Yesterday started with a fog so thick I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face. I nearly missed my turn to get on the highway because I couldn’t see the traffic light! The fog lifted as I drove north and by the time I reached my partner’s house to pick her up, it had dissipated. We loaded her folding table into my car and headed off to the park for PPD.

I had the very last booth on the row. (Actually there was another vendor with a booth after mine, but they showed up in the morning while we were setting up and loooked at their spot and left. We didn’t see them after that!)

The weather was perfect. High 70s with a mild breeze and sunny! After 3 days of heavy rain it was very welcome. The Gods must have been smiling on us because it started raining again last night and it’s still raining now.

I sold 12 books. What a rush! Plus, I had a suprize visit from the author of my foreword – M.R. Sellars! While he was there chatting with me, a few lucky book purchasers got BOTH my autograph and his autograph in my book.

I feel like I have done exceptionally well for my first outing with my book. Plus when I got home from the fair I had fan mail in my inbox!

Hi Lyon!
I was hoping I’d be able to buy your book today at PPD — and thanks to my friend Tracey I did.

Wow — holding a copy of your book in my hands and reading through it–it is so much more impressive than I thought it would be after looking it up on your website and on amazon.

I have only read a little bit of it to my 4yo daughter (Evangeline) — but she adores it so far. And I myself have gotten many ideas from it — and I haven’t even read it all the way through yet. But I’ll have that done by tonight — after the kids are in
bed.

Thank you so much for writing this book — and for signing it as well — my daughter thinks it is so cool that you wrote her name in it for her. That made it even more special for her.

Thank you.
Birghtest Blessings,
Tabitha

Plus to top that off, my rating on amazon.com jumped under the 100,000 mark to 95,000 something.

I was invited back to PPD next year to give a workshop. I was also asked if I would give an interview for a well trafficed web site. I expect to hear from them next week regarding the details.

Obviously, I was so busy yesterday with the fair I didn’t have time to sketch but I will definetaly need to get going on some fine art paintings for my upcoming one person show at Chique Gallery in Arnold.

I’m sending out my cards today. Here’s one…

and another…

and another.

I never heard back from my daughter’s teacher and my daughter never mentioned any cards, so I guess the school isn’t doing the project.

This was envisioned as a T-shirt graphic.

Well, it’s all set. I have a tent, a spot and a partner to help set up and keep me company during the day. But most importantly, I have books to sell and sign.

I will be at Tower Grove Park all day, Saturday September 17, signing books for the reading public!

My first official book signing. Hopefully there will be more to follow.

____
St. Louis’s third annual PPD festival will be held September 17, 2005, in Tower Grove Park. Our target attendance this year is 750 people, and with your help we should meet that easily!

The festival opens at 10 am on Saturday, and runs until 4 pm. Join us for a public ritual, workshops, vendors, children’s activities, and the Images Of The Divine art fair.

Kards for Katrina Relief are collecting original cards donated by calligraphers, collage artists and greetings card artists and other artists around the world during the month of September. They are then selling raffle tickets at $5.00 each for a chance to win a packet of 5 original cards. 100 % of the proceeds are going to America’s Second Harvest

Raffle tickets: Raffle tickets will be sold through Acorn Arts and you can purchase raffle tickets on line. Raffle draw on 2nd October. If you have an original 5 x 7 card that you would like to donate,please send to-
Acorn Arts
603 W. Crane
Howell MI 48843 USA
Thank you for your generosity.

To read more about America’s Second Harvest,please click here:

I will be sending some original cards to the Kards for Katrina relief raffle this week, I also asked my daughter’s art teacher to get the elementary school involved.

Yesterday we spent the day at the 28th Annual Japanese Festival in the Missouri Botanical Gardens, St. Louis MO. I decided this would be a really good place to draw, so I packed up my paints, pens, pencils and sketch book with every intention of getting some really good sketches.

My husband is a sensei of a Kokondo dojo (A form of Japanese karate). The dojo was invited to help carry the shrine at the opening ceremonies. Quite an honor! So we were there first thing in the morning. I meant to sketch the shrine, but all things being equal, I became my husband’s mule carrying assorted things behind the shrine as they moved it to and from the ceremony! By the time I got to the ceremony area the closest I could get to the shrine was up a hill behind a bunch of trees and a crowd of people. I did paint the people and the trees in front of me!

I also did some quick sketches of traditional dancers.

The theme of the Festival this year was SUMO. They had a featured artist, Lynn Matsuoka there. Her paintings were absolutely amazing. (The web site just doesn’t do them justice.) After the Sumo demonstrations, there were T-shirt sales with her art on the shirts that could be autographed by the Sumo. I asked her to sign my shirt instead. She was very pleased to do so and went and got one of the official signing markers right out the hand of one of the Sumo.