After doing the initial bamboo flowers, I came to the conclusion that eventhough they are pretty, it would be too time-consuming and too fragile to make a lei of, given each flower is put together petal by petal with glue. Glue has a tendency to dry out and even bamboo that are pressed in layers such as for cutting boards can by themselves separate in dry air.
So, to make a Plumeria shaped flower with something that can be scaled into large manufacturing (about 80 flowers is needed per necklace), I thought of how TetraPak came up with their business idea of making carts for beverages. Their actual idea is simply not just the end product but the process itself. Hence, it is not just a matter of buying bamboo (for example from Mexico) and shaping the rods into halfs to make the flowers according to my measurements, but also how they are cut out. Therefore I am looking into designing a stance or drill to be used for the purpose. Something I think best can be done in Japan, or at least drilled with water.
Photos show my the first sketch for the lei, and how the bamboo was laser cut to make the petals. My hope is to be able to cut out whole flowers in mid-size Plumeria-shapes.