Traditional Hawaiian 'Awa bowl

[Gourmet Hawaiian Kava]

Hi everyone, as some of you know I did a lot of logging and wood working different Hawaiian hardwoods for most of my life. I did this along with growing kava because believe me after harvesting a bunch of big logs you need kava at the end of the day,
Well anyway, I was watching a video on YouTube showing the Hawaii wood show 2016 and in the video is a great, near perfect replica of a traditional Hawaiian 'Awa bowl, it is also made from the wood that was traditionally used for making Hawaiian bowls. The wood is called Kou (ko) instead of ho it is pronounced ko the u actually comes out at the end in the Hawaiian language but there are not too many people who speak Hawaiian outside of Hawaii, another example would be the w in the word Hawaii, it is actually pronounced as a v not a w.
Here is a link to the video and the Hawaiian 'Awa bowl is at 13:57. Check it out and I hope you all enjoy it, the Hawaiian style kava bowl is certainly different from all other kava bowls.
Aloha.

Chris

 

[Jeff Silvers]

Thanks for the video. Great looking bowl. I just bought one myself from the Big Island. It's not to that level of craftsmanship though.

 

[Enwoueï]

...not too many people who speak Hawaiian outside of Hawaii, another example would be the w in the word Hawaii, it is actually pronounced as a v not a w.
Aloha. Chris

I love learning such things and will properly pronounce HaVaii from now on.
Thanks!

 

[theGrogfather]

Great craftsmanship! Now if only you could rig it up to pour out of the mouth into your shell
Chris, do you use one of these?

 

[Gourmet Hawaiian Kava]

Great craftsmanship! Now if only you could rig it up to pour out of the mouth into your shell
Chris, do you use one of these?

The original one actually did pour out of the mouth, it was real cool to see. A friend of mine who wrote a book on Hawaiian bowls he had sent me pictures of the original and it was incredible workmanship considering they did not have metal tools. When Capt. Cook first came to Hawaii it was said in his writings about the Hawaiian wooden bowls, they said that it rivaled the quality of European bowls made with machines and the Hawaiians used stone and fire and a few other things like shark skin, lau hala leaves and Kukui nuts.
No I do not have a kava bowl like this, I wish I did.
Aloha.

Chris

 

[Jeff Silvers]

I'd like to read the book on Hawaiian bowls, could you post the information on it.

 

[Gourmet Hawaiian Kava]

I'd like to read the book on Hawaiian bowls, could you post the information on it.

Hi Jeff, this is a great book that covers all aspects of woodworking in old Hawaii, very detailed and a lot of full color pictures, here is a link to the book---------------------------------------------
The Hawaiian Calabash
Aloha nui loa.

Chris

 

[Jeff Silvers]

Mahalo, I just ordered one. I love reading about all things Hawaiian. My wife and I have been going to Hawaii every year for over a decade now.

 

[nabanga]

Thats a superb bowl. I've been collecting pacific artefacts for a couple of decades now and have never managed to secure an old Hawaiian kava bowl at any of the auctions as they are way out of my price range, but it would be great to have a quality replica like the one in your video.
Do you have any contacts for Hawaiian traditional carvers @Gourmet Hawaiian Kava ?

 

[AvaCat]

Wow. I clicked play to see the bowl but ended up watching the whole video, that was beautiful... and combined with that soothing guitar in the background this video almost put me to sleep in a good way haha, it was like a virtual shell of kava. I really enjoyed that thanks for sharing.

 

[Rick.Sanchez]

Wow. I clicked play to see the bowl but ended up watching the whole video, that was beautiful... and combined with that soothing guitar in the background this video almost put me to sleep in a good way haha, it was like a virtual shell of kava. I really enjoyed that thanks for sharing.

One thing I love about kava is it's ability to provide enough mental peace and relaxation to enjoy slow paced things and take pleasure in the many things I take for granted every day. When I'm a couple shells deep, checking Facebook becomes much less important and reading a good book until I fall asleep becomes much more appealing. Or even watching a slow-paced video showing beautiful woodwork