At the Hawaii Gourd Society, we decorate gourds ("Ipu" in Hawai'ian) in a method that was used in old Hawai'i on the island of Ni'ihau.

Ni'ihau is the smallest of the eight major Hawaiian Islands and is off the coast of Kaua'i.

This art form was lost to history at the turn of the 20th century as the practitioners died and native vessels were replaced by western crockery. There were examples of this art in museums but how they were decorated was unknown.About fifteen years ago a doctor from the Big Island, Bruce Ka'imiloa Chrisman, discovered how it was done. By going through the archives, looking at museum pieces and by trial and error, he recreated the dyeing method used by the old Hawaiians.