Secret Gardens in Fourth Ward

This garden reminded me of Charleston.

Having relocated back to Charlotte, my hometown, in 1983, witnessing so much change in the landscape and urban neighborhoods of my youth, my experience of Fourth Ward this month at the first annual Secret Gardens of Fourth Ward tour brought back so many memories of growing up here and how truly beautiful Charlotte has always been, even when the blight came and covered up the history and beauty of our city in so many ways.

The Berryhill House, a magnificent Victorian, was the first house  renovated in the neighborhood, back in 1975.

 I remember the big houses and tree lined streets with children playing in the median on 10th Street and the different smells of the city, the cooking and the coal fires, the black dirt under our bare feet, when one block seemed like a mile from home and Mom.

Al-Mike's is a great neighborhood spot to grab a bite to eat.

I used to rollerskate here after school.

While touring the gardens in Fourth Ward the memories came flooding back of Charlotte’s history and what we were like then, how we became what we are now. The preservation of one our four historic districts in uptown Charlotte is perfection. The homeowners and preservationists have saved for us an unbelievable part of our history and created a pure fantasy to enjoy for another century of life.

This gazebo is in the courtyard at the Tenth Street Townhomes.

A must see for everyone, the only evidence of days gone by in uptown Charlotte – a true treasure.

Randy and John had one of the loveliest gardens complete with koi pond and waterfall. More views of it are below.

  

Thanks to The Friends of Fourth Ward, our host, the gracious and proud homeowners, and the Center City Partners. This was an honor and a pleasure to share in Charlotte’s Secret Gardens and so much more.

HAPPY TEN YEAR BIRTHDAY: WESTIN HOTEL CHARLOTTE NC

A birthday cake for the Westin

April was a big month for the Westin Hotel in uptown Charlotte NC, as it celebrated ten successful years in our beautiful city by giving back to several of our most popular charities which were also celebrating anniversaries.. 

The Westin's breathtaking lobby

Share the Good. At the Westin, hotel volunteers donated their time and had a contest to see which team could make 100 sandwiches in the fastest time. The sandwiches were then donated to Charlotte Rescue Mission, celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. The teams made several hundred sandwiches and the winning team received prizes.

Heavenly Dog’s Humane Society Event. Folks brought their four legged friends to join the Humane Society of Charlotte for a dog birthday party themed event at the pet friendly Westin Hotel. Guests could meet with dogs that were available for adoption. Great prizes for man and dog were given out, including items from the Westin Heavenly Dog collection. The Humane Society is celebrating 35 years in Charlotte.

On the 24th the Westin Hotel had their iconic Heavenly Bed set up on the corner of College and Stonewall, with employees in bathrobes handing out hot coffee and goodie prizes for all who stopped by. This bed changed the hotel industry and is famous for its design and comfort.



The Alexander Youth Network, one of the city's oldest charities founded 125 years ago, was also honored. Children were treated to a day of play at the Westin, with inflatables for jumping, face painting and much more. 

Kseniya Martin was among the media present

In the lobby of the Westin, one of our local bakers presented the hotel with an amazing array of cakes, one for each week of the month.

The Ember Lounge

And it goes on and on. This says an awful lot about one of Charlotte’s most beautiful hotels. The lobby is breathtaking and the lounge is open and light and has its own babbling brook complete with sculpture.

Ava Phillips

The lovely Ava Phillips in charge of the celebration had us come by for drinks and appetizers to share in the festivities. Ava and her staff take a personal interest in everyone who enters their hotel, and you know immediately something really special is present. It sets the bar high for the competition. 

 

The welcome mat is always out at the Westin.

TASTE OF THE NATION

The VIP Lounge

                                      

Charlotte, North Carolina has some of the most amazing restaurants and chefs in the world.

Taste of the Nation 2013 was an event to remember. The food items served were tantalizing, downright erotic to the taste buds, and I feel honored to have had the experience.

One of the many bars

Wonderful cocktails, world class wines and liquors and aperitifs to satisfy every appetite completed the evening.

Enjoying Upstream's scallops

There were awards for hot and cold entrees, desserts and appetizers. 

Cantina's award-winning
 pork shank

Cantina 1511 here in Dilworth was among the award winners with its small pork shank entrée. 

My favorite appetizer was served by the Culinary Arts Department at Central Piedmont College: Duck Pâté on a pistachio cracker, oh my.

The Silent Auction

There was also a fabulous silent and live auction with lots of bidders going at it.

Representing the Westin

The entertainment was jamming and kept everyone in motion.

e2's GM greets the crowds

It always amazes me to watch how good food and drinks bring folks together in a very special way. 

Helping to raise money to fight childhood hunger

The Taste of the Nation is a benefit to raise money to end childhood hunger in North Carolina.  Part of the proceeds goes to culinary schools that train the unemployed.

Early in the evening

Don’t have the final figure as yet but the beautiful Wells Fargo Atrium was overflowing with donors and participants from all walks of life passionate to help and passionate about food. For more information on Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign visit its website, nokidhungry.org.

Duke Energy lights up orange to combat childhood hunger

“ANSWER”

 Jim and Becky Brinson                             

“ANSWER” stands for Andersen Nontraditional Scholarship for Women's Education and Retraining.

Sunday evening at the home of Sy and Liz Johnson we attended a party honoring Jim and Becky Brinson’s marriage last month in India. They traveled to India to be married in the most traditional Hindu way and to honeymoon there.

Little did we know when we attended the party we would learn about an organization called ANSWER providing scholarships for Moms who want to go back to college and get a better education. Since ANSWER is Jim and Becky’s favorite charity instead of the regular party they asked participants in the program to speak.

Party people making a stand for education

Send the Mother to college and the children will follow. What a great concept.

The women that spoke about their experience with ANSWER had received scholarship money and were getting their degrees. One lady was in law school and another was studying education while another was getting her business degree. 

Susan Andersen, founder of ANSWER

Susan Andersen started the organization as a way of giving back after her hardships in obtaining her education. She had no idea how to do what she has done and how successful she has become at this. Everything starts with an idea and everything is possible.

Great party thanks to Liz and Sy opening up their home and hearts to a wonderful cause.

For more information, visit the ANSWER website. 

Wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Scott Cline

Vows under the Hoopa

What a beautiful weekend we had in Birmingham, Ala. celebrating the wedding of Lara Printz and Scott Cline.

Bride and Mother of the Bride

Father of the Bride and friends

 

From Thursday through Sunday it was a festival for all who attended. Nothing was spared to show the guests who came from all over the planet – an experience to remember.

The Wedding Cake

The wedding ceremony was held at the Museum of Art in Birmingham complete with reception in the gardens and banquet hall.

Reception entertainment all the way
 from Vail, Colorado

Lara and Scott left for Hawaii soon after and will be sharing their life together on the Big Island, staying for four months, before they return to Charlotte, NC.

Mr. and Mrs. Scott Cline

Thank you Lara and Scott for wonderful memories of your families and friends.

More pictures of Wedding Guests:

Beautiful people at
the rehearsal dinner

Jackie and Mollie all the
way from Charlotte, NC

Barbara Randle and Yours Truly at the rehearsal dinner

Taste of the Mint at the Mint Museum Uptown

F.O.O.D.

(Food, Objects, Objectives, Design)

                 
Tonight at the uptown Mint Museum of Art we had the profound pleasure of attending the Taste of the Mint presenting Food as Art event which included two of Charlotte's newer restaurants: e2 and Halycon, both located in the Duke Energy complex along with the Mint Museum and other venues.


Our evening began at e2 with a beautiful salad, spicy mussels and pizza slices made with local farmers cheese.  Also served was champagne, a lovely white wine and a red.


It was enchanting to see how just the right wine with just the right food can transform a table of strangers into a group of folks that can't stop talking and seem as if they have known each other for ever.  To me this is art.  It brings to mind a wonderful movie about the love of food and wine and each other "Babette's Feast" a must see for all romantic food lovers.

After a delightful time at E2 we moved on to Halycon just around the corner to share and enjoy something very different. 




The Halcyon portion of the evening started out with a before dinner drink of moonshine and ginger ale in a fruit jar with a tray of pickled green beans, peppers, unleavened bread and assorted cheeses.

The main course was spicy ham slices, potato salad and fresh homemade strawberry shortcake for dessert.  A choice of red or white wine was served.


After our dinner at Halycon we were taken on a tour of the F.O.O.D. exhibit located on the 4th floor of the ever so beautiful Mint Museum.



There we saw and enjoyed kitchen gadgets, dishes, works of art by famous artists relating to the creation of food and cooking from days gone by.  In all there are 260 pieces on display created by artists from around the world.  You will see items displayed that your Mothers and Grandmothers used in their kitchens.



Jamaica Kincaid was represented by saying "If I ran the world I would do it from the kitchen."  The Mint Museum is soon to publish a cook book with recipes from individual contributors.

Sweet potato lady

This is truly a showing of arts and crafts design, an artful experience for all those who love the creation of food and  want to have a unique experience.




Please contact Leigh Dyer our gracious hostess in charge of Marketing. The exhibit will be showing  through March 7, 2013. Dinner is served nightly at Halcyon and e2.

The Taste of the Mint event will be repeated on April 20, May 15, and June 26. Follow this link for more information.

For more information on the F.O.O.D. exhibit, visit the Mint Museum website: www.mintmuseum.org