Lynn Bell

I arrived on the Big Island of Hawaii in 1988, and was immediately drawn to the Hawaiian culture, beautiful people and art works of the indigenous people.

A friend told me of a Kupuna (Hawaiian teacher) that was going to be teaching a day-long lei making class. This class taught me a variety of styles of lei making and inspired me. I took to it like a fish in water, devouring every bit of information I could find. I continued to experiment with various materials.

Now, twenty years later I have made it my mission to create leis for friends and family. I gather my materials from my own garden as well as other areas.

The colors are evident in the leis that I make. During Christmas the golds reds and greens of the season. Spring brings the pinks and lavenders. Autumn brings the oranges and rusts and deeper greens.

Hats... First inspiration was in making my husband a hat for a Halloween Party and then realized how wonderful he looked in them. He has quite a collection. I have had my hats in galleries and small specialty stores. I have been re-inspired with a new hat pattern discovered this last year.

Horses, elephants and dogs. These were inspired from my children's pre-school experience. I loved the simplicity of not having a commercialized Christmas and the look on each child's face when they found the toy that spoke to them. Each animal is knit from natural fibers and is imbued with care.

Lynn Bell

Gigi Goochey

Here are several samples of Gigi's work...