How to Spot a Genuine Hawaiian Shirt

There are many different ways on how to spot a genuine Hawaiian shirt and here are just a few. Keep in mind that these are just some features genuine Hawaiian shirts might have and not all of them are included in a single shirt. The variation in styles and features abound, but if you're looking for a Hawaiian shirt and want the real deal, keep reading.

Patterns & Fabric

Hawaiian shirts were invented in the early 1930s by Ellery Chun in Honolulu. His inspirations were the colorful Palaka shirts worn by Hawaiian plantation workers and the brightly colored shirts made from Kabe crepe material preferred by Japanese immigrants. Chun used leftover kimono material to sew his dazzling shirts. Hawaiian theme prints such as palm trees and hula girls and these can be helped become popular by celebrities wearing them in classic films such as Frank Sinatra inFrom Here to Eternity and Elvis Presley in Blue Hawaii, and Tom Selleck in Magnum P.I.

Traditional fabrics preferred for making Hawaiian shirts were rayon, cotton and silk with rayon being preferred because it has a way of revealing the stunning details of the pattern.

Horizontal Button Holes

After World War II and upon its gaining statehood, the Hawaiian tourist industry exploded and Alfred Shaheen built his own printing plant and started making Hawaiian shirts. One of the design features he introduced was horizontal buttonholes. It's estimated that more than sixty percent of Hawaiian shirts have horizontal buttonholes with a higher percentage of shirts made of rayon.

Coconut Buttons

If you find a vintage Hawaiian shirt sporting coconut buttons, take a closer look, because it's likely you've found a shirt that was made in the early years of the Hawaiian shirt craze. Also, shirts with these types of buttons usually only had three to five buttons down the front while later shirts had the usual six we see in shirts made today. Other marks of older shirts are cabana pockets, which went out of style in the 1970s and sizes of ML on the tag. Shirts with Medium Large listed as a size go back to at least the 1950s.

Collars

Older Hawaiian shirts have collar loops, but that tradition has faded over time since these shirts represent a casual attitude and taking the extra time to button down the collar. Also, vintage shirts made before the 1950s are easy to spot because they tend to have collars longer than they do on shirts made today – at least three to four inches longer.

Reverse Prints & Fabric Care Labels

When Hawaiian shirts became so popular by the 1950s, a plethora of knock off shirts were manufactured, first on the mainland and then in Asia. Easiest to spot are the "reverse" print shirts where the shirts look sun-bleached on the outside, but not faded on the inside. Other things to spot on a fake shirt, is a separate fabric care label. Such labels weren't added to shirts prior to the 1960s.

Made in Hawaii

There are many manufacturers of genuine Hawaiian shirts today and the number one sign on how to spot one are the words "made in Hawaii" or "Hawaiian made" on the manufacturer's label. You'll see many Hawaiian wannabe shirts made in other countries, but only the real thing comes from the islands.

Today, over eighty years after they first appeared on the Big Island, Hawaiian shirts are still in fashion and more popular than ever. The relaxed and casual atmosphere of many businesses means that even the loud and bright Hawaiian shirt is acceptable attire, especially on Casual Fridays, which traces its roots to the wearing of these special garments. Some of the top brands include Reyn Spooner, Tori Richard, Paradise Found and Hilo Hattie. So if you're looking for a Hawaiian shirt for yourself, keep in mind these few features that will help you select the authentic article.