We are expanding our Menemsha retail store to include a Beetlebung Coffee House. Both will be under one roof at 24 Basin Road.

The new Coffee House will be modeled after our original Coffee House in Vineyard Haven.

We are excited to be expanding our presence in one of our favorite parts of the Island!

Thank you for the constructive feedback on our women’s Octopus design!

For men, we’re currently developing an art concept with the working title “Symmetry (Fish).” The version show below is a draft. For simplicity’s sake, the art is shown on a white t-shirt. Final versions would appear in at least two color schemes (it’s very possible neither color scheme will printed on a white shirt).

Once again, we’d love to get your feedback – both positive & negative – on this work-in-progress!

We’re currently developing the new artwork concepts for the 2011 season. At the moment, our highest priority is tentatively titled “Octopus,” a version of which is shown below, and is intended for women’s clothing and accessories.

We’d love to get your feedback via: comment on this blog, email (drygoods[at]beetlebung.com), Twitter (@beetlebung), telegram, etc.

Please ignore the style of shirt – it’s just a placeholder!

This week’s snow flurries aside, the weather appears to have turned the corner towards spring. It seems to be all anyone wants to talk about. (On Martha’s Vineyard, discussing the weather isn’t small talk – it’s much more important than that.) At the Coffee House, daffodil bulbs are blooming. Even the hastened pace of construction at the Cafe Moxie site lends to the collective feeling of rejuvenation. Add to that an extra hour of daylight, and summer feels like it’s right around the corner.

Not that we’ve been hibernating. We’re working on new artwork, new accessories (drinkware, caps, flip flops, beach towels and loads of other stuff), and, of course, new clothing styles for men, women and kids.

Over the next week, we’re going to post some drafts of original artwork on this blog, and we’re going to ask you for your input. Stay tuned!

BOSTON:

2/27: Lady Lamb the Beekeeper / Johnny D’s (Somerville)
2/28: Tennis / The Great Scott (Allston)
3/2: The Smith Westerns / The Great Scott (Allston)
3/3: Jonathan Richman / Somerville Theatre (Somerville)
3/9: Rural Alberta Advantage / Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge)
3/24: Sebadoh / Paradise Rock Club
4/1: The Mountain Goats / Paradise Rock Club
4/2: Destroyer / Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge)
4/3: Wire / Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge)
4/6: The Greenhornes / Paradise Rock Club
4/9: Toro y Moi / Brighton Music Hall (Brighton)

4/30: Surfer Blood / Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge)
5/1: Of Montreal / Paradise Rock Club
5/17: Fleet Foxes / Orpheum Theater (Cambridge)

PROVIDENCE:

2/25: Girl Talk / Lupo’s
4/26: Of Montreal / Lupo’s

BACKGROUND
The shores of Martha’s Vineyard are a ring of spectacular beaches. The ones on the south side are open and wild. The north ones are tranquil. The public beach at Menemsha tickles toddler toes. The rip currents at Squibnocket take lives.

Summer beach-going on the Vineyard is as good as it gets. But you’ll need a rich uncle to go bodysurfing in Chilmark. Or else Jim Belushi will shoo you away. That’s because 99% of the Martha’s Vineyard coastline, especially the very best beaches, is private. Strictly off limits. “Let them eat cake!” Belushi shouts, stomping about the white sand stretch between Lucy Vincent and the bend to Stonewall.

This situation dates back to the forties. The 1640’s. Our New World was cold, dark, unkempt, forbidding, and faraway. As unconcerned with beach access as they were with sunbathing, our forefathers acted on a vision to get more people to come here and build things. As a carrot, they gave developers the beaches. It worked! From Boston to New Bedford, Provincetown to Edgartown, Newburyport to Nantucket, maritime activity boomed. John Adams invented the Separation of Powers, Sam Adams agitated for rebellion, George Washington drove the Red Coats from Southie, and the New World became the United States. David McCullough recorded everything, which is great beach reading if you, your sister, or your aunt owns a home in Aquinnah.

UP-ISLAND PUBLIC BEACHES
Moshup Beach (Aquinnah) – located far up-Island on the Vineyard’s spectacular south side. Parking is a short hike from the surf. Drive or take the VTA (bus). Afterwards, check out the Gay Head Cliffs.

Menemsha Beach – the diminutive beach faces the Elizabethan Islands and Mainland and it is unremarkable, but the pre-WW II commercial fishing aura and evening sunsets are precious. Perfect (no waves) for toddlers and youngsters with snorkels and fins. Mobbed in August. Heading back, stop at Chilmark Chocolates.

DOWN-ISLAND PUBLIC BEACHES
South Beach (Katama/Edgartown) – with open ocean and southern California-esque in size and aura, this is where the comely youth culture goes especially, along with everyone else. In summer, big, beautiful, and crowded. With kids, check out Farm Institute at Katama Farm nearby.

Cape Pogue (Chappaquiddick) – truly remote, you have to take a short ferry from Edgartown to Chappie. Cape Pogue’s wide open beach and open ocean and bay are otherworldly. A great expedition for the family—tour the lighthouse! Legendary surfcasting.

State Beach (Oak Bluffs/Edgartown) – a long stretch of beach facing the northeast (no waves) great for family and kids. Giant Sengekontacket Pond parallels the beach across the street. Throngs of teens jump off the big bridge (“Jaws”).

Owen Park (Vineyard Haven) – quaint park and dock a stone’s throw by the ferry as you head to West Chop (tony and private, sorry). Harbor setting, low key, a great place to take the dog for a run.

SPECTACULAR PRIVATE BEACHES
In rough order of greatness. Bribe somebody.

1. Squibnocket at Chilmark
2. Lucy Vincent at Chilmark
3. Stonewall at Chilmark
4. Great Rock Bight at Chilmark
5. Philbin at Aquinnah
6. West Chop at Vineyard Haven
7. Lambert’s Cove at West Tisbury

- Girls – Broken Dreams Club EP – Richer & maturer than their 2009 debut, this short disc incorporates country and 50′s rock. Can’t wait for their next release.

- How to Dress Well – Love Remains – Like 90′s R&B put through a blender. Endlessly intriguing. This music is “haunting” and “ghostly” – literally.

- The Radio Dept – Clinging to a Scheme – Catchy, upbeat.

- Titus Andronicus – A More Perfect Union – Combines Bruce Springsteen, a Civil War motif, long instrumentals, suburban teen angst (screaming & profanity included), and punk rock. And somehow it works very, very well.

- Twin Shadow – Forget – My favorite LP of the year. Catchy, fun, and sad.

- Tennis – Baltimore EP – Only three songs, but this may be my favorite ~8 minutes of music the year. Their LP is due out this month.

- Wise Blood – `+` EP – “I wanted to make pop songs but have them be a collage from different sources, to draw together different sources and make something new, but have them be poppy, have them be melodic. I really want to focus on melody. I think it’s one of the most important aspects of music, being able to mix noise and melody and have it work right.” – Chris Laufman aka Wise Blood

Need some last minute gift ideas? Here are 10 – but first, think “summer,” not winter!

1. Rorschach Lobster Beach Towel … or Jellyfish Beach Towel … turn frost into visions of white sand and the open Atlantic. We design our towels ourselves on Martha’s Vineyard. They’re made in the USA and feel ultra lush — a great gift!
2. Cheap Gas T-Shirt … inspired by the North Road pump and named after Peter Simon’s photo of it. 100% ringspun cotton and pigment dyed and printed in New England.
   
3. Serpent Star Hoodie … for the passionate, not prissy! Available as a light-weight pullover or heavier-weight zip-up.
4. Kim Ang Tatami Purse … super popular and completely organic. Hand-dyed and handmade from Tatami grass, we import them from a fair trade cooperative in Cambodia. Great product, great story, great gift! Stop into our Vineyard Haven Dry Goods store for a wide selection of Tatami bags.
5. Multicolor Starfish Bumper Sticker (or Peace Sign, or Rorschach Lobster) … conceived for stocking stuffing (and bumpers).
6. Beetlebung Travel Mug … two gifts in one: (1) the mug itself; (2) 95¢ 16oz fill-ups at the Coffee House.
7. Longsleeve Heart Lobster T-Shirt … new in 2010 for big girls!
   
8. Peace Cap …featuring our original hand-painted peace sign in a “Fidel” style. For men, women, and teens.
9. Longsleeve wrap … a big hit this past summer and fall. Super soft, a great look and a practical longsleeve outer layer.
10. Beetlebung Gift Card … available in denominations of $50, $100, $150, and $200. What’s not to love?!

Lookin’ sharp, Grant.

Thanks, Eric!