Happy Friday, and Happy Fall!

It's cool and drizzling tonight in Northeast Ohio - a perfect night for a home football game.

I'm staying in tonight to catch up on life, and to bring you a brief update about all of the exciting things happening with Rhinestones Optional.

This year, we have created community at Westside Bowl in Youngstown by connecting with our neighbors and creating "PAL-entines." We've connected with and raised funds for community partners like Thrive Mahoning Valley, and The Melina Michelle Edenfield Foundation. We helped organize a charity 5k with our friends at Paradise Church in Canfield. We held our 3rd annual fundraiser for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library in Mahoning County, and we are planning for our 4th. We have had a few small private party-planning engagements this year, and we were booked for our first wedding!

In MORE exciting news, Rhinestones Optional is occupying studio-artist space at the new LOOP building in the Mahoning Commons in Youngstown: https://www.loopyoungstown.org/

We are looking forward to expressing our creativity with the artists inside LOOP, and hope to expand our programming to include opportunities to create in our space, specifically for families and underserved communities.

You may notice our name changed in some places to: "STEEL BLOOM WEST," a creative concept which aims to encourage productive reuse, minimize waste, encourage artistic expression for all, and foster community. What do you think of the name? Let us know. We're trying it on.

Signing off for now, but looking forward to a fall season of reconnection, comfort, love, joy, and gratitude, and wishing you the same.

Wishing you only good things,

Jessica Valsi