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

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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Around Town

Mount Vernon Trail nominated for Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Hall of Fame

By Beth Lawton
Cyclists along the Mount Vernon Trail along the Potomac River near Belle Haven (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

The 18.5-mile Mount Vernon Trail is vying for the Rails to Trails Conservancy’s 2026 Trail Hall of Fame and needs public votes to win the accolade.

Mount Vernon Trail is one of three nominees for Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Hall of Fame, which the nonprofit has been recognizing multi-use trails on since 2007. Other nominees this year are the National Battlefield Trail in Texas and the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in Ohio. Online voting started Aug. 5 and closes Aug. 16. Mount Vernon Trail fans can vote daily.

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Around Town

Bookstore Long Dark House, Madame Coco’s Emporium aim for September opening in Old Town

By Beth Lawton
Two women smile for a selfie at a festive party; the woman in front wears a large ornate gold crown and a patterned gold hat, with bar bottles in the background.
Long Dark House’s Chanthal Harris and Madame Coco’s Meshelle Armstrong (courtesy of Meshelle Armstrong)

Madame Coco’s Emporium will return to Old Town in mid-September alongside Long Dark House, a new bookstore focused on science fiction, horror and dark titles.

The new businesses will share space at 1510 King Street. Madame Coco’s Emporium is the brainchild of Meshelle Armstrong, while Long Dark House is the realization of a lifelong dream by Chanthal Harris.

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