BUZZWORTHY/As the Snow Falls, Tripping the Light Fantastic

Photo by Alison Brooks/Local Kicks Mystery SOLVED! The Junior Friends Mardi Gras Bash at 219 - it's Elizabeth Pignatello, Jillian Baxter and Laura Quirk Niswander

ALEXANDRIA, VA. - Laiss ez Les Bon Temps Rouler, as they say in New 'Awlins this time of year.

The snow did not keep the Junior Friends of the Campagna Center from celebrating Mardi Gras last weekend.
 
More than 40 people braved frigid temperatures and several inches of newly fallen snow to attend The Junior Friends Mardi Gras Bash at Old Town's Two Nineteen Restaurant.  
 

Photo by Alison Brooks/Local Kicks Rising Junior Friends Chair Laura Fortsch, Current JF Chair Adrienne Fox Luscombe, and immediate past JF chair Anne Marie Chotvacs at The Junior Friends February Board Meeting

Guests enjoyed a seated dinner in a private dining room before adjourning upstairs for some rocking live music from a Southern rock/blues band at The Basin Street Lounge.  
 
The band Lost Highway performed upstairs and several members of the Junior Friends were seen on the dance floor tripping the light fantastic.   
 
The Mardi Gras Bash is one example of the many events the Junior Friends hold each year.  The Junior Friends are comprised of about 150 women who provide critical fundraising and volunteer support to The Campagna Center.  
 
The Campagna Center is one of the leading children’s organizations in Alexandria, caring for more than 1,500 children daily.
 
Founded in 1945, The Campagna Center currently operates seven high-quality programs that support children in Alexandria by providing services that allow them to arrive at school ready to learn and ensure they are academically successful at each grade level.
 
The Junior Friends provide major support for several of the fundraising arms of the Center - including The Scottish Christmas Walk Weekend, which is held the first weekend in December, and the Toast to Fashion,  this year to be held May 6 at Belle Haven Country Club.  
 

Photo by Alison Brooks/Local Kicks Pascale Pritsios, Kristin Patterson and Anne Marie Chotvacs can't keep the smiles off their faces at the Junior Friends Mardi Gras Bash

Current chair of the Junior Friends Adrienne Luscombe says, "Membership in the Junior Friends provides the benefit of new experiences and long lasting friendships all while working to support our community.”  

Winter Membership opportunities are still available.  
 
Women interested in the Junior Friends should contact Brandi Graham at bgraham@nrahq.org  or one of the current Junior Friends Board directors Adrienne Fox Luscombe, Laura Fortsch, Anne Marie Chotvacs, Jennifer Mellon Peterson or Jane Spence.

Many of the Junior Friends and other the fashion savvy women in our community plan to shop hard this weekend at the Masonic Temple for another epic event – The Old Town Boutique Warehouse Sale! Held on Saturday, February 6 at The George Washington Masonic Memorial, 20 stores and designers will hold The Sixth Annual Boutique District Warehouse Sale.
 
This is a one-day clearance spectacular featuring high-end boutique merchandise from Alexandria’s top boutiques and designers. Shopping starts at 9 a.m. and runs till 3 p.m.   
“If you love boutique shopping and bargains, this is the place for you,” said organizer Elizabeth Todd, owner of The Shoe Hive. “You’ll find the very best brands of clothing, shoes, jewelry, home furnishings and more at up to 70 or 90 percent off retail prices. It only happens one day a year.”

Photo by Alison Brooks/Local Kicks Nan and Jon Knisley and Tara and Blair Carter letting the good times roll at The Junior Friends Mardi Gras Bash at 219.

Since it began in 2005, the clearance sale has attracted a large and loyal audience of shoppers traveling to Alexandria from as far away as Richmond and Pennsylvania.
 
The most serious fashion fans line up in the early morning hours to get the first look at top label merchandise from renowned stores like Hysteria, The Shoe Hive, Periwinkle, Mystique Jewelers, Treat, Gossypia, Apple Seed, Lawrence Miller & Company, Stanton Gallery, Red Barn Mercantile, The Christmas Attic, Diva Boutique, La Cuisine, Pink & Brown Boutique, Mint Condition, Finnian's Moon and Top It Off Accessories, Andrea D'Ambrosia, Fornash Accessories and my Old Town-based jewelry designer, Queen Bee Designs.

If you don’t spend all of your money at the Old Town Sale and you are still looking for a Bargain you can drive up to Annapolis for The 4th Annapolis Warehouse Sale on February 7th from 11am-4pm .  This sale will feature the best of Annapolis boutique shopping!
 
Stores include Lilac Bijoux, Saucy, Horse Boutique, Diva, Madison Boutique, and many others – 15 in all in three ball rooms.  Most merchandise priced at 75 percent off Fall/Winter merchandise. Cost to enter is $5 with proceeds going the American Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund.  
 

Photo by Local Kicks Maurisa Potts scores a Shoe Hive bargain at last year's Old Town Boutique Warehouse Sale.

So before the Super Bowl starts – and we see a Saints Victory - head over to The Loews Annapolis Hotel at 126 West Street for some more amazing deals.  Hit both Warehouse Sales this weekend and you are sure to be the best dressed girl in town – and will have a little extra in your pocket!  
 
BUZZ BUZZ

Photo by John Arundel Queen Old Town retailer Elizabeth Todd and her talented Shoe Hive team.

Photo by John Arundel Perusing the discounted merchandise.

Photo by John Arundel The gals from TREAT.

Photo by John Arundel A selection from the Queen Bee!