Author: PHW

Blooming Hill Lavender Farm and Gift Shop

Cyndie Rinek, along with her husband Peter, a landscape architect and arborist, is the owner of Blooming Hill Lavender Farm and Gift Shop, located in the tiny Western Loudoun County hamlet of Philomont, Virginia. With a degree in journalism and a professional background in retail management, Cyndie left the corporate world 23 years ago. Over the years and through hard work as well as a lot of trial and error, Cyndie has taken what was once an interest in flowers and plants, to a passion and then turned it into a business specializing in lavender at her home, aptly named Blooming Hill. She now has a collection of one thousand lavender plants in almost one hundred different varieties and also tends the many formal, informal and herb garden beds that fill the 4 1/2 acres patch of paradise with a view of the Blue Ridge that make up Blooming Hill.

Cyndie is a member of the United States Lavender Growers Association, the Potomac Unit of the Herb Society of America, a Master Gardener and also a member of a local garden club called the Night Bloomers and often hosts talks at Blooming Hill or travels to garden clubs and groups and speaks on the subject of lavender and other various garden topics. Aside from being a landscape architect/planner and arborist with over 30 years of experience and whose design aesthetic is the backbone of Blooming Hill, Peter is also an accomplished artist and craftsman, creating beautiful eucalyptus wreaths and original oil paintings of Loudoun County Towns in his unique “Americana” style and has developed a loyal following of art enthusiasts.

Blooming Hill is open to the public on Fridays and Saturdays and other days by appointment, April through December. Visitors to the farmlet may tour the grounds and gardens, peruse the gift shop on the property, hear Cyndie and/or her husband share their gardening knowledge and, on certain and/or special occasions, enjoy a lavender infused traditional cream tea or traditional full tea on the porch.

Visit Blooming Hill online at bloominghillva.com.

Watercolorist

Eugene’s refined approach to watercolors includes wet-on-wet and dry-brush techniques. He uses a subtle palette, preferring to let the water coexist with the pigment in each composition. Eugene also works in printmaking and Chinese brushwork.

His subjects range from the nearby mountains and historic villages to the dunes and seascapes of coastal Carolina and Florida. Two separate bodies of Eugene’s include an Asian inspired style featuring meditative still-life compositions and his Abstract artwork which is thought provoking and ever changing……ideal for a burst of energy in any space.

Eugene’s diversity of styles has created a large market, leading him to establish the Eugene B. Smith Gallery in Old Town Winchester, Virginia. He shows his work at this gallery, at juried exhibits throughout the U.S, and at special events, including charitable benefits.

His works are included in private collections internationally, and he has held a one-man exhibition in Okayama, Japan.

A largely self-taught artist, Eugene is a graduate of Lord Fairfax Community College in Virginia and Shepherd College in West Virginia, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business.

Click the thumbnails for larger images of Eugene’s work, or visit his website at www.eugenebsmith.com

“Madeira” Hand Carved Wood Products

Since my youth I have admired trees and loved wood. I love working with wood and sharing my knowledge with others. Out of desire and economic necessity, I have made most of the furniture for our home. About sixteen years ago, my mother-in-law asked me if I could make her some spoons from scraps. I told her that I would try, and I did. As it turns out, she never used them. Instead she hung them on her kitchen wall, where they still hang today. When we visit her, and I look at those spoons, I tell her that if anyone asks who made them, not to tell them it was me! Those original spoons were crude. But with practice I have refined my product.

I have expanded to bowls and other utilitarian accessories. My wife and partner, assists me with the design ideas, marketing and sales, and the occasional back rub after a long day of carving and shaping.

Most of my wood comes from our wood lot, trees that have been damaged by storms or attacked by insects. Though, I will never turn down a log or piece of wood given to me.

We sell our product at craft fairs in Virginia, West Virginia and at Farm Markets. Our spoons are in gift shops at Belle Grove Plantation, and the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley in Winchester, Virginia. We enjoy working with the public. We have developed friendships with our fellow crafters and our customers.

We strive to sell a quality product at a reasonable price.

John & Wendy R. Venskoske

J & W Farm started five years ago by John and Wendy R. Venskoske, Jr. with the idea of adding value to local agricultural products. For Christmas that year, we made these birdseed wreaths to give to family members, friends, and wife’s co-workers. They were so much appreciated that we decided to offer it to our current retail outlets that we were selling our food products to. They have been a hit and steadily growing. We use a special blend of birdseed from two local feed stores and custom make them with seasonal ribbon and/or special requests. For Valentine’s Day, we offer a Heart shaped wreath. Our Holiday Birdseed Wreaths are packaged for gift giving and shipping!

Visit J & W Farm online at www.jandwfarm.com and Facebook.

Nina J. Design Studios is a woman owned business engaged in the creation of handbuilt pottery, mixed media paintings and limited edition wearable art made from fine silk and cotton. We are located in the beautiful Shenandoah valley, Virginia.

Our story begins with a young girl who was born in India. Starting from childhood, Neena (Nina J) had an appreciation for beauty and artistic things. Her father’s desire was for her to be multifaceted in her career choices. Neena fulfilled her father’s resolution that her university studies focus on the sciences as well as the arts. Her passion has always been arts, spirituality and nature and she believes that science, the arts and religion coexist harmoniously.

The realization of each of Nina J’s mixed media paintings has been rooted in her dreams; artictic figures, nature and aquatic scenes with vibrant and bold colors have always been at the forefront of her designs. Instead of making prints of the artwork we decided to share the beauty with the world in the form of limited edition silk scarves and apparel.

The lucidity of her dreams carried over into the garden where all the flowers and herbs prompted her to expand into clay. Each handbuilt piece of pottery starts in the garden with fresh flowers and herbs. Leveraging her artistic bent Nina J presses these botanicals into the clay. The finished pieces have a fossilized finish, immortalizing the pressed botanicals. We make vases, bowls, plates, platters, serving dishes, specialty products like spoonrests, soap dishes, jewelry keepers and mugs that are all food safe, dishwasher and microwave safe. We also make signature clay jewelry. Each piece is a unique, signatured work of art.

The pottery pieces inspired Nina J. to make blocks for the specific purpose of designing wearable art from those blocks. This idea gave birth to our latest, closed loop, proprietary method of creating our limited edition wearable and usable art – scarves in silk and cotton, shawls, scrunchies, ponchos and table linens.

Our objective is to harvest nature’s gifts and transform them into wearable and/or functional pieces of art. Each piece will bring a smile to your face and peace in your heart and all eyes will be upon you as you adorn her gorgeous wearable art.

We sell our products through boutiques and museums throughout the USA. To provide further uniqueness to our products and processes we have museums who harvest botanicals from their gardens and ship them to us for their specific creations. We also have the ability to do custom work.

“Live and Walk with Art”

Click the thumbnails for larger images of Nina J.’s work, or visit her website at www.ninastudios.com

Loudoun Valley Herbs

Kim Labash, owner of Loudoun Valley Herbs, has resided in Western Loudoun County for almost 30 years.

Kim grows an extensive collection of herbs and plants on her property with a leaning toward lavender and rose that she incorporates into her crafts and culinary products. No chemicals are used on her plants and all harvesting, drying and processing is handled by her personally. Furthermore, wherever possible all natural fabrics are used in the making of her products.

Kim is always striving to keep her products current.

Kim has demonstrated both soap making and lavender weaving to the public at the US National Arboretum in Washington D.C. and to groups at various local locations, including, but not limited to, the Carver Center and Field of Flowers both in Purcellville, the Middleburg Farmers Market, the Berryville Farmers Market; and the Bluemont Community Center in Bluemont, Virginia.

Kim is the current Chair of the Juried Craft for the Bluemont Fair and coordinates the Bluemont Holiday Craft Show with the Bluemont Community Center Staff.

Becky McGraw

As a young girl, Becky’s passion for baking began in the kitchen helping her family bake Christmas cookies. For the past 7 years, she has been the owner of Beckaboo’s Cakes, specializing in custom cakes, cupcakes, cake pops and cookies for a variety of special occasions.

Beckaboo’s Cakes is passionate about combining sugar and art. We strive to provide our customers with a unique dessert which is not only beautiful, but tastes amazing as well.

We are located in Winchester, Virginia and serve the Shenandoah Valley, Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia and Northern Virginia.

The selection at the Bough and Dough Shop will include chocolate peppermint or gingerbread cake rolls, gourmet holiday cookies, holiday cake pops and truffles, candied nuts, and more.

Visit Beckaboo’s Cakes online at www.beckabooscakes.com or Facebook.

Winchester Little Theatre
315 West Boscawen Street

Open Saturday, Dec. 3, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 4, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

Open to the Public – No Entry Fee
Complimentary hot cider and coffee for visitors

The Winchester Little Theatre occupies a former Pennsylvania Railroad freight station built circa 1890. The hipped roof over the brick exterior provides cover for the freight loading dock. The interior was modified to accommodate live theatre performances by the Winchester Little Theatre. The Theatre moved into its railway home in 1974 and has provided critically acclaimed professional-quality live theatre to the community ever since. 

Since 2011, the Theatre has been the home of PHW’s Bough and Dough Shop during the Holiday House Tour weekend. The Shop is a holiday gift shop run by volunteers from PHW and Winchester Little Theatre featuring talented local artisans. You will find unique handmade items for holiday gift-giving, freshly-baked goods to enjoy now or use at a holiday party, as well as a selection of freshly cut greenery, wreaths, and arrangements for your holiday decorating.

This year, PHW will split the proceeds from the Shop with the Winchester Little Theatre Restoration Campaign. PHW is committed to seeing this local landmark restored and remain a vital arts hub for the Winchester-Frederick County community.

When you purchase artisan goods or greenery from the Shop this year, you will be helping Winchester Little Theatre restore their freight station and PHW to continue our mission to preserve the best of the area’s past. We could not do it without your support!

The Shop is able to process credit cards as well as cash and checks.

Please take a moment to thank the Holiday House Tour Advertising Sponsor Loudoun Valley Herbs for supporting PHW and local preservation!

Braddock Street United Methodist Church
115 Wolfe Street

Musical performances on:
Saturday, December 3 at 3 p.m.
Sunday, December 4 at 7 p.m.

Open to the Public – No Entry Fee

Although young by Winchester standards, the 1974 Postmodern-style Braddock Street United Methodist Church is almost certain to become a landmark of Winchester’s recent past architecture. The brick sanctuary at the corner of Washington and Wolfe Streets is capped by complex cross-gabled slate roof. Emanating from the center of the roof is a massive metal spire. Inside, the space is lined with bold abstract stained glass windows. The organ, designed and built by Orgues Létourneau Limitée of Canada, has 2,332 pipes. Five hundred pipes and nine restored stops were saved from the previous organ, which had been in operation for over sixty years.

Holiday House Tour visitors are encouraged to visit Braddock Street United Methodist Church for two musical events taking place during the Holiday House Tour weekend:

December 3 at 3 p.m.: Handbell concert in the Sanctuary by the 6th Dimension. This is perfect for anyone who likes Christmas bells during the holidays.

December 4 at 7 p.m.: Multiple Shenandoah University choirs will be offering their service of Lessons and Carols in the Sanctuary.

Learn more about Braddock Street UMC and find their full calendar of events at braddockstreetumc.org.

Please take a moment to thank the Holiday House Tour Advertising Sponsor J&W Farms for supporting PHW and local preservation!