Moss Building & Design’s Principal Kitchen Designer, Erin Hoopes, Shares Her Design & Remodeling Tips

Designing your kitchen can be a fun and creative process.  It’s beneficial to know some tips to enhance your design.  Erin has been designing kitchens since 2005.  By now she has acquired a lot of knowledge about kitchens and what works and what doesn’t.  Kitchen design and remodeling have been a passion of hers for many years.  Erin is now a well respected kitchen and bathroom designer in Northern Virginia.  Let’s learn some tips from the expert herself!

My family adores all things Disney, and over the past few years, we have been fortunate to attend Disney on Ice. I highly recommend these fun, musical performances containing favorite songs, new & classic characters, and of course the magic that only Disney can create.  We're excited to that the latest show, Disney On Ice presents Let’s Celebrate will be coming to the  Patriot Center in Fairfax, Va. from October 23-27.

Let’s Celebrate is an action-packed show featuring a magical montage of celebrations and is a mix of contemporary music with your favorite Disney tunes. Join Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse as they celebrate a Very Merry Unbirthday Party with Alice and the Mad Hatter; Mardi Gras with Princess Tiana and Prince Naveen; a Royal Valentine’s Day Ball with the Disney Princesses; and a Halloween haunt alongside Disney’s most famous Villains in this celebration of the century.  More details:

“In this sprawling Northern Virginia area, it’s refreshing to be a part of an event that feels community driven and home grown.  Fallfest still has the feel of a small town fair – complete with local quartets, strolling entertainers and area mascots.  We have a petting zoo, reptile show and local retailers present.  Kids love that each of our vendors offer some sort of tie-in for kids.  This year we’ve added a kids' DJ, Captain Jack Sparrow impersonator,  tumbling area and more festival food, from ice cream to fried cheesecake, to round out the offerings for everyone.”

Beth Gallagher, Fallfest Organizer, Fair Lakes League

I have long been curious about Botox® and other fillers.  With each passing birthday I am more convinced it is a matter of when not if I will start to use Botox® and other fillers like Juvéderm®.   To find out more about the process I sat down with Aesthetic Nurse, Taylor Kern.  Some of you may remember Taylor from my previous article about laser treatments otherwise known as IPLs (Intense Pulsed Light). LINK

Taylor again sat down and discussed the procedure with me and also shared some information that was provided by Lifetime Fitness LifeSpa.

Kate Karpynska from Sunrise Painting is easily one for the best local face painters around!  Her talent has been showcased at many of the area's popular festivals, fundraisers, parties, and more.  We had the pleasure of interviewing the talented Kate and finding out how she got started in the business. 

1) What inspired you to start Sunrise Face Painting?

 My older son Richard is the reason I started face painting. We went to Orlando several years ago, and in one of the amusement parks my son got his face painted by a professional. I've never seen face painting like that, it looked amazing, he didn't want to wash it off. I promised him that I would research  what kind of paints should be used for face painting and would do it for him. I was lucky to find Snazaroo palette in ACMoore and that's how I started.  I was looking for some images on Google and watched Youtube videos. My son's next birthday party I did at home, we were doing all kinds of fun science experiments, and kids got face painting designs of their choices. I soon realized that I need better brushes, better paints, I started to invest more money into my hobby. I was practicing all the time during my little one's nap or at night painting on a wax paper or beauty salon head. 

One of my favorite places to shop, the Mosaic District, is hosting a Fashion Week from September 25-29, 2013.  Whether you are into food, fashion, films, or fitness, the week is filled with a spectacular line up of specials and events. 

Calling all home show addicts and remodelistas, our friends and wonderful sponsors, Moss Building & Design, will be presenting their brand new HandyGirl 101 workshop, teaching young girls and their mothers how to cut and lay tile, on September 22, 2013 at 1pm at the Capital Home Show in Chantilly, VA. This free program is part of Moss’ commitment to giving back to the community in which it operates.

Moss wants to empower young girls and women to reinforce the message of independence and resourcefulness in their everyday lives.

Moss will be taking volunteers from the audience at the show and each young lady who participates will receive a patch suitable for Girl Scout uniforms or trading. And their mother’s will receive a $50 coupon for Moss Home Services. Audience members will be eligible to participate in a raffle to win a FREE Handyman For A Day!

BACKGROUND:

My recent mission was tackling a birthday party for my 8-year-old.  I originally had plans of an amusement park with just the family.  This is what my little one had requested. Alas when the time came and I gave my daughter one last choice of a park or a party, she was all in for a P-A-R-T-Y.  What the what?  Okay…fire up the birthday engines. I had to move quickly, I had less than a month to plan this soiree.

I immediately thought of every party that Miss G had attended in the past year.  The one venue that was an absolute standout was Ideaventions in Oakton, Virginia.  I knew from friends that Ideaventions had amazing after-school programs and also offered some fun camps.  I also recalled that my daughter had a great time at a birthday party at Ideaventions.

A birthday party that is fun for kids and where parents don't have to do the work? Sounds like a dream come true!  We are working with our partners My Gym Burke and My Gym Chantilly to giveaway ONE DELUXE BIRTHDAY PARTY to a lucky reader. (Must be redeemed by September 31, 2014.) 

 "Our experienced and lively party specialists will design a unique and personal celebration for your child, jam-packed with exhilarating activities, games, puppets, songs, special rides and more! It will be an occasion long remembered, and we handle everything!: (My Gym)

Deluxe Birthday Party includes:

• Exclusive use of entire facility
• 2 Party Specialists
• 1.5 hour Private Party
• Up to 20 children (birthday child is FREE!)
• Balloon decorations
• My Gym invitations
• Paper goods (food and cake plates, napkins, forks, and table cloths)
• Special My Gym Gift for the Birthday Child