Next Wave Women

Our annual Women of Style accolades are bestowed on these four Hawai‘i millennials who are making a difference.

Carissa Moore

The 2019 WSL Women’s World Tour Champion heads to the Olympics next.

The dynamite athlete is at peak form and training daily to head to Japan next summer to represent the U.S. in the debut of surfing at the 2021 Summer Olympics. Moore (@rissmoore10 on Instagram) grew up learning to surf in Waikiki and continues to call O‘ahu home.

“I am on the road about half the year. For 10 years straight being on the professional tour, we’d travel around the world from March through December. With the Olympics this year it’s just as busy. Any chance I get, I’ll come home. There is no place better,” she states. “Being a professional athlete is only a part of who I am. I am a sister, a daughter, a friend and wife. I think that is what really defines me as a woman... I love spending time with my family, walking the beach with my husband (Luke Untermann) and dog (Tuffy), unwinding and relaxing at home, and surfing my local spots. My husband and his two buddies own a banana ice cream shop called Banán (bananbowls.com) and that is my favorite thing to eat when I’m home.”

Margaret Rice

Kailua-born artist Margaret Rice is becoming more and more visible as her eye-catching work continuously engages locals.

It’s no surprise that her prints are so popular, and catching on with visitors as well. Margaret Rice, who has a full-time day job as a maternity nurse at Queens Medical Center, is not able to get much sleep, as she spends her non-RN hours filling orders from her website (margaretricestudio.com). Rice has even expanded into etched leather goods and sarongs; plus, you can regularly catch her work at one of her many art shows. “My mom had me doing art all my life. My artistic voice has always been a strong feminine one, though: always embracing what it means to be a woman, whether through composition, color or stylistic attributes,” says Rice. “As I get older, I think my artistic voice has just become more clear and more refined. But I think that is the beauty of art. You’re always continuing to develop and change your artistic voice.”

As for the next step, she says: “I really would like to start seeing my art break out of Hawai‘i and start to travel internationally. I really would like to challenge myself and do some big wall murals. But more than anything I would really like to create some textiles from my art and design a small fashion collection. I’ve always had a love for clothing and I think that my art could work really well as textiles.”

Perri Ricci

The statuesque and stunning jewelry designer is making an unforgettable statement.

The fouding designer of Puka Perri (pukaperri.‌com) made her first puka necklace in 2011 and was immediately hooked. “From the minute I laid eyes on a puka shell, I was fascinated. And then when I found my first one diving in the shorebreak I was hooked. I was working for a goldsmith and was constantly having visions of puka shells and gold—necklaces, rings, earrings and cuffs swirled in my mind. The visions were so strong that it felt like I had no choice but to bring these pieces to life. I started with the puka necklace design and wore it as a reminder to be nicer to myself. It laid between my head and heart and helped me shift into a more positive mindset. Little did I know that I would be thrust into a passionate love affair with making puka shell and pearl jewelry.” Now her prolific designs are sold at the Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea, among other specialized boutiques across the islands. Her custom work is bold and tropical, yet both classic and current; it’s no wonder Puka Perri has gained such momentum and continues to do so.

Ricci is also part of a community: “The Puka Project is a community-led initiative to bring our island ohana closer together to support one another. When a dear friend of mine got sick with cancer, I wanted to make her a puka necklace to help with her healing process. I thought, ‘We can supercharge her necklace by using love infused pukas found by her ohana.’ So the Puka Project was born—a nonmonetary way to send support and healing mana to someone you may or may not know in our community that is in need of extra love and healing. Everyone can participate by nominating someone for a Puka Project or by donating a puka shell during the puka drive. With the collected pukas I string a Puka Necklace and gift it to the nominated person to serve as a reminder of the love and support that is with them during this season of their life.”

Kimie Miner

Hawai‘i’s impassioned singer-songwriter recently scored a Grammy nod this year and continues to make her mark.

Since hitting the scene with a storm a few years ago, Kimie Miner (@playkimie on Instagram) has been extraordinarily busy. She is now a mother of two and owner of Haku Collective, a full-service music, audio and talent production group. Only 34, she has already written and co-produced four albums, including To the Sea, Kimié Miner (which won Contemporary Album of the Year at the 2016 Nā Hōkū Hanohano awards), Proud as the Sun and, most recently, Hawaiian Lullaby, for which she received a Grammy nomination for Best Regional Roots Music Album in late 2019.

“I feel so much more free in my creative process. I don’t judge myself or my ideas as much. I also don’t try to make everything so perfect... I’ve learned to leave those little beauty marks in my music as is, so I can be reminded of the feeling behind it,” says Miner. “I also don’t have the luxury of time like I used to. So I have to be confident in my choices and stick to them.” To keep grounded, Miner has a nightly ritual: “Last thing I always do before bed is turn on my Calm app and meditate or listen to calming sounds in nature. Lebron James actually has a great sleep series that I love! It helps turn my brain off and just relax.”