City style: At home with Alexandra Bracey

Until moving back to Charlottesville two years ago, designer Alexandra Bracey spent most of her life—professional and otherwise—in larger cities, having attended the New York School of Interior Design and working there as a senior designer for Alan Tanksley. No wonder, then, why the Washington, D.C., native says she’s more “city” than “country.” “While I […]

Death of the architect: Operating in an era of uncertainty

Architects face an uncertain time. On one hand, we are in the fading era of famous designers, the “starchitects” who shaped discussion of what architecture should be—those who transcended typical barriers facing architecture by mastering the globalized market economy, delivering the ultimate branding strategy based on design to corporations and a wealthy elite. On the […]

From STEM to STREAM: Charlottesville Catholic School expands the possibilities

Time was, when students at Charlottesville Catholic School wanted to do a science experiment, they’d have to contend with the elements. “Students would be heating minerals over an open flame,” recalls Principal Michael Riley. “They’d use a Petri dish with an alcohol flame. They’d be doing it outside”—because there wasn’t a properly ventilated spot indoors—“and […]

Meaningful design: For Cathy Purple Cherry, architecture is more than aesthetic

Architect Cathy Purple Cherry started her practice, Purple Cherry Architects, in a 1,000-square-foot home with two children underfoot and two employees. Back then, as now, her focus was custom, luxury residential projects—the kind you’d see featured in home and garden magazines—and over the next few years, she hired more employees and expanded the work space […]

There, there. Cozy up to these 20 comfort foods

I conjure a memory of my grandmother—bent over a stainless steel pot of salty potatoes, holding an electric mixer and a jug of milk—every time I cook mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving and, like anyone who has a favorite comfort food, it warms me. This isn’t a new phenomenon. Because scent is tied to memory, just the […]

Hot damn! MarieBette’s hot chocolate so fine

There’s hot chocolate and then there’s the warm, silky-smooth blend of housemade ganache and milk they whip up at MarieBette Café & Bakery. Rich, just thick enough and not too sweet, this cuppa wonderful is made to be sipped slowly and savored. It’s a grown-up version of a childhood favorite, served in a place that treats […]

Talking turkey with Foods of All Nations’ Bill Yenovkian

Bill Yenovkian laughs as he attempts to describe the perfect Thanksgiving turkey “without sounding pornographic.” You want a “full, nice-shaped bird,” the longtime Foods of All Nations butcher begins. And then he stops, embarrassed, and tries again: “You want a rounded, plump breast…” Why don’t we start with the number of people you’re serving and […]