POTTERY BARN The cover of Pottery Barn's Spring catalog showcases a bedroom motif of palm trees and quilt of aloha print patches.

Aloha designs electrify
the new esprit decor

---

By Ruby Mata-Viti
rmataviti@starbulletin.com

Somewhere in Ohio, a 20-something is trying to impress his date as she fluffs the "Aloha Girl Pillow" adorning his couch.

When she asks where he bought it, he could say he picked it up while vacationing in Hawaii from a woman with a thick foreign accent who said it was handmade from antique remnants. Instead he'll tell the truth and say he ordered it from Pottery Barn.

In mid-April, about 12 million people in the United States opened their mailbox to find the latest catalog of the home decor chain promoting a line of Hawaii-themed merchandise marketed as "The Spirit of Aloha."

POTTERY BARN The "Aloha Girl Beach Towel," part of its "Spirit of Aloha" theme, sells for $35.

Though not as prominent as other culturally based themes such as Southwest and Asian, for the store to make Hawaiiana a focal point perhaps signals the onset of a trend. The timing coincides with the arrival of the Tommy Bahama furniture series at C.S. Wo.

Helen Fujii at Pottery Barn's phone-order sales offices based in Las Vegas said the aloha products -- which encompass bedding, pillows, rugs, art prints and shower curtains -- are "selling like crazy." Fujii, an employee of 10 months, said, "Some of the items are already on backorder. People from all over are snapping them up."

The aloha theme was introduced in March and will be set up until July as part of their summer line, said Jennifer Reeves of Williams Sonoma in San Francisco, parent company of Pottery Barn. She wouldn't discuss sales numbers, but said up to 12 million catalogs were shipped in the United States and that "our summer products are doing well."

Karen Barozzi, president of the American Society of Interior Designers in Hawaii, said she has seen aloha print in fashion inching its way across the country.

Before MTV's "Loveline" went to syndicated radio format, co-host Adam Carolla was seen on the cable channel occasionally donning tropicals, sometimes signing off with a "Mahalo," just like a kamaaina. National news correspondents are sometimes spotted wearing what looks like a Tommy Bahama ensemble.

"People like the casual feeling that Hawaiiana radiates," Barozzi said. Furniture design trends usually follow fashion, she added, and while fashion is a fast-paced industry, interior style cycles about seven years.

KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM The familiar Tommy Bahama logo is on many of the accessories such as the pillow.

Brad Harris, buyer for C.S. Wo, said, "There is an obvious move on the international and domestic level for the image of lifestyle driven by the (Tommy Bahama) clothing line. It makes it easier for us to buy appropriate furniture for our way of life here."

Harris says some of the lot is already on backorder and is doing well at the stores on the mainland that carry it.

Tommy Bahama in Kihei carries housewares but not furniture. Sales Associate Jill Kueffer said the furniture is actually made for the Tommy Bahama label by Lexington, a company that distributes its merchandise internationally.

Kueffer said Tommy Bahama plans to open a store on Ala Moana Center's third floor that will sell clothing and housewares but not furniture.

Hawaiiana projects a cool, refreshing feeling and resurfaces during spring and summer, said Barozzi, so it makes sense that Pottery Barn would use it for its April mailing.

Barozzi, owner of Barozzi Design Inc., says the motif is more popular in warm climates like Florida and California or in rooms that have a indoor-outdoor relationship like garden entries or recreation rooms. Sample books distributed to the trade are moving toward tropical, Barozzi said. "You had to struggle to find grass textures a decade ago."

KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM Brad Harris of C.S. Wo sits at a Tommy Bahama writing table displayed at the store. Behind is the Palm Frond Canopy Bed.

Although it's becoming more common, it certainly isn't new on the mainland, she added. Barozzi said her parents bought bedspreads while vacationing here 35 years ago and, when they returned home, redid their bedroom in Hawaiiana.

"They did it to remind them of the romance of Hawaii."

"We work hard to live here, so we tend to overlook that," said Barozzi, "but people who visit here -- even people who have never been -- really get into the romance and exotica of it all and want to keep that with them and take that home."

Those who have never been to Hawaii can turn to Pottery Barn and pretend.

Click for online
calendars and events.