The story of the business and the business name is the story of the coming together of the dreams and journeys of two people – Russell Rebmann and Jimmie Collins.  Their separately-imagined, but nearly identical visions of artistic living were revealed early in their relationship.  For each, the notion of combining art, music, and food in a creative, collaborative space was their imagined individual futures. 

Their relationship developed, plans for a future spent together developed.  First to come was the name.  Their life journey together began in Hawaii, on the island of Oahu.  One of the island's striking features is a dramatic mountain range – Koolau.  It was their shared awe and sense of spiritual connection to this majestic feature - and their shared foundational objectives of balance and harmony in life - that birthed the business name of Mystic Koolau.

Towards the end of what was a several months-long process of looking for a home to purchase, an information sheet for a property that they had set aside weeks prior as unsuitable was rediscovered.  Russell investigated it first, calling Jimmie not minutes after his arrival.  The excitement in his voice was evident so Jimmie met him at the location that afternoon.  It had become immediately apparent to both that the property perfectly measured up to their desires for a home, as well as their shared desires for a creative, collaborative lifestyle – and it was nestled in the foothills of the Koolau Mountains.

A one-acre parcel, the property is bounded at the rear by a river, fed by Sacred Falls in the nearby Koolau Mountains and navigable out to the Pacific Ocean.  In addition to the main house (and attached apartment), there is a large 6-bay warehouse; all serving as canvases, large and small, through which Russell and Jimmie have carried out transformations of objects and environments.  The apartment provides seed funding for the transformations and the business creation.  The warehouse has become the hub of those creations – now transformed into an antique gallery, studio, work shop, conference room (The Imaginarium), and show rooms.  Aside from the buildings, a botanical garden has begun to take shape throughout the remainder of the site. 

And then there are surfboards; hundreds of surfboards.  Discarded, old, broken, battered - until they too are transformed.  Russell and Jimmie disdain adding unnecessarily to refuse dumps and find both purpose and spiritual energy in transforming 'one man's trash' - and so was born Russell's notion that a surfboard would make a fine medium from which to create a three-dimensional art piece.  They are the progeny of Second Chance Surfboards.

Art needs words to reflect the totality of the message this eclectic couple is sending - holistic balance and harmony – through the object they create, the people they interact with, or the environments they transform.  The first excursion in organizing those words is "The Wave Report”, a story for children of about making your dreams bigger than your fears told through the metaphor of big wave surfing.  The second effort, currently in its initial stages, is Botanical Garden book illustrating the property and this lifestyle. These will undoubtedly be followed by other projects as they delve into the beginning elements of their objective to transform individuals.

Now Russell's sister, Rebecca has joined Mystic Koolau and together we balance our energy and move forward creating a positive atmosphere where you too will want to be a part of.

welcome to our world

Mystic Ko'olau

love respect and forgiveness

...is who we are

Stronger together