Newsletter:
One Year Later!
Who could imagine that we’re already past Valentines Day? Wasn’t it
just yesterday that we made our New Years resolutions? Fortunately the 1st of January fell on a Sunday, which meant we could ease into the resolutions slooowwly. A good thing, after a decadent fondue party …. camping style on the rooftop, with a birds eye view of the fireworks stations. What a way to see the New Year in!!!
So many had their own version of a PAHRTY. Some slummed it up in these private jets and helicopters. You thought Simpson Bay had "schtauer". Look at the airport extended apron at the end of the runway.
Soon after New Year a new family member joined us. His name is Popcorn.
A bouncy little cockatiel with lots of energy and personality. He entertains
us for hours with his antics and often makes us laugh. It is not hard to guess why he was named Popcorn.
High season is here! The weather has been somewhat unpredictable…
at times rainy and very windy, but turned beautiful in mid-February. Ok,
I
know we don’t have to shovel snow and believe me, we’re grateful.
Harmony nights are in full swing. It is a street festival held in Grand Case
(restaurant row), on every Tuesday evening. The street is closed off to vehicular
traffic. Many artists display their wares along the street. Various musicians play
there and a band parades up and down the street. The event takes place from
18h00 to 23h00 until the 2nd of April. Pencil this is as a "not-to-be-missed" event. The atmosphere is
carnival like. Excellent viewing of the street fair can be seen from one of the street side restaurants like Le Cottage. Bookings are advisable. I too, have a stand there, to meet and greet visitors. Harmony Nights to me is a fun evening out and a pleasant change of scenery.
Our exhibition at Harmony Night
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People enjoying the friendly atmosphere |
This time of the year, the calendar
is packed with social events. The French
side finished their Carnival on Sunday. The Dutch side Carnival will start from 19th
April 2006 to the 2nd May 2006. It’s that time of the year when
most of the island comes to a grinding halt, for the the all important Carnival events and the social happenings around
these two weeks. We all know how to enjoy ourselves on the
friendly island. Music events are held at the Carnival Village. One
word of advice….don’t go early. Events seldom start before
midnight. The highlight of Carnival is the Final Lap of the Grand
Parade on the 2nd of May.
The regatta will take place this weekend. There is
something so tranquil about hundreds of sailing boats with white sails dotted against the blue backdrop of
the sea. Great Bay has a good vantage point to view this spectacular
event. A real close-up view can be had from the Spinnaker Bar at the Simpson Bay Bridge.
Plan your travelling on the Airport road well, as the bridge
opening times increase
during the race.
Activities are also planned on the cultural side.
Comedy shows, musical plays and a play from
Curacao will be staged at the Cultural Community Centre in Back Street. The
French Artist Association will host the “Art Lovers Route”. On
that weekend artist open their Studio’s to visitors. This route is a circular route
mainly focused on the French side of Orient, Grand Case and Marigot.
On too construction news. The island is growing at
a phenomenal pace, mostly on the Dutch side. Dawn Beach development looks
huge. Phase II of the Philipsburg Beautification Project is complete, which sees the boardwalk
stretch all the way to Sea Palace. A new round-about and parking area
is made available at the head of town. A villa project was announced for
Cay Bay. Cupecoy is seeing the most growth at the moment, with
completion of quite a few projects at the end of this
year. Word is out that the new Airport Project is running behind schedule.
The lengthening of the runway should have been completed by December….make that December 06. Good news is that Grand
Marche Supermarket will be opening their second store in the old Hot
Tomatoes location, which is diagonally across from us. We guess that their main focus will
be on boat and yacht provisions, as they have a docking facilities. That is great since it will increase
pedestrian traffic in our area. Now just for the runway detour please.
Work is keeping us out of mischief. We can barely keep up developing our
new designs, as the calls for personalized custom ordered jewelry keeps pouring
in. It is very rewarding, to translate and see jewelry take shape from what a person had in mind. We had so much fun making this woven necklace with an enhancer button. This is one of the first jewelry pieces on which both of us did goldsmithing work.
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Fine sample of good quality Trade bead Necklace. We made the gold spacers and re-strung the necklace |
14ct Yellow Gold bangle
with repoussé blued titanium - commissioned |
The website is also undergoing a major facelift, well more like a complete overhaul.
The idea is to develop more and more informative articles. This will be a process of continual growth. We would like to hear what you think or any suggestions you have.
Our jewelry designs at the moment lean towards the joyful, happy and
bubbly. An apt feeling since spring is not to far off. Here is a pre-launch of our Spring Bubbly collection, so called because the diamonds look like air bubbles in champagne. The rings look elegant as a stand alone band, or worn complimentary to a solitaire ring or stacked together mixing white and yellow gold.
Launch of Spring Bubbly Collection
Speaking of happy and Valentines Day. The other day a lady visited our studio. With much concern she asked if we were okay? With a puzzled looked we replied: "Yes, why?" Her five year old daughter apparently said to her: "Ooh look
Mama, Madame et Monsieur are kissing!" Is that not too cute for words?
Yes, we do have many things to be happy and grateful for. Especially since we are celebrating our
first year in our new studio. We’ve experienced an incredibly creative
year and what fun we’ve had too! Without your support and encouragement we could not have come this far. Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to you. You’ve made this achievement possible. We hope to have conveyed our happiness and appreciation through our jewelry creations.
Hans & Anne ...and Popcorn
Other Links:
Pictures of our
start-up
Newsletter : November 2005
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