Snazzy Rat Testimonials

Thanks to the generosity of 99 Kickstarter backers in April 2013, Snazzy Rat Catnip Toys have now made their way into the world, and testimonials and photos have been rolling in ever since...

Here is one of my favorites so far, sent in by Cat Lady Mary R.  It seems that Piggy, Hugo, Squeeky, and Chaps have been enjoying their Snazzy Rats! (Maybe TOO much... check out the glowing eyes!)



"Had to tell you that your Snazzy Rats are a favorite now at our house! Onyx Kitty just loves her Snazzy Rat!!!"   ~photo courtesy of Cat Lady Pat A.

 
"I wanted to write and let you know that your wonderful Snazzy Rat arrived safely and has been causing an excited ruckus with our 2 cats - Dutch, our elderly (16+ years old) and our young (barely 1 year old) Thelma.They had a fun time wrestling each other and licking the rat, and when Dutch fell into an exhausted heap on top of it and went to sleep, Thelma climbed up onto the couch and began eating the paper that came with it! Thanks so much! We will be spreading the word amongst our family of cat lovers!"  ~from Cat Lady Elizabeth M.

"The snazzy rats are a hit! Clawing open the mailer was just the start." ~photo courtesy of Cat Lady Joana E (on behalf of Baloo, Percy, Ming and Pikachu)
Apparently a lot of resourceful kitties have tried to open their own Snazzy Rat packages!

"Got my Kickstarter Ratz toy and inadvertently started a small household war! Had to take it away until I could get a second one so they didn't kill each other over it! :)  I don't know who grows your 'nip, but they *love* it--20 minutes later my (older, generally rather sedate) cats are still fighting over the bit of floor where it lay for all of 5 minutes! The catnip I had on hand simply will not do. Compliments to your supplier! And to the toy--it's *perfect* wrestle size!  (And I, of course, appreciate the awesome artwork. I'm afraid it's lost on their happy little drugged-out brains though.)" ~ from Cat Lady Dianne D.


"My kitty George supported your kickstarter project. He got his loot today and he's through the roof, high on catnip. We could smell it as we were opening the package! We also bought a rat for my mom's 2 kitties. I just wanted to say thank you, i am eternally looking for made in the US cat products that are also esthetically pleasing and fun for my cat. I'm sure George will sneak online and buy more in the near future!" ~photo courtesy of Cat Lady Claire. 

George isn't going to let his "Cheese Louise" Snazzy Rat get away...

"My cats are going nuts over these, thank you thank you thank you for creating them! I'll definitely be ordering in the future as well, your shop has so many cute things. I don't know what brand of catnip you are using but keep it; it smells so fresh and strong (in a good way) and had immediate effect"~ from Foster Cat Mom Katrina F.

"This thing must be made from something really awesome because my normally docile sweet orange tabby nearly tore straight through the mailer to get to this toy!! I've never seen her so excited about a toy in my life. She and my other cat (grey, unknown type, kinda bitchy) have been loving on their cosmic snazzy rat for over 20 min now. They only stop to take care of the munchies. Anyhow, thank you for this wonderful rat and the kitties love it!!"  ~ from Cat Lady Alison M.


~ Photos of Tango from Cat Lady Missy D:
"She even helped open the package! Tango is very possessive of her rat. I put it away for a few days a week - then she thinks she is getting a new toy when I bring it out."

This was Tango in constant movement

 when I gave her the rat.

This picture was taken after 20 minutes of wild play.

"My cat went nutty. She is 13 and was acting like a kitten. It made me so happy. If I could snag a few more with an Etsy listing, please please! I'll take 4 more of any cloth/color." ~ from Cat Lady Anne

Kitty Dearests!  Need more 'NIP?  Don't panic;  just tell the humanoids that Snazzy Rats are now available in my Etsy shop at this link: 

 SNAZZY RAT CATNIP TOYS

 

Meet the Phoebe Family

One of the great joys of my visit to the ranch in Alabama's Hurricane Valley last month was watching the progress of a  nest-full of newly-hatched Phoebe birds.

    Here are Mom and Dad Phoebe surveying their kingdom, on the hunt for bugs every waking hour of the day.

Looks like Dad found some kind of juicy little morsel...

"Over here, Dad!"

No wonder Mom and Dad are so busy!  Apparently there are three little beaks to feed in the sweet little nest perfectly nestled into the corner of the front porch eaves!

A new day has dawned and it looks like Mom found an especially delectable winged thing for breakfast...

Dozens and dozens of bugs later, it looks like this nest is getting a little too cozy.  No pushing in the back!

Another day goes by and babies are spilling out over the edges. Wait, what's this? I'm counting FIVE hungry beaks to feed!

Good thing Mom and Dad have boundless energy and the meadow has boundless bugs.  Back to work, Mom!

You must be so proud of your beautiful family...

On our last morning at the ranch we awoke to find the nest empty.  There was a tiny tug at my heartstrings as I clearly remembered the feeling of having my own nest suddenly empty as my son flew down the road with a brand new driver's license and wheels instead of wings. It's a very sweet and precious sorrow.

Cue The Marching Bands and Fireworks!

No, I'm not talking about the Fourth of July.
But yes, it is time to celebrate. 

As most of you know,  my Snazzy Rat Kickstarter campaign successfully ended on April 23. But actually, that was only the beginning.

8 weeks,
250 Snazzy Rats,
120 I.D. cards, and
98 stuffed envelopes later
(not to mention a 2-week cross country trip thrown in for good measure)...

...Studio Assistant Buttonwillow demonstrates the current condition of the staff here at Susan Faye World Headquarters:

Yes, we may be dazed and confused, but

WE ARE FINISHED!

[commence marching bands and fireworks] 

I'm happy to report that the last four Kickstarter reward packages are going out in tomorrow's mail.  If you are a beloved backer and you haven't received your Snazzy Rats yet, don't despair-- they are on their way.

[International backers-- bear in mind that it can take up to 2 weeks for packages to make their way to exotic locales].

In the mean time, Snazzy Rat testimonials and photos of satisfied customers have been rolling in from those Kitty Dearests who have already received their rodents. 

Here's one from Cat Lady Claire of her George enjoying his newly-arrived Cheese Louise Snazzy Rat: 

 

Keep those photos (and videos) rolling in.  I'll be gathering them up and creating a Gallery here on my blog and on my Facebook page in the coming days and weeks, so stay tuned. I'll also be catching up on answering emails and messages that I am woefully behind on...

And thanks to the generosity of my Kickstarter backers, I now have the means to offer Snazzy Rats to the world at large!  Yes, they are now available in my Etsy shop.  Check them out here: Snazzy Rat Catnip Toys.

   

Kitty Dearest will be glad you did.

Now excuse me while I go curl up with my cats and take a quick little cat nap...

I'm Back! And Playing Catch-up!

Did you ever feel that you needed a vacation to recover from a vacation? 

Last month I took a cross-country trip to Alabama and back with my girlfriend Anne.  It was quite an adventure as we spent many 10-hour days on the road, did a lot of "picking" for antiques and treasures along the way, stayed at her dad's ranch where I saw my very first cardinal, my very first fireflies, and my very first sassafras tree, experienced Nashville, dodged a tornado or two on the way back to Southern California, then flew home to Oregon with a pesky head cold.  Whew!  

I was giddy as a schoolgirl to see a cardinal for the very first time...

Not only did I see a Sassafras tree for the first time, I also TASTED one for the first time.  Yummy!

I've been back for almost two weeks and laying low a bit while playing catch-up.  I'm happy to report the cold is long gone and things at Susan Faye World Headquarters are back in full swing.  With the help of my son Chris (and Buttonwillow and Inka), we are back into high production mode on the Kickstarter Snazzy Rat Catnip toys and the next batch of reward packages are ready to go out in the mail today and tomorrow. 

That means that close to 2/3 of the rewards are finished, with just one more batch to go!  I'm already receiving photos of many happy Kitty Dearests with their new Snazzy Rats, and I'll be setting up a gallery here on my blog and on my Facebook page very shortly.  Please keep sending in photos-- you can post them directly on my Facebook page or send them via email.

I'll also be posting more of my road trip photos sooon, so stay tuned!

Time To Hit The Road

Buttonwillow just about fainted dead away when she heard the news...

I'm leaving on a road trip tomorrow!

My friend Anne and I are driving cross-country to visit her dad in Alabama.

I'll be gone for two weeks, but my Etsy shop will stay open.  Wholesale listings will not be available, and special requests won't be available, but everything you see listed in my shop will be available. The shop will be in the capable hands of my son Chris who will be handling shipping in my absence and will try to answer any questions that come up.  I'll be checking in periodically for anything that might stump him. Don't forget-- I'm having a Spring Cleaning Sale for the entire month of May, so check out all the bargains here:  Susan Faye Pet Projects on Etsy.

KICKSTARTER SNAZZY RAT NEWS

For the past two days, Christopher and I have been busy sending out some of the first Snazzy Rat Kickstarter pledge packages...  I had enough of my prototype fabric to make up about 10-12 of each rat, so we've been able to fill about 30 of the orders. 

  
Here are the package labels that I designed to go on each glassine paper bag.

And I have ordered the rest of the fabric, more catnip, packaging, shipping supplies, and the tote bags, so that when I return from my trip, we will go into high production with the goal of finishing up the pledge packages and having them shipped out by early June.

 I guess I'd better go finish packing. I'll post some photos from the road if I get a chance... 

Spring Cleaning

Buttonwillow  says:

We've been working on lots of new goodies for summer and fall here at Susan Faye World Headquarters, including new jewelry, DIY fabric squares, and Snazzy Rat catnip toys. But first it's time for a little spring cleaning in my Etsy shop.  Out with the old to make room for the new!

The sale starts today and dozens of items have been marked down, with savings 25% - 50% off.  It's a great chance to stock up on gifts for your favorite crazy cat ladies and nature lovers, or treat yourself to a special little something. Click here to see what's on sale and get 'em while they're hot before they're going, going, gone:

 SALE SALE SALE

 

Kickstarter Success!

And now a word from my studio assistants:

Our "Oh Rats" Kickstarter campaign has successfully ended which means that Snazzy Rat catnip toys will soon be making their way into the homes of fabulous felines around the world!

It also means that the staff here at Susan Faye World Headquarters is deeply grateful to each and every one of the 100 Beautiful Backers of the project!  Not only have you successfully launched a brand new line of handcrafted cat toys, you made it possible to expand the line from the original four designs to a total of NINE!

And not only are you ensuring that an independent artisan can continue to do what she loves to do, you are also supporting other small, independent, earth-friendly businesses like Spoonflower.com, who prints the fabric, and my organic catnip supplier.

I look forward to sending out the reward packages over the next two months.  Thanks again for making this an exciting and rewarding Kickstarter campaign.

You guys are the SNAZZIEST!