Lei (garland) dancer who dared to give a lei to a US soldier along with a kiss, leading it to become a tradition of lei distribution in modern times. To this day, leis remain a notable aspect of Hawaiian culture. Traditionalists give a lei by bowing slightly and raising it above the heart, allowing the recipient to take it, as raising the hands above another's head, or touching the face or head, is considered disrespectful. By tradition, only open lei are given to a pregnant or nursing woman. If due to allergies or other reasons a person cannot wear a lei which
Lei (garland) and simple "lei lāī" ("tī" leaf lei) is made using this method. Hipuu / nipuu: a method of making a "lei" by knotting the stems of the decorative plant material and stringing the next stem through the knot. It requires a very long stem on the decorative material. Similar to a daisy chain. Humu / humuhumu: sew to a backing, usually using a basting stitch. A method of making a "lei" by sewing the decorative material to a backing such as "hala", "lai", paper, or felt. Each successive row of lei material is overlapped on the previous to create a