Shadrock Music Fest

In celebration of their 30th Anniversary, Style Weekly will be hosting the inaugural Shadrock Music Fest at Brown's Island to mark three decades of award-winning arts and culture coverage in Richmond. Tickets are only $30 for the day to enjoy all 8 bands.

This year's line up will feature:

De La Soul
Yo La Tengo
Dum Dum Girls
Shabazz Palaces
Kepone
Invisible Hand
Kid Is Qual
Photosynthesizers

Between Shadrock, Groovin' in the Gardens, Friday Cheers, and RVA Music Fest - Richmond is embracing the live music scene in a big way this summer - and I'm pretty excited.

Christie Thompson

The Weekend {list}

Spring has been quite the tease lately... luckily you have all sorts of awesome to get you through the last few weeks til warmer weather is here to stay. Enjoy your list RVA.

FRIDAY



R/D, The Polychrons & Zati
Electronic overload - The Polychrons, local dub fusion, and Zati, a local electronic DJ, followed by the nationally acclaimed electronic producer R/D.
The Camel, 9p

Rumors Boutique Vs. DJ Long Jawns: Hood Jams Part 2
Empire, 11p | free (get there early as this bar hits capacity quick!)

SATURDAY

Orchids Galore!
Hundreds of orchids will dazzle the senses with color, fragrance and beauty throughout the Garden’s Conservatory during Orchids Galore! The display kicks off the Garden's celebration of spring: A Million Blooms.
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, 9a to 5p | $11

28th Annual Craftsmen's Spring Classic Art & Craft Festival
Richmond Raceway Complex, 10a to 6p | $7

World Fusion
See our recent post for more on this event.
Plant Zero, 7 to 10p | $25



NO Richmond
Balliceaux, 10:30p | free
RSVP on Facebook here.

SUNDAY

28th Annual Craftsmen's Spring Classic Art & Craft Festival
Richmond Raceway Complex, 11a to 5p | $7

Lobo Marino, Darling Waste, Paul Diello, A Murder of One
The Camel, 9p | $5

What did we miss? Tell us in the comments!

Christie Thompson

My Story in Belle

For those of you who know me, I have a pretty dramatic story to tell about my past few years of life. I like to call it "The Three Octobers".

October 2008 - job loss
October 2009 - major break-up
October 2010 - ovarian cancer (and the beginning of Minima)

Bad things come in threes, right? October 2011 was amazing, so I'm thinking my luck has turned around. In any case, all of those life challenges made me a better person and I'm thankful for that. Karen Newton (you may know her blog I Could Go On and On) wrote a beautiful piece about my story in this month's Belle Magazine titled "Spare and Change".


Sneak peak:

But the same day her legal documents arrived in the mail to create the company, Ziegler found out she had an ovarian tumor. The business she'd started had to be put on hold. "But having a vision of starting my business got me through surgery and chemo," she says. "I was so excited about it all, so that was the light at the end of the tunnel for me."

I'm thrilled to share my story with our city. You can read the full article here, or pick up a physical copy at any one of these locations.

Kristen Ziegler

Event Spotlight: World Fusion

This Saturday from 7p - 10p at Plant Zero in Manchester you can dance, eat, and drink for an incredible cause and only $25. The World Fusion event is a globally infused party that benefits services offered by the Resettlement program of the Commonwealth Catholic Charities of Virginia. World Fusion will feature the funky sounds of Richmond's own DJ Williams Projekt, light appetizers, all you can drink beer and wine, henna tattoos, a free photo booth, and a fantastic silent auction full of local restaurant gift cards, spa packages, yoga classes, and more. What an awesome deal for only $25!

Thanks to many local sponsors, your entire $25 will go towards furthering the Resettlement program services offered in Richmond.  The program helps displaced refugees that have recently arrived from war-torn countries (including Bhutan, Burma, The Congo, the Middle East) as well as newly arriving immigrants. They serve over 300 refugees per year in Richmond by providing ESL classes, school services (enrollment / homework help), casework (health screenings, social security, etc), employment services, family mentoring, transportation, and immigration counseling. You can learn more about the Resettlement program here and find volunteer opportunities here.

You can purchase tickets here or at the door on the night of the event. You can also RSVP on Facebook here.

Hope to see you there!

Christie Thompson

Good Ideas for Cities: Richmond

The collaborative organization GOOD recently announced they will be visiting our great city to help brainstorm ideas to take Richmond to the next level. During a one day event in April, three creative teams will be organized to tackle a real challenge issued by a local urban leader. Each team will work together and with their local leader to create a potential solution which will be presented by the teams in front of a live audience to encourage and engage in discussion. After the event, all ideas will also be showcased on GOOD.is.

Where do you come in? Well, you can apply to be a part of one of these awesome creative problem-solving teams tasked with a challenge facing Richmond! Deadlines for applications are this Monday, March 12. Teams and event details will be announced at @IdeasforCities on March 13. The main event will be held on April 24 at a location to be announced and is being hosted by the i.e.* Initiative of the Greater Richmond Chamber and Capital Region Collaborative.

This is an incredible opportunity for the city of Richmond and for us as citizens to get involved. I'll definitely be applying and hope you will be too!

Christie Thompson

The Weekend {list}

Well shucks, it's Friday y'all. Here's your list:

FRIDAY

Oscar Munoz, Imprints for a Fleeting Memorial
1708 Gallery, 5 to 9p | free as part of First Fridays


Illustration by Nelly Kate

CAGED ANIMALS + SOFTSPOT + BOAS - Illustrations by Nelly Kate
Nelly Kate is a good friend of Minimalist and she's about to hit it big - on the heels of her new album release, ISH ISH, her illustrations will be up tonight for one night only at Gallery5. We couldn't be more excited for this! Be sure to stop by Gallery5 tonight to check out her show and buy her new album here.
Gallery5, 6 to 9p | free
RSVP on Facebook here.

Body of Evidence
Photography by Chuck Scalin of a recent discovery of 14 stored evidence boxes, each contains objects pertaining to unsolved mysteries, long ago forgotten. (Are any members of the Scalin family not super talented?!)
Ghostprint Gallery, 6p (through the rest of March) | free as part of First Fridays
RSVP on Facebook here.


Brooklyn-based Japanther, image via

WRIR Presents Japanther
Strange Matter, 9p | $7
RSVP on Facebook here.



Bio Ritmo
Balliceaux, 10p | $8

SATURDAY

2012 Mid-Atlantic Beard & 'Stache Competition
Facial hair extravaganza! Win a prize for your follicle growing abilities - and benefit the Food Bank while you're at it. What's not to love?
Strange Matter, 8p | $5 to enter, $5 to compete (benefiting the Central VA Food Bank)



Tragic Love: Midnight Movie Series
Midnight movies return to the Byrd with a Tragic Love theme. This Saturday, check out Re-Animator.
The Byrd, 12a | $5

SUNDAY

THE SPITS / SOUTHSIDE STRANGLERS / THE NERVOUS TICKS / THE HAVERCHUCKS
Strange Matter, 6p | $8 Advance, $10 at the door
RSVP on Facebook here.

Did we miss something fantastic? Let us know in the comments!

Christie Thompson & Emily Smith

Staying Sane February

For those of you who have been following us for awhile, you might remember our "Staying Sane" posts that we've taken a bit of a hiatus from recently. Well, they're back! We like to share what we did to keep us happy at the end of each month. It's is all about the little things, right?



Kristen - I'm always looking for ways to create more free time for myself. Aside from enjoying an aesthetically pleasing space, it's one of the main reasons for my minimalist lifestyle. Less stuff = less maintenance. Earlier this month when we started having Spring-like weather, I decided I should clean my windows. I noticed the blinds that came with the apartment were a little dirty and attempted to clean them as well without much success (years of caked on grime isn't easy to remove). They looked better, but I still thought they were pretty unappealing. I remembered a conversation I'd had a few weeks earlier with Sally over at Metro Modern. She and her husband, David, don't have any window coverings in their Fan row house. I thought to myself, "Do I really need window treatments?" I decided to leave the blinds down for a few days and see how it felt. I LOVE it! The view is so much better and the rooms are even brighter. The outline of the windows without any blinds creates a very clean look AND I don't have to dust or wipe down another blind as long as I live there (time savings = 4 to 6 hrs/yr) . I did purchase some inexpensive curtains from IKEA for my bedroom. (A little) modesty can be a good thing.


Before and after. Granted, the before was taken at night, but it still illustrates the undesirable-ness of the blinds.

Christie - With the recent launch of Fibre Craft's website, I've been sewing and making like a mad woman. My stock pile of material had begun to get a bit out of control and was making it really hard to be efficient in my "studio" (read: large desk in the corner of my room). I decided to make some more space to store materials and supplies under my bed by going through some old boxes and clearing out nearly four trash bags full of stuff to give away.



I was able to fit one large wine crate box and two vintage suitcases full of material under my bed in place of the things I gave away. I also finally added tags to my smaller boxes so it's easier to find notions and scraps when I need them. Lastly, it freed up a ton of space under my desk making the room feel a lot less cluttered. It's really helped keep the inspiration flowing in the one place of my apartment that I need it the most.