August in Ragonia (2021) (Patreon)

Hello Patrons and friends, and happy end-of-summer vibes unto you and yours! I'm writing to you from my Seattle home studio, a slight breeze blowing the cool late-summer air in, carrying smells of my neighbors' barbeques. Following a couple days of scattered distraction, I'm finally focused and vibing to the warbling tones of a 70's Dolly Parton Spotify playlist. I'm pulling it all together to share with you about my fresh and fine August 2021!

As is tradition, I'd like to first start by welcoming our new August Ragonia patrons: Michelle, Julie, and Katherine!! Huge welcomes and thank you for your generous support, I hope you enjoy the content I share here! Message me any time with questions, suggestions, and requests, and comment on as many or few posts as you like. I invite you to introduce yourself on the Community tab, and to say hi to a few of the other patrons. Thanks again for being here, I appreciate you so much!

Alriiiiighty let's peep August!

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THE NEVERENDING STORY: BOOK FINALS

Still rockin' and rollin' on the book finals, but I have made the hugely relieving decision to extend the deadline a month to early October instead of early September. I asked my editor if I could extend it two weeks to mid September and she said: heck let's do October, we're still working on the manuscript anyway.

I set my own deadline anyway, I thought I'd want to be done in September but the two pages a day pace turned out to be too fast for the illustrations I have. As soon as we extended the deadline I realized all of the other projects I could do in the next month as well, as opposed to JUST working on the book for two weeks straight. 

I'm really hoping now I can get a few new products illustrated and ordered for this year's holiday season!

PERSONAL DRAWING

As soon as I decided I was going to take longer on the book, I jumped right into making a bit of personal art: A reworking of a piece I made in 2018, you can still check out the original print of her in my shop.

Since I've been feeling so art-blocked with personal work for so long, I've gotten increasingly worried that I... I don't know, can't or don't want to make art anymore. But it's definitely more of a time management thing - as soon as I gave myself permission to just make some art for an afternoon I got right back in the flow. 

Okay philosophizing aside, it was EXTREMELY satisfying to rework this piece, and I really like how the new one came out.

KENNA MOVED TO THE PNW

My middle sister moved from Boulder, Colorado to Portland, Oregon this month (which is about 3.5 hours away from Seattle!) She's two years younger than me, and one of my best friends. She'll be getting her graduate degree and doctorate in Clinical Psychology in the next 5 years in Portland, so she spent a week staying with us here in Seattle.

We played Settlers of Catan 1000 times (as usual), watched all the Twilight movies (we were hopeful they were better than we remembered, and we were wrong), and took her to some tasty vegan restaurants around town (El Borracho, Araya's Place.)

Trying to FaceTime with our youngest sister (and Ragonia Patron) Nora Lane. <3

After Kenna's visit to Seattle I rode down with her to Portland to help set up her new room and explore her new neighborhood. 

To get back to Seattle I was SO EXCITED to take the absolutely gorgeous Coast Starlight Amtrak train. The ticket cost the same as a tank of gas one way, and it only took a bit longer, and was absolutely worth the slightly extra time. Wholesomely, two Forest Service volunteers were sharing facts and dad jokes about the passing scenery. With their help I got to see Mount St. Helens for the first time!

I will absolutely be using this train anytime I travel to Portland, and hopefully to visit LA someday soon!

GONE TO CAROLINA (In Real Life)

Last week Zach and I were lucky to be able to take a trip to little Pawley's Island, South Carolina to spend a week relaxing with Zach's family. We hadn't been able to see them since 2019, so we are so grateful for the vaccines that let us get to see his family again.

Zach had spent a lot of time in Hilton Head in his childhood, I grew up on a marshy creek in Virginia, and we both went to college in Savannah, Georgia, so the humid, hot, salty, stormy island atmosphere was very familiar to us.

We did what most people do on family beach vacations: 

• sat on the beach, played games, drank a lot of beer and ate a lot of chips
• kayaked in the marsh on the other side of the island
• sat in rocking chairs on the porch and watched thunderstorms roll through
• watched Jaws (Zach's mom's favorite movie)
• watched Alien cause Jaws reminded me of it (I don't think Zach's mom liked it)
• took long walks on the beach (we saw a five foot shark, I am not joking, it was awesome)
• swam in the rough ocean (yes, after seeing the shark, I'm no coward)

And we met a BEACH CAT who Zach and I named Shrimp. Shrimp loved pets but was very skittish, but loved to hang out on our porch. I love Shrimp.

Last exciting thing about the beach trip: this amazing quilt pattern that I am obsessed with. 

(An thought: Even through my art block I have been so insanely inspired by kitschy vintage products and art, and I think once I get time to make personal art I want to do my own explorations of these themes. Like... farmhouse kitchen-y grandma art? I don't know how to explain it, I just need to make it.)

ROSE CITY COMIC CON

Not sure if I've announced this yet but the one and only show I'll be tabling at this year is Rose City Comic Con in Portland, September 10-12! 

I'll be table C08, bringing absolutely everything that I have for sale, myself, and my sister Kenna! If any Portland area folks want to have a meet up or something, let me know!!

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Okay buds, that's all for August 2021!! In the bag!! And HERE WE COME AUTUMN YES MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE TIME OF YEEEEAR!

How was your August/Summer, my friend? Did you do anything that you're proud of? What are your plans for Autumn, or what are you looking forward to? Are you a summer sunshine baby or an autumn rainy cloud ghoul like me? Let's chat in the comments, I'd love to hear!

Thank you as always for being here. Have an EXCELLENT rest of your month!