A postage price increase goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, May 12. That means you have less than 2 weeks to stock up on the Forever stamps, which you can still buy for 41 cents and which will remain valid for full postage even after the price increase goes into effect. I saw a statistic which estimated Americans are buying 30 billion Forever stamps a day in anticipation of the increase. That’s a lot of letters.

For more information on the price increase, visit www.usps.com/prices.

Here’s some of the new postage prices:

First-Class Mail letter (1 oz.)	$0.42
First-Class Mail letter (2 oz.)	$0.59
Postcard	$0.27
First-Class Mail large envelope (2 oz.)	$1.00
Certified Mail	$2.70
First-Class Mail International to Canada and Mexico (1 oz.)	$0.72
First-Class Mail International to all other countries (1 oz.)	$0.94

Darcy at Preservation Hall tells me they are now offering lamp and light fixture repair. They sent me these details about the new service:

Preservation Hall is now offering lamp & light fixture repair, as a service to their customers, in addition to their focus on antique architectural items & the gallery of regional art. Bill Styles, who formerly worked with Blue Ridge Lamp and Shade in Woodfin (the owner has closed that store), has agreed to work with Preservation Hall in our store. Bill will be here as work load dictates & items may be brought to the store during normal business hours. If you have had Bill do work for you in the past, you know that he is reasonable & does good work.

Concrete angel amidst a selection of shrubs and flowers at The Garden Station.

I’ve mentioned Shop Around the Corner’s recent move to a new location, but they’re holding their official grand re-opening this weekend. Stop by and say Hi if you haven’t already.

You are cordially invited to attend the Grand Re-Opening of Shop Around the Corner in our new location at 55 North Main Street. We have moved into the beautiful space next to M7 & Blue Mountain Pizza.

Please drop by anytime on Thursday, Friday & Saturday (April 17, 18, 19) from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. to sample our gourmet foods and see what other wonderful things we have: antiques (beautiful china and silver, primitives, linens and quilts), locally-made truffles, hand-made paper, original art work, sterling silver jewelry and much more.

Need an excuse to buy some ice cream? I didn’t think so, but the Weaverville Drug Company has an Ice Cream Rewards card for you anyway. Buy a cup or a cone and get your card punched. After 10 punches, you get a small ice cream cone for free.

Beautiful new orchid at Brown’s Floral Design.

Every Saturday Shop Around the Corner offers free samples of some of the dips, dressings, preserves, or other food items they’re now carrying in their new location.  I haven’t been able to pin them down about an exact time for these tastings, but they generally start after Noon.  If it’s a cold day, like last Saturday when I took this picture, you might score a cup of hot tea too!

Shop Around the Corner is located at 55 North Main Street.

Shop Around the Corner has reopened in its new location, 55 North Main Street (former home of Bee & Thistle).  Hours are Tuesday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Friday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. 

Weaverville-based band The Biscuit Burners present the Take Me Home CD Release Concert Thursday, March 13 at The Grey Eagle in Asheville (185 Clingman Avenue). The concert celebrates the release of their third full-length album, Take Me Home. Showtime is at 9 p.m. and tickets are $10 in advance or $12 at the door. If you haven’t heard of this Bluegrass/Americana band, you can listen to a sneak preview of their new album on their MySpace page, plus here’s a little info from their latest press release:

The Biscuit Burners are proud to announce the release of third full-length album, Take Me Home, on March 13.

Highlighted by their signature sound of virtuoso instrumentation and angelic voices, The Biscuit Burners offer the finest representation to date of that fiery mountain sound, with Take Me Home. Similar to their previous releases, there is no one way to characterize this release. Inspired by music from near and far, including Bluegrass, Americana and Country as well as Indian Ragas, Reggae, and Jazz, the Biscuit Burners translate these inspirations with an Appalachian voice into their Fiery Mountain Music.

The diversity of the twelve tracks on Take Me Home introduce a new chapter for the band. Tracks such as Sujan Re, an Indian Raga arranged by the band, and The Real You, with its rock steady back beat, shine a more worldly light on the album, while the old-time fiddle breaks on Grasshopper and Rockville bring it back mountainside. You’re Who I Want and Sweet Red Wine show the band’s Nashville side.

Take Me Home exemplifies the nature and reach of the Biscuit Burners’ signature sound. Fiery Mountain Music is Bluegrass and Americana. It is World Music and Country. It is all these things as it reaches to the far corners of the world to show that roots music is universal, and flourishing with The Biscuit Burners.

The Biscuit Burners are Mary Lucey (bass, vocals), Billy Cardine (resophonic guitar, vocals), Dan Bletz (guitar), Odessa Jorgensen (fiddle, vocals). They have been featured on BBC World TV’s Destination Music, NPR’s Mountain Stage, PBS’ Roadtrip Nation, and The History Channel’s Our Generation. They have had feature articles in Bluegrass Now, Bluegrass Unlimited, Marquee Magazine, Flatpicking Guitar Magazine, Chicago Tribune, Singer & Musician, American Songwriter, and Dirty Linen.

Update: Read the March 12 Mountain Xpress interview with The Biscuit Burners’ Billy Cardine.

Shop Around the Corner today begins moving to their new location on Main Street - the former home of Bee & Thistle.  The shop will feature antiques, gifts, specialty items, soaps & lotions, quilts, and locally-made chocolate truffles.  Their Grand Opening date will be announced soon, but in the meantime they do welcome anyone who wants to stop by while they’re getting their new space set up.  For more information, you can reach them at 777-9206.  Shop Around the Corner, formerly located at 257 North Main Street, is now located at 55 North Main Street.

Chocolate lovers — this post is for you!  Weaverville native Regina Hensley recently started a chocolate lollipop business, Angel of Chocolate.  She sent me the following letter along with a photo flyer about her new business just in time for Valentine’s Day.  Note the last day to get your order in for the holiday is Friday, February 8.

Hi my name is Regina Hensley and I would like to introduce you to my new chocolate lollipop business: ”Angel of Chocolate”.  For years my daughter and I have hand molded chocolate lollipops for fun.  I finally decided why not try to market them.  Over the last year I have made numerous baskets and sold them to coworkers and friends.
 
The chocolate comes in a variety of flavors: milk, dark, white, white mint, and also in a great range of colors.  I have a vast collection of molds – Holidays, Sports, Flowers, Weddings, the list goes on.  If I do not have a particular mold I will try my best to find the perfect one. Arrangements are great for parties, anniversaries, showers, and holidays.
 
I am taking orders now for Valentine’s Day.  If you would be interested you can contact me at 230-1248 for additional information.  Last day for ordering is Friday, February 8.  I try not to duplicate so each lollipop arrangement is unique and different.  Prices start at $20 depending on the type of container and the pieces of candy.
 
I take great pride and enjoyment in everything that is created.  I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sonopress is no more.  No, the company hasn’t up and left town, but they have changed their name to arvato digital services LLC, according to this article in the Asheville Citizen-Times. No personnel changes are planned.

Telco Community Credit Union has opened a branch in Weaverville at 99 Weaver Blvd. (on the East end of the Weaverville Plaza).  According to their website, you are eligible for membership if:

(1) you live, work, worship or go to school in Buncombe, Burke, Catawba, Caldwell or Henderson county; (2) if you are employed by an existing Select Employee Group in a county outside our 5-county community charter coverage area; or (3) if an immediate family member entitles you to membership. Once eligibility is established and a membership share account is opened with a deposit of $5 or more, you have become a member of a unique financial cooperative. Your membership entitles you to many benefits including participating in the democratic process of electing directors at the Credit Union’s Annual Meeting.

Lobby hours at the Weaverville location are:

• Monday-Thursday: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. (closed 1-2 p.m. for lunch)
• Friday: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. (closed 1-2 p.m. for lunch)

They will be hosting an Open House 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Friday, January 25, with music provided from 1-4 p.m.  Food and non-alcoholic drinks will be available most of the day, they’ll have drawings for gifts throughout the day as well as a chance to win a $250 gift certificate.  They’ll also be running a special promotion on CD’s of 4.75 APY, with only a $500 minimum. 

North Star Diner has posted new hours on their front door:

Monday-Thursday: 7:30 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Friday: 7:30 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Saturday: 9 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Sunday: 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.

I understand they are not offering live music on Fridays and Saturdays right now. No word yet if they will bring it back in the Spring.

Maggie B’s Wine & Specialty Store has new hours for the winter months.  They started Tuesday, January 8:

• Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday: 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Friday & Saturday: 10 a.m.-7:30 p.m.

Maggie B’s is lcoated at 113 North Main Street.