Vintage Postcards of Hula Dance Costumes

       Hula is a Polynesian dance form accompanied by chant (oli) or song (mele, which is a cognate of "meke" from the Fijian language). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form.

       Hula dancing is a complex art form, and there are many hand motions used to represent the words in a song or chant. For example, hand movements can signify aspects of nature, such as the swaying of a tree in the breeze or a wave in the ocean, or a feeling or emotion, such as fondness or yearning. Foot and hip movements often pull from a basic library of steps including the kaholo, kaʻo, kawelu, hela, ʻuwehe, and ʻami. Read more...

       Below are vintage postcards of girls and ladies hula dancing. They are wearing hula costumes that are traditionally now associated with the dance. If you want to sew a hula costume for a doll, these pictures should give you some idea of how a costume like this normally looks. You will need to sew a grass skirt of some kind, a floral print blouse and string some silk flowers together to make the lei (garland).