Turquoise is the new black at new souvenir hot spot

While beach inspired souvenirs, gifts, art and accessories are all the rave in this shop, turquoise takes charge. Living up to the theme “Turquoise is the new black,” the star colour dominates on paintings, refrigerator magnets, beach wear, jewellery and other charming crafts.
The distinctive colour, like the name Serene, evokes a calm, unruffled sensation – and that’s the main mood felt when you step into the space filled with elegantly simple handmade creations and handpicked gifts and accessories by owner Melissa Willcocks.
Most of the products she makes are Caribbean and beach inspired. Her paintings feature beach sand, while the jewellery and other souvenirs have a nautical theme, or shells, anchors, fish, coral, seahorses and even sea glass.

In addition to her creations you can find beach bags and cover-ups and a few other local brands including Cheryl Forbes handmade dolls and Pepper Joy hot sauces.
Melissa is no newcomer to creating souvenirs and mementos for sale but this newly opened gift shop, located at La Petite Place in Grace Bay, is her first venture into retail sales.
Her love for scrapbooking led to the formation of her line, Orion Creations, which was launched only three years ago after she was encouraged by friends and family to create some ‘beachy’ handmade greeting cards. It was such a hit that she sold her first hundred cards to Beaches Resort and Spa, and as they say, the rest is history.

The arts and crafts lover has been coming up with new, creative island mementos for sale ever since

Painting simple seascapes is her signature thing, and can be found on picture frames, magnets, and paintings mounted on small easels. Fashion jewellery with little island inspired trinkets is also one of her specialties.
The Canadian native, who has now made Turks and Caicos her home did not imagine she’d have an art shop, she confessed, but always had ambition and knew she wanted to run her own business.
Now, the new mom is enjoying her innovative venture and counts herself lucky to be able to do what she likes. Creating and purchasing is only a part of the fun. She prides herself in the incorporation of quotes and distinctive packaging of her products and attributes this to her marketing background.
A peek behind a curtain that separates the displays from the back of her shop will reveal her work studio which she’ll gleefully allow you in – a space in which she’s continuously creating and designing new keepsakes and gifts for buyers to relish.