Thursday, April 26, 2007

Tahitian Headdresses

More and more, we get requests for headdresses and accessories for the hair and jewelry. We have a collection that is growing all the time at Black Pearl Designs. But sometimes we just can't make or get enough material, shells, feathers, or notions. After all, we are working with Tahitian artisans who create most pieces by hand.

That's when we start searching again. And we found a great customizing website - OneofDaKine.com* that offers one-of-a-kind Tahitian headdresses. From the look of it, it seems to all be hand done. So if you are looking for a special headdress or have an idea for a costume, you might want to check this website out. Thanks to Julie Bugarin, director of Merahi O Tehani for the resource link.

And just to let you know, we are working to provide a selection of headdress styles and a lighter weight Tahitian skirt, not to mention a new Tahitian pareo print coming later this year. We are excited to offer this and would welcome input on color and style preferences.

* We are not endorsing nor recommending this company. We offer this information as a service only.

Monday, April 09, 2007

Heiva I Tahiti

At Black Pearl Designs, there's not much more requested than a glimpse of the Tahitian dance performed in its islands of origin. Many dancers have asked if we have DVD's of the competitions. Unfortunately we don't have them... yet. We were however advised of a new service provided by the Institut de la Communication Audiovisuelle. At the site there are video clips of the 2001 Heiva I Tahiti competition. There are 21 clips on the site highlighting arguably one of Heiva I Tahiti's most vibrant and celebrated years of competition.

We've gone ahead and found a translation (into English) of the site and are providing it here for you to enjoy. It's not perfect, but you'll get the gist of it. If you look around, you'll also see that you can purchase some of the DVD videos. But be advised of the long process and possible extra customs duties that might be involved. We're working on eliminating that step for our domestic US orders and making them available on our website.

In the meantime, here's the link:

Heiva I Tahiti 2001 (English translation)

Heiva I Tahiti 2001 (original French edition)