Lookie what I got last night!

Ernie, that is fantastic, pure polemic propaganda. Where did you get all those clippings from? How could you stand looking at them for a prolonged time!? :D

It made me pull out this old photo from the Tabou Tiki in Berlin (R.I.P.) as representation of the other end of the spectrum. :) I wish I could arrange these in size and position next to each other:

Classic Tiki:

..not so classic Tiki:

Tiki-Tonga help Grog sand off bright paint from tikis. Tiki-Tonga hope Grog no take offense. :blush:

Hey GROG, can I come to your next Luau Party? I'll bring the Corona.

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-06-14 20:46 ]

The sanding the colors off is an excellent idea. Many years ago I was given these tiki masks as a gift. (the bird of paradise in the pic are now over 15 feet tall)

They were bright, (in my opinion) ugly colors, and not the look I wanted. rather than throw them away, I repainted them green and the other brown. I sanded of the extra lines so the faces were smooth.

I placed a palm frond behind one. The other I took palm fronds, peeled them back to create long pieces, bunched them together, tied them to his head and made him a head dress or hair.

now, they aren't traditional, and I'm sure some people won't like them, but in my eyes they were original and looked a hell of a lot better than they did. I've seen worse stuff in tiki establishments....

Imagination is a big part of this and can often help in the pocket book department.

On 2008-01-15 16:54, GROG wrote:

GROG.

GENIUS.

:lol: You always have me rolling!

And Tiki-Tonga, that's even more GENIUS!

Aww...I love you guys!

CHEERS! :drink:

On 2008-01-15 09:00, Swanky wrote:

On 2008-01-15 07:39, TikiLaLe wrote:
There is a very small hand of 'snobs' here.. if the rest of us left, WTF would they bitch about !!!!

Go Giants !!!

Nothing! :wink:

But I think there is a large band of folks here that have a pretty rigid definition of Tiki. There are just a small few who express it. A lot of the ones that used to be active left because of their lack of ability to deal with these changes of attitude. Not that they had trouble dealing, they just had little recourse outside of standing out as a "bad guy."

If I read one more person post "Why don't we all just make ourselves a Mai Tai and forget about it" I'll gag... Because for too many people that Mai Tai they pour will be Lime Kool-Aid and Bacardi with a splash of pineapple juice served in a Party City mug, sipped next to an inflatable punching "tiki"!

")")")")")")")")")")")

Swanky Wellington, Muffy and I will be dropping by your new Palm Beach, winter home ... We look forward to your 'killer' Mai-Tai's... in those special 'Tiki Mugs'
Till then ole' Chap.

Muffy & J.W.

Sam's Seafood was built in the early sixties and all of the Tiki remained unpainted until the 1980's.




I roamed around in the dark banquet rooms and found these.

In the bar area the same view from two angles.


Here are some others that have been "Decorated"

Yes, I would like to have a paint stripping party to help these poor Tiki!

News from Milan Guanko's grave: he is rotating at about 1200 rpm right now...

[ Edited by: Swanky 2008-01-16 13:14 ]

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-01-17 06:17 ]

On 2008-01-16 14:38, mymotiki wrote:
What made people go crazy with paint in the 80's too much cocaine? LOL

don´t know - but here some more "80s-cocaine-tiki" :)

ps:
seen @ islamorada/florida keys

Well i just read this thread from the start and found it to be very interesting...
Some great humor and some valuable advice..
Though I can see how Bigbro's comments may have been interpreted as a lil arrogant at first i feel he was genuine in his attempt to educate and share his knowledge rather than throw around put-downs.. It's amazing what you can learn when you ignore the initial shock of "being told" and take it as constructive criticism.. a little thicker skin would definately help some people here.. I have found Tiki to be like most art in it's gaining my approval, yes or no, is or isn't, like or don't like. the first few tiki items i found and was very excited about are now pieces i would overlook if found in the wild. At first, i would have picked up those masks that started this thread but now they would surely find their way to the trash.. I guess my taste and eye has grown over the years with some influence from threads like this which discuss true tiki style and the stuff that missed the mark...
My advice is to let research and time guide your taste.. In time (hopefully) you will be frustratingly try to tell people why a similar item is not "tiki".. and probably just let em go, which almost happened here..
Now im gonna start another thread on why Jimmy Buffet sucks ass...

On 2008-01-10 08:01, JanetMermaid wrote:
But I'm going for an overall Polynesian theme.

..Well, I hate to break it to you, but Big Bro is spot on, and although you seem like a very nice lady just decorating your house, those are no good unless you're going for an overall "Indonesian sweatshop carver" theme. These are about the least Polynesian influenced thing I've seen cross these environs yet, and around here and elsewhere lately, as far as the hordes of what's being badly and sadly mis-labeled "Tiki", that's saying a lot. I would suggest a field trip to the Mai Kai. Or Trader Vic's. Or Hala Kahiki. Or Shangri La. Or Forbidden Island. Or any of the myriad of true to form tiki temples we still have left. Or better yet, buy the Book Of Tiki. All the basics of the mission are in there. Not so much a hobby, only parts. A state of mind and a lifestyle. Not expensive at all, but you have to be resourceful. Now-speaking less about these little masks that I'm sure were bought with good intentions..and more about a far deeper problem around here I percieve after being here for years and years-We need a whole lot less of this utter, wholesale "everything is tiki" mongrelization and dilution of what once was a clear-cut, beautiful thing (namely vintage Polynesian Pop/Tiki culture, creation, research, and preservation-the entire mission here) masquerading as "open-mindedness" and "inclusive spirit". What a load of bowl-clogging crap. What a good time in Rome until the Vandals arrived, burned the place, and co-opted the culture.. Tiki was born in Polynesia. No if's, and's, or but's.

I have to add my personal inclusive spirit switch is always set to "on", but as far as around Tiki Central, for me said switch includes only the real deal and proponents thereof, new folks and old.. It pays to know your stuff. Call me a hardass. But I happen to agree with Swanky and Sven and the speak-up crowd in this instance.

The Cockeyed Mayor Of CarvaKaKai.

[ Edited by: Basement Kahuna 2008-01-16 20:25 ]

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-06-14 20:46 ]

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-01-16 22:43 ]

Jesus...we finally are getting to a point of calm, civilized discussion of the more sensitive points of Tiki-correctness, and in barges BK with a Fijian war club ! See how lucky you are you had to deal with ME first hand? :lol:

To address the question of WHY Tikis were painted over:

With the public's change in tastes bringing on the downfall of Tiki culture in the beginning of the 70s, and its wholesale abandonment in the 80s, proprietors of the remaining Tiki temples were wringing their hands trying to think of how to "brighten up" the look of their establishments to keep their clientele. The variety of beachcomber lamps was suddenly perceived as "dust catchers", and the dark primitive idols were singled out as "downers". So in order to make those graven idols look more "gay" and happy, on went the bright paint.

This psychology was mirrored in the re-naming of apartment complexes. In order to be "more inviting", places like the Tiki Tabu (see TIKI MODERN page ) were renamed into the "Tiki Aloha", and the "Nu Moku Aloha" in Anaheim became the "El Casa Grande" (or sumpthin' like that).

Plus, while in Europe age and patina often stand for tradition and the enduring quality of an eating establishment, in the New World they are taken as signs for being outdated and out of fashion. The obsessive need to renovate every couple of years often lead to not only a new paint job for the walls, but for whatever was in sight.

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-01-17 06:18 ]

You need to go to Kon Tiki Tucson, and tell the owner Paulie, you don't like his painted tikis. If Stu is in town, he'll great you well.

.

I support the sunshine coming out in Washington
:tiki:

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-01-17 06:19 ]

.
So whats that?
Doing my what a pian in the butt laugh right now!

For some reason guys name Pauly for really strong !!!!

These are GROG' old tiki decorations from previous luaus.

GROG decide to buy new tiki decorations for GROG'next luau. This is what GROG has gotten
so far:

Sven is spinnining in his grave!!

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-06-14 20:47 ]

I don't think you can show that Homer on tv; he's got a nipple showing....

Imagine:
People decorating in a tacky manner in the 70s and painting Tikis in garish colors.
Shocking.
Laffo

On 2008-01-18 19:49, GROG wrote:
Sven is spinnining in his grave!!

That's right, because I got a heart attack when I saw that!

On 2008-01-18 22:42, Uncle Laffo wrote:
Imagine:
People decorating in a tacky manner in the 70s and painting Tikis in garish colors.
Shocking.
Laffo

No, not shocking really, rather (as previously explained), a misbegotten attempt to "keep up with the times", and as that classified as TIKI DEVOLUTION. And the reason why we here at Tiki Central celebrate and recreate the HEYDAY of Tiki style, which was in the 1950s and 60s.

The sad part is that with so few old tiki establishments left, this is what the general population is exposed to and accepts as being "tiki".

Look like Grog been very busy shopping at Oriental Trading Company.

[ Edited by: mymotiki 2008-06-14 20:47 ]

Um, was that a party city tiki beer-bong :o And a Miller swill-life to demo how it's used so the kids don't get confused. What a blazen party you're gonna have Grog.

I agree that the items posted aren't exactly tiki, but I think you guys should've been a little easier on her. What happened to that Aloha spirit? :wink:

On 2008-01-28 23:31, Ratzaroony wrote:
What happened to that Aloha spirit?

Screw it!