Shopping in Fort Washington

The staff at Fashion Time hold time itself in their hands, in the form of their store’s collection of eye-catching watches. At locations throughout Maryland and Virginia, they pair customers’ wrists with low- and high-end watches from name-brand designers, such as Edifice, Kimio, Seiko, and Citizen. Customers can also peruse the store’s inventory on its comprehensive website, with shipping available nationwide. Already-purchased watches can be registered online through an easy submission form or a more difficult smoke-signal pattern.

As every mom knows, kids grow up too fast. And though moms want to keep their kids looking stylish, new clothes only seem to get a few wears before growing limbs necessitate a complete wardrobe makeover. But at 529 Kids Consign, moms can fashionably outfit kids through their growth spurts with gently used baby and toddler from well-known brands such as Ralph Lauren and bumGenius. Mothers-to-be can also find clothes that flatter their budding bellies, ensuring they feel trendy until the stork comes to switch their pile of maternity clothes for its equal weight in babies.

In 2001, husband-and-wife team Todd and Anne realized two of their biggest dreams: they started a family and opened The Bike Lane. Throughout the store, bikes by Trek, Electra, Felt, Mirraco, and Surly lean on their kickstands alongside accessories such as water bottles, bells, or high-heeled spokes for date night. Certified staffers leap down from their stationary penny-farthings to perfectly match riders with new bikes through fit services that are free with purchase of a triathlon/TT, road, or mountain bike. In the repair shop, mechanics with 40 years of combined experience service bikes, overhauling brakes, installing parts, or custom-fitting wheels. To stay connected with its network of riders, The Bike Lane organizes educational safety events, advocates for bicycle-friendly communities, and sponsors more than 50 cycling events per year.

The media-preservation team at Photo-60 is working against time. As old photographs and Super 8 reels slowly crumble and fade after years of use, the team scans these precious keepsakes and stores them in more durable digital formats. The center employs a high-speed Kodak scanner—which transforms 1,000 photographs into high-resolution JPEG files within 24 hours—and an 8mm projector that transcribes flicker-free images onto a digital sensor frame by frame. Though some photos may be irreparably damaged due to fire or drawn-on mustaches, Photo-60’s staff can breathe new life into creased, torn, or faded images with a combination of traditional and digital restoration techniques.

When Randy McCoy's father-in-law started his hydroseeding business in 1968, he likely didn't imagine the sprawling outdoors empire it is today. With help from his wife, Wanda, their children, and a team of staffers in colorful, logo-emblazoned shirts, McCoy keeps Garden World of Virginia's small stone house and sunny greenhouse brimming with more than a thousand plants, such as begonias, impatiens, and tropicals. Paths meander throughout the 2-acre facility, past garden accessories such as birdhouses, paver stones, and patio furniture, as well as artfully arranged vignettes that pair plants with their ideal pots. Garden World's expert landscapers also travel to unruly lawns, taming them with retaining walls, mulches, and topsoils to seat shrubs, trees, and wanderlust-stricken gnomes.

Curtsies & Petals fills the shelves of its intimate boutique with original gifts fashioned by American artisans and craftspeople. Shopkeepers stock unique items, from handcrafted jewelry and frames to elegant stationery, candles, and soaps. They also maintain a selection of accessories and dresses for special occasions, such as weddings and the purse-toss portion of debutante balls.