It’s that time of year. We are packing up everything and storing it for storm season. We will reopen Oct 1, 2019.
Calendars arrive on island August 28!! We will have all preorders in the mail the following Monday.
Still need to order your calendar? Order yours today!
I am a bit late with the Summer newsletter….. for good reason. I was busy painting the 2019 calendar. It has just been finished, and I have to say, my arm is sore and tired. But the calendar is beautiful! It is a trip to many of the beaches of St. John; Maho, Honeymoon, Dennis, Salt Pond, Cruz Bay, Hanson and Frank Bays. All images are of the island post hurricane, and you can see, we are coming back very well. You can see them here on our new, improved website, on the originals page.
All originals are for sale, at $2500., and are 22” x 15”. Of course, if you want something smaller, or less expensive, you can order a tile, or a giclee print on paper or canvas. Just email us your requests. The calendars we plan to have for sale by September. Pre publication orders, and all orders are welcome thru the website. The calendar is a bit later than normal, but so goes this year…. Please know, we are doing our best, under the circumstances.
For all of you who have attempted to call us, and got the voice mail….. we never got your message. We had fixed the problem, temporarily it seems, and now, have no access to phone service. So sorry! Email works best, info@coconutcoaststudios.com, and include your phone number, and we will call you as quickly as possible. These continue to be the challenges of island life right now, ten plus months later!
Due to the most recent scare of the short lived Hurricane Beryl, we have closed the gallery, and are ready for any hurricane coming our way. We will reopen in October, and start the cocktail parties in November. We will continue to stay connected via email, and fulfill any orders. We are optimistic for the future resilience of St. John. The visitors who came this year were so appreciated, and all seemed pleased with our progress. Should you be on island this summer, please come by. It will all be closed up, but I will be here, and delighted to see you. Just give a shout!
I have kept busy, and will continue to work with St. John Community Foundation. We are all really working hard to bring the entire island to an improved level of beauty and resilience. I would like to thank everyone that did write to your Congressman/woman regarding the Caneel issue. To date, it is still in flux, with very little attention to the property. Being part of the National Park, it is such a shame that we do not have access. Time will tell.
Please know how much we appreciate having you on our email list. It is wonderful that I can keep in touch with all of you. I would like you to know that we never share your information with ANYONE, for any reason. And if you would like to unsubscribe, there is a button below.
Have a lovely summer, and stay cool!
Best wishes to all,
Elaine and Crew at Coconut Coast
Happy Solstice Everyone!!! Elaine is working so very hard on the 2019 Calendar. Don’t you think everyone should spend the Solstice at Honeymoon Beach? This is the first image painted for the calendar. What a wonderful picture and a wonderful new place to spend your time
Queen Angel ’18
6″x6″ unframed $250
French Angel ’18
6″x6″ unframed $250
Queen Trigger ’18
6″x6″ unframed $250
In spite of three hurricanes in two weeks, a tsunami warning, seventeen foot waves, explosions and fire, 24 hour power outage, and a 4.7 earthquake, we are having a beautiful Spring! I am not going to even ask “What’s next’” for fear of finding out! St. John Strong! We just keep telling ourselves….
Visitors have started to return and say it is still as beautiful as ever, minus our coconut trees. Should anyone come to the gallery, and purchase gifts, $50 (or more), I am giving a free 3’ coconut tree to go and plant anywhere on St. John. Our North Shore beaches need new coconut trees, and that way, we can all help put them there. Take a photo, and come back next year to see how they are doing.
The gallery officially opened on Valentines Day, with a lovely party for the entire island. And it seems, everyone came! I saw a lot of very happy faces! Rich and Katha are back, giving us lovely music again, and we had another cameo appearance from Nancy Ruffer. The studio never looked nicer, but you must come by and see for yourself.
I have been forming ideas for next years calendar, going out and around the island for inspiration. I believe the calendar will be titled, “New Beginnings,” but don’t hold me to it!
Every day gets better than the last (with a few steps backward). Normal is a word often heard. We will have a Chili cook off on April 22, and the Beach to Beach Power swim is planned for May 27, 2018. 8 Tuff Miles was held, but there was no registration. It was very casual. Almost all restaurants are open, serving wonderful food. Come and see for yourselves!
I have committed my time to two committees of the Long Term Recovery of St. John Community Foundation. One is Infrastructure, and the other is Economic Recovery. I particularly want to have either new companies bring in more barges, or the companies that have the licenses, to bring in new barges. I have been told that Llew Sewer has purchased a large new barge, and awaits delivery…maybe this month! It would certainly ease the strain off of our two barges that are working day and night!
“The future of Caneel Bay Resort has been in the news lately fueled by VI Delegate to Congress Stacey Plaskett’s introduction of a bill (HR473) in Congress to extend Caneel’s “retained use estate” status for another 60 years. The Friends opposes this bill. We believe that this bill is unnecessary, unwarranted, and contrary to the best interests of Virgin Islands National Park as an effective mechanism for the continued operation of Caneel Bay Resort at the expiration of the RUE. There is a law which already exists. This is PL 111-261, a law passed in 2010. This law allows for the resort to operate under a lease arrangement for up to 40 years. The law also protects the natural, cultural and historic resources of the property, provides for lease payments to Virgin Islands National Park based on fair market values, and respects the legacy of Laurence Rockefeller, who founded the resort and donated about 5,000 acres of land to establish VI National Park. The law is already quite favorable to the current RUE-holder, CBI Acquisitions LLC, allowing them non-competitive access to this unique opportunity.”
I personally would go one step further and request that you contact your Congressman/woman; and say that the Bill HR473 is not helping the people of St. John, and to vote it down, and not include it with another bill that may get passed. It has passed out of the committee, to be heard by Congress. The Virgin Islanders have NOTHING to say about it, and no way to stop it……except by reaching out to you, as you DO have representation. Because it is in the National Park, it must be decided by Congress!
Thank you to all and thank you for being a lover of St. John!
Love City Strong,
Elaine Estern
We are having our first Wednesday Night Cocktail Party of the year this Valentines Day from 5:30-7:00pm. Love City needs a good party to finish off Wednesday.
We have been working hard to bring back the gallery to the original pristine beauty, and have just completed the job. At the party, there will be music, hors d’oeuvres, beverages, and two huge surprises!
There will be a surprise unveiling, In addition, Elaine has donated Catch the Rainbow to the Animal Care Center of St. John. They will receive 100 percent of the proceeds.
There will be so much going on at Coconut Coast Studios! Including a sunset, great time for all! Happy Valentines Day to Love City!