On the cutting edge // Jakhai Wilson, 9, sits perfectly still as Damond Gurley of the Virginia Barber School puts the final touches on his new haircut. Jakhai got the free cut while participating in the WE CARE/Northside Coalition for Children Back-to-School Rally and Festival last Saturday at the Hotchkiss Field Community Center in Highland Park. The festive event included the donation of hundreds of bookbags stuffed with school supplies to students like Jakhai as they get ready to head back to classes next month.

Fencing blocks off 17th Street and the Farmers’ Market — the first step in a $4.3 million facelift that will transform the street and the marketplace between Main and Franklin streets into a European-style plaza. Despite the work, restaurants and shops that face the market remain open for business, with owners and operators hoping customers will continue to stop by. The transformation is expected to be finished by March. When done, the revamped market is to be the outdoor extension of nearby Main Street Station, whose interior has been redone and includes a huge, glass-faced event space, a soon-to-open tourist welcome center and room for retail shops. The project is part of the city’s spending to rejuvenate the Shockoe Bottom area. Nearby to the west, the city plans to invest more than $19 million to develop a museum-style space to recall Richmond’s role in the slave trade more than 150 years ago.

Kanawha Plaza fountain Downtown

Washington tight end Vernon Davis, a two-time Pro Bowl selection who is now in his 12th season in the NFL, signs autographs for excited fans Saturday during Fan Appreciation Day at the Bon Secours Training Center in Richmond.

Fans of all ages turned out for the event that included a good-natured drubbing of a Green Bay Packers fan who was dressed showing his allegiance.

Dîner en Blanc More than 900 people dine al fresco in white during Richmond’s inaugural Dîner en Blanc last Saturday at the Science Museum of Virginia on West Broad Street. Invited guests bring white chairs, tablecloths and picnic baskets to the pop-up picnic, the location of which is kept secret until the last moment. Guests then converge on the location and unpack their picnic carts — no plastic plates or utensils allowed — to elegantly dine under the stars to music. According to the Paris tradition where the impromptu event began nearly 30 years ago, everyone must dress in white. Photo by Tri D. Pham //

Photo by Ronald E. Carrington Playing to the crowd Smooth jazz saxophonist Rick Elliott plays for an appreciative crowd last Saturday at St. Elizabeth Catholic Church’s 9th Annual Jazz and Food Festival. Food trucks served up dishes and beverages while performers serenaded the crowd in Highland Park. Money raised by the festival supports the church’s programs.