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A Modern Jewel on the James By Christine Stoddard QuailBellMagazine.com Don't ever remind (the now dead) architect Richard Neutra that he briefly studied under Frank Lloyd Wright. Otherwise you might get a ghost knocking on your door. The German-born modernist preferred to claim his vision as a singular one, one that even transcended Wright's. Though not as famous as Falling Water, Neutra's Rice House in Richmond, VA is well-known in the contemporary architecture world for its clean design, floor-to-ceiling windows, and startling view of the James River from historic Lock Island. Built in 1964, the house stands out in the architecturally rich but traditional city. Most of the Rice House's West End neighbors are American Girl Felicity style homes. So what makes this 6,000-square foot beacon of modernism relevant to Quail Bell(e)s? Since 2009, the Rice House has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. That's a strange accomplishment considering how much of an "Ugly Duckling" it seems compared to Richmond's Agecroft Hall or the Confederate Memorial Chapel, among numerous other more 'Virginian' places. Lock Island also overlooks the first dam and canal of the James, and even served as a foundry during the Revolutionary War. (For the curious, RVANews.com posted a more detailed account of Lock's history in October 2011.) Currently the Rice House belongs to the Science Museum of Virginia, who rents out the property for special events. But if your pockets aren't deep enough to help you afford such a visit, you now have inspiration for your latest zombie short story. The Rice House will give it just the mid-century flair it needs. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
The Dragon By Jade Miller QuailBellMagazine.com _ Not many creatures are as present in myths, folklore and fantasy as the dragon. With good reason, of course. Massive, scary creatures that could roast a knight without a second thought…slaying one is the ultimate act of bravery or maybe a pretty sweet way to go out. Win the maiden, save the town, have a cool story to tell your kids – just watch out so you don’t get singed in the process. Dragons are one of two kinds: the European dragon, which stems from Greek mythology and the Chinese dragon, which hails from Asian countries. There are two main differences between the dragons. One is flight. European dragons have wings, similar to bat-wings, to help them fly while Chinese dragons usually do not have wings and use magical powers to fly around. The other is what the dragons represent. European dragons tend to represent evil or sin while Chinese dragons are associated with nature and wisdom and sometimes are even said to have taught people how to talk. For the similarities, the list is a little bit longer. From the frightening Smaug of The Hobbit to an angry mama in Suckerpunch, most dragons come with standard parts. Huge beast, check. Scales, check. Fire-breathing, check. Dragons also tend to live underground or in caves of some sort. All the parts add up to a creature that is fascinating to ponder, and can have its own personality and idiosyncrasies depending on the individual penning the creature to life. So, go forth to your friendly neighborhood bookstore and turn a few pages in almost any fantasy book and meet a dragon, since you probably don’t want to meet one in person. Click to set custom HTML The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
The Seahorse Family By The Picture Pharmacist QuailBellMagazine.com Dear fledglings, There are many practical things you do not typically learn in school—how to open a bank account, how to adjust your Facebook privacy settings, and how to identify different members of the seahorse family. Well, today I'd like to take this opportunity to teach you one of the aforementioned and hopefully you'll find a way to apply your newfound knowledge to your life, maybe even becoming a famous zoologist. This picture shows four types of seahorses: a winged one, a regular one, an orange snakey one, and a winged one with dimples. If you download the picture and put it into Photoshop, go to “Image,” then “Adjustments,” and finally “Hue/Saturation,” you can play with the little sliders and change the seahorses to all sorts of colors. Each one of those colors represents a different sub-species, which you may call whatever you want, since animals' common names are so arbitrary, anyway. That's about it. May your Photoshop experiments with seahorses go swimmingly. Yours truly, The Picture Pharmacist
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Wanna Catch a Train? By Paisley Hibou QuailBellMagazine.com Tired of your current reality? Wanna catch a train to a different universe or at least another era? Time travel may not be possible, but train-hopping is. Pick up your sack, pull down your cap, and start studying the train schedules. If you can muster the courage, you'll soon go from the Great Recession to the Great Depression. For the less hobo-inclined, at the very least, here's some inspiration for your dreams and unwritten novels: The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Everyone Loves A Happy Ending... By Tykeya O'Neil QuailBellMagazine.com From the creators of Lost comes a new show on ABC, one spellbinding and intriguing called Once Upon A Time. This show lets the viewer into a fantastical world where we see what would happen if all of our favorite fairy tale characters were forced to live in America. The story begins by introducing you to the beautiful Emma, a bailbonds woman who is confronted by her ten-year-old son, Henry. He brings her to the town of Storybrooke where he explains that everyone who lives in the town is a character from his storybook. The town was been cursed by the evil queen, Regina and it is up to Emma to save them all! Now that you have a little background, I just want to say that I LOVE this show! All my friends know that Sunday at 9 pm will leave them without responses to texts or calls. This show brings back fond memories of my childhood, when my mom used to read me fairy tales before bed. Since I grew up with these characters, it's interesting to see them being portrayed in real life as real people instead of something I cooked up in my imagination. This storyline is made even more refreshing by the writers of the show, who change the old tales up a little bit to keep everyone tuned in and coming back for more each week. As a viewer, you never know what might happen. It is so easy to get invested in those who populate Storybrooke, learning about their pasts and wishing your strongest wishes that things would go back to the way they were because you know how happy everyone was. My favorite character is Henry, Emma's ten-year-old son. He's lived in Storybrooke his whole life and it's his innocence that is the key. This allows him to realize that something is just a bit 'off' with his neighborhood. To make things even more complicated, Henry is the adopted son of Regina, Storybrooke's mayor and the evil queen who has placed the curse on the town! I love the juxtaposition between Emma and Regina, the good and the bad. This is something everyone must deal with in their life and Henry is someone you can really sympathize with. With all the twists and turns, it's close to impossible to guess the ending -- but aren't twists and turns something every Quail Bell(e) loves? So, for a true imaginary, nostalgic and otherworldly show, tune in to ABC Sundays at 9 pm and see what happens when happily ever after goes wrong. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Historic Hotspot: San Antonio, TX By Julie DiNisio QuailBellMagazine.com _ As the Geico gecko so demurely informed me, straight from my television, Texans likes things big. Not exactly a revelation, of course. Word has it, ‘you don’t mess with Texas.’ Well, Texas isn’t messing around with history. San Antonio is a notable historic hotspot within the huge state that is Texas.
Founded in 1691 by the Spanish, it was an attempt for them to rival French expansion into America. It pretty quickly became the largest Spanish city in Texas as Spanish people immigrated from the Canary Islands to colonize San Antonio. When raids from Native American tribes threatened San Antonio, which has been founded as a mission, it was converted into a military installation. Eventually, Mexico fought for and won its independence, so Spain lost San Antonio. Then, Americans who had settled in Texas fought and declared themselves independent from Mexico. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Pretty as a Fairy By The QB Crew QuailBellMagazine.com Sometimes a girl just wants to feel as ethereal and beautiful as a fairy. These fine things will help you reach that goal just that much quicker. Click on the image below to learn more about our 'pretty as a fairy' picks: The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Shenandoah Valley, Yesterday and Today By Luna Lark QuailBellMagazine.com Memories of the Shenandoah Valley come to me as dollops of apple butter smeared over granny baked bread, or sound bites of Junior Ranger programs at Shenandoah National Park, or even flashes of late-night jaunts through old cemeteries. There were the summers clapping and dancing with Yogi Bear at Camp Jellystone in Luray, during a time when grasping a dripping cone of Hershey's ice cream by the pool was about all I ever wanted. On more ambitious days, I’d spring after grasshoppers, Cabbage Whites, crayfish, and salamanders. That was the same era of eating greasy comfort food at local diners from Winchester to Front Royal to New Market—grilled cheese, hold the pickles, potato chips, and a freshly whipped chocolate or strawberry milkshake to suit the mood. It was also the same era of fervent weekend searches for black bear. (How many pictures of startled deer do I have instead?) Depending on the exact period of my childhood, my family and I would pile into a Mazda, Suburban, or Winnebago before frittering away an afternoon in search of interesting animals and architecture. Other times, we would spend hours in a single antique mall, only to leave without having made a single purchase. Instead I'd have Billie Holiday and Dolly Parton playing in my head for days after the visit. In the fall, of course, our leisurely endeavors usually revolved around leaf-peeping, cider-tasting, and orchard-seeing. It’s not autumn in Shenandoah without a trip to a farm, a hayride, and a corn maze. But as I grew up, so did the way I interacted with Shenandoah. More than a decade later, there were the afternoons spent desperately wiggling into too-small bridal gowns and desperately catching the too-big ones before they fell to the floor, leaving me more exposed than I cared for in the stylish Verona boutique. There was porch-hopping on the historic Victorian homes near Mary Baldwin and gallery-hopping 'til sundown in Lexington. There were long drives on 81, where playing “I Spy” too easily turned into “Count the Hokey stickers and license plates.” Born an Arlingtonian, raised between Northern Virginia and Shenandoah, and now a 20-something Richmonder, I look forward to seeing how my experiences with Shenandoah Valley evolve. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
A Real Life Fairy Tale By Julie DiNisio QuailBellMagazine.com _ The Filigree creators Martin Obakke and Celena Cavala grew up in vastly different worlds. Obakke was born in Denmark (home to "The Little Mermaid," they would like to note), where he “spent most of his youth raised by trees and imaginary wolves.” Cavala spent her childhood in Nashville, Tennessee, with aspirations of dance. When their pasts collided, though, a fairy tale world was created, and they began publishing The Filigree to keep up with the happenings and entertain us mere mortals. Below, they answer some questions about their “fairy tale nonsense news” publication.
QB: What are your artistic backgrounds? Martin has been drawing/creating art since he was a child. He moved to Florence, Italy to searching for a classic art education where he met ballerina, Celena, who thoroughly discouraged him of that idea! Celena was a classically trained ballet dancer from Nashville who moved to Florence to study the Cecchetti method and choreography. After a torn ligament ended those dreams, she started to explore more deeply her imaginary world and focus on writing. She met Martin around this time. They immediately started creating fairy tales and haven't stopped since. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Remedies for House Brownies By Christine Stoddard QuailBellMagazine.com Some people have roaches, while others have mice, and then some have brownies. No, not gooey slabs of fudge and deliciousness. Not those kinds of brownies. I mean the pesky little hobgoblins who, strangely enough, are also called brownies (blame Gaelic). These nasty fairy folk invade your homes, steal your food, and brew mayhem. If you've experienced brownies already, their mischief and irritable ways are hardly newsworthy. You just want a remedy that will banish them from your humble abode forever and ever. Try these three tips for starters: • Go (temporarily) vegan: Rid your kitchen of dairy.In fact, remove all dairy products from your house. Don't try to hide any in your china cabinet or laundry hamper. Brownies have a sense of smell so well developed that they can sniff out all dairy products within a five mile radius.Even if you live for cheese, you need to make the sacrifice. Eventually, it'll be safe to bring back your Nesquik and Kraft, but not until a full moon cycle has passed. So grab a box, stuff it with every carton, bottle, tub, and box full of dairy you have, and march it directly to your local church or soup kitchen. At least the hobos can enjoy your Laughing Cow. • Put locks on all your valuables: While it's true that brownies are adept at picking locks, it's also true that they are inherently lazy creatures. Locks usually deter them—unless they really have to put their grubby claws on something. If you're still not convinced that they're a worthwhile investment, remember that locks also deter real criminals, so consider it a twofer. • Predict pranks: Is your house prank-proof? No house ever is, but you can at least eliminate all the prime targets. Start by scanning your house with the mindset of a brownie. What looks fun and easy to ruin? Liquids, grains, and other “spillable” items should be stored in sealed containers. All of your embarrassing possessions, whether unflattering photographs, ratty sweaters, or porn, should be well-hidden. Keeping your porch light and at least one light inside the house on at all times might not help your electricity bill, but it will make brownies think twice about TP'ing or egging your house. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Happy Belated Birthday, Poe!By Nina Starfish QuailBellMagazine.com We know, we know, we should've sent you a card last Thursday, but better late than never, right? Besides, you're 203 years old. You must be bored of birthdays by now. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Please help us distribute 1,000 free copies of Quail Bell Express: Josie Edition across RVA.The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Ads Show that Curvy is the New Skinny By Jade Miller QuailBellMagazine.com While we here at Quail Bell appreciate women of all shapes and sizes, popular culture doesn't seem to be quite as sympathetic. With Kate Moss saying, 'Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels,' it's nice to take a look back and see that women used to want to add some oomph to emulate Marilyn Monroe, instead of shedding weight to look closer to a skeleton. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
The ChimeraBy Julie DiNisio QuailBellMagazine.com _ Your average monster is pretty bad. But a monster made up of three types of animals, all pretty miserable themselves? That’s the pits. But that’s exactly what the Chimera was: a monster with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and tail of a dragon.
Born out of Greek mythology, the Chimera was the female child of Typhon and Echidna, the parents of all monsters. Thus, she had such siblings as Cerebrus, three-headed guard dog of the Underworld, and Hydra, a menacing sea serpent. All the kids had this in common: they were multi-headed and truly fearsome creatures. The Chimera allegedly originated from Lycia, near a mountain that was home to serpents, goat, and lions. Eventually, the monster was vanquished by the famous hero Bellerophon and Pegasus, his trusty, flying steed. Bellerophon was commissioned by King Iobates of Lycia, who indicated that the darn Chimera was just causing too much trouble. Which is a shame, really, because the Chimera never managed to reproduce and this one of a kind creature can only be seen in Greek artistic depictions. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Baking MommyBy Olivia Blackwell and Christine Stoddard QuailBellMagazine.com In Quail Bell Magazine's previous incarnation (January 2010-August 2011), the editorial staff would create special holiday-themed webpages. These pages went live the day of the holiday and featured all kinds of exciting content--illustrations, quirky poetry, video, photography--produced precisely for that day in mind. Both longtime and newbie QB readers will be happy to know it's an idea we hope to re-start this year, due to its tremendous popularity. Until then, however, we'd like to tease you with blasts from our quail past. The following's a video that Executive Editor Christine Stoddard and former Art Director Olivia Blackwell made in honor of Mother's Day 2011. It's called, "Baking Mommy." Sure, Mother's Day's still months away, but it's never too early to think about spring or remind yourself of how much you adore your mama hen. Or, in this case, your magical mama unicorn. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
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The Snuff Bottle DressBy Doe Deere QuailBellMagazine.com I was about to exit the thrift shop when I saw a black dress hanging on a rail. It had the most peculiar pattern; at first I mistook it for vases. Upon closer examination it turned out to be snuff bottles: glass jars painted from the inside, an artform originating from Asia. Being Eurasian myself, I am mystically drawn to all things Asia; the motif is frequent throughout my dwelling and belongings. This dress has a traditional mandarin-style collar and slits all the way up to the waist — stunning. I paired it with pale blue boots, marabou feather jacket from the flea market, gold bunny belt (gift from my sister), and a stack of bangles. I wore thick red tights and pretended not to care when the panels flapped wildly in the wind: my bold red lips said it’s ok. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Bayly and Christine Go Shopping at the VMFABy Christine Stoddard QuailBellMagazine.com Today my friend and I hopped around Richmond's Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, imagining that we had the budget and power to shop for whatever our hearts (and greedy fingers) desired. Here are a few of the beautiful pieces we chose: The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
How to Become an Historic PreservationistBy Julie DiNisio QuailBellMagazine.com _ For history and related majors, finding employment upon graduation can be challenging, and getting a job that has an important impact on society and culture even more difficult. At first sight, history is an area of study solely concerned with the past, but historic preservationists have the inspiring task of literally preserving history and cultural heritage for future generations.
Historic preservationists deal with large scale, immobile objects, such as buildings and land which they work to protect from demolition. They evaluate sites and determine if they would be worth renovating and restoring. Students in a graduate program have the unique opportunity to work in the field and gain experience. A graduate degree in historic preservation is well-suited to history, art history, urban planning, and architecture majors. There are many programs across the United States, but these universities have the best and most developed: Harvard, Cornell, Rutgers, MIT, University of Pennsylvania, and UCLA. In some of these institutions, historic preservation falls under another names, like urban or regional planning. Interested candidates should carefully scrutinize and research the programs as a Master’s in historic preservation can give typical history majors an edge in the job market. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Scoop Your PoopPlease be considerate of other fledglings and always scoop your pet's poop--aye, even in the winter. You wouldn't want to step your glass slipper into a fresh pile, would you? Besides, The Poop Pixies are fierce police. Don't tempt them or you'll find poop smeared on and wedged into places you never thought possible. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Yowzers! There Be Dragons!By Paisley Hibou QuailBellMagazine.com If you didn't know any better, you might mistake this slumbering iguana for a fire-breathing dragon poised to feast on the bones of brave (and not-so-brave) knights...as soon as he wakes up from his nap. When looking at today's lizards--especially the bigger ones--it's not so difficult to imagine how the men and women of yesteryear might have developed dragon myths. Dragon myths probably helped early Europeans explain the dinosaur bones they occasionally found, as well as the reptiles brought back from Asian trade expeditions. So lizards, dragons, and dinosaurs really aren't that far removed from each other, at least to the common eye. Otherwise ask the movie crew on Don Chaffey's One Million Years B.C. If you weren't too busy staring at Raquel Welch in her fur bikini, you might have noticed that the film's biologist calls a supersized iguana a "tyrannosaur." Sad even for a non-paleotologist? Yes. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
Less than Contemporary Wedding DressesBy Belle Byrd QuailBellMagazine.com It used to be that you were lucky to own a “nice” dress, or a second one period. In fact, the average woman did not even have a separate wedding gown. 150 years ago, a $3,000 designer gown worn for a single day would have been unthinkable to anyone but royalty and top-tier aristocrats. Even upper-class woman probably would not have worn a white dress to their wedding; they simply wore a pretty one, and, hygiene norms being as lax as they were, it wasn't necessarily clean, either. The white dress that Queen Victoria I of England wore to her 1840 wedding set the standard for the white dress frenzy and obsession that persists today. After all, Queen Victoria often set the mainstream style of the time. In this particular case, she set the style for the next 172 years (and likely longer). To pay tribute to Queen Victoria's wedding fashion sense, Quail Bell has chosen five Victorian-inspired wedding gowns you can purchase from modern designers: Disney's Belle (Style 206) by Alfred Angelo. Legends (Style 32208431) by Romona Keveza White Fall/Winter Lace w/ Sleeves (SKU-119035) by Liquiwork Steampunk (Product Code CP817) by Wedding Dress Fantasy Victoria (Style WG388) by Katrina Marie Designs
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How to Tell if a Unicorn is SickBy Starling Root QuailBellMagazine.com All fairy tale veterinarian students must learn to recognize the signs of a sick unicorn in order to pass their fourth-year exams. (Because, remember, if you fail your fairy tale vet exam, you'll have to serve the rest of your life as an ogre's dentist.) Everything you ever thought about unicorns is true; they are cheery animals with cheery appearances. Nothing about them, from head to hoof, should look dreary. What does that mean specifically? Well, here are the four key symptoms of an unhappy horned horse: • Drooping and/or discolored horn: A healthy unicorn horn sparkles, spirals in one direction, and sits at a 45º angle with the unicorn's forehead. Horns should not belong to any other color family but pastel or metallic. A black horn, for instance, means death—often near-instant death. So if you see a unicorn with a black horn, don't be surprised if he suddenly explodes. In fact, stand back, unless you don't mind being covered in a permanent layer of glitter guts for the rest of your life.
• Thin and/or lusterless ponytail: A healthy unicorn possesses a thick, shiny tail. Its hair can be any color of the rainbow, but if the hair looks limp, dull, and thin, watch out. Such unicorns are often venomous. That means if you so much as try to braid that unicorn's tail, you will get the worst case of the runs you ever experienced. (Yup, even worse than that time you let your 10-year-old pixie cousin grill hamburgers at your family reunion.) • Glazed over eyes: It is true that most other mythological animals are more cunning, resourceful, pragmatic, and—ahem--smarter than unicorns. However, even the dimmest unicorn should have some semblance of thought dancing in his eyes. A unicorn with glazed over eyes is probably going blind or losing his mojo. • Non-glittery stool: Unicorns poop glitter. When they poop anything else, it's a problem. Their poop should never, ever under any circumstances resemble regular horse poop. If it does, the unicorn needs far glee in his diet. Glee deficiency is one of the top vitamin deficiencies that unicorns face; glee deficiency is also the leading cause of unicorn cancer. The Breadcrumbs widget will appear here on the published site.
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A Feathery Arts Festival? Why not?QB has recently entertained the idea of starting an annual non-profit arts festival. It would serve emerging artists in Baltimore, MD, Richmond, VA, and Washington, D.C. who are working in the themes of "the imaginary, the nostalgic, and the otherworldly." But we need a catchy name! Please vote now.
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