What happens when a girl from Kansas ends up in Hawaii?

She turns into a mermaid! Well, almost... :)

This month, in honor of one of our favorite holidays, we're giving thanks for the KaiKini Wahines: the ladies behind the bikinis. Kauai brought five ladies from all over the US to this little piece of paradise with one passion in common - making the best bikinis. This week we're giving thanks for Andrea, our Sales Manager and resident bikini tester.

Going for a swim with my Pakala shark-dog

Name:  Andrea Rayne

KaiKini Position:  Sales Manager AKA The Smooth Operator

What’s Your Sign:  Scorpio (Oct 27)

Hometown:  Solomon, KS

Favorite Color:  Red

Favorite KaiKini at the moment:  Don't make me pick!! Anything with our Aloha Print!

Favorite thing about working at KaiKini: These girls – we all say it, but we really are family and I love them like crazy. I also have a slight bikini addiction, so getting to see these beautiful creations come to life is really rewarding!

Favorite Food?

Put cheese on it and voilà!

Vodka, Rum, Whiskey or Tequila?

Tequila. every. time.

What’s something you collect?

Shells, beachglass, coral, rocks... anything I can find beach-combing. Oh, and bikinis.

Favorite way to stay in shape?

Running is death - I don't know how people do it. Gyms scare me. I've found my happy place with yoga & surfing.

Still smiling after getting worked

How many bikinis do you own?

Over 100. You could say I'm working at the right place. ;)

Bikini Trend you wish would go away...
Crochet. Pretty, but quite possibly the least functional material you could make a bikini from. And don't get me started on these one-piece suits with high cut legs circa 1980. Just stop. Please.

What’s your favorite childhood memory?

Christmas - everything about it. Decorating - The build up around it... (opening my presents before the day and re-wrapping them so my parents wouldn't know) - family coming together - laughter, joy, warmth & delicious food!

Top 3 things on your bucket list?

New Zealand - Northern Lights - Swim with sharks (no cage!)

Best thing about living on Kauai?

Endless Adventure and living in a constant state of wonder. It's truly never-never land - I feel like I never have to grow up!

What are you giving thanks for?

Happiness - living in this beautiful place that reminds me daily I have so much to be thankful for - my family, friends and to get cheesy for a second... my hubby. :)

Congratulations Grand Prize Winners!

Our Grand Prize Winners Priscilla & Mariah are made for adventure and have been #spreadingaloha all over Kauai for the past couple weeks! They each will be receiving a tour of our new headquarters and 5 custom bikini sets!

Want in on the fun? Our Bucket List is far from complete! We have 4 Location Prizes left right here on Kauai (see below for rewards available) and we'll be expanding to the other Hawaiian Islands and around the US & World next, so stay tuned!

HANALEI PIER: Take a pic on the pier with 2 other girls wearing a KaiKini *all of you wearing KaiKini* 

KILAUEA LIGHTHOUSE: Take a unique perspective pic in front of the lighthouse (make it look like your holding the lighthouse in your hand, etc.)

REWARD (still available): I ♥ Kauai tank top + Hand-painted KaiKini trucker hat

KAPAA BIKE PATH: Take a pic riding a bike anywhere on the path with the ocean in the background

SECRET FALLS: Take a pic at Secret Falls with a rock tower and the falls in the background 

REWARD (still available): Custom Bikini Set & Tour the New KaiKini Headquarters 

KILOHANA TRAIN: Take a pic riding the train in your KaiKini

REWARD (still available): Bikini Top of your choice

MENEHUNE FISHPOND OVERLOOK: KaiKini Love! Take a pic at sunset kissing someone special at the overlook 

SPOUTING HORN: Take a pic in front of the spouting horn (must be spouting) and there must be a chicken in the picture too! 

HANAPEPE SWINGING BRIDGE: Take a pic on the bridge wearing your favorite KaiKini 

REWARD: I ♥ Kauai tank + 30% Off your next order

PIHEA LOOKOUT - WAI'ALE'ALE SIGN: Take a pic next to the famous "wettest spot on earth" sign doing a yoga pose

NAPALI COAST FROM THE WATER: Take a pic anywhere on the Napali Coast from the water holding up double shakas! (You can be on a Kayak, on a tour boat, sailboat, doesn't matter as long as you're on the water!)

Bucket List Photo Challenge - 10 Locations, 10 Prizes

Join us for the KaiKini Bucket List Challenge! Our first 10 locations are right here at home on beautiful Kauai. We took KaiKini to the top of Sleeping Giant to start off the challenge and had a blast on the adventure!

Everyone is welcome to participate! The winners will be announced as each challenge is completed. The winner will be featured on KaiKini.com & Facebook and the first two Runners-Up will also be featured on our website. We can't wait to see KaiKini all over Kauai! To see the official contest page visit our website!

Next our bucket list will be heading to the other Hawaiian Islands and the top 100 places we want to see KaiKini around the WORLD! Stay tuned!

To participate:

1.  Grab your favorite KaiKini Bikini (at least one piece top or bottom must be showing) 
2. Be the first to tag @kaikinibikinis and #kaikinibucketlist completing the challenge (be sure to read the details!) 
3. We will verify that you are the first to complete the challenge successfully 
4. Photo will be posted on KaiKini.com & Facebook - Rewards will be given out as each challenge is completed 
5. Complete ALL 10 places on our Bucket List and win our GRAND PRIZE!! (Read on below!)

Contest entries must be submitted before 12/31/14

Grand Prize:

TOUR THE NEW KAIKINI HEADQUARTERS + 5 CUSTOM BIKINI SETS

Are you made for adventure?! Spread Aloha visiting all 10 places on our Kauai Bucket List & complete the challenges to meet the KaiKini Wahines and tour our new facility in Kapaa! You'll also have the opportunity to get a behind the scenes look at our little piece of paradise and choose 5 custom bikini sets (or 10 pieces)!!! You do not have to be first for each individual location on our list to win our Grand Prize but you must be the first complete ALL of the challenges as instructed in the details below.

1. Hanalei Pier:
   CHALLENGE: Take a pic on the pier with 2 other girls wearing a KaiKini *all of you wearing KaiKini*
   REWARD: You and your 2 friends receive a promo code for 35% off your next order! 
2. Kilauea Lighthouse:
   CHALLENGE: Take a unique perspective pic in front of the lighthouse (make it look like your holding the lighthouse in your hand, etc.)
   REWARD: I ♥ Kauai tank top + Hand-painted KaiKini trucker hat 
3. Kapaa Bike Path:
   CHALLENGE: Take a pic riding a bike anywhere on the path with the ocean in the background
   REWARD: Bikini Set of your choice 
4. Secret Falls:
   CHALLENGE: Take a pic at Secret Falls with a rock tower and the falls in the background REWARD: Custom Bikini Set & Tour the New KaiKini Headquarters 
5. Kilohana Train:
   CHALLENGE: Take a pic riding the train in your KaiKini
   REWARD: Bikini Top of your choice 
6. Menehune Fishpond Overlook:
   CHALLENGE: KaiKini Love! Take a pic at sunset kissing someone special at the overlook REWARD: Hand-painted KaiKini trucker hat + 30% Off your next order 
7. Spouting Horn:
   CHALLENGE: Take a pic in front of the spouting horn (must be spouting) and there must be a chicken in the picture too!
   REWARD: Bikini Bottom of your choice 
8. Hanapepe Swinging Bridge:
   CHALLENGE: Take a pic on the bridge wearing your favorite KaiKini
   REWARD: I ♥ Kauai tank + 30% Off your next order 
9. Pihea Lookout - Wai'ale'ale Sign:
   CHALLENGE: Take a pic next to the famous "wettest spot on earth" sign doing a yoga pose REWARD: Bikini Set of your choice 
10. Napali Coast from the water:
    CHALLENGE: Take a pic anywhere on the Napali Coast from the water holding up double shakas! (You can be on a Kayak, on a tour boat, sailboat, doesn't matter as long as you're on the water!)
    REWARD: Custom Bikini Set & Tour the New KaiKini Headquarters

Win these Sunnies!

Throwback to last weekend's photoshoot with a few of the beauties from 

Kauai Juice Co. 

The results: Pure Glowing Goodness.

  

Like these sunnies? We're doing a giveaway with Kameleonz this weekend so watch our Instagram for the details!

A big thanks to Ariel, Robin & Stefanie! XoXo!!

Top 10 reasons NOT to buy a KaiKini

1. You've done a million squats but don’t want anyone to know
   
   
   
   
   
2. You like wearing bikinis that give you diaper butt
   
   
   
   
   
3. You like it when your bikini comes off in the waves
   
   
   
   
   
4. You like to wear the same suit as everyone else
   
   
   
   
   
5. You don’t want to put a smile on your boyfriend/husband/lover's face
   
   
   
   
   
6. You don’t like Hawaii made products
   
   
   
   
   
7. You like dealing with wardrobe malfunctions
   
   
   
   
   
8. You think receiving compliments is SO annoying
   
   
   
   
   
9.  You hate going on adventures
   
   
   
   
   
10.  You like wearing drab, dull colors- bright, bold colors blind you
    
    
    

A KaiKini Confession

Guest blogger Marina here, Quality Control Manager and seamstress for those KaiKinis you love so much. The most wonderful Andrea asked me to step in for this post and talk about my first experience with a KaiKini. Little did she know that…

I have a confession to make. 

My first time owning and wearing a bikini wasn't until after I started working at KaiKini (gasp!). As in, my first KaiKini was my first bikini! Up until that point, I’d never bought a bikini before. Like, NEVER EVER.  Why, you ask? Truth be told, I’m pretty self-conscious. Similar to many other girls out there, I easily find fault with what I see in the mirror, especially when it comes to my bikini body.  I pretty much never felt 'bikini ready.'  I was never comfortable enough to show that much skin so I stuck with unflattering, ill-fitting one pieces and tankinis. It took a move to Hawaii and a job at KaiKini to open my eyes to the possibility of wearing something other than the potato sacks I was used to.

There is something really awesome about Kauai. Actually, there are a TON of awesome things about Kauai, but there is one thing in particular: girls here, of all shapes and sizes, ROCK their bikinis. From high coverage to barely there Brazilians, women here strut their stuff and are proud of it. Never before have I seen as much self-confidence as I've seen walking the beaches of this beautiful island. And you know what? Self-confidence is contagious. If all of these women could kill it in a bikini, why couldn't I??

And this is where KaiKini comes in. When I first started working with Taryn and the girls, I had this mental block about our Kinis. NO WAY would I EVER wear something so cheeky and revealing!

A little known fact about KaiKini (Shhhh! Don’t let Taryn know I told you!):

As quality control manager, I make sure that every single piece produced in our small studio is up to our high standards.  If there is ever a flaw in one of our suits that cannot be fixed, like a hole in the fabric or broken elastic, it will sometimes end up in one of the KaiKini girls’ Kini collections. (Side Note: The downside to being such an awesome team of seamstresses is that flaws like this RARELY happen but when they do, the first thing everyone asks is, “What size is it?!”). We all have a few castaway, un-sellable bikinis in our possession and it was a suit like this that had the honor of becoming my-first-bikini-oh-my-god!

I remember it like it was yesterday… it was a black Okole with a hole. Now, the awesome thing about our Okole bottom is that not only does it offer more coverage than a Kai, but for girls out there who may not be as well-endowed in the booty department (like yours truly) it has this awesome ability to give what you've got some extra oomph! Thanks in large part to the scrunch in the back, the Okole silhouettes your bum and gives it a nice heart shape, magically making it look, well, better.  When I first tried it on, while still self-conscious and not ready to wear it in public, I did have to admit that my tukas looked the best it ever has in a swimsuit.  No saggy fabric or ‘diaper butt’ here!

So that was my first experience with a KaiKini. I have to say, it’s taken me a long time to get to the point of wearing a bikini in public. I’m still self-conscious and am not yet able to strut my stuff and rock it, but I’m getting there. I’m a bit biased because I actually make the bikinis I wear, but I truly have to say that if not for KaiKini, I might still be wearing my ugly tankinis and lamenting my awful tan lines. Not only am I proud to say that my stomach now gets to see the light of day, but my KaiKinis still remain the only bikinis I own. 

I guess the moral of my story and the message I’d like to share is this:

For those of you dreaming about one day wearing a bikini: you’ll get there. Take baby steps. Ease into it. Find the cut and fit that makes you feel the best. Go to an isolated place and wear your Kini without fear.  Work your way to the point of being happy in your own skin and of what you've got. Oh, and if your first suit happens to be a KaiKini, awesome!! Wear it knowing that we were thinking about YOU when we made it and that we see you as beautiful no matter what. But even if a KaiKini isn't the first suit you've ever owned, or even if you don’t own a KaiKini, wear whatever helps you feel like the goddess you are. 

Now go out there and strut your stuff, Kini lovers!

XOXO

Marina

P.S. What’s YOUR first bikini story? We’d love to hear about it in the comments section!