Detailed instructions on operation of The Scratch Lounge, by Max: or Max's best Christmas present.

Growing up fast

Elmo loving the cat scratching lounge from Claire Carlile.

Helping with drawing. All Her pictures of cats look like bears!

We love our new rug from Solva Woollen Mill. 

Watching Brave in the afternoon.

Play: what kittens do.

Play play play.......

read a bit about what to be when we grow up.........

sleep.

I am Cat, by Jackie Morris, published by Frances Lincoln. The ideal bedtime book for cool cats. Available from all good bookshops and libraries.

Kitten toy: a rope made from old turbans and two bells.

Bobbin: Mill worker, Solva Woollen Mill, Pembrokeshire.

Painting with Kittens.

So, today in my studio I began to grind ink. It seems that the grinding of ink is a thing that is irresistible to inky coloured kittens. As is the use of a brush on paper. Close supervision was obviously demanded and thought necessary by small paws. As a result I now have a piece of work that is produced using paper, ink, water, grindstone, brushed, experience, light and kittens. Oh, and gold leaf. 

The finished piece, shown in the top image is being auctioned to raise money for The Snow Leopard Trust. 
Current bidding is at £200 or around $320. To bid email Jackie ( the cat's mother). Bidding closes 48 after no more bids come in.

National Kitten Awards Week.

And this year the award for 'Best Kitten Toy" goes to The Cardboard Tube! Tennis ball comes a close second and the two together are some kind of kitten heaven. ( though where they found the tennis ball in my studio I have no idea.) Oh, and bubblewrap. That's fun too. 

Best posing position is awarded to Baggage ( still searching for her grown up name which might be Freya, or Kali, or Demon, or Pan), for choosing to pose on the precarious post at the top of the stairs, thus showing off the artwork to full cat potential.

Best working kitten goes to Bundle ( soon to be known as Genji, who helped to hold down the corner of a book that was being photographed for my blog. Thanks Genji, excellent work!

And the award for bravery in the face of dog also goes to Genji, for strolling up to each and every dog in the house to say hi. Well done to Rosie too, who was being very brave in the face of the fierce little leopard cat.

Meanwhile Max gets the 'Coolest cat' award for total indifference. If a cat could raise its eyebrows and roll its eyes to heaven he might have managed it, but to be honest there really seem to be no point ( should have called him Sartre- 'Hell, he says, is other kittens. Suppose I should be glad they aren't ginger).

And Elmo gets an award for just being Elmo, intrigued if affronted by the presence of kittendom he looks more beautiful than ever beside their monochrome majesty.

Looking back at you: outside rain, inside, kittens.

New kits on the block: A Song of Ice and Fire.

We have had a sad year here at the cat's blog. Despite the publication of I am Cat. Too many cats passed away and left us full of memories and sorrow. And I loved the gingers so much that I felt it would be wrong to get another and always be comparing. And then a friend, Tamsin Abbott, said, " you should get a Snow Bengal. They look like snow leopards and like exercise." I googled the cat, to see what it was like and fell head over heels in love.
I have never had a pedigree creature, being somewhat of a mongrel by nature, and there is much about the trade in pedigree cats that I am unsure of. How to choose? Where to go, when there are so many kittens in cats homes. All of mine have either been farm cats or have just turned up one day on the doorstep and invited themselves in. I have measured out my days in cats since I was about 22. 
So, I looked around and found Bengals in Wales, and a site where they were allowed out and yes, they are show cats, but there was something about Elizabeth at Silverstorm Bengals that I liked, not least that she lives on the edge of Snowdonia, which seems the right place for these silver darlings to come from, and her cats like to walk when they can. And she was brilliant and patient and I waited until they were 12 weeks old and the this week we drove up and up and up and into the most beautiful mountains and Wales is utterly stunning, until we found and house of kittens, and a beautiful Frost and a Maharajah who reminded me of a silver Maurice.
So, now we go forward. And Elmo is not sure about the kitten, what they are, how they might taste, if he might perhaps like them, and Max hasn't met them yet, for they live in my studio where there are dark corners to explore and a staircase and cushions and a bed and somewhere they found a tennis ball ( I am told I can teach them to play fetch. Given that when I throw a ball for the dogs they suggest that as i threw it perhaps I might like to go fetch it myself. )
So, let us introduce you to the new kits on the block, not yet part of the Pride, but hopefully soon. With the bright flame that is Elmo and the sharp silver that is them we will now have our own Song of Fire and Ice.

Baggage and Bundle.

A Christmas Present for a Cat's Slave.

She, the woman who paints, is now suggesting that I ask all the cats I know to review our book on Amazon. Not a bad I idea I reckon as we cats write better than them humans. So, if you want to win the picture above simply go to Amazon and put a review on I am Cat. We will chose a winner somehow in early December. I have told Her that this is not a good idea. We cats get tired easily and even now, I, Elmo, am in need of a nap, having been asleep on the bed in Her studio all night and having had breakfast and sat looking at THAT DOG ( there seems to be another one in the house!) So, if you can manage to raise a claw or a paw, give I am Cat a thumbs up, though what a cat would do with a painting I know not. Would be great to have a few reviews from cats. And if you win the picture you could maybe give it to the house slave for Christmas?

Another competition: dragons

While we are talking about competitions, there is also one on facebook to win 10 ( 11 really as Can You See a Little Bear has been added) signed copies of Her books. When the winner is announced She will find out about who to dedicate them to. All you need to do is go to the Frances Lincoln Facebook page. If you 'like' it that would be good. And on this post say what your dragon is like. If you don't have one ask your cat. They will know. Good luck. If you would like to share it also, and this post and spread the word about that would be wonderful. Thank you.

A fragment

Sometimes when She is painting the picture goes a little awry. Sometimes She cuts out fragments of the pictures. Sometimes She sends these to people, elaborate, hand painted postcards. But this time She has decided to give this one away as part of a sort of competition that isn't a competition really. This morning when She looked on Amazon there were no online reviews for I am Cat, so, what we are asking is that if you have read the book, and if you feel like it, go to the Amazon page for the book and leave a review. We aren't suggesting that you buy the book from there. Far better to buy from your local independent bookshop, or buy signed copies from Solva Woollen Mill ( who will get their cats to organize world wide shipping), or go to your local library and borrow the book, and remember that if they don't have it in they can order it for you. Then go to the Amazon site and leave a review. On December 11th she will choose someone, with the help of kittens, and they will win the fragment that is above, with a light and a moth. 

Please leave a comment here also with your Amazon name so that She can contact you!

Feeling like the cat who got the cream.....

...because I am Cat has been shortlisted for the Bishop's Stortford Picture Book Award 2013.  

Finding a place.

Steady rain. Beating the bounds of the night time village, three dogs and Elmo. Returning to the house, fur sparkles with diamonds of water. He looks for a place to sleep. There's Pixie's cushion, empty. 

Perhaps a rug?

He settles for a tiger's back.

A small bundle of fierce blue eyed silver

Perhaps............
I wonder what Elmo will think?

Walking, thinking and International Tiger Day.

Walking yesterday, just Elmo, and the dogs. Once upon a time there were three, and Martha and Max and Kiffer. Now the house seems quiet. Only Elmo and Max remain.  And since Maurice died the blog has been harder and harder to do. So, for a while Elmo will live over at facebook, perhaps come in through the blogging catflap now and again.

We are a sad house, for last week we buried Pixie in the garden. She had been ill for some time, but we think was attacked by a big dog who was in the garden. Will never know. At least she is now at peace, but we miss her sitting in the sun in the garden, and for a long time we have missed her walking company. She was ill with something that made her seem as if she had a permanent cold, and so she struggled to catch her breath. Such a lovely affectionate cat. Elmo misses her, and so do I and we are thinking of other cats and kittens and what to do. But meanwhile we went walking.

So, if it is quiet here for some time and you wish to find out what happens next you can wander to Her blog on Her website, or pop to facebook for Elmo's page.

But before we go we wanted to tell you about a very special auction. It is International Tiger Day and to celebrate this and to try and raise money to help tigers She gave away a painting to 21st Century Tiger. The auction went live today, and there is a reserve of £1000 on the painting, which comes from the book I am Cat, written and illustrated by Her with the help of all cats in the house, but especially Pixie and Maurice. You can see more of the paintings at The House of Golden Dreams.

Elmo likes tigers.