Some of the best ideas aren't planned.
They don't begin with mood boards, trend forecasts, or a design brief. Instead, they appear quietly—in the middle of an ordinary afternoon, while paintbrushes are scattered across the table and a child is happily creating beside you.
That's exactly how Pua Hou came to life.
Inspired by Hawaiʻi and painted entirely by hand, Pua Hou is one of Coconut Ave's signature floral prints, celebrating creativity, original artwork, and timeless island-inspired design.
Meaning "new flower" in Hawaiian, Pua Hou is a collection of delicate hand-painted red watercolor hibiscus—a print that celebrates creativity, quiet moments, and the unexpected ways inspiration finds us.
At Coconut Ave, every print begins with original artwork created in Hawaiʻi. Some are inspired by the ocean, others by landscapes, architecture, or local traditions. Pua Hou, part of our Hilo Flower Market Collection, is different. Its inspiration came from something much closer to home—a quiet afternoon of painting between a mother and daughter.
The result is one of our most personal prints to date.
What Does Pua Hou Mean?
In Hawaiian, Pua means flower.
Hou means new.
Together, Pua Hou translates to "new flower."
For us, the name reflects more than the floral artwork itself. It represents fresh inspiration and the way creativity evolves throughout different chapters of life.
Just as flowers bloom in their own season, creativity has a way of returning when you least expect it.
Sometimes it looks different than before.
Sometimes it's slower.
Sometimes it grows through sharing it with someone else.
Pua Hou celebrates that evolution.
A Lifelong Love of Creating
For Coconut Ave co-founder Kelly Pila, creativity has always been part of life.
Long before Coconut Ave existed, art was simply how she spent her time.
As a child, she was constantly drawing, painting, sewing, and making things with her hands. Throughout school she gravitated toward every creative class she could fit into her schedule—from ceramics and glass blowing to photography, music, painting, and drawing.
When college came, that curiosity continued. Alongside studying communications, Kelly also pursued classes in fashion design, merchandising, painting, and drawing, always finding herself pulled toward visual storytelling and creative expression.
Art wasn't simply a hobby.
It was a way of understanding the world.
Life Changes, Creativity Changes Too
Like many people, adulthood brought new priorities.
Life became filled with:
- Building a business.
- Growing a career.
- Managing responsibilities.
- Eventually becoming a mother.
Those seasons leave less room for hobbies that once filled entire afternoons.
The desire to create never disappeared, but time became much harder to find.
It's a familiar story for many parents, entrepreneurs, and creatives.
The sketchbooks stay closed a little longer.
The paint dries on the shelf.
Projects become ideas instead of finished pieces.
But creativity has an interesting way of waiting patiently.
It rarely disappears.
Sometimes it simply changes shape.
Painting Beside Paisley
Today, Kelly's favorite creative moments happen a little differently than they once did.
Instead of sitting alone with a blank canvas, she often finds herself painting alongside her daughter, Paisley, at their farm on Hawaiʻi Island.
There isn't a finished masterpiece they're trying to create.
No deadlines.
No expectations.
Just watercolor, brushes, paper, and time spent together.
Those afternoons aren't really about making perfect artwork.
They're about making memories.
Sharing something she loved as a child with the next generation has become its own kind of creative fulfillment.
While painting beside Paisley one afternoon, Kelly began absentmindedly painting small red watercolor hibiscus. There was no intention of creating a textile print—just the simple joy of putting brush to paper while sharing an afternoon of creativity with her daughter.
One of those little paintings would eventually become what we now know as Pua Hou.
From Watercolor Sketch to Coconut Ave Print
Pua Hou started exactly where watercolor belongs—on paper.
The original artwork was defined by:
- Loose brushstrokes.
- Layered color.
- Organic imperfections.
- Soft movement.
The original artwork featured delicate red hibiscus blooms painted in watercolor. Rather than perfect, symmetrical flowers, each bloom carries the natural variation that only hand painting can create. Those subtle differences became one of the defining characteristics of the finished textile, giving Pua Hou an organic feel that's difficult to achieve digitally.
After the painting was complete, Coconut Ave co-founder and lead designer Mahealani Gambill transformed Kelly's original artwork into a seamless textile print while preserving the hand-painted character that made it feel so special.
This creative partnership has always been one of Coconut Ave's greatest strengths.
Kelly often helps shape the vision, inspiration, and storytelling behind each collection.
Mahea brings that vision to life through thoughtful print development, garment design, and meticulous attention to every detail.
Together, ideas become collections.
The Creative Partnership Behind Coconut Ave
One question we're often asked is:
Who designs Coconut Ave?
The answer is both simple and collaborative.
Mahealani is the designer behind every finished print, garment, and collection. Her background in graphic design, branding, and fashion allows each idea to become a refined, wearable piece of art.
Kelly contributes through creative direction, storytelling, product concepts, styling, branding, and the emotional vision behind each collection.
Pua Hou perfectly reflects that partnership.
A watercolor painting created during an ordinary afternoon became something much larger—not because it was planned, but because both founders recognized the beauty hidden inside a simple sketch.
Sometimes creativity doesn't arrive fully formed.
Sometimes it arrives as a quiet idea waiting for someone else to help it bloom.
Why Hand-Painted Prints Feel Different
You can feel it in:
- The brushstrokes.
- The slight variations.
- The softness of watercolor bleeding into paper.
- The imperfections.
Pua Hou still carries those qualities.
Even after being translated into textile form, the print retains the relaxed, painterly feeling of the original artwork.
It doesn't feel overly polished.
It feels alive.
That's exactly what we hoped to preserve.
A Fresh Take on the Hawaiian Hibiscus
The hibiscus has long been one of Hawaiʻi's most recognizable flowers, but we wanted to approach it differently.
Rather than creating a bold tropical print, Pua Hou celebrates the hibiscus in a softer, more artistic way. Small hand-painted red watercolor blooms are scattered across the fabric, allowing the movement of the brushstrokes to remain visible. The result feels airy, effortless, and distinctly handmade.
The scale of the print makes it incredibly versatile. From a distance, it reads as a subtle texture, while up close, each individual hibiscus reveals the loose watercolor details that inspired the design.
It's feminine without being overly delicate, colorful without overwhelming an outfit, and timeless enough to wear season after season.
Designed in Hawaiʻi
Every Coconut Ave collection begins here in Hawaiʻi.
Our inspiration comes from the places we live, the people around us, and the everyday moments that often go unnoticed.
From our first brainstorming sessions to final garment approvals, every collection is thoughtfully developed by our small team before being produced in carefully managed small batches with our trusted manufacturing partners.
That slower process allows us to focus on thoughtful design instead of fast fashion.
It's why every print has a story.
It's why every collection feels connected.
And it's why Pua Hou became much more than a watercolor doodle.
A New Flower
Looking back, it's fitting that this print became known as Pua Hou.
Not only because it features flowers, but because it represents a new season of creativity.
A reminder that inspiration never truly disappears.
It simply waits for the right moment.
Sometimes that moment happens while building a business.
Sometimes while raising a family.
Sometimes while painting beside a three-year-old who's simply happy to make a colorful mess.
The most meaningful creative work doesn't always begin with intention.
Sometimes it begins with joy.
At Coconut Ave, that's exactly the kind of story we hope to share.
Pua Hou is a celebration of creativity rediscovered, of making space for art in everyday life, and of finding beauty in the moments we almost overlook.
Because sometimes the newest flowers don't bloom in a garden.
Sometimes they bloom on a sheet of watercolor paper before finding their way into a collection that will be worn for years to come.
And to us, that's a story worth wearing.
From watercolor artwork to everyday moments, Pua Hou was designed to be worn, lived in, and loved.
