the wickedly delicious mele mac

it is impossible to eat just one mele mac. if you have never encountered this delightful concoction . . . imagine chocolate covered macadamia nuts kicked up a notch with a coating of toffee & dusted with powdered sugar. 'nuff said.

they are so addictive that there should really be a mele macs 12 step program. especially now that island princess has opened up shop on the internet meaning you no longer have to wait until the holiday care package arrives in the mail or your next trip to the islands to get your fix.

and since the island princess factory outlet is located near the honolulu airport, you can stop by to stock up on discounted goodies for your mainland friends (sure, sure . . . whatever gets you through the night) while grazing on free samples. yum!

guy buffet goes to hawaii

pau hana

if you have ever flipped through the pages of a williams-sonoma catalog, the whimsical waiters created by artist guy buffet will probably seem familiar to you. i love his folksy, frenchy art and was pleasantly surprised to learn that he also has a home on maui. gb's life in hawaii has inspired some delightful artwork featuring kama'aina & their island home with nary a dolphin in sight.

plumeria pickers

his art is just so happy and optimistic about the world that it's hard not to respond with a smile. check out more of guy buffet's collection online at lahaina galleries.

escape to the royal hawaiian hotel

if you have always wanted to make like a tourist and stay at the royal hawaiian hotel (aka the pink palace), you have 2 days left to take advantage of their sizzling summer sale.

penny pinchers may want to skip over the fine print since, even at $195 a night, your credit card will still take a big hit. deal with it by heading to the abhasa spa and splurging on a pohaku massage with your savings.

the devil's in the details . . .

• click here to book (offer code: tvlz)
• book it: by friday, jul 21st
• stay: aug 16th to oct 15th
• blackout: sep 16th to 30th

malia mills hits the beach

island girl + mariposa

one of the best things to happen to swimsuits is the creation of separates. matchy-matchy sizing may work in the land of supermodels but it doesn't usually fit the rest of us.

malia mills was one of the first designers to introduce swimwear separates which made shopping for a swimsuit a tad less miserable. another reason to love the hawaii born/nyc-based designer is that she featured real women modeling her collection years before dove's latest ad campaign.

when you're ready to ditch the baggy tee, check out malia mill's lovely beach cover ups (mariposa shown above) which does double duty when paired with your favorite pair of jeans.

the only way to fly

 

speaking of deals, wednesday, july 26th just may be your lucky day if you're flying on aloha. to celebrate their 60th birthday, the airline is giving passengers on board that day a free interisland r/t ticket to be used on their birthday in 2007.

if only the flight attendents would get to dip into the airline's fashion archives and sport these fabulously retro uniforms. now that would be the birthday gift that keeps on giving!