What a gift!

Meal-planning, traveling, party outfits—the holidays are stressful enough before you even start thinking about making a listand checking it twice. So if you’re stumped about what to buy your doesn’t-like-golf-or-beer (#holidaycliches) father-in-law or your already-has-everything best friend, we asked some local folks to give us their tried-and-true gift ideas, from home décor to sweet treats, […]

On schedules

Even Laurel Smith admits that having a brand that creates both jewelry and dayplanners is a little disjointed. “I like things to be neat and tidy and make sense,” she says, a sensibility that carries through her line of minimalist bracelets, earrings, and other accessories. But that’s what a planner is for—keeping things tidy. And […]

Living the dream

Don’t call Carrie Waller an influencer. Even though the home blogger has upwards of 55k Instagram followers (@dreamgreendiy), she has a different take. “I don’t love that term,” she says. “It has become kind of the standard for people in my industry, but I feel like it makes us sound very cold. I want people […]

Patron of the artists

The folks at Visible Records want to lift artists up. To do so, they’ve had to slow things down.  The newish art studio/gallery concept, backed by The Bridge/Progressive Arts Initiative and located in the former office space at 1740 Broadway St., opened last November. But the artist-run consortium, which highlights minority and low-income producers, still […]

Accidental actor

Darryl Nelson Smith had never been in a play when he uprooted his Richmond life for an office gig supporting the Charlottesville theater community. He figured he’d take the job with Live Arts for a few years. Twenty years later, Smith is a pillar in local theater—on and off stage. 434: So what’s your ROLE […]

What’s so civil about water anyway?

It makes up around 60 percent of the human body. It covers more than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface. And it makes up 100 percent of local Black-owned business Civil Water’s product portfolio.  Good old-fashioned water—in bottles. No bubbles, no flavors, no harmful chemicals, no healthy minerals removed. So what’s the big deal then? […]

For the win

Matthew Winston was thisclose to shutting down the candle-making business he’d recently started. The VCU grad had a degree in creative advertising, but couldn’t picture himself settling into a 9-5 job, so he turned his hobby into a business: The Win Candle. Hoping to drum up ome extra attention (“I would get a few orders […]

Reading list

Like many people, Samantha Koon Jones found herself with a lot of time on her hands at the start of the pandemic. So she turned to reading.  “I knew a couple of people on Bookstagram—a subgroup of Instagram users who post primarily about books and reading—and I liked the idea of keeping a virtual reading […]

Pivot a chance

The COVID-19 pandemic forced so many to change their worklife. For some, it was working from home and Zoom meetings. For others, it was losing a beloved job and seeking employment elsewhere, or even in a new field altogether. Then there are those among us who have taken on daring career pivots willingly. Those who […]

Post modern

Greg Breeding’s art has sold hundreds of thousands of copies, easily. It’s traveled across the entire country. You might even have some in your house. But you might not know it—because Breeding’s art is approximately one square inch. Breeding, president, co-founder, and product studio director for Charlottesville’s The Journey Group, designs postage stamps. Since 2013, […]