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Although commonly referred to as Niihau Shells after the forbidden island of Niihau, the true name of this tiny turbin shell is Kahelelani (Kaw-Hey-Lay-Lani); technically known as leptothyra verruca, a member of the family turbinidae. There are two translations for Kahelelani. The modern translation is "pathway to heaven" while the traditional Hawaiian translation is "the royal going". An ancient chief of Niihau was named Kahelelani, and there is some debate as to whether the shells were named after the chief. I like to refer to them as Hawaii's jewels from the sea. Although they are found on four of the Hawaiian Islands, Niihau Kauai, Molokai and Lanai, the ladies of Niihau are the ones who first brought these shells to the world. The Niihau shells are so extremely rare and beautiful, that they are the only shells in the world insurable as gem jewelry. Niihau has no rivers or streams running into the ocean, which would carry all the trash and garbage we put in and on the ground. Due to the fact that the reefs of Niihau are more pristine, the shells from that area are of a little higher quality. Pollution not only diminishes the luster of these shells, but it also continues to wipe out much of the habitat of these extremely rare tiny creatures, causing the number of Kahelelani shells available to diminish each year. The shells in my jewelry come from the beaches of Kauai, across the channel from Niihau. When you first see a Kahelelani shell lei, you will most likely be captivated by the beauty of the piece. Your second reaction could very well be shock at the price the artist may be asking for their creation. This reaction is natural, but you must keep in mind that not only are these shells extremely rare, but the production of a Kahelelani shell lei is very involved. We are going to take you through a step-by-step process of the creation of a Kahelelani shell lei in the making. |
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Step 1 - The labor-intensive process of creating Kauai Kahelelani jewelry begins with gathering the tiny shells from the beach. This is done during the winter when, for a short window of time, the rough seas wash the shells of the tiny snails which have died on the reefs over to the beaches. Imagine the gatherer on his hands and knees looking for one shell at a time. |
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The shells are as small as (or smaller than) a grain of rice in the sand, and must be gathered with tweezers. The shells we select are approximately three millimeters to five millimeters. Naturally, the shells only occur on certain beaches, and sometimes we have to compete with others to find the best shells first. At the height of the season, we are considered to be doing well to fill a container the size of a 35 millimeter film canister in an eight hour day. Along the way, we remove any shells that may have imperfections. |
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Step 2 - Once the shells have been gathered, they must be sorted by size. We size the shells into 20 different size-groups using a diamond sorting screen graduated by 2/10 of a millimeter per screen. In order to make this as precise as possible we perform the sorting process twice. |
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Step 3 - Each size group is then broken into 20 - 24 color groups under a special daylight color lamp. The Kahelelani shells occur in an infinite range of colors. They range from pale, almost white to the dark burgundy shades (kahel maku'e). The most prized and sought-after shells are red (Kahelelani ula ula) and hot pink (Kahelelani akala ika ika) |
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Once the sorting is complete, we are ready to begin making a lei. |
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Step 4 - To initiate making a piece of Kahelelani jewelry, we must first develop a design. Once we have determined a pattern, we begin counting and laying out the design by size, color and shade. We take a color group and match it to like-shade-groups, with several shades in each group. As we do this, we remove the tiny pieces of sand which have |
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become lodged inside the shells. |
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Step 5 - Most shell workers use a needle with a handle to punch a hole in the shell. However, if the hole is off even a needle's width, the shell will never lay right no matter which stringing stitch is used. Not only do the shells not lay correctly, but punching a hole in the shell with a needle weakens the shell and it may crack or break. We use the |
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needle to make a pilot hole, and then use a tiny (.025) high speed drill to create our stringing holes. No matter how this drilling is done or how careful the worker is, many shells are lost due to breakage during this stage of the process. |
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Step 6 - Once the shells are ready to string, a stringing stitch must be chosen. This is a true ancient Hawaiian art form which has been handed down from artist to artist. We must first decide which stitch will achieve the desired look of the piece as our designer's have envisioned them. The herring bone stitch is used for a single strand, or up to as |
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many as ten strands, and the counterclockwise twists are the most common stitches. The poe poe stitch, known as the rope style is used for two, three or four strands. The pikake (jasmine flower) stitch is used for even numbered strands (two and four strands). Our senior designer Wilson (pictured in these images) invented a variation of the four strand pikake which we call the pikake subtle twist. The helekonia stitch, named for the helekonia flower, is used for multi-media pieces using a combination of Kahelelani and Momi (euplica varians) shells. The lei kapona stitch can also be used with this combination. |
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When you purchase a Kahelelani shell lei from us, you will be purchasing a rare, unique, and beautiful piece of art you can wear. You are also purchasing a small piece of Hawaiian heritage which may not be available to the next generation. |
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Kauai Kahelelani ©2004 |
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