Halloween with Inka

Inka is just a basket case today.  It's her very first Halloween.

Here is her costume.  She's going as The-World's-Cutest-Black-Kitten-Known-To-Man-Woman-Or-Garden-Basket

The Carving of the Pumpkins was particularly exciting for her.

 Feline Fella and I were inspired by a pumpkin we saw on Mousebreath--a fantastic spooky cat face design by carver Hugh McMahon,  seen on our computer screen...

Auntie Mary created her very own special design...

 Things are progressing nicely...

Time for a snack.  Roasted pumpkin seeds, anyone?

 

They're finished! Inka gives her Smooch of Approval.

'

Now for the best part... Break out the candles!

Can you spot the Halloween Hare in Mary's design?

Happy Halloween 

from The-World's-Cutest-Black-Kitten-Known-To-Man-Woman-Or-Jack-O-Lantern!

What's New? Memo Mugs!

  Introducing something brand new 
from Susan Faye World Headquarters...

 Memo Mugs!

Each gift set includes a Susan Faye ceramic mug, plus matching memos and a mini ballpoint pen. Sip an eye-opening cup of java while you jot down your most important memos, lists, or recipes, or use the mug as a cheerful desk caddy for your pens, pencils or paint brushes. 




The mug measures 3.75" tall and 3" in diameter. It is dishwasher & microwave safe, but to keep the artwork bright and shiny, please do not clean outside surface with abrasives...

There are 15 matching memo/notes tucked inside which are 2.5 x 5.5" and are printed on 100% recycled paper, plus a mini retractable ball point pen. The set comes packaged in a cello bag, ready for gift-giving.

This one is suitable for men; they also make great teacher's gifts:

 Your knitting buddies might get a kick out of this one:

 

Four designs are now available in my Etsy shop. Click on any link for more details:

Early Bird

Garden Kittens

Knit One, Purr Two

Bon Apetit Bunny

More Memo Mug Gift Sets are in the works, so stay tuned!

If you would like to purchase any of the mugs separately, they are available in my Cafepress Shop at this link, where you will find over 200 of my designs:  Mugs

Collecting Cats and Canines... Black Cat Edition

Halloween is just around the corner, but that's not the only reason I have black cats on the mind. Sharing a home with the The-World's-Cutest-Black-Kitten-Known-To-Man-Woman-Or-Garden-Basket, also known as Inka, has heightened my awareness of the beauty, charm and mystery of a jet-black cat.

As for collecting black cats, my personal collection already holds a nice sampling which is sure to grow in the near future, but here a few fun treasures currently being offered in my Vintage Etsy Shop, Curio Cabinet: 
 

http://www.etsy.com/listing/105972834/black-cat-birthday-vintage-houze-glass

This is a vintage bent glass dish or ash tray by Houze featuring a cool retro black cat and the words "Have a purrfect birthday. Very mid-century modern!

It measures 4-3/4" x 3-3/4" and is in excellent condition.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/100459306/large-black-cat-salt-and-peppervintage

Here's a pair of LARGE and frisky vintage black cat kittens that are pottery salt and pepper shakers with painted-on features. They have removable corks in the bottom for filling, and they are in excellent vintage condition with no chips or cracks. They are 3" tall and 4" long and are marked "Made in Japan" on the bottom.. 

http://www.etsy.com/listing/100473529/retro-black-cat-ceramic-pen-holder-desk

This cool retro black cat from the 1960s is designed to hold your pen where its tail would be. It is glazed ceramic.and It has gold painted-on detailing. It's in great vintage condition with no chips or cracks, just a few tiny rubs to the paint in the eye area as shown.

It is 5" tall; no maker's mark on the bottom.. 

Happy collecting!

Rescue Cats-- A Love Story From Cat Lady Kim

Every time I post an image of my studio assistant Buttonwillow, I'm surprised at how many Cat Ladies comment that she looks just like their very own beloved bi-color kitty. Miss BeeDub is proud to have so many twins all over the world!

I am also constantly inspired by stories of cat rescue and adoption told by animal lovers from around the globe, particularly those who adopt adult and hard-to-place cats.  One such cat lover is Cat Lady Kim who recently wrote to me after seeing Buttonwillow's portrait, telling me how much it reminded of her of Midy, pictured here.  Sadly, Kim had said goodbye to 17-year-old Midy just days before.

Midy

Here is the story of Midy's adoption as told by Kim:

We have been doing cat rescue since my Hubby and I were married 36 years ago. Most of our kitties have come from the streets. After one of my kitties died (Angel, my Soulmate,19 years of age) we went to the local shelter to open our home to a new kitty . 

My son fell in love with a BIG black and white cat named Snazzy (and they often say, you don't pick your fur baby, they pick you).  Snazzy was 10 yrs of age at the point of adoption. We found out that Snazzy had a mommy and she had been in the infirmary for 6 months. We took Snazz home and kept checking up on Midy. 

We knew we would adopt her even though we never saw her and we were told she had kidney disease. We were told we would have to give her sub-cutaneous fluids every few days for the rest of her life. 
 My darling husband knew I could never leave Snazzy's momma at the shelter...and Hubby said its fine we will learn to give her the fluids.

Finally Midy came down from the infirmary and we got to meet her. Do you believe in Love at first sight?  Well this was it.  She was the tuxedo cat I always dreamed of and there she was. My daughter and I started to cry when we saw her and everyone at the shelter were so excited because after 8 months in the infirmary she would be going to a home to be with her son. People were crying at the shelter. 
 

Snazzy

                          

Midy was already 12 and between her health and she and Snazzy's age, no-one ever thought they would leave the shelter. The people who owned them for a number of years, one day put them together in a cat carrier and left them in front of the shelter over night with a note about them. And there they stayed at the shelter for a few years wondering what the heck they did to deserve being there. Oh I could cry when I think of those wasted years. 

When we brought Midy home, Snazzy ran right up to her in the carrier and I swear they kissed each other through the gate. Even though Snazzy is so huge, he is such a momma's boy, so shy and when Momma came,even after 8 months without her, they were side by side again and they remained that way for the last 5years. When she was so sick with cancer, he would put his big body in front of her to protect her and let her rest or I would see him resting his head on her back. Oh it breaks my heart so that he is without her. We tried everything. I went to an oncologist and had her on oral chemo. All kinds of meds to keep her comfortable...Making the decision to give her peace was the hardest decision in the world but she was starting to suffer so much and I loved her too much to let her suffer. 

Snazzy was with her till the end. I do have other kitties, but he only loved his Mommy. The first night, when I got up to go to the bathroom I heard this weird noise in the kitchen. My big boy was crying for his Momma. Oh it kills me.They have been through so much, I wanted them to have many years of peace. At least Midy had 5 cage-free peaceful years with Snazzy and a family that adored her every breath. 

Aside from the ones we find, we will only adopt seniors to give them a second chance for some happiness. Even if we have to say good-bye sooner, it's important for them to have some quality. They deserve that. We have also decided to volunteer at the shelter where Mid and Snazz were adopted to honor her sweet memory. This will help me with my grief.

Thanks for sharing your story Kim!  I hope it inspires many others to consider adopting an older or special-needs cat.
 

        

Shadow Play

It's a challenge.  
Photographing a black kitten-cat is like taking a picture of a shadow in motion.  Inka inevitably winds up looking like a blurry silhouette.  But when she spotted Buttonwillow's profile behind the drapes in the sunny window, for once it seemed highly appropriate that she appeared only as an inky silhouette!

Cover Girl Winners!

It was a landslide. Crazy Cat Lady "A" won the popularity contest with a whopping 34 votes. Tuxedo Mom and Tea Time Lady tied for second with 16 votes each, and Autumn Cat Lady came in with a respectable 11 votes.

One voter's name was drawn at random to win a calendar, and the winner was knitting cat lady Nancy P. who cast her vote over on my facebook page.  Congratulations, Nancy P.!

Crazy Cat Lady A would like to humbly thank everyone for participating, especially those who voted to make her dreams come true to become this year's covergirl.  She will be working tirelessly all year to promote peace, spaying and neutering, and a better cat fur removal system for dark clothing.

I will be printing up calendars this weekend and will list them in my Etsy shop asap.  Stay tuned...

Calendar Girls (and a Giveaway!)

 Update: the giveaway has ended and Nancy P. (who voted via Facebook) is the winner of the free calendar. Thank you to everyone who participated!)

I'm working on my Mini Calendars for 2013 and I need your help.

Here are the prototype pages for the Cat Lady calendar but I'm stuck trying to decide who should be the cover girl for this year.

Should it be

• A Crazy Tabby Cat Lady?
• B Tuxedo Cat Mom?
• C Autumn Tabby Cat Lady? or
• D Tea Time Tabby Kittens?

 Tell me which one you would choose for a chance to win one of these calendars when I'm finished with them (hopefully within the week!)--a $14 value.  Just post your choice in the comments section of this blog post.

For a second chance entry, add your choice to the comment section of the matching post on my facebook page.

On Saturday, Oct 20th at 8:00 p.m Pacific Time, I will draw one name at random to win the calendar.

Please make sure that I have a way to contact you in your blog comment in case you are the lucky winner, such as a link to your blog or e-mail address.
 
You may send the info directly to my email if you don't want to make your contact info public.

Also, if you encounter trouble with the Comments feature, please send your entry via e-mail . If you visit www.susanfaye.net , you will find an email link.

Thanks for your help!  I'm also working on a Nature Lover Calendar and a new one this year-- for Garden Lovers...coming soon to my Etsy shop!

Birthday Giveaway

 UPDATE: the giveaway has ended and the winner is Rita Dean.  Thank you to everyone who participated and described some delectable-sounding cupcakes!
 
I glanced at the calendar and apparently it is time to celebrate the anniversary of the birth of some certain silver-haired cat lady once again. Hopefully cupcakes will ensue.  In the mean time, let's celebrate with a giveaway!

In the comments section, just tell me what would be your favorite flavor combo for a cupcake-- cake plus frosting.  For example, I would have to go with the classic dark chocolate cake and vanilla frosting, all made from scratch, of course!

At 9:00 Pacific Time tonight, I will draw one name from the comments section to win this original ACEO card, a collectible mini work of art! It is an ORIGINAL miniature watercolor painting from my 2009 series of 365 Cat Ladies.  It's called "Party Animals No. 6". It is in ACEO (Art Card Editions and Originals) format, which means that the artwork size is 2.5" x 3.5".

It is is hand-painted on super-heavy Arches 300-lb. acid-free cold-press watercolor paper with professional quality watercolor paints. Artist-initialed on front, signed, dated, and titled on back. The card will arrive in a rigid plastic sleeve for protection.

Please make sure that I have a way to contact you if you are the winner, such as a link to your blog or e-mail address included in the comment.
 You may send the info directly to my email if you don't want to make your contact info public.

Also, if you encounter trouble with the Comments feature, please contact me by e-mail . If you visit www.susanfaye.net , you will find an email link.

Now bring on the cupcakes!!! 

Studio Tour Entryway: Cat Ladies Galore!

Welcome to my home studio!  As you walk in the front door, this is now what you see as I prepare for the Art Harvest Studio Tour of Yamhill County that begins on Friday:

Studio Assistant Buttonwillow conducted a brief inspection this morning and thinks the posies are a nice touch.

As many of you know, I had a crazy idea a few years ago to paint 365 Cat Ladies (and Lads!) and post one a day for a year.  As a result, this blog was born in 2009.  Many of the cat lady paintings were in the ACEO format (Art Card Editions and Originals)-- the size of a baseball card.

I decided to showcase some of these in the entryway of my home studio for the studio tour.  I have only about 50 of the 2009 art cards left.

Because the Art Harvest Studio Tour is celebrating its 20th year, each artist was asked to created something with a "20" theme.  I decided to frame 20 of my ACEO art cards and make a grouping of them:

Haha-- everytime I pound a nail in the wall, my grouping goes wonky.  I'll straighten them up right before my guests arrive!

The framed ACEO's that you see in my entryway are $20 each (plus shipping if applicable).  If you see one that you like, drop me a line.  Unframed ACEOs are available for purchase in my Etsy Shop.  Click here to see which ones are available: Original Art

The Studio Tour Approacheth

The Art Harvest Studio Tour begins in less than a week and I'm busy as a bee framing and hanging artwork in my home studio in anticipation of visitors starting Friday, October 5th.  Can't make it to Yamhill County this weekend or next? Don't despair. I'll be giving you a sneak peek and a virtual tour of my home studio over the next two weeks.
Here are a few of the paintings that I began hanging today...All are available for pre-sale; just drop me a line if you have any questions or would like to purchase one. [Prices do not include shipping].

Patio Cat" image: 10.5" x 13.5", ivory-colored matting 16" x 20";  $250 matted only

"Let It Snow" image: 11" x 15", matting 16" x 20"; $350 framed; $275 matted only

"Nature Girls" image: 10" x 14", matting 16" x 20"; $350 framed; $275 matted only

"Tiger Cat" image: 4.5" x 6.5", matting 11" x 14"; $150 framed; $100 matted only

"White Cat Lover" image: 4.5" x 6.5", matting 11" x 14"; $100 matted

"White Cat Lover" image: 4.5" x 6.5", matting 11" x 14"; $100 matted

For more information about the studio tour, click here:

 Art Harvest Studio Tour 

Thanks for visiting!