This museum is AMAZING! Clean, quiet, open 364 days a year and IT'S FREE! If you are passionate…read moreabout history and like guns you will absolutely love this museum. I went on a Saturday but learned that during the week there is an extremely knowledgeable curator. I highly recommend this museum. Also they have a range at the museum so definitely don't forget to check that out as well.

Epic collection of firearms with a rich history. The staff at the museum were very professional and…read moreanswered all my questions thoroughly. The firearm collection is very extensive and goes beyond my highest expectations. We were immediately greeted at the front desk by Zack. He was very informative about the museum. 98% of the museum is made up of donations. About 8,000 firearms donated are in storage. Bill, one of the staff, was very helpful and talked about James Joseph "Whitey" Bulger Jr.. I was impressed at the arrangement of the firearms and how they were organized in a meaningful way. It would take many hours to go through and read all the exhibits. We spent about two hours there. I was very impressed with the exhibit of weapons used in Hollywood movies. I adored the exhibit with taxidermy animals especially the bear. The Buffalo Bill and George Washington exhibit were very eye catching as well. The most spectacular moment in the museum was hearing about and see an exhibit piece owned by one of America's most notorious criminals, Charles Manson. The museum curator, Ernie, gave me vivid details of how the gun was confiscated by the police. Admission to the museum is free and one of Fairfax's finest and unique local attractions. Strongly recommend this museum.

My work organized an event here in December 2024. I really enjoyed it. I didn't know it would be as…read moremuch work as it was, but it was still fun. You can be an "artist" without a lot of training. I would return with a group of any age.

Staff is super friendly and there are so many options to choose from for adults as well as younger…read morekids.

I went to Celebrate Fairfax for the 1st on 6/9/17, 6/10/17 and 6/11/17…read more It is apparent that Celebrate Fairfax has grown over the past couple of years from a traditional carnival. You take the shuttle (because there is not enough parking at the festival for everyone who attends) from either Fair Oaks Mall or a nearby business park and walk right past the traditional carnival rides. I remember as a child. After the carnival rides you past vendors selling everything from coffee to Botox (agree with other Yelpers Celebrate Fairfax is not focused on crafts). After you past the vendors you are welcomed by the smells of food from everything from chicken to popcorn. After you past the food vendors, you arrive at the stage (concerts are offered on Friday and Saturday night). I was primarily interested in attending Celebrate Fairfax to see Bush (which turned out to be one of the best concerts I have experienced from the sounds to crowd) and when I looked at the ticket price I said "hey a 3 day ticket doesn't cost that much more". The concert space has chairs for anyone who wants to sit and if the band turns out to be super popular (and no chairs are left) you can either sit on the very small lawn space or stand. At the end of each concert there is a great fireworks displayed. I was impressed by the half hour show (stayed for the entire display on Saturday night). The fireworks displayed can be seen at almost every part of the festival (e.g. at the concert space or near the rides). The last day of Celebrate Fairfax the organizers tried something different this year and hosted a Brewfest. It was a really nice mixture of cider and beer. I heard from someone who attended the previous year that the organizers focused more on wine than beer. I think. Beer is better bet because I think you will attract more people because beer (in my opinion) offers more variety. I loved the concept of unlimited pours (and no tickets for tastes). If I had one compliant about the Brewfest portion it would be to have more sun umbrellas and dump buckets available. I know. It can be hard to predict the weather but Celebrate Fairfax happens every year in June and therefore rain or shine you can expect it to be hot. On that note, you can bring in Camel Backpacks into the festival. It is very helpful to have a large source of water available since all of Celebrate Fairfax (except for the restrooms and train display in the Government Center) is outside. In a nutshell, I am super psyched to live in Northern VA so I can attend Celebrate Fairfax (fingers crossed they have another great band(s) next year).

Why wouldn't that have a shady area or more cooling stations…read more Non gender porta potty's - gross. Very little choices for picky kids, vegan or other diets- maybe pack your own stuff. Fair food.

Since my last review, I ended up purchasing a family membership to the Children's Science Center…read moreand it is the BEST purchasing decision I have made all year. It's close proximity means that I have a go-to spot to bring the kids on school breaks, rainy days, cold days, or whenever we simply have nothing to do. While there are a few standing exhibits, the staff does a really good job at changing things up (and keeping things topical) so each visit feels special. And the best part... SLIME. We've made slime conductors, spider slime, fluffy slime, snowflake slime, glow-in-the-dark slime .. basically alll the slime. The experiment lab always has a slime option and it is a highlight of every visit. My eldest daughter went from barely reading and needing help at the beginning of our membership to fully reading and creating experiments on her own. It is so much fun to see. For the littles, there is a small playroom with building blocks, magnatiles, books, and those large blue fort/construction material building materials. My two-year old loved spending time in this room but now that she is three she likes making her own hovercrafts and setting them sail in the wind tunnel. The staff is SO kind, SO helpful, and so passionate about what they do. I love how they offer volunteer/internship opportunities to teens and will also set up special traveling science labs to Title I schools. If you are a member you also get discounted or free visits to children's science museums all across the United States which has made this membership 100% worth it for our family. If you are looking for an experience gift to give a little one this year, I highly recommend the Children's Science Center!

Had a great time with my toddler today. She's not quite two so her admission was free and there's a…read more$2 discount for purchasing tickets in advance. I was worried there wouldn't be enough activity for her age but she had a blast playing with exhibits and blocks in the interactive room. She also made "play dough" as an experiment. The staff were all friendly and helpful, we will definitely be back.

I took two pictures in for dry mounting and matting. There were two people working, and one was…read morevery quiet and not interested in helping me. I felt like I was bothering him when I asked questions about the different brands they offered, but the other guy working there was pleasant and helpful. They charged $250 for both pictures, and I left. When I picked them up, one picture was great, but the other picture had the mat on backwards. The beveled edge sloped the wrong way so that where the picture ends and the mat begins, there was a sharp point sticking out that you could slide your fingernail under. I didn't notice in the store but called them when I got home and the quiet employee answered the phone. He said that all large pictures are mounted that way because it was the only way the machine could cut a mat that size. He asked "Don't you like the 3D look?" since the picture looked like it was recessed further than usual. This was all a cover up for a sloppy job since the only issue was that the wrong side of the cut mat was glued to the picture and dry mount board. Instead of apologizing, he blamed me for not liking his work. I took it back the next day to have them fix it, and the helpful employee was at the desk. He apologized and said they would fix it free of charge. When I picked it up a week later, the mat's orientation was correct, but it had ragged edges around the opening of the picture, and it was not adhered to the foam board. I posted pictures of the mat and backing separation, and ragged edges examples. I will definitely not be returning to this store. I've learned my lesson.

I had a very pleasant experience with this business. The work Jan did framing the painting we…read morebrought in was absolutely excellent. He helped me choose a frame style that really complemented the art work and was very professional in working up a price quote. The quality of the work was also top notch. Framing is one of those things that I always think is going to be cheap and ends up being expensive. This was not a cheap visit, so my only reason for not giving 5 stars is because I dislike how expensive framing is in general...