BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Hundreds of people brave the heat to get deals on artwork and merchandise with a tropical flare.
A local tiki-themed bar hosting more than two dozen vendors from across the state for Bakersfield’s first ever Tiki Marketplace.
The first Central California Tiki Marketplace popped up shop in downtown Bakersfield. Local bar Tiki-Ko hosted the event. 25 vendors sold handmade Tiki art, clothing, and many other Tiki treasures.
“Bringing artists from all over California spread the Tiki community,” Wayne Stonecipher the ‘Big Kahuna’ with Central California Tiki said. “That’s never happened here in central California.”
You could get your hands on your own ship in a bottle, a ship wheel clock or even a shrunken head.
“I’m selling shrunken heads,” Ben Short a Fresno Tiki shop owner said. “Not too many people do that. They’re actually real imitation shrunken heads made from real imitation people.”
Many of the shop owners sell their own handmade items. Short one of these owners said he’s been fascinated with making his creations for years.
“I’ve always been fascinated with the mystical side of cultures around the world and I thought this would be a fun way to bring something new and different,” Short said. “Shrunken head was a processes of trapping your enemy’s spirit in the skull or the head.”
Administration with Central California Tiki said there will definitely be another event in Bakersfield. So if you missed this one, you can catch the next one which is projected to be at the beginning of next year.
Central California Tiki has roughly 600 members who assemble on Facebook, and in-person.
