Don’t ask yourself what the world needs.  Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and then go do that.  Because what the world needs are people who have come alive.
–Howard Thurman.

Ah, it's been a good four-week-run of festivals every weekend.  I've thoroughly enjoyed the bit of traveling and meeting and spending time with so many wonderful people.  

I participated in St. James Art Show a couple weeks ago in Old Town Louisville.  Here is a peek at the fountain on St. James court in the wee hours of the morning.  I found out when I was setting up that I was scheduled for a t.v. interview on Friday morning at 6am.  I had planned to drive to Louisville on Friday from Lexington.  This means et up really early.  There was something nice about being at the show while it was dark and still, before all the bustling began.  You can check out the t.v. interview here.  The rest of the weekend was pretty constant.  I got to see and meet some amazing customers and friends.  Plus, my friends, Amanda and George, made me Vegan lasagna, which was quite tasty!

Last weekend, I was at the KY Guild's Fall Fair.  It took place at the Indian Fort Theater, which has to be one of my favorite venues ever.  All of the artists are literally in the woods along a trail.  And with it being Fall, it couldn't have been prettier.  Some of the leaves had changed, and the weather was sunny and fabulous.  We could not have asked for a better weekend!

"Melissa Oesch of Re-Imagined was selling upcycled handmade journals, sketchbooks, and notebooks created from handmade paper and imaginative leather covers. I thought her use of old classic book covers that sandwiched blank paper—to write your own version of a classic—was a piece of creative genius. I picked up an old copy of “The Essentials of an Enduring Victory” and flipped through the blank pages, whiskers twitching with victorious possibilities. What a clever girl that Melissa was!"

Check out the full article about the Cherokee Art Fair at Toulouse LeTrek.

This past weekend was Cherokee Triangle Art Fair in Louisville, KY.   One of the many highlights were the variety of exclamations people would make as they walked into my booth.  One gal walzed right up to the booklet necklaces exclaiming "I require one of these!"  Another lady picked up a large leather journal as she said" Wow! This work is amazing."  It was a delight to hear all of the feedback.  This is definitely one of the perks of participating in a show.  Its also fun to watch folks pick everything up and truly experience all of the textures.

I set up on Friday and was immediately even more excited about the show once I saw where it was. Cherokee Triangle is a neighborhood with gorgeous homes and ancient trees.  I was completely enchanted.  The weekend was full of oh so many interesting, genuine folks of all ages.  We had sunshine all of Saturday, and did we ever need it.  With so much rain here as of late, everyone could not have been in a better mood-myself included. There was a storm late Saturday evening, and I arrived at a quite disheveled booth on Sunday morning.  Nothing will wake you up like some good old fashioned manual labor.  The top had come off of my canapy, and my tables and displays were overturned.  Lots of things were soaked.  Thankfully, I had put all of the books away the night before, and none of them got wet.  I called upon all things creative and got right to work putting my canopy back together and attempting some sort of display with what I could still use.  It all worked out, and although it was suppose to rain all of Sunday, it did not rain during the show.  As soon as I packed my car up and closed the door, the drops began to fall.  Its pretty amazing that the weather was so merciful.  I kept telling everyone that I felt like we were being given a present.  

Having never done a show in Louisville prior to this, I have to say that it did capture me.  I thoroughly enjoyed the people that came through.  The streets, trees, and many local restaurants were magical. Everything was conducive to a fantastic weekend.  Thanks to all to came out!