Coldwell Banker Islands Blog

When you live in the beautiful British Virgin Islands Christmas time will always be celebrated in the warm weather the island benefits from, of course for many this is a big difference to the normal Christmas in their home country. So how do you bring on the Christmas spirit in a warmer climate?
Are you considering decorating your home with a Christmas palm tree? You are definitely not alone, this has become a very popular choice for many people living in tropical or beach locations, enjoy celebrating the holidays with a festive beach or tropic theme with your palm tree.

Theme Ideas

When you are decorating a palm tree, there are several themes that you may choose including beach, tropical or nautical themes. If you have decided on the beach or tropical theme then a good way to decorate your tree would be with flip flops, Hawaiian t-shirts, surf boards or sand and seashells and you may even decide to decorate the rest of your home with these types of items also. If you decide on a nautical theme, boats, rafts and fish motifs can be used, good colors for a nautical theme are blue, red and even a little green.

Decorations

Decorating your home for the holidays is a lot of fun especially with this type of tree. Seashells and starfish are a good choice if you want to stay with a white or off-white theme, they are also very decorative items when used in a garland.

Another way to decorate your home with a tropical feel is to make some of your own ornaments, old clear bulbs filled with sand are very effective when hung on a tree.

If you have chosen the nautical theme, using small boat ornaments or sea creature ornaments such as seahorses or dolphins will make your tree look beautiful.

Lighting

String lighting is another wonderful way to decorate for beach, tropical and nautical themes. You can purchase the traditional white colored bulbs or even blue would look great for any theme, and if you want to make the lights even prettier why not hang flip flops, Hawaiian T-Shirts, or surf boards on them.

Where to find Beach or Tropical Theme Items

Christmas accessories for beach and tropical themes are easily found in shops and online stores, as well as at craft events, if you are lucky enough to live along the coast why not go to the beach with the family and choose some seashells to decorate. Whatever theme you choose, your home will be inviting and festive for you, your family and friends to celebrate this magical time of the year together.

Perched just above the beach amid lavish hillside gardens, Equinox House overlooks one of the most dramatic seascapes in the Caribbean and is only a short stroll from beautiful Long Bay Beach. This exquisite mediterranean style villa is thoughtfully nestled around an open air courtyard and swimming pool. The view sweeps out over nearly an acre of hibiscus, oleander and bougainvillea, which cascades on to a vast palm grove that cradles two of the most breathtaking beaches on the island .

Price:$2,200,000

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Praises poured in from vendors, residents and visitors for the well-organized 13th annual Christmas on Main Street which has been hailed a success. However, there were mixed reactions from vendors regarding the purchasing power exercised by shoppers.
The annual event started on Friday, December 2nd and concluded on December 3rd.
For Erminie Mathavious of Locally Yours, the event was a success for her business. She said that this year it was more organized, better designed and it was more incisive in terms of the placing of the booths.
Mathavious, who has been part of the event for four years, said for a year of economic hardships, people came out and supported the businesses. She said that for her business, people appeared to be more inclined to move towards a healthier lifestyle, hence they bought her products.
The event which is organized by the Association for the Advancement of Small Businesses (AASB), has developed a good reputation with vendors, Main Street businesses and the community in general, and has been a great boost to the community’s Christmas spirit and a great start to the Christmas season in the BVI.
At the official opening ceremony on Friday night, Ministers of Government urged residents to support businesses that operate in the BVI in order for the money spent on products to remain in the BVI.
The Ministers stated that businesses too must play a role by offering affordable prices. They also said said that in the coming months, they will be announcing plans for the improvement of the capital.

Source:bviplatinum

Praises poured in from vendors, residents and visitors for the well-organized 13th annual Christmas on Main Street which has been hailed a success. However, there were mixed reactions from vendors regarding the purchasing power exercised by shoppers.
The annual event started on Friday, December 2nd and concluded on December 3rd.
For Erminie Mathavious of Locally Yours, the event was a success for her business. She said that this year it was more organized, better designed and it was more incisive in terms of the placing of the booths.
Mathavious, who has been part of the event for four years, said for a year of economic hardships, people came out and supported the businesses. She said that for her business, people appeared to be more inclined to move towards a healthier lifestyle, hence they bought her products.
The event which is organized by the Association for the Advancement of Small Businesses (AASB), has developed a good reputation with vendors, Main Street businesses and the community in general, and has been a great boost to the community’s Christmas spirit and a great start to the Christmas season in the BVI.
At the official opening ceremony on Friday night, Ministers of Government urged residents to support businesses that operate in the BVI in order for the money spent on products to remain in the BVI.
The Ministers stated that businesses too must play a role by offering affordable prices. They also said said that in the coming months, they will be announcing plans for the improvement of the capital.

Source:bviplatinum

Frenchman’s Cay, an island connected to the popular west end of Tortola via a small bridge, is home to Sopers Hole Marina and one of the BVI’s most exclusive and secure gated residential communities. Here can be found some of the BVI’s most luxurious homes and Frenchman’s Paradise, a newly constructed four bedroom home, raises the bar.

Price:$3,000,000

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When Christmas is around the corner, its a great excuse to decorate your whole British Virgin Islands Home, including the dining room and also the dining furniture too, as a lot of the Christmas celebrations will center around the Christmas feast. In fact creating a festive dining table for Christmas is a big part of the fun of decorating for the holidays.

The traditional colors of Christmas are red, green and gold, which are wonderful colors to produce an effect with. These are also colors that will match with most dining room furniture and decor too. There are many ways in which you can bring your dining table to life for this special time of the year.

Begin with a vibrant colored custom tablecloth of either red or green colors which can be matched to crockery you are going to use as well as the table decorations and the other accessories you choose to decorate your table with.

The centerpiece you choose for the dining table is a very important element. There are many different centerpieces to choose from, you may decide on a wreath with bells and bows or festive ornaments of Santa Claus, Rudolph or frosty the snowman. A traditional table centerpiece which is guaranteed to catch your visitors eyes is an elegant candle display in a candelabra or maybe the candles can be offset with some Christmas greenery, baubles or sparkles, Thick pillar candle lights are usually the best type to use for this kind of setting and creating different levels of candles produce a lovely visual effect. You can purchase a ready made centerpiece with candles, however this will take some fun out of creating your festive setting for the Christmas feast.

Your dining chairs can also be incorporated into your festivities as it is easy to decorate as little or as much as you want, if you are looking for a subtle feel for your chairs why not attach a few ornaments on each or for a more dramatic look a good idea is to take some bright red, gold or green ribbon and attach to the chairs with bows, you can even purchase novelty seat covers in the style of Santa Claus, snowmen, reindeer and many more. This method of decorating your chairs is a simple method to give an intensive festive feel to any dining room.

If you want to decorate the other pieces of furniture in your dining room such as the fire place or the dresser, you may want to create Christmas bowls by filling festively colored bowls with things like pine cones, bells, baubles or candles. Place setting on your table can be offset by using color coordinated china and scattering sprigs of holly, glitter or even have a miniature Christmas tree for each person at the table.

Christmas is a time of joy and celebration and by creatively decorating your home you will really enter into the Christmas spirit and make the holidays unforgettable for you, your family and friends.

The National Parks Trust 50th anniversary concert series came to a close last evening, with a captivating performance by nine-time Grammy-award winning artist John Legend.
It was the largest crowd of the weekend with hundreds turning out to see the American star
John Legend took the stage at exactly 9:30 and performed most of his chart-topping songs, which included “Save Room for My Love”, “Wake up Everybody”, “Green Light”, “Every Time She Comes Around”, amongst others.
He opened his show by covering “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele and “Redemption Song” by legendary Jamaican artiste, the late Bob Marley.
One lucky young lady got pulled up on stage and danced with John Legend as he sang to her. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and a rose.
The highlight of the night was his performance of “Ordinary People” with the piano as the crowd sang along. At one point he stopped but the crowd kept singing.
The artiste closed his act with “I Will Stay With You” and said that he hoped he would be invited back to play again in the Virgin Islands.
Prior to John Legend’s performance, the crowd was also entertained by UMI Fashions, the HLSCC jazz ensemble and Blue Essence Band.

Source:bvinews.com

Purchasing your first home in the Beautiful British Virgin Islands is exciting, but it is also a daunting experience when you move your old things in and realize that both you and your old furniture don’t fill the area or the requirements of a real home. Often, you will have to budget carefully to be able to obtain the products you need but still be in a position to save for a rainy day. It is important to make sure that you purchase quality items where it counts, and only scrimp in the areas which will not affect your daily life. It is essential that you first obtain the things that you need to enable you to live in your home comfortably and build on your furniture and decor in time and at your leisure. Here are a few tips to help you to choose what to buy and when to buy the items which you will need for your very first home.

1. beds are one of the most important items you will buy for your home so it is important that you choose a product that will last. It is not a good idea to purchase a used mattress or an extremely cheap bed as they will only fall to pieces and you will be losing lots of money. Do not choose to buy a head board and footboard no matter how beautiful they are over a quality mattress. You might have an attractive resting place, however the rest you will get on a cheap mattress will not be good enough. If you’re not able to purchase a quality mattress immediately, buy comfortable airbed and sleep on that until you have enough money saved for a good bed mattress. A comfortable airbed will often cost around a hundred dollars, and after you have finished with them they can always be used for any guests you may have coming to stay.

2. Outfit the dining area with a table and chairs which can be used for dual purpose when needed. Dining area furniture can be bought fairly inexpensively at discount furniture stores. Choose a table that can be extended for a game night or for when you have company over, and select upholstered chairs that will be comfortable for visitors should you sit around after dinner. Upholstered chairs are also easily moved into the living space for when you have visitors over and can be easily dressed up with slip covers for seasonal parties.

3. Choose a good solid sofa. Not including your bed, your sofa will be the most important item of furniture within your home and is likely to get the most use. It should to be comfortable, durable and upholstered in nice fabric of your choice. It does not need to match your other furniture as this can be covered easily to fit in with your sofa.

4. Search for deals on chests of drawers and wardrobes. These products are very good for storage and look elegant inside a hall or living space, as well as in the bedroom. If there is a lot of closet space in your home, you may decide to place them in there out of sight to hold linens, Compact disks or movies rather than clothes.

5.Make sure you have enough light. Many houses have bright, harsh overhead light fittings which are helpful when cleaning and when you need to see every corner of a room, however these are not friendly on a daily basis. You can purchase affordable lamps at discount stores and use them to soften the edges of the room without restricting the and causing you to feel like you are living in a cave.

Buying your first home is a very exciting time, however it is important to purchase the basics for your home first and then build on this to ensure that you have enough money and also that you are happy with how your furnishings look together, it is very easy to get caught up in the excitement and impulse buy which will be a disappointment in the long run. Buying a first home is one of the biggest milestones in life so make sure that you enjoy it!

A DREAM COME TRUE VILLA is a luxurious 6,500 square foot 5 bedroom, 6 bath vacation waterfront home on an exceptionally private estate blessed with breathtaking views of Virgin Gorda’s Savannah and Pond Bays and the Sir Francis Drake Channel in the BVI.

Price:$3,500,000

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Minister of Education and Culture and Moorings Mariner Inn owner, Myron Walwyn, captured the Pioneer of the Year Business Award at the BVI Chamber of Commerce and Hotel Association (BVICCHA) award ceremony at the Scrub Island Resort and Spa.
Walwyn, who was not present at the event, was recognized for his significant contribution to the tourism and hospitality sectors in the BVI, his establishment of a successful law firm in the peak of the recession and his commitment to the community, the operation of several well established businesses under his management company, as well as his commitment to encouraging BVI Islanders to book their vacations right here in the BVI were also recognized.
Chairman of the Board, Dr. Birney Harrigan, in her remarks said: “His law firm is committing 100 hours of legal assistance, a quota that has been exceeded every quarter. As an attorney who remains diligent to helping all persons in the BVI community with justice; as a businessman he has invested in several ventures and served on various Boards throughout the community. He remains steadfast in his commitment to empower young people to help them find their rightful place in the territory and further their contribution to the community.”
The award is awarded annually to the entrepreneur who has played a major role in the development of the tourism and hospitality sectors in the BVI, his overall performance, what the entrepreneur’s vision for the future is, his ability to develop new ideas and products, and originality and distinctiveness in business operations and sales.

Source:bvinews.com