Metropolitan Home joins list of design magazines that closed.

For holiday entertaining, "move the centerpiece above the table and decorate the chandelier," says New York and Washington designer Ondine Karady.

Hanging curtains on bare windows is a quick way to dress up a space as well as add softness and warmth.

From our design experts, here are other small things you can do in the dining room.

Now is the time to check your holiday tablecloth and napkin supply.

Get your dining room chairs ready for holiday entertaining.

Instead of flowers, D.C. floral designer Sue Bluford recommends arranging fruits, vegetables or gourds down the center of a dining table.

On defense for flu season? Doctors will tell you your best shot is to get a shot. But that won't cut it for Sue Berman of Silver Spring's Blue Heron Wellness. To keep sniffles at bay, she plans to spend a whole lot more time with needles.

Here is an edited excerpt from Local Living's daily blog, On parenting. Read the latest at voices.washingtonpost.com/parenting .

See and shop the ceramic sculptures and functional stoneware of Round Hill potter David Norton in this annual exhibition. The pieces include bowls, baking dishes, plates and mugs. Norton, a self-taught potter who has been making his living from the medium for more than three decades, is also...

Nov. 12 FALL TEAS Tea time in a historic carriage house. Thursday-Saturday at 1 p.m. Through Nov. 29. Oatlands Plantation, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg. 703-777-3174 or http://www.oatlands.org . $24.95; reservations required.

In last week's Going Out Guide, the image accompanying the "Thinking Pink" exhibit listing should have credited the artist, Catherine Hillis, in addition to the Loudoun Academy of the Arts Foundation.

These Oklahoma-based rockers are touring to promote their latest album, "When the World Comes Down." The alternative-pop-punk-rock group, made up of frontman Tyson Ritter, Nick Wheeler, Mike Kennerty and Chris Gaylor, has produced such movie-montage-ready singles as "Swing, Swing," "Dirty Little...

Garden help: boxwood shrubs, sheared blue spruce.

These sales were recorded in Loudoun County and supplied to The Washington Post by the Loudoun County Assessment Office. To find sale and assessment records for homes in Loudoun and other Washington areas, visit www.washingtonpost.com/realestate .

Loudoun County Animal Shelter, 39820 Charles Town Pike (Route 9), makes pets available for adoption by eligible residents 18 and older. More pets can be seen at http://www.loudoun.gov/animals . Adoption hours are 1 to 6 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays; 1 to 8 p.m. Wednesdays; and 11 a.m.-6 p.m....

The following cases were handled by the Loudoun County Department of Animal Care and Control. For information, call 540-882-3211 or 703-777-0406 or visit http://www.loudoun.gov/animals.

A grain elevator that has sat unused for about 70 years might get a new life as a cellphone tower in Bluemont next fall, after a special-exception vote by the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors last week that has upset some residents.

The Leesburg Town Council is holding a public hearing at 7 p.m. Monday as it reconsiders putting a sidewalk on Woodberry Road.

In 1997, Karen Montgomery of South Riding began advocating for a library her three children could use. At the time, the Loudoun County branch closest to her was in Middleburg. Driving into Fairfax County took her less time, even after Ashburn got a library in 2003.

These were among incidents reported by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office and the Leesburg, Middleburg and Purcellville police departments. For information, contact your police or sheriff's department.

These food establishments were closed because of health code violations. The list, compiled from health department reports, reflects actions taken by the departments.

"MOMS' MORNING OUT," mothers can stay with their children or run errands. 10:30 a.m.-noon Thursdays, Douglass Community Center, 407 E. Market St., Leesburg. $35 for five sessions. Register. 703-771-5913.

They all seem to be having a good time, the 20 or so girls wielding field hockey sticks on a tree-lined field tucked far behind the Loudoun County campus of Northern Virginia Community College. It's a pleasant fall evening, and the distant hum of cars on Route 7 provides a soothing soundtrack as the...

The following organizations need volunteer help for a day, for a week or on a regular basis.

Travelers responding to my suggestions [ Dr. Gridlock, Nov. 1 ] about long-term solutions to Interstate 95's traffic congestion had their own practices and policies to propose.

A couple buys an apple press and attempts making apple cider at home.

Niermann Weeks will open its Millersville factory to the public on Saturday for a sample sale.

The countdown is on for the holiday season. It's time to take a good, hard look at your dining room and assess its readiness for entertaining from now until New Year's Day.

Try these designer-recommended colors to transform a dining room's walls:

If your floor is bare or your area rug is worn out, an inexpensive sisal rug will add an instant pick-me-up to almost any dining room.

"The hub of our home is threadbare. The window treatments, lighting, carpet, sofa, desk need to be replaced, but I do like the beams."

How to restore and preserve the shine of an old wood floor.

Los Angeles designer Michael S. Smith has the hottest decorating job in the country: the private quarters of the White House for the Obamas.

The slightest rustle of the Milk-Bone box gets mutts and purebreds alike drooling. But for pet parents who pledge allegiance to Whole Foods and the locavore lifestyle, the number of unpronounceable and unthinkable ingredients in mass-produced canine treats can cause a paw-size pause. So, if cooking...

Dear Dr. Fox: I have two male Westies, ages 6 and 3. They are healthy, happy and look great. No wonder. They are fed your home-cooked brown rice and lamb diet, an occasional hard-boiled egg, some turkey breast and a variety of vegetables. They also get daily Brewer's yeast and garlic tabs. Each dog...

The nation's economic leaders have declared that the country has begun to emerge from the deepest recession in decades. But with the holiday season approaching, a return to prosperity feels more distant than ever at many Washington area food pantries.

From a health perspective, adult mammals shouldn't be drinking milk, especially the milk from another mammal ["Milk's skeptics would like to steer us away from our herd mentality," Eat, Drink and Be Healthy, Nov. 5]. I would do it anyway if I could find a cruelty-free source of milk and milk prod...

What if there was a small, inexpensive device that was proven to boost your fitness, help you lose weight and lower your blood pressure? Would you use it, especially if doing so was nearly effortless?

Contestants on NBC's weight-loss competition show "The Biggest Loser" undergo all kinds of duress in their efforts to shed pounds. Some of the ordeals they endure -- including a brutal workout in Washington's hot July sun for an episode that aired last week -- seem like sheer torture to me.

I often interview educators and gather data to find which high schools are doing the best job teaching kids. It is satisfying work, with the biggest payoff in visiting those schools and telling them how good they are compared to others. This is often a surprise to the teachers and administrators,...

The strong Republican showing in Loudoun County on Tuesday felt particularly good for GOP leaders frustrated by years of Democratic gains in the area, but the results suggest that the exurbs will stay up for grabs as both parties vie for support from the growing population.

Investigators are trying to track down two men who held up a pizza deliveryman Tuesday night in Sterling. Police said the deliveryman was returning to his vehicle on Railway Terrace about 8:30 when two men approached him and one drew a gun to demand money. After a fight, the robbers fled without...

In late October, my history class for Loudoun County public school teachers was mesmerized listening to Anne Frazer speak of 1937, her initial year in Loudoun County. As an 18-year-old from Pembroke, Giles County, she taught first grade at Hamilton Elementary School and took full advantage in off...

A much-anticipated Wegmans supermarket opens for business Sunday on Route 7 in Leesburg.

BLOOD DRIVES, 2-7 p.m. Tuesday, Ashburn Library, 43316 Hay Rd., 866-256-6372; 3-8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sterling Safety Center, 46700 Middlefield Dr., 800-448-3543; 4-8 p.m. Wednesday, Round Hill Elementary School, 17115 Evening Star Dr., 800-448-3543; 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Leesburg United Methodist...

QUILTERS, 7 p.m. first and third Tuesdays, Bethel United Methodist Church, 6903 Blantyre Rd., Warrenton. Also meeting on occasional Wednesdays, 10 a.m., at members' homes. Free. Call for information. 540-349-8473.

The Fauquier SPCA is at 9350 Rogues Rd., Casanova. Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays; and noon to 4 p.m. Sundays. For information, call 540-788-9000.

After graduating a plethora of players instrumental in Stone Bridge's dominance over the AAA Liberty District the past several years, the school's 2009 season has rarely featured vintage Bulldogs football.

8 AND YOUNGER: Loudoun South Eagles will have tryouts at 11:30 a.m. Dec. 6 at Diamond Sports Training. Sam Harbin, smharbin@verizon.net , 703-554-3311, 703-468-1122.

News that appeared Nov. 1-7 in The Washington Post that is of interest to readers in Loudoun and Fauquier counties.