Vendors and makers are getting ready for the big markets coming along in the next few months. For me it will be Art on the Avenue in Del Ray on Saturday, October 5th. This huge event has been going on 29 years, which means it first started a few years after I arrived in Alexandria. This year there will be over 350 artists and over 50,000 visitors are expected! The event was started by Pat Miller, who still is the leading organizer, along with a team. There will also be four stages with live music, kids events, pie baking and more. I started exhibiting at Art on the Ave a few years ago once Yellow Dot Shop had come into its own. Art on the Avenue stretches along Mt. Vernon Avenue from Bellefonte to Hume Avenue. It goes from 10am to 6pm on October 5th.

Later in November I will be part of the grand Holiday Shop at Mount Vernon Unitarian Church in south Alexandria. The church puts on this lively event every year, which fills the church, the historic house next door and outdoor spaces. It has antiques, a bake sale and lots of arts and crafts. The Holiday Shop has been going for over sixty years, as a fund raiser for the church. It started as a bake sale, knitters, quilters and crafts. Soon vendors were brought in and it has grown ever since. Last year was my first year at the one-day event, and I was surprised at the steady stream of visitors. Holiday Shop is at 1909 Windmill Lane in the lovely Hollin Hills part of Alexandria. It is Saturday, November 23, and goes from 9:30am to 4pm.