WASH September 2011 : Page 32

2 1 3 4 Design Re-View The familiar morphs into the foreign at Structure of Spirit, Design of the Heart, a new exhibition by beloved DC architectural photographer Ken Wyner . Opening at the American Institute of Architects HQ on Sept. 1, the 60 abstractions reimagine the buildings of Travis Price and Mark Sullenberger, among other District architects. Think you’re a DC design wonk? Check out the photos above to see if you can name the Washington-area landmarks. 1735 New York Ave. NW, aia.org –Brittney Dunkins 32 | | 4 Sept/Oct 2011 BY THe nUMBeRS The number of hours it takes to juice up an electric car at Wolf Trap ’s brand new 240-volt charging stations. On Sept. 17, plug into one of the three GM-sponsored chargers while you head to the 40th-anniversary gala to dance, dine and celebrate the only performing-arts venue in a national park—for exactly four hours. How’s that for energy-efficiency? –BD 1. National Archives and Record Administration Building 2. Strathmore Music Center 3. Wolf Trap’s Filene Center 4. Metro Center the RadaR | now! new look

The Radar Now!

Design Re-View The familiar morphs into the foreign at Structure of Spirit, Design of the Heart, a new exhibition by beloved DC architectural photographer Ken Wyner. Opening at the American Institute of Architects HQ on Sept. 1, the 60 abstractions reimagine the buildings of Travis Price and Mark Sullenberger, among other District architects. Think you're a DC design wonk? Check out the photos above to see if you can name the Washington-area landmarks. 1735 New York Ave. NW, aia.org -Brittney Dunkins BY The numbers The number of hours it takes to juice up an electric car at Wolf Trap's brand new 240-volt charging stations. On Sept. 17, plug into one of the three GM-sponsored chargers while you head to the 40th-anniversary gala to dance, dine and celebrate the only performing-arts venue in a national park-for exactly four hours. How's that for energy-efficiency? - BD A Moveable Feast Derek Brown's boundary-pushing beverages at Rogue 24 match chef R. J. Cooper's avant-garde cuisine. "Not everything has to be served in a coupe and be a variation on a Manhattan," says Brown. "We want people to experience classic cocktails in a new way." Rogue24.Com -Kelly A. Magyarics Sockets Plugs DC Hoping to demolish DC's collars-and-pearls reputation once and for all, Sockets Records, the indie label founded by local DJ Sean Peoples, is making waves with its homegrown brand of experimental pop. This month, its band Deleted Scenes, whose newest single, "Bedbedbedbedbed," was featured on Spin.com, will release its sophomore album, the "Young People's Church of the Air." The first full-length record from the instrumentalist group Buildings (aka BLDGS) will drop soon after. Not to be left out: the post-punk Imperial China will issue a follow-up to its 2009 debut, Phosphenes, this f Deleted Scenes drops its latest. All. Talk about a release! -BD By the Book Sandi Hoffman flipped her passion for entertaining into an entrepreneurial endeavor that has made her a go-to guru. In September, she releases her first tome, My Love of Affairs. From the backyard barbecue to grand gala, the innovator shares her top secrets to the perfect soirée. -BD How did you become the party planner to hire? I was married for 16 years and did a lot of fundraising. Then I divorced and needed to go to work. After 14 years with Gala Events, I built out the lower level of my house five years ago and started my own company. What's the first thing you discuss with a client? Lighting, lighting, lighting. You want to up-light the spaces that are being used. And no matter what is in the center of the table, even if it's just a rose in a bud vase, you have to light it or it will wash away. Do you believe in 'Go big or go home'? Spaces shouldn't be too big. People like to cram together. A big dance floor is the kiss of death! When a room is meant for 150 people, I know 200 will fit. What do you say to people who bring you a magazine shoot and say, 'Replicate this'? Be realistic. It's a party, not a photo shoot. You need to be aware of how comfortable your guest is -make sure they can live in the scene you create. Themes are one of your trademarks, no? For one party, a client came to us and wanted a carnival, so we turned a ballroom into a county fair, with leaves on the ground, cricket sounds and game booths. It took a year to find all of the old games and things that we used. What prompted you to put pen to paper with this book? Many people told me to do it. The book shows before-and-after photos of spaces. One shows a red ballroom transformed into an all-white party. It took seven days. What's your favorite piece of advice? Every time you do a party, it's opening night. Up to a certain point you plan and plan and plan, but then the job is putting out all the fires. Oh, and make sure you look good! GooD niGHT Join the Club! With dining on one level, and dancing on another, the restolounge has made plain its obvious perks of one-stop nighttime entertainment. But let's face it, you've been there, done that in DC a thousand times by now. Which is why we were excited to hear about two night clubs taking their first bow downtown-and neither think of food as their opening act. - Kristen Hinman OPERA UlTRA lOUNGE Sound geeks will dig the Funktion-One system, new to DC when this 18-table dance club opens this fall. District native Michael Meacham created the smart lighting, while Miami-based designer Francois Frossard glammed up the venue, all to the tune of $2 million, making this a mega-design space. 1400 I St. NW, operadc.Com RiOT ACT COMEDY THEATER "Every comedy theater has a brick wall," says Marjorie Heiss, a co-owner of this new Penn Quarter space, "so we said: no bricks." The muted look of the sprawling 13,000-squarefoot club, geared for both locals and headliners, is instead industrialchic. Two bar areas and a tricked-out broadcasting system for TV complete the scene. 801 E St. NW, riotactcomedy.Com BURninG QueSTion What fashion risk are you bringing to DC this fall? "Neuaura shoes made especially for vegans are 100 percent animal-free and you can generally only find them online. We couldn't resist. They're super sexy and stylish, which you might not expect." -Katherine liMon, owner, carbon "We're bringing Parisian chic via Isabel Marant's 2011 collection. It has fringe, fringe and more fringe, from overthe- knee boots to suede dresses for the girl who has everything-and still wants more!" -Marlene HU alDaBa, owner, HU'S wear and HU'S Shoes "Color blocking continues as a big trend, especially with contrasting or complementary brights. Real risk-takers will throw on another big statement like the shearling vest." -allYSon wilDeR, ManaGeR, M29 Light SHOW Four partners teamed up on the 6,000-square-foot Opera Ultra lounge (top), opening at McPherson Square. Locals and headliners will play Riot Act Comedy Theater (near left), which also boasts a comedy school, an open-mic night and two bars for pre-show laughs. Eat Sheet Menu Plans Come September, the dynastic few who started Washington's restaurant revamp a decade or so ago are opening new spots to stake their claim on the third wave-and doing it in the bifurcated style that has taken hold in DC. Passion Food Hospitality, which opened DC Coast on K Street in 1998-and later, four other outposts-is set to throw open the doors to District Commons (districtcommonsdc.com) and Burger, Tap & Shake (burgertapshake.com) at The Avenue in the West End. The former will include a raw bar, chef Jeff Tunks' American seasonal menu and a "ham of the week" charcuterie board. The latter offers counter service for its namesake items. SJeff Black, who opened the first of four Black Restaurant Group outposts more than 10 years ago, will add a fifth concept on Sept. 20 with the 78-seat Pearl Dive Oyster Palace (pearldivedc.com) and its sibling 110-seat Blackjack (blackjackdc.com) upstairs. The two menus at 1612 14th St. will vary in formality, but both will have access to the second level bocce court. - Karen Sommer Shalett VoYeUR The Dish Tuesday, Aug. 2, 7PM How far would you go to sample a tasting menu, complete with perfect pairings and attendant apps assembled by six of the hottest up-and-coming DC chefs and an equal number of stellar mixologists? Washingtonians-current and former-gathered 230 miles outside the District at Manhattan's famed James Beard House for the meal sponsored by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington. We caught the crowd just as they were heading into an evening they wouldn't forget. -KSS GINA CHERSEVANI Mixologist at PS7 and one of the event's star bartenders "I still want my own place, but I'm watching friends fail and thinking the time needs to be right." KEITH EDWARDS New York-based national sales manager of The Business Journals "Did you prepare for tonight? I went to the gym-spin class." BILLY KLEIN Chef for Café Saint-Ex, cheering on chef Justin Bittner of Bar Pilar "This guy's coming back for the hugs. I give the best hugs." MIKE BENSON Owner of Bar Pilar and Café Saint-Ex "Much to everyone's chagrin, I'm coming back to DC. I'm like a junkie going back to the source JENNIFER KROMAN NYC lawyer and pal of DC restaurateur Michael Babin "We ate our way through all of his restaurants. I'm still not eating ever again-except tonight." SEAN KEATING New Yorker in financial services and member of the James Beard Foundation "When was the last time 'awful' was on the menu here? It'll work." SARA ROSS Sells Moleskine notebooks in New York, on a date with a James Beard member "All Saints just opened in Georgetown? You're kidding. I wanna come." ET VoilÀ! Paper Doll Despite the obvious crossover between the cosmetics and fashion worlds, it's still a leap to go from makeup artist who pretties up blushing brides to designer who dresses Dutch models with her eponymous clothing collection. When the e-tail section of crystaljo.com goes live this month, however, Crystal Hannon will have made the transformation look easy. The Annapolis native used to sketch ball gowns as a kid but gave up on her dream until last year, upon the accidental excavation of an old book of drawings. Backed by a coterie of friends and family, the makeup artist soon had 16 fall/winter pieces adorned with exquisite embellishments in production under her Crystal Jo label. "I'm very inspired by Parisian designers and Paris in general," says Hannon. The vision translates to ruffled silk blouses, fur-trimmed wool jackets and skinny-leg lambskin leather pants, not to mention Chantilly lace overlays bedecking several pieces. The Annapolis boutique Diva recently picked up some of the collection, which is priced from $150 to $1,700. All the pieces will retail on Hannon's website as she scouts for DC and New York buyers and puts the finishing touches on her spring/summer lineup-featuring twice as many romantic silhouettes. - KH

Previous Page Next Page

Publication List
Using a screen reader? Click Here