Bold, Native Prints; Fun Designs – Luna Blue Hawaii Is A Summer Must Have
Creative Director, Noah
Happy, humble, heart wear! The doggy designs coming out of Luna Blue Hawaii are fresh, fun and fashionable. They caught my eye walking the Global Pet Expo aisles, and I knew then, that I wanted to share them with you!
Luna Blue creations reflect a strong connection to its Hawaiian culture. The bold print patterns, the vibrant colors, even the names of its collections; all have meaning and embody the richness of Hawaiian history. The pieces I fell in love with at Global were these oh-so-cute Kona dresses and soft, print harnesses with charming trims. I tweeted them and got requests from Bark and Swagger readers smitten with them, too, asking where they can buy. Finally, I can tell you!
The little man who started it
The company launched in 2007 around a Chihuahua named Noah. Noah just couldn’t find anything to wear! He, being a stylish dude, thought fellow stylish dudes and dudettes should have access to trendy, comfortable and fun fashion. He got cracking and, along with his humans (who were already designing women’s and men’s clothing), came up with the doggy brand’s first pieces – the Aloha shirt, Muumuu dresses, harnesses and collars. He mined his parent’s history, setting the brand apart by using one-of-a-kind Hawaiian fabrics. Smart little guy. The human’s designs (with his direction, of course) on his cute, little body caught on and Luna Blue Hawaii had a new, not-too-hairy creative director.
Adorable Kona Layered Dresses
To give you the inside scoop, I reached out to VP and head designer (and aforementioned “human”), Yoshiko Hishida. What follows is our interview, where I learned more about Noah, the meaning behind some of their designs and what’s new for our fur babies for summer.
BaS: I love the sensibilities of the Luna Blue fashions. What are your specific influences from your culture?
LB: Our Leilani Collection is derived from the meaning ‘heavenly lei’ (flowers) which, in Hawaiian, symbolizes passion and love for the person to whom it is given. Noah, our mascot dog, would like to give every dog who wears our Leilani Collection ‘passion and love.’ The colors and patterns we use in our Hawaiian prints all have the ALOHA inspiration in them.
BaS: Oooh, that frisky little Chi! What is the Aloha inspiration?
LB: LOL! Each letter means something in our culture. “A” stands for the word Aloha, meaning Welcome; what I have, you may have and share with other pets. “L” stands for the Hawaiian word Lohu Mai Kai, which means ‘what I’ve said comes from my heart with good intentions’; “O” stands for the Hawaiian word Olu Olu, meaning ‘happy’. This is part of our longevity. A happy dog doing for others; caring and giving; “H” stands for the Hawaiian word ‘Ha’a Ha’a’, meaning humility. We welcome you and we do things for you because we are happy doing it and are humble to serve. And, “A” stands for the Hawaiian word ‘a’aKa moku,’ which means ‘our eyes and ears are wide open, but our lips are sealed, for we know what we are doing.’
BaS: So interesting! The Hawaiian people are known for their warmth, generosity of spirit and their humility. There are so many wise Hawaiian sayings we could all learn from.
BaS: Tell us about your designs and the materials you use?
Hula Girl Harness
LB: We maintain a certain degree of cut, depending on the design, so that the dogs are comfortable. Especially with male dogs, so when they take care of their business, it doesn’t get onto their clothing! 🙂 We also use only quality materials, because it has to be comfortable for the dog, and be easy to clean for the owners. We use 100% cotton for all of the Aloha Collection, and soft stretch 100% cotton tanks for all the non-Aloha items. The DogBarks Collection is 100% ribbed cotton and our hoodies are light weight and super soft.
BaS: Do you manufacture your collection in Hawaii?
LB: All of our pieces are designed and planned in Hawaii and our factory is in Asia.
BaS: You’re based in Honolulu and you have a storefront there, right?
LB: Yes. Our flagship store is in Honolulu since 2008. It’s where we also sell our men’s and women’s collections.
BaS: Are you the principal designer?
LB: Yes, the physical design work is done by me, but Noah has to give the final OK. He will try on all of the pieces, from sample to final and post production, to make sure that it fits well.
BaS: I see you have the Aloha Collection and the Honolulu Collection. What’s the difference?
LB: The main distinction is the Aloha Collection uses our most popular Aloha Hula Girl prints. They come in a black print and a white. This was our very first fabric, when we launched Luna Blue to the public. Back then, we had a lovely friend in Oregon, who cut and sewed each piece for us. These have been our longest-running and best original styles. The Honolulu Collection focuses on Kona shirts and harnesses.
DogBarks Tee
(comes in other colors)
BaS: Your DogBarks Collection strikes me as a tongue-in-cheek nod to the Starbucks crowd. Very cute, striped tee’s with a cuppa Joe type patch on the back. Spill the coffee beans, please!
LB: (LOL) Yes! It is simply for canines to enjoy their cup of caffeine in style!
BaS: The Classy Noir Collection features an iconic-looking perfume bottle on the back of a classic tee or dress, with some embellishments, giving the whole look a bit of a pop culture flair. What inspired this?
LB: It was originally inspired by the Glitter Glamorous Collection for women. It was all about perfumes, and if human models can walk the runway, why not our pooches, too!
BaS: The Sniffany Blue Collection, a take off on the iconic Tiffany blue box, is really cute. Are these very popular pieces? I also love the Sniffany Open Heart Dress and the Love Gift Box Dress.
LB: Yes, these are the most popular pieces! Actually, this is our second version. Our first Sniffany design did so well, we went back to the drawing board and created an opposite theme – sophisticated, soft and classy – but kept the basic design of the gift box and ribbon.
BaS: I love how you extended the gift box theme into focusing on animal prints! You also have a crisp, cute London Bear design for people who love a bit of plaid!
Sniffany Tee
LB: The Party Animal Gift Box Collection is our newest take on the Sniffany boxes. We used the gift box theme because everybody loves gifts! Depending on the wrapping paper, special occasion, contents, a gift can be presented and expressed in so many ways. Doing the animal gift box is a bit wild and fun, the other side of the Sniffany.
BaS: I also love the hoodies you had at Global. The fabrics look very tribal in nature, maybe Navajo. Were these Hawaiian-inspired?
LB: The inspiration for these came from the human fashion trend. Dogs can walk the runway in their own way, too!
BaS: Right! Tribal was a very popular trend recently!
BaS: I’ll finish our interview coming back to Noah. What more can you tell us about the little man?
LB: Noah is seven years old and loves to go to work everyday. He’s our number one salesperson! (laughing) He goes to the store and greets all of the customers; charms them, really. We call Noah the “human magnet.”
Noah and his humans are doing something right. Fans of the bright, cheery, easy to wear collections keep the brand growing, and its commitment to the values of its heritage keep it interesting and strong. Looking into the Hawaiian culture to prepare for this piece was fascinating. They are such a wise, deep people, who value family, kindness, humility. So, to all of my Bark and Swagger Hoalohas (friends), I say A hui hou kakou (until we meet again). 🙂
Where to buy Luna Blue Hawaii: Bitch New York
What’s your favorite highlighted design? Tell me what you think about Luna Blue Hawaii in the Comments below.
(Disclosure: I am a Bitch New York affiliate. Please refer to the Disclosure & Disclaimer page on this site for more info. Thanks!)
London Bear Tank
(comes in tan plaid, too)
Classy Noir Pink Dress
(also comes in tank)
Kona Beach Dress
(comes in other colors)
