05.01.2024

Today’s Forecast

80º | 10% chance of precipitation
Sunrise 6:37 a.m. | Sunset 8:16 p.m.

🤳 Freshen up your feed

10 local Instagram accounts to follow

Keep up with more of Asheville’s happenings through these accounts. | Photo by AVLtoday

Recently, we put out a call on Instagram, asking you all to tell us which local accounts we should be following. More than 1,000 comments later, we rounded up a handful of users that you helped put on our radar. So, let’s spice up our feed together.

Asheville Camera Club | @ashevillecameraclub
This club celebrates the creativity of local amateur and professional photographers with monthly meetups meant for discussion, sharing, and shooting. Check out the zine they released in March, “Chromatic Aberration Vol. 1,” with proceeds helping fund the production of volume two.

Holler & Crow | @hollerandcrow
The ensemble describes its sound as “cottagecore folk fusion magic” and “Shire-ish,” so obviously, we immediately hit the follow button. The WNC-based band has several Asheville shows coming up, but you can also support its Song-A-Month recording project on Patreon.

Sweet Snail | @sweet.snail.nails
Step up your nail game with these creatively customized press-ons. From “Adventure Time” to “Sanrio"-inspired sets, see what Sweet Snail dreams up next — then send a DM for a custom set.

The Maker’s Moment | @themakersmoment
Dive into this local podcast to hear artists explore the creative process. There are more than 15 episodes out for you to listen to, including season one of the podcast, “The Women of Western North Carolina.”

Tiny Gallery East | @tiny_gallery_east
Built by Margaret Cogswell and located at 145 Bell Rd., this bite-sized art gallery regularly gets restocked with new works from local artists. On Sunday, May 5, artist Gláucia Mir will showcase their art with a wine and cheese opening at 5 p.m.

Are there more accounts we need to be keeping up with? Drop a comment on our post to let us know. And if you need even more inspiration to diversify your Instagram feed, check out the 1,000+ comments tagging some awesome local businesses and creators.

Five more accounts to follow

Events

Wednesday, May 1

Open Mic Night | Wednesday, May 1 | 5:30-8 p.m. | Twin Leaf Brewery, 144 Coxe Ave., Asheville | Free | Sign up at 5:30 p.m. to put your musical skills in the spotlight or just sit back and enjoy the show.
Drop-In Friendly Beginner Ballroom Classes | Wednesday, May 1 | 6-6:50 p.m. | Stephens-Lee Recreation Center, 30 George Washington Carver Ave., Asheville | $12 | No partner is necessary to learn the basics of dances like waltz, tango, foxtrot, and salsa — wear secure shoes.

Thursday, May 2

Kentucky Derby Pre-Party | Thursday, May 2 | 2-4 p.m. | Harvest House Community Center, 205 Kenilworth Rd., Asheville | Free | Folks 50+ can enjoy this sophisticated social with Southern snacks, drinks, and games — come in your finest Derby hat or bring one to decorate for the hat contest.
Get The Led Out: A Celebration of “The Mighty Zep” | Thursday, May 2 | 6-10 p.m. | Salvage Station, 468 Riverside Dr., Asheville | $30-$35 | Jam out to the Led Zeppelin tribute act at this outdoor show, with Root Down on-site to serve up Southern soul food.

Friday, May 3

First Friday | Friday, May 3 | 5-7 p.m. | The Block, Eagle Street and South Market Street, Asheville | Free | Experience the vibrancy of the historical Black business district with shopping, live music, and food + drinks at this monthly gathering.
Silent Disco: Taurus Party | Friday, May 3 | 9-11:30 p.m. | Rabbit Rabbit, 75 Coxe Ave., Asheville | $5 | Pop on a pair of headphones and dance the night away with DJ Winston Wolf to celebrate Taurus season.

Saturday, May 4

Grove Arcade In Bloom | Saturday, May 4 | 12-4 p.m. | Grove Arcade, 1 Page Ave., Asheville | Free | Celebrate the beauty of spring by browsing floral installations, exploring booths and pop-ups, building your own terrarium, and more.
Darth Disco | Saturday, May 4 | 8 p.m. | DSSOLVR, 63 N. Lexington Ave., Asheville | Free | According to the brewery, “the fate of the galaxy rests in your hips,” so come out in costume and bust a move at the Star Wars-themed party.

Friday, May 10

Artisphere presented by TD Bank | Friday, May 10-Sunday, May 12 | Times vary | Main Street, Greenville SC, South Main St., Greenville | Free | Mark your calendars: Artisphere presented by TD Bank is back for its 20th year in downtown Greenville, May 10-12. Enjoy crafts, delicious food, live painting, street performers, and more.*

More hump day happenings

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Arts

🎨 How craft improves community well-being

A group of artists poses for a photo in front of a mural.

Some of the pilot program’s craft artists will continue to work with the MPH program to measure their work’s influence. | Photo by Cori Anderson

Last year, the Center for Craft awarded grants to six regional artists and art organizations to explore the impact of craft on community health in Western North Carolina.

Artists were paired with UNC Asheville-UNC Gillings Master of Public Health students + together, they completed projects geared toward community engagement during the fall of 2023.

The findings? Communities that embrace and invest in craft enrich their culture and enhance their members’ health, well-being, and resilience.

See the projects + outcomes

News Notes

Civic

The Asheville Downtown Commission will not recommend the proposed Business Improvement District (BID) to the Asheville City Council after the Friday, April 26 meeting resulted in a split vote. City Council will vote on the establishment of a BID and tax rate on Tuesday, May 14 and Tuesday, June 11. (Asheville Citizen-Times)

Sports

Let’s go... Oat Milkers? The Malmö Oat Milkers are minor league baseball’s newest team — well, really they’re just our hometown players repping a nondairy alter ego with their shirts and hats. This Sunday, May 5, the Asheville Tourists will play ball as the Oat Milkers — get tickets.

Open

Remnants Thrift & Sew opens today at 745 Carl Eller Rd. in Mars Hill. The space is a combination thrift store and community sewing space, offering classes for sewers of all skill levels and open sew hours on Wednesdays and Sundays. Check it out Wednesdays through Mondays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Try This

Preservation Week is now through Saturday, May 4. Buncombe County Special Collections can help you preserve your stories with personal archiving and oral history backpacks for check out, complete with handbooks to walk you through the preservation process. You can even use them to contribute to the Black Asheville History Project.

Outdoors

The National Park Service is hiking up fees for backcountry and frontcountry camping on the Blue Ridge Parkway, as well as noncamping dump station and shower fees. Frontcountry camping fees will go into effect first when Parkway campgrounds open on Friday, May 24.

Asked

In yesterday’s newsletter, we asked you to share some of your favorite small businesses and why you love them in honor of National Small Business Week. Be sure to follow along on our Instagram page to see features from the beloved local businesses you submitted this week and beyond.

Edu

If you’re college hunting for fall, you don’t need to look far: Not only is UNC Asheville a top rated university, but Access Asheville makes college more accessible than ever with free tuition + fees for NC residents whose annual family income is $80,000 or less. Yes, you read that right.*

Job

We want you. Yes, you: The curious-about-the-world person who is a creative thinker, passionate writer, big reader, hard worker, and organized desk-haver. If these traits describe you, see if you’d be a fit for our Junior Branded Copywriter role. We’re hiring now.

The Buy

A summer sip. Prepare for a summer by the pool or on the porch with these iced coffee and sparkling tea options.

Answered

What college course would you like to take?

zine fest.png — We’d join reader Julia W. for an Asheville-inspired zine-making class.
|
Photo via @avlzinefest

Last week, we shared local places where adults can take classes and continue their lifelong learning, from the new Mountain Institute for Lifelong Learning at Warren Wilson College to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, which began at UNC Asheville in 1988.

We asked you for some niche courses you’d like to take — and your answers did not disappoint.

“Creating the Perfect Zine from an Asheville Scene” - Julia W.
“Grateful Dead’s influence on business practices and culture” - Joe C.
“Tarot, Mythology, & Intuition” - Sadie C-A
“Landscape quilting” - Jan N.
“Thomas Wolfe and the Asheville of His Era” - Janet R.
“Why do birds do what they do?” - Jane K.

Everyone who responded earned an A+ for effort. And don’t be surprised if we play teacher and give you a crash course on some of these topics in upcoming newsletters.

Class is in session

The Wrap

Today’s edition by:
Grace

From the editor

It looks like The Force will be with the Asheville Tourists this weekend. This Saturday, May 4, players will don some special Chewbacca jerseys in celebration of Star Wars Day. Plus, you can place bids to take home the jerseys for yourself, with proceeds benefiting the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.

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