Author: Beth Lawton

Beth Lawton is the former publisher and co-founder of Alexandria Living Magazine and has previously worked in roles at Lawrence Journal-World, KUSports.com, The V.I. Source and Patch.com. Lawton has a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University and after graduating was the founding online editor of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s publication MKE. In 2020, Lawton co-founded Made in ALX, a shop for Alexandria-based makers.

Around Town

Health food cafe to celebrate grand opening in Carlyle tomorrow

By Beth Lawton
Cafe storefront with large glass doors, red awning, and outdoor tables on a brick sidewalk; a menu sign outside.
Fresh Healthy Cafe is open in the Carlyle neighborhood (photo by Beth Lawton)

Alexandria residents looking for a healthier meal on the go can find a new health food cafe and juice bar opening this week in the Carlyle neighborhood.

Currently in soft opening, Fresh Healthy Cafe will be hosting a ribbon cutting at 9:55 a.m. on Friday (Oct. 23). Customers can buy one 12-ounce smoothie and get another for free, and get 25% off paninis or protein snack bowls.

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Around Town

Seven Teahouse plans to open this fall in Old Town

By Beth Lawton
Two panel display for Seven Teahouse: left board with awards and drink illustration; right board with 'About Seven' text and tea-related drawings.
Seven Teahouse in Old Town (photo by Beth Lawton)

A new teahouse is opening in Old Town, offering a variety of teas, tastings and shopping opportunities for tea lovers. 

Seven Teahouse is under construction at 101 S. Royal Street in Old Town Alexandria near City Hall. Signs on the windows indicate an opening sometime this fall. 

Seven Teahouse got its start in a Loudoun County farmers market before opening its original location in Leesburg in 2024. The Leesburg spot will stay open, and more locations are in the works.

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Around Town

WATCH: ‘Thriller’ zombie flash mob takes over lower King Street in Old Town

By Beth Lawton
People in colorful Halloween costumes dance and parade down a street, with zombie makeup and crowds watching on both sides.
The zombie "Thriller" flash mob on lower King Street on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026 (staff photo by James Cullum)

People don’t generally smile when they see zombies, but there were plenty of smiles at the base of King Street on Saturday evening.

A flash mob of about 100 people dressed like zombies performed a dance to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” as hundreds of spectators gathered around. The event was so crowded that parents hoisted their children up onto their shoulders, and some people watched through their phone cameras held above their heads.

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Around Town

Pirates and ghosts haunt the Potomac in Alexandria’s popular new tour

By Beth Lawton
Alexandria Colonial Tours’ Jimmy Meritt on the waterfront (photo by Beth Lawton)

Blackbeard and brothels and bootleggers — oh, my!

Alexandria Colonial Tours has launched a new tour featuring both ghosts and pirates, and it has quickly become the historic tours company’s most popular option.

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Around Town

Alexandria fashion show spotlights models, designers through the lens of visual loss

By Beth Lawton
Model in a bright green coat struts down an orange runway as spectators on both sides watch and smile, some taking photos.
A previous Fashion Without Limits show (courtesy of Angela Harris)

Angela Harris is encouraging Alexandrians to look at fashion from a different perspective this fall — the perspective of a person with a serious visual impairment.

Harris and her organization, the IMperfeKtly Made Foundation, are hosting their fourth annual Fashion Without Limits fashion show, featuring models and designers who are experiencing vision loss.

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Around Town

Del Ray’s Art on the Avenue returns Saturday with hundreds of artists

By Beth Lawton
As seen at Art on the Avenue in Del Ray, Oct. 4, 2025 (staff photo by James Cullum)

From music to dance to all sorts of arts and crafts, Del Ray’s biggest arts festival will have plenty to draw visitors to the neighborhood on Saturday (Oct. 3).

The 31st annual Art on the Avenue, which closes Mount Vernon Avenue from Hume to Bellefonte Avenues the first Saturday of every October, will host more than 300 artists and dozens of activities for all ages from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The festival has become one of Del Ray’s most important events. The Del Ray Business Association estimates attendance could reach 50,000.

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Around Town

Bricks & Minifigs to open Alexandria store in October

By Beth Lawton
Smiling man with glasses in a blue sweater, wearing a black Bricks & Minifigs apron, standing against a brick wall.
Bricks & Minifigs Alexandria owner Dylan Blanco (staff photo by Beth Lawton)

A childhood passion for building with Legos has led an Alexandria resident down an unexpected career path.

Dylan Blanco expects to open Bricks & Minifigs, a Lego resale store, in Old Town in early October. The store will open at 110 N. Royal Street, directly west of City Hall. A grand opening celebration is planned for November.

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Around Town

New Alexandria Map Society launches to show cartography isn’t just for scholars

By Beth Lawton
Tabletop map with multicolored pins marking locations, viewed from a low angle above the surface.
A map with pins (via delfi de la Rua/Unsplash)

Against the loud din of a crowded Atlas Brewery in Carlyle Crossing, a small group of self-described cartography nerds opened the first gathering of the Alexandria Map Society in late July.

The group is being organized by Alexandria resident Andrew McCarthy-Clark, who said he has been a fan of maps since elementary school, when he joined the National Geography Bee.

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News

The Twig prepares for 84th annual Historic Alexandria Homes Tour to support Inova hospital

By Beth Lawton
Inside the 810 Prince Street home on a previous Historic Alexandria Homes Tour (courtesy of Home Visions Media)

Tickets are on sale now for the popular fall historic homes tour organized by The Twig.

The 84th annual Historic Alexandria Homes Tour will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26. Ticket sales end on Sept. 10. There are 1,400 tickets available — 200 more than last year — and the event usually sells out.

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