a refresh

You may recall the infamous blue chair that I talked about in a previous post. I can't find the post, so I'll just summarize. My mom and I dragged it out of the trash, after having earlier discovered it at a yard sale. We offered a price, the sellers refused, we said forgettt that. Imagine our surprise to find it on the side of the road later! They should have taken our money while they could! Anyways, it was in awesome condition those many years ago when we got it, but has since gone downhill. I'm in the process of reupholstering it. It's a nightmare. What was I thinking.

Anyways...a few years ago when I was visiting my parents in Virginia, my mom and I went to an antique store and stumbled upon this gem. It's a GIANT print of a painting of a 70's style girl and her cats. It's titled "Harlequin with Kitten".

When we asked the worker how much it was, he looked at us like we were out of our minds and said "take it!"
Yay! More free goodies!
The other night I decided a nice coat of black paint along the frame would freshen it up. I don't know why it took me so long. The frame has always looked so stained and gross. I imagine some bozo was eating his greasy pizza over it.

And...ta-da! All better! And now it matches my other black frames.

weirdo cat behavior, continued

So remember this post where I illustrated a typical day in my apartment involving paper and sleeping kitties?

I happened upon a real life moment quite similar tonight. And a double-whammy no less...



No cardboard box or plastic bag is safe. Look at all that floor space!

Illustration Friday - Layer

This week's Illustration Friday word is "layer". I immediately thought of nice, fluffy, warm sweater layers for this crappy cold weather we've been having. But I decided to go in another direction. Not unlike me, really. Food. And cats. It's all I ever think about.
I didn't get a chance to color it just yet. I also don't recommend eating a cat sandwich...living or otherwise. However, this illustration rings true, as many a time have I found a cat hair in my food. I'm sure other cat lovers can say the same, while everyone else is saying "eww!"

Goodwill finds

Last week I came upon a really cool cat ceramic thing-a-ma-bobber at GoodWill for only a dollar! Actually, I think it's a planter. It's hollow in the back. That's all I know. {hmm...now that I think about it, growing catnip out of it would be cute}. When I saw it in the store, it was filthy. I'm surprised Lou even let me touch it, let alone bring it home with us. But it cleaned up just fine and now will be my new favorite pencil holder!

Simon's Cat

Love. I could watch these all day.

kittehs for the shop

Soon to be listed in the shop! I have two more not pictured busily drying.

The Mother Teresa of stray cats?

There's been a new stray kitty hanging outside on my porch. This one I feel particularly attached to because he/she reminds me of my other cat Ein. I guess most torie cats look similar, but this one bugs me out sometimes. I'll see him/her (still can't figure out if it's a girl or a boy..I'm assuming girl because most tories are) stroll by and freak out thinking Ein has escaped to the outside. I also feel bad for it because it's not a full grown cat, more like a teenager. And I imagine that this cat doesn't know what kind of hardships it really has ahead of it. I have a discarded cat scratching post in the corner on my porch that she likes to sit on until 4 in the morning, then disappears until the next evening.
She's really friendly too. The other day I was thinking about a news story I read about a young kid that set a cat on fire and I really got worried. Was I doing a disservice to the cat by being friendly to it and getting her used to humans? I can't protect every stray in the area. Is being feral the only way to protect themselves from heartless human beings? Lou said no, it'll be fine. But I can't help worrying.

This is my inside kitty Ein. Doesn't she look like my stray friend?







Aside from being the Mother Teresa of cats I've been trying hard to stay motivated and get my pictures uploaded, edited, and listed. I have almost all of my Halloween Plini figurines up and then a few more to go, and one custom order I've still been working on. I can't wait to get that one finished. It's coming out really cute! Pictures to follow soon.

How to be a Cat Lady

I always said I'd be a cat lady when I have a house of my own and a big yard and I won't have to worry if the cats are getting run over or lost.



Last night I heard some yowling outside my screen door and sitting there waiting to be let inside was a charming orange cat. He was a little skinny, but SO nice. He wouldn't come inside (not that I could let him because my two spoiled inside kitties wouldn't allow it), but his meows were so vocal I could swear he was saying "come outside and play with me!". I'm still not convinced he's a stray even though Lou says he must be. He lets me pet his tummy and he doesn't appear to have fleas or other buggies. Plus he responds to the "pssw psww" sound you make to get a kitty's attention. Although..I did spy a large set of *hm hmms*, and most [responsible]people nowadays get their kitties fixed. I gave him some dry food and water and he inhaled it and hung around for a while longer before disappearing into the night.

Then today I heard that same yowling and there he was at my screen door. "Hey I'm back!" I gave him some more food and water and we hung out for a little while. Lou said "oh great, now he'll never go away". But I don't mind. It's like I have a no-maintenance outside cat...who I'm feeding "inside cat chow".

If he comes back tomorrow, then I'll give him a nickname. Like Harold, or maybe Franklin. We'll see..