Although they didn’t know it at the time, Katie Castillo and William Deibler spent their high school years in houses just a few miles away from each other. But it wasn’t until Katie had graduated from the University of Virginia and moved back home that mutual friends introduced her to William. A few months into […]
When they thought about how they wanted to get married, Heather Welch and Greg Arbogast knew one thing: Their wedding should feel like a weekend retreat. The couple sought a “location where our friends and family could enjoy exclusive use of the property and unwind for the weekend, sort of like a mini vacation,” Heather […]
Several years ago Walk Score.com named Charlottesville the Most Walkable City in the Commonwealth of Virginia. What exactly does that mean? “A Walk Score,” explains REALTOR ® Jim Duncan of Nest Realty, “is a ranking algorithm for a home and it depends on pretty much everything people want to walk to—grocery stores, entertainment, schools, restaurants, […]
No, we’re not going to quote Robert Frost here, but we are going to talk about fences. For homeowners seeking a little more privacy or to keep children and animals in (or out), we’ll discuss when you can and cannot put up a fence and the best materials to use for your construction. ”There’s […]
Ask Rachel Stinson about the early days of her courtship with Nathan Vrooman, and she says, “We were covered in sticky grape juice for the first three months of our relationship.” Not surprising, considering the pair had moved to Charlottesville to help their parents start vineyards and wineries (her: Stinson, him: Ankida Ridge), and met […]
Three wedding photos sit on a small side-table in my parents’ home. The one of my mother, circa late 1960s, has held my wonder and awe since I was a child. Nearby are pictures of my sisters—just as beautiful and radiant as my mother. While mine isn’t there (because it doesn’t yet exist), my mother […]
Tavola cook Ian Redshaw fell in love with Allie McGrath when they were both students at The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. The pair dated for six years, and last spring Ian decided it was time to propose. When asked why, he said simply, “She’s my everything.” And to make that […]
Nobody can resist the iconic image of a bride and groom, surrounded by family and friends, ceremoniously feeding each other that first piece of wedding cake as a newly married couple. What makes the picture even sweeter is if the cake tastes as good as it looks, which is certainly true of the five cakes […]
“I do.” Those words have a special meaning for Dave Norris because when he hears them, his workday is coming to an end. Which is a very good thing, but not for the reason you’d guess: The former mayor of Charlottesville is a freelance wedding officiant, specially chosen to be the person who has the […]