434 | Winter 2021

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Table of Contents

Metro 13 13 Good job

Orion Faruque’s debut offering.

14 Opening soon

Peruvian eats from Roanoke.

14 Cool idea

Plenty’s Free Fridge is coming.

15 Write stuff

A planner’s planner.

Front and Center 19 19 This old thing?

Katie Van Liew’s vintage collection.

Freddy Jackson’s molding young minds.

22 A mother’s love

Memoir as ode to parenthood.

27 O’ goodie!

A longtime retailer looks ahead.

29 Custom kicks

An engineer’s designs go viral.

EZE AMOS

21 Be you

Feature 35 It’s gifting season! We asked locals of all stripes to tell us what’s on their holiday shopping lists—what they’re gifting and what they hope to get. The result is a cheat sheet on the best loot in town, from vintage jewelry to comic books for kids. Take a peek, then, as ever, shop local.

31 OOTD

@cvillefashion’s seasonal snaps.

FOR A GOOD DAY, CALL... Edwina Herring. Page 46 434, a supplement to C-VILLE Weekly, is distributed in Charlottesville, Albemarle County, and the Shenandoah Valley. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. 434 Editor Caite Hamilton. Copy Editor Susan Sorensen.

308 E. Main St. Charlottesville, VA 22902 (434) 373-0073 n c-ville.com c-ville.com/434

Designer Tracy Federico.

Art Director Max March. Graphic

Account Executives Chloe Heimer, Lisa C. Hurdle, Gabby Kirk, Stephanie Vogtman,

Beth Wood. Production Coordinator Faith Gibson.

Publisher Anna Harrison. Chief Financial Officer

Debbie Miller. A/R Specialist Nanci Winter. Circulation Manager Billy Dempsey. ©2021 C-VILLE Weekly.

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TRISTAN WILLIAMS

Metro

LISTEN UP

All GOOD WHEN ORION FARUQUE was a child, and adults asked him, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” he remembers thinking, “I kinda just want to sit in my bedroom and play music.”

Now, at 29, Faruque is a working musician, and also the founder of local recording and production studio RedMusic Productions. Through his solo project, Orion and the Melted Crayons, he’s released singles and played many, many gigs. But when the pandemic hit, Faruque found himself sitting in his bedroom, playing music—it became the perfect environment to write Orion and the Melted Crayon’s debut album, The Good Stuff.

Faruque has experience creating under extreme circumstances. When he left Charlottesville to attend McNally Smith College of Music in Minnesota, he took nothing but a duffel bag and a guitar and slept on the floor of an empty apartment, until a concerned neighbor offered him a mattress. “I was 20 years old and like, ‘this is awesome!’” he laughs. Soon after graduating, he moved to his grandparents’ house near Asheville, North Carolina, to “go live on top of this mountain and study myself as a person and an artist.” He says that “during that time, I wrote something absurd, like 65 songs.”

These experiences line up with Faruque’s musical philosophy. “I aggressively haven’t given myself the option to do anything other than music,” he says. “I could get another job to support it. But if I do that, I’m not

gonna do what I need to do. I need to feel like I’m starving to make music.”

Yet after moving back to Charlottesville in 2018 and jumping into the hectic pace of shows and tours, Faruque started to feel burned out. “You’re playing a bar show out of town, people have no idea who you are, and there’s a bunch of drunk people yelling for you to play some song you don’t know,” he says. “On some level, it’s like, ‘What am I doing?’”

The pandemic gave Faruque time to reconnect with his music on an intuitive level. “I was just making sounds in my apartment,” he says. “I hear a song in my head, I’m gonna play it. I feel like there’s true beauty there.” A few months into the COVID shutdown, he realized he’d written enough songs to make an album. The Good Stuff debuted in early September on Spotify and Bandcamp.

The album draws upon Appalachian roots, but Faruque also branches out. “If you take funk and jam band music together, then add the lyrical

sensibilities of folk and the colors of jazz,” he says, “it creates a really interesting sound.” On the funky, psychedelic tune “What Is Love,” he plays every instrument, and saxophonist Gina Sobel, Kendall Street Company’s Ryan Wood, Louis Smith, and Brian Roy help out on other tracks.

While musically diverse, the album is centered around one theme: focusing on the good stuff. “E9” is a meditation on what we can learn from the pandemic, while “The Letter” explores Faruque’s grief around losing his dad at 14. Even then, he retains threads of hope. In “The Letter,” he sings: “If it’s raining / why is the sun shining through?”

With the debut album done, what’s next for The Melted Crayons? “I really hope that I don’t have to make a record like this for a while, just because it was so much work,” Faruque jokes. But that seems unlikely for a musician who doesn’t give himself the option to do anything else.—Alana Bittner 434 13

Metro

N E W E AT S

PROVEN Peruvian

EZE AMOS

AFTER RECEIVING RAVE reviews from patrons at two Inka Grill locations in Roanoke, chef Percy Rojas and his partners-in-lime are bringing their famous ceviche and traditional Peruvian dishes to a new location on the UVA Corner. We are especially excited to try the fried-rice chaufa, chef-selected seafood soups, and tuna tartare. Reservations are available on the Inka Grill website.—Will Ham

TA K E I T A WAY

Plenty for EVERYONE IN THE WORKS from the folks at Plenty: the Little Free Food Fridge, a mutual aid initiative that provides nosh gratis for those in need. It’s currently in the works at the meal delivery service’s commercial kitchen on Market Street.

Follow @littlefreefridgecville on Instagram for updates and how to get contribute.

14 434

SUPPLIED PHOTO

G E T O R GA N I Z E D

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 when it came to designing a tool to help her stay organized, Smith kept her own needs in mind.

“The way my brain works, I need to be able to see everything in order to plan it and keep track of all of the moving pieces,” she says. Her version does just that, allowing users to see their monthly calendar, weekly schedule, weekly and month to-do lists, and notes in one spread.

“If you can’t see it all, you’ll lose track of it and then it doesn’t get done,” Smith says. “That’s the foundation of our planner system at Laurel Denise.”

She launched the first one in 2008, but after starting a family in 2012, she needed to pick a lane for the business: jewelry or planners. She chose jewelry as it was more established, but customers wouldn’t stop asking when she’d re-launch the planner—and she needed it, too!

“In 2020, as we were hosting a family from New York during the lockdown, I was managing my team of five remotely, and my two children were learning from home,” she says. “I realized that my organizational system needed to change and it needed to change quickly. In a conversation with my husband, I commented about how much I could use a Laurel Denise Planner in my life right at that moment.”

The 2021 version sold out and the 2022 version—which comes in deep green or features cover art by local artist Britt Davis—is on its second print run.

“Who knows where Laurel Denise will end up, but for now I’m super happy (and way grateful) to see both of our lanes expanding quite a bit,” Smith says. —Caite Hamilton 434 15

Thibaut-Janisson was born from a long friendship that began in a Grand Cru village in the Champagne region of France and continues today in Blue Ridge Mountains of Charlottesville, Virginia.

Thibaut-Janisson Winery | Charlottesville, Virginia | (434) 996-3307 | claude@tjwinery.com

What gift will really stand out this holiday season, and be remembered and treasured for years to come?

A gift of fine jewelry from Andrew Minton Jewelers.

Andrew Minton Jewelers offers personal service— to help you givers make the best selection— competitive pricing to spread the joy, and a carefully chosen selection of fine jewelry from Artistry, Allison Kaufman, Sylvie, Gabriel, and more, that will make you look like a genius.

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Sale ends Friday, December 24.

Inside.

Outside.

Home.

FALL 2021

OM, AHHH

A zen box holds space for a local artist

Woodworker Tate Pray returns to form—and function

SHOP HOP

Three décor retailers we’re obsessing over

MIXING IT UP

Rethinking the performance of a family kitchen

With an eye toward its second life, a designer reimagines a city cottage

To be continued 16 434

There’s no place like

home.

Ankida Ridge Vineyards Presents: "Christmas with the Cratchits" Live Music, Wine & Gift Bundles Wreath and Centerpiece Making Classes Happy Hour with the Cratchits Charcuterie Boxes for 2 paired with Glass of Wine Surprise Pop-up Virginia Winemaker Visits Afternoon Childrens’ Holiday Activities Dec 10-12 and Dec 17-19 Fridays: 5-8pm, Saturdays: 1-7pm, Sundays: 1-6pm *Tickets Required for Some Events* For details and Covid Protocols, visit www.ankidaridge.com Or email Holly@ankidaridge.com “THE COTTAGE ON RIDGE” 214 Ridge St., Charlottesville

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FRONT & CENTER WHAT TO SEE, WHERE TO GO, WHO' S IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Vintage-lover Katie Van Liew can’t stop collecting

More is BETTER

C O N TIN U E D O N PA GE 20

EZE AMOS

By Caite Hamilton

434 19

Front & Center

BUY AND SELL CVILLE

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EZE AMOS

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“I think everyone who comes to our house can appreciate the effort and whimsy of the place,” says Katie Van Liew.

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CONTINUED FR OM PAGE 1 9

A

s she suspected, nobody noticed when Katie Van Liew brought home a lifesize concrete gnome recently. Such is the life of a collector, especially one who’s been hunting and gathering since she was a little girl.

“Rocks, shark teeth, stickers, and Hello Kitty were my first organized collections,” she says, “but my pockets were always full of something I found.” These days, her eye is still gravitating toward things that bring her joy, albeit vintage— tablecloths (her collection numbers in the hundreds), paper, pottery, children’s books, shell art, and Christmas-themed (as Buyanything and Sell Cville Team Nominees: Bert met a vintage she putsCandice it, “I’ve&never Passionate Helping Santa Iabout didn’t love”).

People SELL & BUY Residential also love anything pastel from Real“IEstate in the Charlottesville Area. can’t the 1950s andWe ’60s,” Van Liew says. wait to connect with you & Share Some of our Best Adventures!

“I can appreciate mid-century modern, but I’m more of kitschy cute kind of gal. Bring on the pink!”

As most collectors will tell you, Van Liew finds her vintage treasures just about anywhere—auctions, flea markets, yard sales, and estate sales. It’s the thrill of the hunt, she says. She’s started selling a lot of what she finds—at Gateway Antique Center in Ruckersville, passing on the thrill to other collectors.

“Selling it is almost as much fun as finding,” says Van Liew. “Other people are on the hunt too, and I get a lot of enjoyment from their joy.”

But don’t expect her to give up her enormous collection of vintage Christmas ornaments, or her mother’s collection of Wendt & Kuhn angels. Those she’ll pass on to her daughter.

“I have lots of things I love,” she says, “but at the end of the day things are just things.”

Heading NORTH Central Virginian Freddy Jackson spreads love with C’ville-based youth foundation By Shea Gibbs

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

T

roubled youth to mentor and motivational speaker, a classic tale. But Freddy Jackson’s path has been his own. Five years ago, he launched the Love No Ego Foundation in Charlottesville to help young people—and other demographics—better themselves.

Jackson grew up in Buckingham County, a rural community an hour’s drive almost due south of C’ville. His mom, a “soldier for love” and devout churchgoer for most of his life, had him when she was 16. His dad was a “street guy” who didn’t finish high school and instead fell into drugs and criminal activity.

“He’s still alive and in my life. I love him to death,” Jackson says. “But I could see and experience the consequences of his decisions.”

Growing up, Jackson was poor but didn’t know it. His mother and siblings “were focused on love and playing and being joyous.”

But all around him, the street took its toll. Jackson says he can think of only one of his childhood friends who didn’t go to jail or die at a young age.

If it sounds like Jackson was set up for a major fall and subsequent redemption, leading to his founding the Love No Ego Foundation, it never really came. He made it out of his troubled youth. He was the second person in his family to graduate high school. He was the first to go to college, where he excelled as a basketball player and earned a degree in broadcast journalism.

Jackson moved to the West Coast after graduation and launched a career as a musician. He produced multiple hip-hop and gospel albums. He wrote and produced songs for other artists. He collected masters degrees as he went. He was successful.

But he soon found he was unhappy.

“I destroyed a lot of relationships,” Jackson says. “I saw how my ego was limiting my blessings, my miracles.

Once I figured that out, I took accountability for it, and everything shifted, everything changed.”

If Jackson had a rock bottom, it was a mental rock bottom. He saw ego all around him—in the music industry, in sports, the media, everywhere. He wanted out.

The relationship Jackson felt he was damaging the most through his ego and selfishness—”doing the same things I saw my dad and uncles and that culture do”— was his girlfriend at the time. He decided to embrace love.

Jackson got married, and moved back to Virginia in 2012. He and his wife transplanted to Charlottesville in 2016. That’s when Jackson started work on his foundation.

Love No Ego is a nonprofit built on Jackson’s charisma, motivational speak-

↑

Freddy Jackson started the Love No Ego nonprofit to help young people choose "communication over conflict."

ing, and mentorship. Today, it includes about 12 people making up a board, mentors, and volunteer team. The goal is to push young people to embrace love over ego and fear and “communication over conflict.” It’s built on spirituality, exercise, education, and community, and provides speaking engagements, a mentoring program, workshops, and fitness and wellness programs. Jackson and his team travel regionally and have delivered their message at high schools, colleges, and residential treatment facilities. They hold an annual cleanup in Buckingham County.

According to Jackson, the Love No Ego message is more relevant these days than ever. The divisions we see in politics, race, and elsewhere come from our own selfishness.

“Before you are a Democrat or a Republican, before I am Black or white, we want to emphasize that we are human first,” Jackson says. “We are all in this thing together.”

434 21

Front & Center

Finding the ANSWERS

F

ormer Charlottesville resident and UVA alum Taylor Harris’ debut memoir, This Boy We Made, is set to be released on January 4, 2022. Harris is a mother of three—Eliot, Tophs, and Juliet—who one day finds her son Tophs nearly catatonic on the floor.

That discovery takes her on an emotional journey through her faith and her health, both mental and physical, as she and her husband Paul fight to find an answer for Tophs.

434: This Boy We Made opens and closes with a vivid scene of you holding Tophs in water. You look down to find you’ve lost your grip on his wrists, and he’s now sitting at the bottom of the pool. Later, you see this take place in real life.

What inspired you to begin and end this story here?

TH: I almost couldn’t believe it, because you’re writing nonfiction and you don’t get to make up the story. So when he did that at the Outer Banks in the pool, and it aligned so much with the dream I had, I was in disbelief.

I think it meant something because it speaks to what I feared for him in the times where I thought I did something wrong, I let him go, this is on me. What you see later as we move further along in the book is that I still have a lot of questions, but I think we’ve moved from a place of complete fear and self-ridicule to more of a place of wonder. Like, how does my son see the world? Maybe that’s part of who he is, and what makes him so amazing is the way that he looks at the world and the way he discovers things.

You begin This Boy We Made by quoting Kate Bowler (“This is the life we have, in skin and bones, 22 434

SUPPLIED PHOTO

Author Taylor Harris dives deeper into her upcoming memoir, This Boy We Made

By Julia Stumbaugh

↑

Taylor Harris' forthcoming memoir, This Boy We Made, follows her emotional journey as she fights to find answers about her son's medical mystery.

living in between”) and close with a Tish Harrison Warren quote (“And in enduring mystery, we need just enough light to take one more step.”) How did you choose these quotes?

A mutual friend pointed me to [Kate Bowler’s] blog in the early days when she had recently been diagnosed with stage four colon cancer. She has points that I feel like I’ve been searching for, especially as someone who is a Christian, but wants to be real about difficulties in life. Tish Warren...is another person who sees the world and understands the hope we have in the future, but also just how frightening and sometimes depressing and grief-stricken life can be, and is honest about that. Having those two women bookend my story with quotes is really meaningful, because I feel like those are the voices I’ve been searching for for so long.

You discuss the concept of “before and after” in relation to the change in your life after your discovery about Tophs’ health problems. Do you see a similar “Before and After” in your children when you teach them about racism?

It’s delicate because you’re trying to strike a balance. On one hand you’re saying, Black is beautiful, your hair’s beautiful. You are brilliant. Then you also

have to do this other thing where you’re like, remember that guy I told you, he walked into his own apartment and he was just trying to get into his home, and a police officer ended up shooting him?

Part of your job as a parent, I think, is being honest when walking through this realization that in some ways we aren’t safe. And that’s really difficult.

Juliet in particular has really grasped onto the idea that she’s not safe with cops. That’s not because every cop we know is bad or racist, but death for her, right now, comes at the hands of police officers. It’s not just this abstract thing that she doesn’t want to happen, which I think is very common for a 5-year-old.

So, I think there is a before and after.

In This Boy We Made, you introduce an idea of Jesus as a mortal man who might have gotten a cut, suffered a fever, or felt depression after the loss of a friend. How has that revelation changed your relationship with Christianity?

We kind of laugh at that verse that says, “Jesus wept.” It’s just a joke, and we move on. It’s easy to move so quickly from the crucifixion to the resurrection, but what are the mundane things Jesus was doing? He was 30. We talk about him being both human and immortal, but what are the ways he was human? What did he really struggle with that we don’t spend

time on? For those three days when he was in the grave, people had a lot of questions. There was a lot of doubt. I feel like I’m really in those middle days, quite a bit.

Your book explores how UVA’s legacy of racism lives on in current day, from catcalls outside your Lawn room to your husband Paul Harris being denied tenure.

How has your relationship with the university changed throughout your years in Charlottesville?

My sisters and I grew up as Black tokens in a town where we were lauded and also, at times, lonely. So I came to UVA, and I joked in the book that we were 10 percent of the student population. And for me, it was just like everything I’ve ever wanted...I don’t regret for one second that community of Black brilliance that I was in at UVA. I’m okay going on record saying I was completely surprised that my husband was denied tenure. The betrayal runs deep, and I’m still not over it. I still will do things like go back for Black Alumni Weekend because it’s that community and we still all look out for each other. But I don’t believe in the empty platitudes that come out of UVA, and there’s nothing that makes me hotter than an email asking for money.

Although this book is about you and your kids, especially Tophs, your husband Paul’s love feels like a backbone holding up the story.

What do you hope he takes away from this book?

I’m his wife of 16 years, but I think [the book] helped him see and understand how I see the world even more. There’s a thing with being a writer where I process through my writing. I feel, in that way, the book is just one more way for us to pull back another layer and get to know each other better, which I think I’m learning now, 16 years in, is the journey of marriage. It’s not that you know each other on day two or year two. I think we’re going to keep learning each other, and hopefully keeping vulnerable and loving each other, for however many years we get.

Someday, if any of your kids were to read This Boy We Made, what would you want them to learn from it?

I hope that my kids see how much I love them: as the mother I describe, the cuddler and kisser of cheeks and stroker of curls and things like that, and also the mother as advocate, and the mother as a wife leaning on her husband. I’m not going to be a perfect mother, but I hope they look back and say that she really tried to be faithful and true.

I’ll share with you one quote from Tophs. He got out of bed the other night, and he comes down and I’m sitting on the couch and he says, “I have this quote.” And I say, “Okay, Tophs.”

And it’s really funny because he’s this really skinny kid and he’s got on his little PJs and he had Paul cut out this little frohawk for him...and he almost raps it, because he’s been practicing it in his head: “You might have a seizure or a disorder, but you can be your own brave person. You can never be another.”

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Front & Center

COLOR HER successful After a quarter century in business, Suzannah Fischer still knows exactly what you need By Susan Sorensen

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

“O

ne to two to three to two to one, and now two. And I’m never going back to three.”

That’s Suzannah Fischer, eyes closed, recounting the number of O’Suzannah shops she’s owned at one time since she first opened her eclectic boutique in 1996 on the Downtown Mall.

Before going out on her own, Fischer worked retail for years, everywhere from Barr-ee Station on the Corner to Bath & Body Works at the Fashion Square Mall.

And when the opportunity to buy an existing business in the current Corner Juice spot presented itself 25 years ago, she pounced. But before the place officially became hers, Fischer and her mother “went to Virginia National Bank in Barracks Road during a freak snow storm, so my mom could cosign a loan for $30,000 so I could buy it.”

Success came quickly, something Fischer credits to her persistence, a strong work ethic, and a knack for curating. “I love the whole process of finding goodies, putting them together, and selling them to cool people,” she says, adding that it’s important to balance high-end items—a handcrafted backpack made by Pennsylvania artisans or a sterling silver poppy-seed pod necklace—with things that children can afford to buy their moms for Mother’s Day. And when it comes to displaying it all, Fischer says “colorizing” is the key to making it work. “A theme—the cookbooks and candles all in one place— would look nauseating to me,” she says.

“You can really make something out of so many different colors and shapes and price points in one place. It actually can take on a theme too, if it’s about a certain color.”

A quick spin around her Second Street space (her other store, devoted to all

things babies and children, is on the Downtown Mall), confirms this. Various shades of beautifully displayed red merchandise are on white shelves near the cash register. Books look just right next to bags, which are near tea towels and scarves that share space with wrapping paper, puzzles, water bottles, socks, soaps, journals, and cards. A few feet away is a section full of black, white, and gray bowls, candles, pencils, stationery, umbrellas, lotion, mugs, vases, and more books.

“Books are what I like the most,” says Fischer, who places “these crazy-large book orders” the moment she gets home from the various markets where she finds much of her stock. “It’s my very favorite thing when they come in. Books make every section of the store make sense; they bring a cohesiveness and make the whole thing look so tempting.”

Over the past year, however, she’s been all about puzzles. “I bought puzzles up the watoots” during the pandemic, she says. “And cookbooks and chocolate bars.” The shift to online sales was difficult (“I didn’t know what I was doing when I wasn’t greeting people at the door and helping them find cool stuff”), but she’s still here, and business is steady— on a recent rainy Wednesday afternoon there was a stream of customers who were looking for everything from hostess and birthday gifts (yes, she’ll wrap them for you) to items with the word “Charlottesville” on them.

“I wouldn’t trade doing business in Charlottesville for anything,” Fischer says. “I was born here, my mother was born here, her mother was born here. I know Charlottesville, and I can’t imagine being anywhere else.”

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Front & Center

For KICKS

Local designer goes viral with his hand-painted sneakers By Julia Stumbaugh

T

EZE AMOS

o the average Charlottesvillian, a pair of Jordans probably looks like sneakers. To local engineering student Mylz, they are one crafting knife and an airbrush away from a work of art.

SpeedyCustomz, Mylz’s online shoe design and customization business, began with a permanent marker on a friend’s Vans, and evolved into elaborate footwear masterpieces. One of the Albemarle High School alum’s first orders was a pair of sneakers he themed around Travis Scott’s album Astroworld. This brightly colored commission, which featured one-eyed teddy bears grinning from the toe caps with the album title trailing down the

side, required meticulous design work layered between sealing blasts of a heat gun that took Mylz over three weeks to perfect.

“Everything I was doing was by hand,” says Mylz. “I didn’t have a stencil…I had to do a perfect one, in one take.”

A longtime drawing enthusiast, Mylz had never used a paintbrush before he opened SpeedyCustomz. The familiar leering face of Heath Ledger’s Joker, surrounded by a chorus of painted “Ha Ha Ha” on a friend’s pair of shoes, was Mylz’s first-ever painting—and on the unforgiving white canvas of shoe leather, there was no room for mistakes.

“With painting, most people already know to use a limited amount of brushes,

SpeedyCustomz founder Mylz uses a sharpie and lots of patience to draw his designs by hand.

↓

and they know how to blend the colors by working from the brightest to darkest,” says Mylz. “I learned all that by painting on a shoe.”

As his online business began to gain traction, Mylz decided to tweet an image of a pair of hand-painted shoes he had customized for a popular Instagram model. It would be nice, he thought as he carefully edited the photo, to get a few hundred likes; maybe even earn an extra order or two for SpeedyCustomz.

An hour and a half later, while on the phone discussing Old Dominion University homework, his friend interrupted engineering talk to ask if Mylz had checked his Twitter recently.

Mylz unlocked his phone and saw the shoes had gone viral.

“I looked at the analytics on Twitter, where it shows how many people looked at it, and I had over three million views basically in 24 hours,” says Mylz. “I was so overwhelmed.”

That tweet brought in a flood of new orders by sneakerheads from California to New York. The influx of new customers, as well as the growing popularity of shoe engineers on Instagram, inspired a new direction for SpeedyCustomz.

In addition to pivoting toward higherquality sneakers with higher-quality leather and paint, Mylz is adding a sewing machine to his toolkit: He wants to begin tearing sneakers down to their base parts and reconstructing them to order, from scratch. Clients’ requests range from something as simple as the Nike swoosh being cut out and reattached backwards, to a completely redesigned shoe.

He may be currently studying to some day design roller coasters, but his engineering background has prepared Mylz to start breaking ground in the vibrant world of made-to-order sneakers right now. The custom shoe market in Charlottesville currently skews toward young people, but Mylz hopes his work will capture the imagination of adults.

“The sneaker community has evolved in the last five years,” he says. “More people wear shoes just because they like them, so I decided, why not express yourselves by wearing something you love?

If you love shoes, why not put something you really love on the shoe so you can love the shoe even more?”

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Front & Center @cvillefashion

CHARLOTTESVILLE street style

UNTITLED AGE: 69

OCCUPATION: Artist and

social activist THE LOOK: Marc Antony sneakers, Richard Burton top, Tiffany broach (“I get everything in thrift stores”).

“These items—specifically the broach and the sequined top—are about my desire and willingness to play with gender stereotypes.

The sneakers are fun and crazy. I am looking to push buttons, get compliments, and garner as much attention as possible.”

​​ icolas N ANTONICCIO AGE: 16

OCCUPATION: High school student from Ohio

THE LOOK: Everything from Athens Underground in Athens, Ohio.

“I just kind of liked the frilliness of [the pants], honestly. Just the patchwork was really intense and the buttons surrounding like fraying of the jeans was pretty special to me. The shirt was something I bought from like a thrift store and I just cut it up.”

“Fashion represents kind of freedom and expression of what you want to be and to not conform to, like, what others want you to be, you know?

Charlottesville Street Style is a collaboration between 434 and Playground of Empathy, a local team that transforms organizational cultures to be more inclusive through immersive POV technology that celebrates expression through clothing and identity. Follow them @cvillefashion on Instagram.

Johnny HAWKINS OCCUPATION: Tinkerer THE LOOK: The whole outfit is from Goodwill, except for my socks: “I had on flip-flops Crocs and someone passed by asking for directions. I was goofing, like asking if they want to trade and I pointed to a pair of my shoes and so we traded.”

“I am Mr. Style. What can I say?”

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What a

gift!

Meal-planning, traveling, party outfits—the holidays are stressful enough before you even start thinking about making a list and checking it twice. So if you’re stumped about what to buy your d o e s n ’ t - l i ke - g o l f - o r - b e e r

(#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, plus a few things on their own wish lists. Happy holidays!

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GIFT

SUPPLIED PHOTO

“I’m planning on getting my mother a gorgeous Thunderbolt Dessert Plate from Louise. She collects fun and unique dessert and salad plates and this vibrant plate would be a perfect addition to her collection and features some of her favorite colors.”

Alexandra Bracey, Bracey Designs

“La Vache Microcreamery caramels are my go-to gift for the holidays. The fleur de sel is my favorite flavor: a perfect balance of chewy and creamy, with a hint of salt, but the bourbon + vanilla are a close second.

They are all locally made by hand, and come in stylish packaging so you don’t have to wrap anything. These make great gifts for teachers and coworkers, and are great to have around as a sweet treat for company.”

“I can’t wait to gift my husband the extra chic Oliver Spencer sweater from our friends at Quattro Tizi! He’s been wanting a half-zip one for a while now, and I always know I can find him something special that he’ll love and wear over and over again from Quattro.”

Linnea White, owner of Darling

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“I could buy everything inside of Whimsies, but every time we walk in the store the giant Schylling lava lamp catches my and my daughter’s eye. It has that beautiful OG purple glow to it and it is the perfect size to make any playroom look super funkadelic and vibe great energy.”

SUPPLIED PHOTO

SUPPLIED PHOTO

Joy Ting, research enologist and exchange coordinator at Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange

Allie Redshaw, owner of Sumac

GUIDE

EZE AMOS SUPPLIED PHOTO

Andrea Hubbell, realtor at Nest Realty Group

STAFF PHOTO

“We love to give foodstuffs, especially as stocking stuffers, host gifts, etc. Some ideas: Jam According to Daniel, La Vache Microcreamery caramels (I pick them up at Be Just), rosemary shortbreads from Found Market, local wine from King Family Vineyards, Early Mountain, and Veritas, as well as Thibaut-Jannison bubbly, and gift certificates to Feast!, The Pie Chest, and Stock Provisions are always popular.”

“Our two go-to gifts are Allens Scottish Shortbread and Trager Brothers Coffee. Both are locally owned and Allens is a Black-owned business, which makes me want to support them even more.”

Robert Radifera, photographer

“We love getting our kids things from Alakazam and Telegraph Comics— our kids just tear through graphic novels and manga. I think one place people might not visit enough is The End Games on 29 across from Telegraph; they’ve got a pretty insane selection of board games, table top strategy games, and of course role playing games and all the manuals and accoutrements that go with. The “Stranger Things” fan in your life deserves a D&D starter guide crash course—definitely bought my family some sanity through COVID. The best thing I can imagine is getting Catan 3D from them.”

Hunter Smith, Ten Course Hospitality 434 37

GIFT

GUIDE

“My wife Amanda loves jewelry! But more than that she loves things that are vintage, beautiful, and have a story to them. Roger at The Jeweler’s Eye always has something that seems to fit her taste, and it’s always fun to chew the fat with that ageless gent. That’s usually my first stop when doing Christmas shopping.”

SUPPLIED PHOTO

Micah LeMon, bar manager at The Alley Light

“I plan on scooping up some Cocoa & Spice assorted chocolates as gifts for my family, as well as some Allens Scottish Shortbread. I love being able to shop small minority-owned businesses (Allens) as well as local small women-led businesses (Cocoa) to provide my loved ones with a little taste of where I get to call home. And who says no to delicious chocolates and flaky shortbread?!”

EZE AMOS

Ashley Reynolds Marshall, J.D., deputy city manager for racial equity, diversity and inclusion “I think the best gift anyone can give another person is knowledge. For Black people it should be specific to their lineage and development within the context of being a people whose development was interrupted due to the transatlantic slave trade and the continuing consequences of that. So I have a list of books I need to read, and that I think every Black person should read.”

Leslie M. Scott-Jones, assistant curator of education and public programs at the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center

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“My sister is weirdly into tawny port so of course I’ll be consulting Market Street Wine humans for their opinions.

If she lived in town, I would get her a wine subscription curated by the good minds there.”

MATT RILEY / UVA ATHLETICS

Dave Norris, general manager of Charlottesville Parking Center

Jeff Bushman, Bushman Dreyfus Architects

SUPPLIED PHOTO

“I’ll be buying gifts at Be Just in Belmont. Almost everything there makes a great gift, but I’ll be focusing on their sketchbooks and notebooks.

Terrific colorful design and really handy for capturing ideas throughout the day.”

SUPPLIED PHOTO

EZE AMOS

“I’m choosing a pair of season tickets to the UVA women’s soccer team.

Women’s soccer is perennially overshadowed by other sports (including men’s soccer), but the UVA women are consistently in competition for the No. 1 rank in the country and not enough locals know or appreciate this fact. I’d love to see more seats filled in Klöckner Stadium when they play. Let’s do this, Charlottesville!”

PK Ross, owner of Splendora’s Gelato

“Boy Smells candle at the Quirk Hotel gift shop. When did hotel gift shops get to so cool? This place is my go-to when I need to get a gift for someone or myself. Super hip little gallery and gift shop off the hotel’s lobby. I love all the art and unique gifts.”

Darryl Nelson Smith, box office manager at Live Arts 434 39

GIFT

GUIDE

“A gift certificate to Keswick, starting with the gem by Jean-Georges. To say we’re obsessed is an understatement.

From the local art by Kiki Slaughter, to the incredible views and the sustainable and seasonal menu, we can’t get enough!” Marilyn Speight, just a little ditty

SUPPLIED PHOTO SUPPLIED PHOTO

“I like to go to Angelo to see what Lee Marraccini has that would be a treat for my wife. I don’t go looking for anything specific, though the earrings are usually a winner.”

Gerry Newman, owner of Albemarle Baking Co.

“This year I’m getting the book lovers in my life copies of Jocelyn Johnson’s My Monticello from New Dominion Bookshop.

It is an amazing collection of stories from a local author. It is a storytelling feat that challenges the heart and mind.”

EZE AMOS

Eboni Bugg, director of programs at Charlottesville Area Community Foundation

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“I’m planning on purchasing more Playmags from Shenanigans for my kids because it seems like they can never have enough of them. They love building houses with them. Here’s a little mom hack for ya: I give them little battery-powered lights that they can use as lights in their houses. They illuminate the Playmags beautifully.”

Britt Davis, artist

C-VILLE knows best

Making a list... It's always better to give than to receive, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't treat ourselves. These folks know what they want (and aren't afraid to share it).

This year, the folks on the C-VILLE staff are practicing what they preach: shopping local for the holidays.

“Getting my husband (and me!) tickets to the remaining shows in the Live Arts’ 2021-22 season. We enjoyed Every Brilliant Thing so much that we can’t wait to go back to the theater for more!”

—Susan Sorensen, copy editor

“Tuel Jewelers has a bracelet that I’ve been pining for since they’ve become my client. It’s my birthstone.”

—Lisa Hurdle, account executive “My wife has a book series she really likes that comes out every winter. She doesn’t buy it herself ‘cause she knows I’m gonna get it for her as a Christmas present. Because I always know when it’s coming, I can order it from New Dominion Bookshop with plenty of time.”

—Max March, art director

“When I have time for ‘hobbies,’ I like to count flowerarranging among them. I’ve given this vase from Louise as a gift and have been eyeing it for myself. The way the light hits the facets is spectacular and it really fits with any décor.”

SUPPLIED PHOTO

“I’m getting my dad a Ragged Mountain Running Shop gift card. He’s always due for a new pair of running shoes and he really enjoys the process of having them pick the right ones for his feet/gait/stride.”

—Billy Dempsey, circulation manager

“I could make it a one-for-you-one-for-me shop, and hit up Greenwood Grocery and grab tins on tins on tins of fish for myself, splurge on a Ramon Peña tin of cockles or Scout Canning mussels while checking out their wine selection. Nina and Dave support tons of local producers, so putting together a Virginia gift basket would be a snap.” PK Ross, owner of Splendora’s Gelato

Alexandra Bracey, Bracey Designs

TOM MCGOVERN

“My shopping includes a stop at Freestyle to get my daughter outfitted for her new skiing hobby. I pushed her out on the slopes last year and she fell (a lot) for the sport! The shop is locally owned by experts and offers appointments so you get the clerks’ time and full attention.”

—Tami Keaveny, Culture editor

STAFF PHOTO

“For my dad: a 12-ounce bag of Side Hustle coffee beans from Grit. We both think it’s the best coffee in town so he’ll be excited to get to make it from home. Something that’s on my own wish list is a gift card for Revolutionary Soup. I eat the Spicy Peanut Tofu soup pretty much every day so it would save me quite a bit of money!”

—Chloe Heimer, account executive

“I’m pretty boring and mostly like tech, video games, and books, so the headphones and home theater sections at Crutchfield are pretty safe for me, plus gift cards to my favorite restaurants that I don’t work at, like The Shack, The Ivy Inn, Lampo(2Go), and the ABC store for a good bottle of old rum.”

Hunter Smith, Ten Course Hospitality

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GIFT

JOHN ROBINSON

“I hope to get classes at AKT Charlottesville.

They offer dance, tone, bands, and circuit classes that are such incredible workouts.

It’s a fun, uplifting community located on Pantops.” Britt Davis, artist

“A few thoughts: A Furbish needlepoint pillow from Brigid & Bess, Spiegelau champagne coupes from Bottle House (or some great vermouth/bitters), a vintage quilt (or quilt coat) from Folkling in Gordonsville. I also love a good gift card/certificate to a nursery for a tress or plants.”

“I love asking for artwork as a group gift from my family.

My collection of work by Sarah Boyts Yoder, Seth Bauserman, and Kevin Sabo has slowly grown over the years. I enjoy looking at our collection and remembering specific years and events surrounding that work of art. I also appreciate a local wine club membership to either a Virginia winery or from our local wine shop, Market Street Wine. It’s nice not to have to make all of the decisions about what to drink and instead leave it to the professionals.”

SARAH BOYTS YODER

Edward Warwick White, assistant dean of the full-time MBA program and student affairs at University of Virginia Darden School of Business

GUIDE

Sarah Boyts Yoder's "Landlocked"

Tracey Love, Holding Forth

“Kind of boring, but I want a new bathtub for Christmas.”

Deborah McLeod, Chroma Projects Art Laboratory 42 434

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Ashley Reynolds Marshall, J.D., deputy city manager for racial equity, diversity and inclusion

SUPPLIED PHOTO

“Having a December birthday near Christmas (the 21st!) means I often have to really know what I would like or need since the time is so hectic. If my husband or family reads this, I would love to receive letterpress monogrammed stationary from Rock Paper Scissors and a vintage pen from Circa to go with it, and tickets to see both Leslie Odom Jr. and Whitney Cummings (we went to high school together!) at the Paramount.”

“Any item from The Barn Swallow. This store is a true décor dream. From all of the handmade local pottery pieces, to the nature-adorned, handpressed carved lamps that will take your breath away, to the local bouquets of flowers fresh every day, pick up anything in the artisan gallery, gift it to your best friend or yourself and all will be as it should.

The pure Virginia maple syrup by the register makes for a perfect stocking sweetener as well.”

Allie Redshaw, owner of Sumac

“We barbecue all the time and shish kabobs are my favorite thing to grill. I’ve been using the same skewers from my childhood and they have seen better days. This skewer set from Blanc Creatives looks amazing and it supports a local craftsman.”

Jen Fariello, photographer 434 43

—

. r e t s | S l= ± t i L

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EZE AMOS

For a good day, call...

Edwina HERRING

A perfect day in Charlottesville? For me, it’s waking up early and getting outside. I like to take my cup of coffee outside and sit under the trees. I can see the train rumbling by from my Local writer, performer, and educator backyard. I love it. I like to imagine the people who might be coming here for the first time. And I like to imagine the people who are coming home. On this perfect day, the weather is sunny and cool. The City Market is open. I treat myself to food, flowers, jewelry, art... anything and everything that catches my eye or captures my heart. By now, I have had several warm exchanges with pals whose paths dance lightly across my own. I am feeling the perfect balance of connection and independence. Every road leads to delight. The city is an unwrapped gift. I move on to Live Arts, my theatrical home.

Magic happens there. I visit with my best friend, Darryl. He’s the theater’s box office manager and a beloved Charlottesville icon. We hug. We talk. We laugh. A lot. More coffee happens. I leave feeling renewed by the power of love, caffeine, and large doses of silliness. After that, I drift into places that satisfy my aesthetic needs...

Oyster House Antiques, Lynne Goldman Elements, Hedge Fine Blooms, Low Vintage, Caspari...and the many unique vendor’s tables that pepper the Downtown Mall. I stop at Alakazam to buy toys for my beautiful nephew. Maybe I buy something whimsical for myself. I’ll never be too old to play. By now, I’m ravenous. I love eating at Rapture or Monsoon Siam. Maybe it’s time to switch from coffee to a cocktail?

Sure. What could possibly go wrong? Nothing. It’s a perfect day. Time for a walk. I stride with purpose down Locust Avenue. I have music in my ears. Parliament. Bowie. Chaka Khan. Zeppelin. Daft Punk. I am a party on legs.

I am intoxicated by the music and the breeze and the aforementioned cocktail. I head towards the Rivanna River trails. I take the music out of my ears and slip into the quiet of the woods as one might slip into warm bath water. I do not disturb the silence. I do not disturb the path. I am soothed by the lullaby of river sounds. There is life everywhere. I am humbled and deeply moved. I take the wooded path that leads to my parents’ home. We share a meal. We share our hearts. I am a little girl again. In truth, I have never stopped being a little girl. I’m just really skilled at pretending to be a grown-up. I let them drive me home and walk me inside. I’ll never be too old for that, either. After a disco nap, I go to a live music show at the Southern or the Jefferson. Then to Miller’s or The Livery Stable. Maybe a late slice from Christian’s Pizza. A quick hop and skip back to my apartment.

The satisfying click of key and lock. There are books to read. Secret dance moves to practice. My brother calls me to say “I love you.” The stars shine. The train rumbles by...bringing people here. Bringing people home.

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FOR YOU!

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Find gifts with

Meaning...

Mineral:

A naturally occurring inorganic chemical compound with a given composition, crystal form, and physical properties.

Mystic: A spiritual seeker looking for ways to expand their knowledge while connecting to the divine and exploring their own intuition.

Gift: A token given freely to another with affection and thoughtfulness.

www.mineralsandmystics.com Facebook.com/MineralsMystics 345 Hillsdale Drive • Charlottesville VA 22901

434-284-7709