Archive for the 'music' Category

Reston, Virginia is for lovers, (Four Square and our tourist bureau says so.) Tomorrow is Valentines Day and we think that Lake Anne is the perfect place to take your sweetheart for a little wooing and we hope swooning.

Our little burg by the lake has so many charms. Dinners by candle light, soft music, great food. What could be better for setting the mood? Jasmine Cafe for intimate murmurs, Singh Thai for the Spice, Cafe Montmartre for Jazz, and Kalypsos for dancing; so many choices, so much to adore.

Need a gift for your sweetheart? The Reston Museum has something to ward off the chill. There’s ware-able art, beautiful shawls and capes to snuggle and thrill. Maybe poetry from the Book Shop, sonnets and verse to convince and to lure. We have hand crafted chocolates  and flowers galore, and cupcakes and cookies and oh so much more!  Craft beer for him, a fine Viognier for her?

Should your evening end with a tender embrace, we have Small Change and Baby Blossoms to attend to your tiny addition; inspired and assisted by this great gathering place.

This week marks the 34^th anniversary of the grand opening of Reston’s Used Book Shop. The shop was originally opened by best friends Sue Schram and Sue Wensell. The Sue’s as they are affectionately known, long time book lovers and readers collected books found at yard sales; over time they decided that Reston should have a bookshop of its own.

Sue Wensell, a former resident of Denver,CO had been a patron of ‘The Tattered Cover’ and knew that its warm inviting style would do well in Reston. The Sue’s opened Reston’s Used Book shop on January 7, 1978 with inventory from their yard sale collection. That first weekend’s sales far exceeded their expectations, that was the good news, the bad news, they were desperately in need of new inventory!

In the ’80s Fairfax County teacher and Reston resident, Bud Burwell prowled the Book Shop for reading materials for his HS English class. Over time his affection for the Shop lead to his joining the part-time staff as a Summer employee along with Victoria Reid.

In the late 1990’s, the Sue’s ready to shed the responsibility of the Shop approached Bud, his wife Susie and Victoria about purchasing

Bud & Susie Burwell

the shop. The deal was struck and ownership of the space, the business and an inventory of 28,000 books transferred to Bud & Susie Burwell and Victoria Reid* on April 1, 1999.

The Burwell – Reid team expanded the Shop into the space next door, adding room for expanded inventory, a kid’s area and a great reading section for hosting a new book-club, musical events and local author readings.

The Shop hosts a ‘5^th Sunday Bluegrass Jam’ where if you’re lucky you’ll hear owner Bud Burwell play the Hammered Dulcimer. Through his musical connections Bud also helps find musicians for the Saturday morning Market Music.

On any day and especially Saturdays’ you will find Bud and Susie at the shop with a myriad collection of customers and friends discussing books, politics and local happenings.

Happy Birthday to Reston’s Used Book Shop, a wonderful, charming, unique, and much loved treasure of Reston.

*In the mid-2000’s Ms. Reid sold her interest in the Book Shop when she found she was seriously ill, she passed away not long after that time.

This Saturday is the 5th Annual Jazz Festival!

Lake Anne is gearing up for the ever popular jazz and blues festival on Saturday, October 1st when they host the 5th Annual Lake Anne Jazz Festival. This free, family friendly, all-day event will take place from 1:00PM-9:00 PM and will showcase a variety of talented local artist and national jazz performers. The year’s music theme is Brazilian Jazz with leading Latin vocalist Cissa Paz headling the event, but when we had the chance to add Rashida Jolley, Jazz Harpist we grabbed it! The festival will also include signature food from charming Lake Anne restaurants and sips from selected local wineries and micro breweries. Regional arts and crafts vendors will also have a presence at the event from 1-4pm.

Performance Schedule
1:00PM – Rashida Jolley
2:00PM – Word View
3:00PM -Veronneau
4:00PM – Wayne Wilentz Quartet
5:30PM – The Mykle Lyons Group
7:45PM – Cissa Paz

The Jazz Festival is held as a benefit for the Explore More Arts Program of GRACE, (Greater Reston Arts Center).
The festival is sponsored by Lane Anne Merchants, Friends of Lake Anne, the Reston Community Center, and the Reston Association, Reston Art Gallary, Two Sisters Creative and some Anonymous Friends. For more information follow us on Facebook.

EVENT DETAILS
What: Lake Anne Plaza – 5th Annual Jazz & Blues Festival
When: Saturday, October 1, 2011
Where: Lake Anne Plaza (Waterfront) – 1609 Washington Plaza, Reston, VA 20190
Time: 1:00PM-9:00PM
Website: www.lakeanneplaza.com
Cost: Free (excluding alcohol), Rain or Shine

Little boats big fun!

It’s regatta time at Lake Anne, so bust out the yacht and come on down. Those crazy captains of the miniature yachts will be doing battle against the fickle seas of Lake Anne in the 5^th Annual Lake Anne Regatta. Pitted against nature the captains will battle high winds, Canada Geese and the occasional Snapping Turtle as they duke it out for fame and glory.

The Northern Virginia Yacht Club sail regularly at Lake Anne, you can usually find them on the 2^nd Sunday of the month. The 4^th Sunday is a fun day where you will find all different types of radio controlled boats on the water being handled by beginners and veterans alike. On Fun Days feel free to ask questions and don’t be surprised if the Captain turns over the remote to the boat to let you try it for yourself!

1st race is at 10:00 am and will continue until about 3:00 pm.

This Saturday’s sail will include a raffle for a Victoria class model yacht and music by Lucia & Levi.

The 2nd Annual Ukulele Festival will take place on July 9th down on Lake Anne Plaza. This year’s line up includes blues artist Del Rey and features special guests Grammy Award winning Marcy Marxer and Cathy Fink. Also in the mix are The Aloha Boys, The Sweater Set & Hoa Mele Wakinekona. For the complete schedule go to the Lake Anne Fan Page! The festival will also include a Beer Garden hosted by local brewery Port City Brewery and a wine bar by Unicorn Winery, so bring a lawn chair and settle in for a great afternoon.

Later that day the Plaza will be host to the Lake Anne Reunion Group—also known as “I grew up on Lake Anne in the 70’s.” LAR as they are affectionately known will be descending on Lake Anne from all over the July 9th weekend. As a part of their entertainment they have a concert featuring the Curb Feelers and Jeff Smith and the band of Steves beginning at 6:00 pm. The beer garden will be open until 8:00 pm.

Saturday’s Schedule:

11:00 – Hoa Mele Wakinekona

11:35 – Sweater Set

12:15 – Bruce Hutton

12:55 – Marcy’s Potted Plants

1:35 – The Aloha Boys

2:15 – Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer

3:25 – Del Rey

4:30 – Open Jam – Participation Welcome!

Lake Anne Reunion Concert

6:00 – Curb Feelers

7:30 – Jeff Smith and the Band of Steves.

Don’t miss this great day of great music!

Setting up for the market

  The 2011 Market Season is only 3 weeks old and things are already jumping! The Farmers are 26 vendors strong and the Crafters are at 40+ and growing. The energy level has been awesome and vendors have been reporting solid sales from new and repeat customers. 

The Open Air Market is sporting wonderful diversity—everything from live Orchids to products made from the silky coats of Alpaca.  We even have cooking  classes being conducted by Big Red Kitchen! Proprietor Robin Joss makes use of the fresh products found in the Farmer’s Market and then teaches you how to turn it into culinary magic—right on the Plaza!

There is all sorts of music happening during the market. The Farmers have “Split String Soup” performing most Saturdays—a great mix of bluegrass and acoustic rock; Bieto our resident pan flute and guitar player can often be heard in front of La Villa Market. Down by the Pharmacy you can hear a variety of musicians at the Lake Anne Open Mic.

If you are a vendor check us out!  We can handle up to 65 vendors so there is room left–we are especially interested in Indie-clothing designers and unique accessories as well as specialty food products. Current vendors that make a referral of a quality vendor to the market will receive one week of free rent. The only catch is that you have to like them well enough to have them as your neighbor.

Visitors–don’t miss this amazing location-Lake Anne is Reston’s original village center and is home to small, locally owned businesses. Come, shop, enjoy the sights, have a great meal, buy a bottle of  VA wine from Lake Anne Florist & Virginia Gourmet, find a treasure in Reston’s Used Book Shop, a handcrafted toy from Small Change Children’s Consignment–a wonderful way to spend a Saturday.

Pull out your banjo, guitar, dulcimer, mandolin, or spoons and join in the fun at Lake Anne Plaza. Reston’s Used Book Shop’s next “5th Sunday Bluegrass Jam” is Sunday, October 31 from 1 to 4pm.

This open Bluegrass Jam is a favorite for local Bluegrass lovers. Drop in to play, or just come hang out and listen. This is an open acoustic bluegrass jam session. All levels of players are welcome to join in.

The Jam takes place in front of the used book shop, so any one sitting outside and enjoying lunch at one of Lake Anne’s restaurants can enjoy the fun too.