Free Lei Day Coloring Pages: 24 printable PDF designs of Hawaiian flower leis, hula dancers, and the spirit of Aloha. Downloading a page as a PDF or filling it in online both cost nothing, and neither one requires an account.
Lei Day traces back to 1928, when poet Don Blanding proposed a holiday celebrating the Hawaiian tradition of making, giving, and wearing lei in his newspaper column. His colleague Grace Tower Warren suggested pairing it with May Day and coined the phrase “May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii.” The holiday became officially recognized in 1929. Each Hawaiian island also has its own official flower or color associated with lei, and on the island of Niihau, the tradition uses shells called pupu instead of flowers.
The 24 pages are split into five groups: lei wreaths and garlands, people wearing or celebrating with a lei, hula dancers, simple general portraits, and broader Hawaiian scenes. Since lei-making itself is such a visual, colorful tradition, most pages give plenty of room for varied floral color choices.
What’s Inside This Collection
Five groups organize the 24 pages, moving between the lei itself as an object and the people and dances that celebrate it.
Lei Wreaths and Garlands
The largest group focuses on the lei itself: wreaths, necklaces, and garlands shown on their own. Coloring suggestion: use a varied mix of floral colors, pink, yellow, orange, purple, rather than repeating the same one or two colors across the whole strand.
People Wearing or Celebrating with a Lei
These pages show a person, or even a dog, wearing or receiving a lei. Coloring suggestion: keep the lei’s colors bright and varied so it stands out clearly against simpler, more muted clothing.
Hula Dancers
A smaller group shows dancers in hula costumes, a traditional Hawaiian dance closely associated with Lei Day celebrations. Coloring suggestion: use warm, natural tones for skin and hair, saving the brightest colors for the flower lei and skirt details.
Simple General Portraits
These pages offer a plain, general Lei Day design repeated under different file names. Coloring suggestion: Use this repetition to try a different flower combination on each page rather than defaulting to the same palette every time.
Broader Hawaiian Scenes
A smaller group steps back to show wider Hawaiian imagery, including tropical flowers and general Aloha-themed designs. Coloring suggestion: layer at least two greens for any tropical foliage, keeping flowers as the boldest, most saturated color on the page.
What Lei Day Coloring Pages Do
Many small flowers, one consistent strand. A lei is made up of many small, individual flowers strung together in a repeating pattern, and coloring each flower separately while keeping the overall strand consistent takes careful, repeated attention, the kind of fine motor practice the American Academy of Pediatrics associates with structured coloring in children ages two through seven.
A holiday is proposed in a newspaper column. Lei Day began as an idea poet Don Blanding pitched to his own newspaper in 1928, and it caught on so quickly that Hawaii officially recognized it as a holiday just a year later, in 1929.
A day built for unhurried connection. Don Blanding originally described Lei Day as a day for renewing old friendships and simply enjoying where you live, and a slow, unhurried coloring session captures a similar spirit, the kind of calm, self-paced activity a 2005 Art Therapy Journal study linked to reduced anxiety.
Every island has its own flower. Each of Hawaii’s main islands has its own official flower or color traditionally used in its lei, and on Niihau, the tradition swaps flowers entirely for small shells called pupu, a reminder that lei-making varies meaningfully from island to island.
How to Color Lei Day Pages Well
- Lei flowers: use a varied mix of colors, pink, yellow, orange, purple, for individual flowers along the strand rather than repeating the same one or two colors.
- Hula costumes: use warm, natural tones for skin and hair, saving the brightest colors for the flower lei and skirt details.
- Tropical foliage: layer at least two greens for leaves and backgrounds, keeping flowers as the most saturated color on the page.
- People and pets wearing a lei: keep the lei bright and varied so it stands out clearly against simpler, more muted clothing or fur.
- Simple general portraits: Use the repetition across this group to try a different flower combination on each page.
- Background: keep it light and simple on portrait-style pages, saving more detail for the wider Hawaiian scene pages.
5 Creative Craft Ideas With Lei Day Coloring Pages
1. Paper Lei Garland
Color several flower pages, cut each flower out individually, punch a hole through the center, and string them together into a real wearable lei.
2. Lei Day Fact Card
Color a page and write the fact that Lei Day began with a 1928 newspaper column on the back for a simple fact card.
3. Island Flower Chart
Color a few lei pages and label them with the different official flowers associated with different Hawaiian islands.
4. Lei Day Greeting Card
Fold a colored lei page into a card for a May Day or Lei Day-themed greeting.
5. Hula Skirt Craft
Color the hula dancer page, cut out the skirt shape, and use it as a template to make a small paper hula skirt.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Lei Day coloring pages?
A free set of 24 printable designs of Hawaiian flower leis, hula dancers, and Aloha-spirit scenes. Every page downloads as a PDF or opens in the online coloring tool without an account.
When is Lei Day celebrated?
Lei Day is celebrated every year on May 1, paired with the broader May Day tradition.
How did Lei Day begin?
Poet Don Blanding proposed the holiday in a 1928 newspaper column, and his colleague Grace Tower Warren suggested pairing it with May 1 and coined the phrase “May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii.” It became an officially recognized holiday in 1929.
Do all Hawaiian islands use the same flower for their lei?
No. Each main island has its own official flower or color traditionally associated with its lei, and Niihau’s tradition uses small shells called pupu instead of flowers.
What is hula, and why does it appear in this collection?
Hula is a traditional Hawaiian dance closely associated with storytelling and celebration, including Lei Day festivities, which is why several pages feature dancers in hula costumes.
Can these pages be colored without printing them?
Yes. Every page in the set opens directly in the site’s browser-based coloring tool, so a page can be finished on screen before deciding whether to print it.
Are Lei Day coloring pages suitable for young children?
The simple wreath and portrait pages use one clear shape and suit young children well. The hula dancer and multi-detail scenes work better for a child with a bit more coloring experience.
Is there a proper etiquette for receiving a lei?
Traditionally, a lei should always be graciously accepted rather than refused, and it’s considered polite to keep it on for a while rather than removing it right in front of the person who gave it.
Start Coloring
One flower at a time, strung into something whole: pick a page above, download the PDF, or color it online, free and without an account. Share the finished piece through the Facebook or Pinterest buttons at the top of the design.
