Switchin' Kitchens | Making Dinner an Event without All of the Production

If you're looking for a break from your everyday dinner routine or if you need to get a dinner routine, the you need Switchin' Kitchens! Whether you are single, married, have a large family or small, Switchin' Kitchens offers you an affordable and convenient way to take the guess work out of what's for dinner.

At Switchin' Kitchens, you can prepare up to 12 delicious and healthy meals in about two hours. Each of their eight prep stations is equipped with all the necessary ingredients and measuring utensils required to prepare each meal. All you need to do is through on an apron, wash your hands and follow the recipes. Once you have compiled all of your ingredients, simply place your meal in the provided storage container and head off to the next station. They'll clean up after you.

With a menu that changes monthly and with 14 different entrees from which to choose, there are lots of opportunities to satisfy every one's tastes. Switchin' Kitchens only used fresh, whole ingredients, delivered weekly to the store. And for those who have special dietary requirements, each recipe is review by a registered dietitian and many of the entrees can be modified to meet any dietary need.

In addition to great tasting entrees, you can complement you meal with a delicious variety of prepared side dishes, as well as delectable desserts like their Nutty Earthquake Cake and Cranberry Cheesecake Bars, which are hard to resist.

If you don't have time to enjoy the total Switchin' Kitchens experience, not to worry, they can do the assembly for you. Just go on-line, select your entrees and let them know when you would like to pick them up. And if you're really in a pinch, just stop on in and pick up one of their daily fresh selections so you can take it home and prepare a meal that will really wow them!

Switchin' Kitchens is located in The Fountains on the corner of Ardrey Kell and Tom Short Roads.

Healthy From the Outside In

Radiant Skin Organic Spa - Providing Organic Skin Care


While many people are focused on eating more organics to keep their bodies healthy, aesthetician Jenell Boris, wants people to know that what we put on our bodies is just as important as what we put in our bodies. At Radiant Skin Organic Spa, Jenell provides a more natural approach to her skin care treatments.

“People are just now figuring out and becoming educated about the fact that everything you put on your skin goes directly into the bloodstream,” says Jenell. This is why Radiant Skin Organic Spa exclusively uses Eminence Organic products; which are made from organically grown herbs, fruits and vegetables.

The signature service at this single room spa is the Zen Custom Facial. Designed to replenish the skin and rejuvenate the body, this relaxing 90 minute treatment begins with a thorough skin analysis followed by the application of Eminence products custom-blended for your skin type. The stress-relieving massages on the neck, shoulders, feet and hands are interwoven with the facial applications make this the ultimate facial experience (trust us, we know!)

Radiant Skin Organic Spa’s services are not limited to facials. Salt scrubs and detoxifying wraps are also on the menu. For those of you who are “inked,” Radiant Skin offers the Like New Tattoo treatment, which is designed to bring life and color back to your body art.

With most of the treatments starting at $85, Radiant Skin Organic Spa provides high-quality, organic treatments without the high price of a full-service spa.

Radiant Skin is located at 1111 Central Avenue.
Hours are by appointment. Call: 704.517.2408

Truly Green Gardening

As you head out this weekend to pick up your spring gardening supplies, instead of choosing to go to the big orange or the big blue,why not choose a little green? American Beauty Garden Center,located just two miles from the center city, specializes in organic,eco-friendly, and sustainable gardening supplies for both indoors and out.

From organic soils and natural pesticides, to eco-friendly fertilizers and beneficial insects, owners Pete Freedman and Alan Corder have stocked their store with everything you need to start and successfully maintain your yard and garden naturally.

“Organic and sustainable gardening doesn’t take the tremendous amount of work that people think,” Pete says. “All you need is organic seed, good organic soil and some simple organic nutrients to start.” Whether your yard is big or small or if you have no yard at all, American Beauty can help you create the perfect organic garden.
If the threat of cankerworms has you feeling cantankerous, you can also pick-up some
beneficial insects such as HB Nematodes. These voracious, microscopic predatory insects kill most types of yard & garden pests down to a soil depth of seven inches.

Also available are ladybugs and praying mantis egg casings, which, like the nematodes, help to eliminate yard pests. Plus, putting these pest hungry critters to work saves you the time of have to continually spray for the pesky little pests yourself.

And if the drought has got you down and out, American Beauty recommends installing a rain barrel to stop the rain from going down the drain, literally. “An 80 gallon rain barrel on a small house can easily be filled up by 1 inch of rainfall,” says Pete. In fact, he says that most houses in Charlotte can accommodate 2 – 3 rain barrels. That’s up to 240 gallons of unrestricted, guilt-free water for use in your garden or on your lawn.

Whether you’re an experienced gardener or just starting out, you can be sure that the guys at American Beauty Garden Center will provide you with personalized service and practical solutions for all of your gardening needs. And for all of you self-educating types, they even carry magazines, most of which are free, to help you learn more about organic and sustainable gardening methods.

American Beauty Garden Center is located at 1331 Central Ave. or check them out on-line at www.abgardencenter.com