Nothing warms the hearts of a couple of new business owners than to have a really great week.  By great week I not only mean financially successful, but genuinely fun, inspiring, and meaningful.

It all started on Wednesday night when we had the second of our “Free Jazz Wednesdays” which will be happening every-other week this winter. We were happy to see some new faces in the crowd and look forward to how this event will grow.

Thursday night our gallery was filled with cartoon characters, witches, and even a Christmas Tree.  The Washington Courier threw a costume contest for the little ones, and we were lucky enough to host it.

I (Tiffany) had the difficult job of judging the contest with others from the community.  I love the fun and spirit that an event like Halloween brings out in all of us, and that really came alive on Thursday night.  The entire square was buzzing, despite the cold and rain.  To see so many people out on the streets of Washington was exciting and inspiring all at once.

Which brings me now to Friday, and perhaps the most exciting event of this week.  Venue hosted its first Wine Tasting and dinner.  Flights and Bites turned out to be more of a success than we could ever have imagined.  40 people reserved spots for this beautiful dinner catered by Maria’s in Washington, while our good friend Rob from Marketplace introduced us all to four fantastic Australian wines.  DJ Mark Jones spun soothing tunes through his speakers while the place buzzed with lively chatter, laughter, wine, food, friends, and even some dancing.  THIS is the reason we are here.  THIS is the reason Stephanie and I have chosen to believe in what we do, even with full time jobs (Stephanie started a new one this fall), endless papers to grade (Stephanie), college classes at night (Tiffany’s MFA), and a baby on the way (Tiffany again).  The night sparkled with everything good, and we can only hope that our guests felt the same way.  Wine dinners will become a monthly occurrence, with our next one happening on November 13th.  We are actually going to serve a six-course meal catered by the talented Maria, along with a handful of wines meant to compliment your holiday staples this season.  Sign up now, because space is limited!

Thank you to everyone who made this week fantastic.

Tiffany

So it’s been way too long since we’ve written and so much has happened since August.  We had our Grand Opening September 19th which proved to be a huge success with the help of Jeff and Julia from Portraitlife Studios.  Hundreds of people came out to listen to the fantastic music of Chicagoland’s BeckonQ and to honor artist Bob Emser.  We were so pleased with the turn out and honored to have an artist like Emser as our first official exhibit as an operating gallery.

With all of that behind us now, October has proved to be the best months thus far, and has reminded us why we are doing this.  We didn’t sign on for this job because we are work-aholics, or because we have nothing else to do….anyone who knows us knows that the opposite is true.  We made this crazy leap of faith because we LOVE this.  We love this community.  We love art.  We love wine.  We love music, getting together with friends, beautiful spaces, and most of all we love experiences.  So far in October we have had two more live music events – both of which were fun, fantastic, and highly attended nights.  Last night we had our first ever poetry reading and open mic in the space.  Now, I realize that Stephanie is the English major and probably the entire reason we have poetry nights, but sitting up there sipping wine and listening to some amazing written work warmed my heart.  There was nowhere else I would have rather been at that moment.  I hope that everyone can experience moments like these in this beautiful space.

New items on the docket:

Flights and Bites:  Limited space for this dinner and wine tasting.  Reserve your seat now by emailing or calling us.  Tickets are $35 a person and include dinner, wine, and a nice little take-home gift. info@venueartandwine.com    309-222-2480.

Movie Night:  Our first official movie up at Venue featuring Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.  Admission is $8 at the door and the movie starts at 7:00 pm.

Halloween Party:  Matt Larson will entertain everyone from 9:00 to midnight with a costume contest and all!

Empowering Embers: The Original Work of Jean Filson is the now hanging at Venue.  Stop up to see the work now as a preview to the Artist Reception and grand unveiling on Thursday November 6th.  Mark your calendars now for this fantastic night as Filson explains her work and musician Shannon Moore entices us with her sweet tunes on the piano.

Bradley Jazz Combo every-other Wednesday night.  Check out the calendar on our website.  This was a hit the first night we did it, and our second official night of jazz is October 22nd from 7:00-9:00pm.

Every Wednesday – $2 tastings

Every Thursday – $2 off featured flights

Really, what more could you ask for?