About DMV Matchbooks

In January 2021, Alexandria watercolor and oil artist Laurel Prucha Moran came across an old poster tucked behind the Christmas decorations in her attic. The 1987 poster was a grid of colored pencil matchbooks of iconic Louisville restaurants (where Laurel grew up) by a company called City Lights from Edgarton, MA. And Laurel thought, “What a fun project that would be to celebrate all the amazing local restaurants who are struggling during the shutdown.” She did some mockups and posted the idea on Instagram on her @blueroomstudioart page and spent the next 3 months painting dozens and dozens of matchbooks inspired by Del Ray restaurants. In an effort to help those struggling restaurants, she donated the cost of a hot meal for every custom print ordered to Hook Hall Helps, a charity supporting and feeding D.C. area hospitality workers. She now donates to Alexandria’s homeless shelter, Carpenter’s Shelter, for all custom print orders.

Article about me and my matchbooks in Alexandria Living Magazine

In April 2021, Laurel partnered with local makers promoter Made in ALX to launch DMV Matchbooks. Made in ALX ran a contest to determine which 12 restaurants would represent Del Ray on a Del Ray-specific print. Laurel donated 25% of the price of each Del Ray print purchased to the food bank at ALIVE!. In 2021, DMV Matchbooks donated over $1,000 to local charities.

In 2022 and 2023, Laurel decided to use #the100DayProject to more than triple her matchbooks by painting a new one every day for 100 days. She also launched her College Poster series in 2022, showcasing student favorites for Harrisonburg (JMU), Charlottesville (UVA), and Blacksburg (Virginia Tech). In 2023 she added Williamsburg (William & Mary) and Richmond (VCU) in 2024. As she has time, she will be expanding to other college towns.

Laurel is also a fine art painter and has created art for local businesses and many private collections. You can see her work on blueroomstudio.com.