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Hawaiian Quilting
Hawaiian quilts are treated with respect, and often given as gifts and passed down in families from generation to generation. Hawaiian quilting may have begun in the 1820s when missionary women introduced the art of sewing. The Hawaiian version of quilts or kapa kuiki appear to have a much older heritage, and may have come from the kapa moe, or sleeping kapa mat. These huge bed coverings were made from large sheets of pounded bark cloth, loosely stitched together and embellished with large geometric patterns. Most quilt designs use leaves and floral patterns. Rows of perfectly spaced stitches emerge from the piko, or navel, and go out to the edges. The first quilt that a student learns to make is the ‘ulu (breadfruit) design. In Hawaiian, the same word without the ‘okina, ulu, means "to grow and increase", as quilting students also grow and increase in wisdom, knowledge, and skills.
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