Lots to love about the Main Line this month, neighbor, from an indie bookstore in Media to an Ardmore gardening hub to a luxe equestrian boutique in Villanova!
• With a Little Help from My Friends…
You can’t buy me love but you CAN request your best Beatles song at an upcoming tribute concert with a unique twist.
Performed by brothers Billy, Matthew and Ryan McGuigan and their band, “Yesterday and Today: The Interactive Beatles Experience” lets audience members choose the set list. The show debuts locally on Friday, February 28 at 7:00 PM at West Chester University.
Before the show, patrons complete a request card with their name, favorite Beatles song and reason for their pick. Mere minutes before the show starts, the band collects the cards and builds a custom set list based on the audience requests. Throughout the night, the band works its way through the set list, interweaving personal stories submitted by audience members with their own Beatles-inspired memories.
Purchase tickets to Yesterday and Today: The Interactive Beatles Experience here.
• Sometimes a Great Notion
Yay for another independent bookstore! Following a successful holiday pop-up in December, Bookish Notions in Media snagged a permanent spot on East State Street. The cozy shop features comfy seating and a range of titles to peruse, along with fun and festive gifts for the bibliophile in your life (think stickers, tote bags, stationery, puzzles and even literary-inspired temporary tattoos!).
Bookish Notions is located at 11 East State Street in Media. Hours are Tuesday – Friday 12:00 PM – 6:30 PM, Saturday 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM and Sunday 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
• Makes Scents
The BYOB candle-making shop Corks & Candles has expanded to Ardmore! Owners Chris and Tia Holloway are busy booking birthday parties, bridal showers, date nights, girls’ nights and other group hangs at their modern, rustic-chic studio that features a “Scent Library” with over 60 clean-burning fragrance oils.
Each candle-making session lasts about 90 minutes, during which time guests peruse the Scent Library and select up to four scents that they’ll combine to make two, 8 oz. candles they can take home. BYO drinks, apps and snacks to munch while you make! Sessions cost $62/person. And if you just want to grab a quick candle to go, the shop has plenty of premade options for purchase. Ardmore too far? Check out the company’s popular flagship in the King of Prussia Town Center.
Cork & Candles is located at 65 Cricket Avenue in Ardmore. Walk-ins accepted but reservations are recommended. Hours vary; check the website for details.
• Gardening Enthusiast Plants Seeds in Ardmore
Sure, gardening is good for the earth, but did you know it can also reduce stress and improve socialization? Retired oncology nurse and longtime gardener Carolyn Vachani discovered these benefits and more during Covid, when she used her green thumb to cope with the frightening world just outside her garden gate. She later earned a certificate in therapeutic horticulture from the North Carolina Botanical Garden and a garden and landscape certificate of mastery from North Carolina State University.
Recently, she opened Plant4Good, a gardening supply shop and learning studio on Cricket Avenue in Ardmore, next to John Henry’s Pub. Plant4Good offers everything the home gardener needs to thrive, plus a lower-level space for classes, seed swaps, after-school clubs, DIY, private parties and more. Vachani also hopes to host therapeutic horticulture sessions for special population groups like seniors, school-aged children and individuals with disabilities.
Plant4Good is located at 100 Cricket Avenue in Ardmore. Hours are Wednesday & Thursday 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM, Friday & Saturday 11:00 AM – 5:00 PM and Sunday 11:00 – 4:00 PM.
• New TMS & Psychiatry Clinic in Malvern
With the flurry of openings in downtown Malvern, this one was missed: NuBalance Behavioral Health Services, a psychiatry clinic that provides medication management, general and integrative psychiatry and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), an FDA-approved treatment for major depression.
A non-invasive, non-pharmaceutical brain stimulation therapy, TMS involves placing an electromagnetic coil over a patient’s head. The coil delivers magnetic purses that penetrate the skull and stimulate parts of the brain that become dormant from depression, in hopes of easing symptoms and improving mood. TMS is typically prescribed for patients who have not responded well to other treatments for depression. The approach is FDA-approved for OCD, migraines and smoking cessation as well.
TMS is a painless procedure, and sessions generally last between 20 and 40 minutes.
NuBalance Behavioral Health Services is located at 116 W. King Street in Malvern.
• Canter on Over!
A chic equestrian boutique called Vanner House has taken over an historic building on Conestoga Road, in Villanova. Founded several years ago as an Etsy shop called Gypsy Equestrian Boutique, the shop is the brainchild of Kristan Cicero, an equine enthusiast who splits her time between the Main Line and North Carolina. Cicero launched the shop after struggling to find tasteful gifts for her horse trainers.
Vanner House stocks everything from apparel, jewelry and home décor to tabletop, barware and vintage blankets—all equestrian-themed of course! A café in the back offers free coffee, tea and hot chocolate.
The name Vanner House is a nod to Cicero’s treasured Gypsy Vanner horses. And boy if these walls could talk—the building dates to the early 1800s and was once home to the first Ithan Post Office.
Vanner House is located at 601 Conestoga Road in Villanova. Hours are 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM daily and by appointment.
Got a scoop for In The Loop? E-mail kate@mainlineneighbors.com
