Throw Your Own Luau!

How to host a Hawaiian party, wherever you are

No matter where you live in the world, it's possible to stage your own authentic lu‘au for an afternoon or evening party, or to celebrate important milestones just as we do in Hawai'i: graduations, birthdays and weddings.


Follow our guide to hosting a lu'au to make your event a success!


Begin with the food

The best part of a lu'au is, frankly, the food and drink. For drink, serve whatever you like, but your lu'au menu is another matter. Depending on your palate you can serve your guests traditional lu‘au fare — such as kalua pork, chicken long rice and haupia — or offer more mainstream choices.

Explore these menu ideas:

• Traditional buffet

If you're truly adventurous, you can cook the traditional Hawaiian way by building your own imu oven and whipping up a delectable batch of kalua pork right in your backyard. If that doesn't work up an appetite, some traditional Hawaiian games certainly will.



Details, details, details
Lu‘au are best held outdoors, weather permitting. Decorate with tiki torches (they're inexpensive, drive away mosquitoes, and are available at most garden and hardware stores), flowers, more flowers, and as many green plants as possible. Borrow or rent foliage if you don't have it on hand.


Lu‘au dress is casual! Recommend to your guests the following attire: For men and boys, aloha shirts and khaki shorts or pants. For women and girls, aloha-print sundress or long wrap-around skirt with tank top or light, short-sleeved blouse. Feet should be bare or wearing what we in Hawai‘i call "slippers" (often called "flip flops" or "thongs" elsewhere in the world). No socks, nylons, dress shirts or ties allowed.

Greet each guest with a lei, hug, and a kiss on the cheek.


Lu‘au food is served buffet-style. All dishes go on the buffet table at the same time, guests line up and "grind," as we say in the Islands — sometimes for hours!

Like many other things in Hawai'i, lu‘au are casual. Kick off your shoes, serve the food on paper plates, and enjoy the company of good friends.

Find all your costumes, decorations and more for your luau at http://www.luaucostumes.com/

Where Did Halloween Come From?

Every year millions of Americans celebrate Halloween. We decorate our houses and our yards to try to make them look as spooky as possible. In recent years the decorations have become more and more elaborate. It is almost as though people are getting into the Halloween decorating with as much fervor as they do at Christmas.

Our children, as well as a lot of adults, dress up in costumes that range from horribly scary to outright funny. Children look forward to Halloween because they love to go out Trick-or-Treating, roaming up and down the neighborhood streets knocking on doors and holding put their treat bags.

Did you ever wonder where the traditions we observe at Halloween came from? What is Halloween really all about? According to an article on the origins of Halloween, contrary to what some people may believe, there was never anything inherently evil about Halloween.

The ideas about witches, the devil and monsters being associated with Halloween are later additions to the holiday we celebrate late in October.

Halloween actually has its roots in the Celtic culture. Many of the traditions we observe today have come straight to us from the Irish. The Romans came along soon after the death of Christ and added their own influences on the already age-old traditions and celebrations. Over time the meanings and observances of Halloween have changed both in function and purpose.

If you'd like to learn more about the origins of this fascinating holiday, visit True Ghost Tales, where you’ll find lots of scary ghost stories and more on the history and origins of Halloween.

And to get in the Halloween spirit, start shopping for this year's costume from the amazing selection of Halloween costumes at http://www.anniescostumes.com/.