Maui hatmaker Emi Azeka Preston shows off
some of her delicate millinery creations.
By Ken Ige, Star-Bulletin

Gatsby hats grab attention

NOUVEAU-Gatsby era hats are making their Honolulu debut, dahling. Artist/hatmaker Emi Azeka Preston of Maui's Azeka Place family introduces her elegant yet funky headwear made of light, airy straws.

People spot her wearing the chapeaus and stop to ask at which antique shop she procured them, she said. They range from graceful, romantic, wide-brimmed models to pert, scalp-hugging cocktail caps, to portable, crushable travel cloches that can fold up and tuck away into a purse.

Preston said she is inspired by natural beauty, such as the Makena sand dunes, for her hat shapes and colors. She hand-dyes her materials in pastels and earth tones.

The unique works bear names, such as " 'Ohi'a-lehua" for a crimson cocktail hat decorated with velvet flowers, beads and netting. The hats sell for about $40 to $150 at Native Books & Beautiful Things. You can also find her at some craft fairs.

Preston is as eclectic as her hats. The older daughter of Bill Azeka, developer of the Azeka Place Shopping Center in Kihei, she holds a teaching degree and worked and lived in Colorado and the Bay area before returning to her roots on the Valley Isle. She studied millinery to fashion her heirloom-flavor headwear.

Preston said she designs her hats to evoke the grace and events of the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s - such as Lurline and Matsonia boat days, and afternoon tea on the Moana Hotel veranda.

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By Catherine Kekoa Enomoto