. There’s something for everyone: men, women and children. People won’t be disappointed and can get all their shopping done in one fell swoop.” Longtime favorite vendors include Susan Tita, Idkwhat2wear, Creations by June, It’s About Time, Toyo Hawaii, Barefoot Hawaii, Ahualoa Farms, Balsamics Hawaii, Mauna Kea Tea, Megan Aina Boutique, AromaBreez, Clarify Textile Art, Unique Glass by Miera, Beads by Kori, Jen-E, Taj of Honolulu, Yeung’s Arts & Crafts and Coconut Connections. This is the second year that sisters Tania Takashiba and Kara Iopa, owners of kids’ clothing line MaruMaru Hawaii, will be participating in the Christmas Extravaganza Craft Fair. In 2014, these sisters were pregnant at the same time (and ended up giving birth just two days apart). Inspired by their journey through motherhood together, they created MaruMaru Hawaii as a side business. “We feature cute and fun tees for your Hawaii tots,” says Tania Takashiba. “My sister and I always liked cute shirts for our kids, but we wanted something more specific to the Big Island and we could never find anything.” They started Maru- Maru Hawaii just before their children turned 1. “We wanted our business to reflect what it’s like growing up in Hawaii but also Hilo specifically because there are a lot of ‘Hiloisms’ I didn’t notice until I went away to school and also lived on Oahu,” Takashiba says. One shirt features a happy rain cloud with the words “Hilo Love” printed on the front. Another says “Hilo das why.” Then there’s “If lost return to 96720” and, this Honolulu girl’s personal favorite, a shirt that says “Ice Shave.” “It’s also about the weird and quirky things that happen to us as moms,” says Takashiba, who also works as a marketing consultant (her sister is a teacher). “And, because we are Japanese, all those words that local Japanese people use that reflect our upbringing, too. We try to do designs that have meaning to us or relate to how we grew up or how we are raising our kids.” There are other T-shirts that say, “I love to bocha,” “I love musubi” and “No, YOU go nene!” MaruMaru Hawaii prints keiki shirts in size 12 months to 5T. They will be showcasing new designs and canvas tote bags at this year’s fair. “We signed up at the last minute last year,” Takashiba says. “But it was really great for our business. We always want to have fresh designs and new things coming in. It’s fun for us and the response from the people of Hilo has been amazing.” The owner of Coconut Connections, Mike Kim, aka the “Broom Man,” has been coming to Hilo from Oahu with his hand-crafted brooms for more than a decade with Derek Wada of Nature Prints, who makes gyotaku fish print T-shirts. “We both have very unique products,” says Kim, who has been working the craft fair circuit with Wada for 17 years. Kim says they look forward to coming to Hilo every year for this fair. “It’s well-organized and the people are so nice. We make new friends every year,” he says. Regulars to the fair will recognize Kim’s Ni Au brooms, made from the hard center spine of the coconut palm frond, which is wrapped around a bamboo handle. “It’s a very practical and attractive-looking broom,” he explains of this traditional broom used in Hawaii and throughout the South Pacific Islands. He notes that while his brooms are made from green waste, they are just as sturdy as the synthetic ones you’d buy at Walmart or Home Depot. They can be used on grass, gravel, asphalt, cement, tile and even hardwood floors, and are meant for all those “hard to reach places,” he says. Kim also is known for his bamboo walking sticks, a beautiful alternative to an aluminum cane, that he custom fits to the user. New this year, Kim is bringing a foot massager “takefumi,” also made from a piece of bamboo that is cut in half lengthwise and resembles a “kamaboko,” he says. “They use it in Japan a lot to help with circulation. The theme behind Kim’s work is about helping his fellow man. He enjoys crafting things that he knows will help people in some way. Come to see him early, Kim says, because he always sells out. Nearly 4,000 people attended last year’s Christmas Extravaganza Craft Fair. “This year, we’re hoping to have even more,” Sasaki says. Admission is $2 for adults, children 12 and younger are free and the last hour before closing each day is free for last-minute purchases. For more information, call Malamapono Events Management at 896-1620 or visit www. malamaponoevents.com. CHRISTMAS From page 2 HOLLYN JOHNSON/Tribune-Herald Betsy Okamura buys holiday decorations from Big Island Country Goods during the 28th annual Hilo Christmas Extravaganza Craft Fair.
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