Happy National Feral Cat Day: elusive King Henry

here's a familiar face... the elusive orange tabby male. i've been trying to TNR him for a year! my last attempt was on my birthday 4 days ago. i had hoped the stars would be on my side and grant me my one birthday wish. but alas, all i caught was a small possum (quite adorable) and a few minutes later a very irate and LARGE raccoon (more round than long, not unlike my teddy bears!). have you ever heard a raccoon growl? sounds like a werewolf! it was my own fault for keeping the trap set out after dark.. i just didn't want to give up. wee possum and rotund raccoon were both let out unharmed.. i was probably more shaken then they were ;)

the story about mr. orange tabby is that neighbors (known and unknown) are feeding him, so he's not seeking out food thus not attracted to the fish baits i set in the humane trap. finally last month, by chance, i discovered a kind neighbor on the other block, Pam, who is feeding him daily. we had a nice chat about King Henry (that's what she named him) and she filled in some details about his origins. apparently a few years ago, a car pulled up in the alley and poor King Henry was simply "dropped off", letting out a loud miaow as they shut the door and drove off. sadly, many people don't bother to neuter/spay their animals and abandon them when they start howling, spraying, and other effects of primal urges. Pam had also tried to TNR Henry, but unsuccessfully. so working together, she and I -the two "Ps", coordinated a trap day, made the appt at the cat clinic, and she withheld Henry's food....

but, Henry never showed up. frustrating since i see him with great regularity. he has a routine that cuts through my yard- i've seen him snoozing under our butterfly bush in the morning, sunning himself belly up in our wildflower patch at noon, napping behind the boxwoods in the early evening (pictured above). Pam is pretty sure that another neighbor is also leaving food out for the cats! which means coordinating with them also to withhold food before trapping day.  it's easy to let days, weeks, months slip by...it can feel overwhelming trying to do it yourself.  good thing is, a dialogue is happening and there is moral support. a lot of work to nab this guy but i am ever confident we will. you hear me, Henry?

October charity: 10% of each sale of Halloween Kitty Cat Witch print on eBay goes to Alley Cat Allies, helping cats like King Henry nationwide. 

Each print is on a unique 1930's dictionary page, no two are alike. pigment ink and real acrylic hand painted eyes. this mixed media art print makes a lovely gift for animal-lovers and for a good cause!

(=^;^=)

parisian delights + recipe + new print

here's a few belated photos from our trip to Paris/ post-Hugglets. we stayed with our friend Melanie and her 2 cats in her petite apartment.  i know it is SO evil of me to post these pictures of a typical French breakfast...but a healthy alternative follows :) from her neighborhood bakery: fresh croissants, pain chocolat, pain aux raisin, the made-by-the-devil Nutella (spread on crepes, bread), soft brioche (similar to callah here in the states), juice and coffee. the manufactured Nutella isn't very healthy (as i said, made by the devil) plus it has nuts which i'm allergic to...but that chocolately smooth texture had me jonesing to make my own version soon as we got back to chicago.

  

viola! healthy, vegan, better-than-nutella! i substituted with almonds. made in a matter of minutes. recipe via chocolate covered katie. it is heavenly spread on multigrain or sourdough toast, with a lot less guilt.

the ladies swooned over the macarons at Laduree. the rose & caramel were my favorites. i never had a macaron before, so where a better place than Paris to try my first!

which inspired my new print: elephant eating macarons! there are a few more fun elephant prints now available in my etsy print shop.

enjoy the weekend! it's rain, rain, rainy here. ☂

"Amber" bear on PFATT Marketplace today!

 

Amber may look familiar because she's the sister of Ember, from my update last month. Amber wasn't ready in time for my Sept update (girls always take longer to get ready ;). so i finished her up and now she's ready for a loving home! isn't she sweet? the hand tie-dyed mohair i used to create A&E is among my favorite color combos...it turned out so beautiful and i had just enough to make 2 little bears with it. see the full listing here. SOLD

Bunnies on the Moon

 ~Lilac Bunny Carrot Dreaming~

~ Mint Bunny Strawberry Dreaming~

ah ha! so that's why i've been so weepy and emotional this weekend (and today). i'm feeling the effects of a full harvest moon (insert howling here) which marks a dramatic entrance into October. so, Happy October! this month we celebrate my birth, national feral cat day, and halloween. as you can guess, there are projects-a-plenty brewing for October!

back to the topic of moons...above are my "bunny dreaming.." on antique moon map prints, available in my art print shop. you will find them under category archival art prints. i just love the surrealist quality of these.

aaaand.. a big warm hug to everyone who adopted bears from my post-Hugglets/ Fall update on my web site friday! just 1 giraffe and 1 bear are in need of forever homes, possibly yours? i'm taking good care of them in the meantime, ie: many pots of tea, ginger cookies, tucking them in at night while they say a Shirley Temple-esque bedside prayer "one day soon we will find our new homes".

have a lovely October 1st. ❦

new Fall bears update Sept 28th!

❧ post-Hugglets/ pre-Halloween bear update is happening on my website

 Sept 28th, at 12 noon central 

(10am Pacific/ 11am MTN/ 1pm Eastern).

International friends, click here for time conversion.

There will be some new *larger* sized pointy nosed bears (like the one pictured) and other one of a kind temptations. Be sure to refresh your browser at the scheduled time to see the update.

til then.. xoxo

Hugglets Show Report

Greetings from stand #53 at Hugglets UK bear festival! thanks to all who stopped by and adopted Peng Peng bears! you made it another fantastic year at Hugglets. i'm holding the largest pointy-nosed hedgie bear i have ever made (adopted).

a day in heaven for arctophiles. people came from all over the world to celebrate bear collecting. it was a pleasure to meet collectors old and new, and to catch up with fellow bear artists and share a laugh. i was able to sneak away from my stand for a few minutes to peruse 3 floors of temptations. as expected, there was a mind-boggling assortment of artist bears, antiques, bear supplies and all things teddy related.

 some funny characters...

and some more funny characters... me with Art Rogers of Chatham Village Bears
many wares for teddies to wear

and signs that rhyme  
my favorites are the quirky elder bruins. the one on the right was my fave

antique bears from the Old Bear Company UK. a very sweet balding Merrythought Cheeky pictured center.

bruised and bandaged bears with heaps of personality

this fellow had this teddy bear since he was 5 years old, if i remember correctly. he did all the repairs himself. the face patches are soft poly fleece. i always find it interesting to see the personal bears that folks bring to the show for a teddy bear outing. Hugglets was a magical event and we hope to return in the future.     Post-show: after Hugglets we traveled by train to Paris, France to stay with a friend for 4 nights, then took another train to Munich, Germany for 3 nights.. including an excursion to the Barvarian Alps village of Mittenwald. a whirlwind euro-trip for this otherwise self-employed shut-in :P i will post a few pics from our trip in the coming days. my feet are still recovering and i cannot even look at my pair of Doctor Martens without wincing ;} get ready for a pre-halloween/ post-Hugglets bear update by end of this month.