The DJ black and white cat in Cat Rave Dance Party Paws Up is based on my cat Oreo. She is definitely the most nocturnal of my two cats.

Our cats are not allowed in the bedroom. The idea for this design came about because Oreo lately has gotten into the habit of meowing outside our bedroom door at about five o’clock in the morning. When she does this, either my husband or I will say, “Shushi, Oreo.” Or “Oreo too early. Go sleepy.” Being the good cat that she is, she usually obeys.

When we get up a little while later, the black and white cat will be all tuckered out and fast asleep in one of her favorite sleeping spots, while her sister, a tabby, is up and running around the house.

In reality, my cats are strictly indoor cats. I am too much of a worrier for them to be out door cats. Though, that didn’t stop me from joking with my husband that Oreo had a secret life as a club DJ or something and she was just letting us know when she was home. And thus, Cat Rave Dance Party Paws Up was born!

Did you know:

• The gray and white cat paws are based on Oreo’s sister, Olivia.

• Oreo is also the basis for Cookie the Cat in the Cookie and Olivia book series.

• Cookie and Olivia have their own store on Zazzle

• This is the second design I’ve made where an animal is DJing. The other one is DJ Piggy Pig.

• Oreo is also in a few of my other designs. These include Sleeping Black and White Cat, Here’s Looking at You Cat, and Cat Eyes (Black and White), to name just a few.

Cat Rave Dance Party Paws Up is available for sale on:

• Zazzle

• Red Bubble

• Imagekind

• Skreened

Do you have a pet? Do they have any interesting habits? Has your pet inspired you in any way? Let us know in the comments!

Motorcycle Biker Cat T-Shirt
by ValeriesGallery

For me, Motorcycle Biker Cats is one of those designs. Where I live in Florida, motorcycles seem to be a big deal. When the weather gets nice, every weekend you generally see big groups of motorcyclist enjoying a ride. There are motorcycle clubs that organize motorcycle trips and the like. Every October, not to far north, Daytona Beach holds a huge bike week.

A lot of cars around here have bumper stickers warning drivers to use caution and watch out for motorcyclist. However, they are usually just black text on a colored background. There is nothing wrong with that, but a great variety of people ride motorcycles and what about their loved ones? Certainly, someone would want a cute motorcycle design!

Motorcycle Safety Cool Cat Bumper Sticker
by ValeriesGallery

However, this doesn’t seem to be the case since Motorcycle Biker Cat (as of today) has never sold.

Some fun facts:

• Motorcycle Biker Cat is available wearing a helmet or a biker cap, check it out here!

• Motorcycle Biker Cat is also available on motorcycle safety items as well

• Motorcycle Biker Cat is available on Zazzle, Redbubble, Imagekind and Skreened

• When double checking to see which websites Motorcycle Biker Cat was available on, I realized I forgot to add a description and keywords to the one on Imagekind. Oops! Luckily, that was easy to remedy.

• I think it would be really cool to ride a motorcycle, but because I’m a klutz I don’t know how great of an idea in reality that actually is for me.

Have you had a design that you thought was awesome, only to have it never sell?

Since art is subjective and Motorcycle Biker Cat may not be to your taste, as part of the Holiday Exchange on Zazzle, I’m going to introduce you to some other talented artist!  Don’t worry!  The following designs are ones that I really like and will have something to do with the topic of this blog post!

Please note:  All links in this post are affiliate links.

Oh my goodness!  How beautiful is this cat wallet by Bebop’s Place?  That shade of blue in the window is gorgeous!  Plus the texture on the fur is really well done.  Almost makes me believe that I can reach out and pet that cat!  Plus wallets are really useful and you can never have to many!

Cat in the Window Wallets
by Bebops

Watch – Paw Prints
by FelineFriends

Funny Christmas Santa Cat Photo and Name Custom Metal Ornament
by colorfulgalshop

Party Cats Card
by ValeriesGallery

Before we had left, my husband and I had made arrangements for people to watch our cats, Oreo and Olivia. During the drive, I started to wonder what they did when the pet sitters weren’t around and also thought about the cliché of parents going away for a weekend and the kids throwing a huge blow out party. For some reason the image of my cats throwing a huge party struck me as funny and did a quick sketch of it.

original sketch of Party Cats

Some fun facts:

• The sketch is very minimal because drawing, writing or reading in the car makes me nauseous. However, my sister in law can read a book in a moving vehicle with no problem.

• To be truthful, I had forgotten about this design until I recently started selling some cards from Greeting Card Universe with this design on it.

• Did you ever have a few occasions that all seemed to meld together until you saw evidence of the contrary? For some reason in my mind, I thought I had originally sketched this when we evacuated for Hurricane Frances in 2004. Imagine my surprise when I got out the original sketch and saw it was dated 3/27. (Luckily, there aren’t usually hurricanes in March! Plus we only visit my sister in law every few years.)

• It turns out I did the sketch for this picture in March 2010. I use to be a teacher and during one of my spring breaks, my husband and I visited his sister in Atlanta.

• The fact that there is a black and white cat and a gray cat in the design should have been a clue about when I originally sketched this. I got my cats in 2009.

• Recently, I’ve been into learning and doing kawaii and manga styles. I’m considering doing a kawaii version of this design. What do you think?

• This design is available on Zazzle and Greeting Card Universe

Since art is subjective and Party Cats may not be to your taste, as part of the Holiday Exchange on Zazzle, I’m going to introduce you to some other talented artist!  Don’t worry!  The following designs are ones that I really like and will have something to do with the topic of this blog post!

Please note:  All links in this post are affiliate links.

First up is this adorable cat notebook by Lasgalen Arts Not only do I have a couple of sketch books, I also use notebooks for my writing and other projects.  This would be a perfect notebook for outlining the next couple of Cookie and Olivia books.  Plus Cat Lover?  Yup that describes me!  Does it describe you?

Just a note, I do own one of these notebooks from Zazzle (a different cover design) so if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask!  The pages are lined.

Personalized Cat in a Window Notebook
by lasgalenarts

Okay, I’ll admit it!  I love this cat birthday card by Natural Design because the cat looks like a chubbier version of my tabby, Olivia.  Plus I love cake!

Funny Fat Cat in Purple Hat Happy Birthday Card
by artbyjocelyn

Okay, I’m convinced I need this mug by Art Inspired!  Books and cats?  Yes, please!  I would totally enjoy drinking a cup of tea from this mug while reading a book.  (Or writing a book.)

Book Club – Good Books – Good Friends With Cat Coffee Mug
by artinspired

Happy Holiday and Merry Christmas from all of us at Valerie’s Gallery and Beautiful Cuteness!

Animation by: Valerie Waters

Music by: “Jingle Bells” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

I’m not sure why music seems to be a big theme in my work.  I am a music fan and have been involved in marching bands, jazz bands, concert bands, choirs, etc from elementary school through college.  I’ve learned to play many instruments like the flute, saxophone and trombone. I also enjoy making music for my videos. Maybe music is just ingrained into my subconscience.

Rapper Cat in Bell Hat Bag by ValeriesGallery

My game system is set up in my living room.  One of my cats, Oreo, likes to hang out  in the living room sometimes while I play.  (And sometimes she decides that I’ve played enough by plopping down right in the area I would be dancing. )

• Rapper Cat in Bell Hat is part of a trio.  Rapper Cat in Track Suit is part of the posse. (For a sneak peek at the third member of the group, scroll down.)
• Two of the three rapping cats are inspired by 80’s rap fashion trends
• Other of my works that include music and cats are: Cat Piper,  Kitty Cat Kawaii Band,and Lounge Singer Cat to name just a few
• Rapper Cat in Bell Hat is available at Valerie’s Gallery at Zazzle, Red Bubble, Imagekind and Skreened

Rapper Cat in Bell Hat and Rapper Cat in Track Suit pose with the third member of their posse

Are you a fan of rap? What’s your favorite genre of music?

Speaking of music, a huge thanks to Cheryl of Cheryl’s Art for featuring my music notes bag on her Squidoo lens, Sheet Music Bags.

Here’s some music and cat inspired art from other artist you may like:

Cat and Mice Game Party Plate by heizfrosch	Adopt Shelter Cat, Love a cat card by Sharon Fernleaf	Pet Memorial Photo Necklace by elizdesigns
acoustic guitar urban collage posters by hutsul	DJ Wedding Reception Thank You Stick Figures card by Sandra Rose Designs	Singer Business Card Templates by AbundanceLoveTrip
Mt lion wallet by Artnmore	Cat Popping Out Of Cake Birthday (Bud & Tony) card by Betty Matsumoto-Schuch	Loving Cats Wedding Stamp by DizzyDebbie
Bag – Musician’s Music by bkmuir	Merry Christmas from Music Teacher, Joyful Song Guitar card by Lisa Crisafi	cat serenade – customizable post cards by greendeer
Caspian and Kimber Birthday Card by ZorroCreations	Funny Black Cat – Dear Santa It was the Dog Christmas Card by Charlyn Woodruff / CWDesigns	Wicked Black Cat T Shirt by JenHoneyDesigns
TEE Cat Nip iPhone 5C Cover by teepossible	Grumpy Cat Mug by thegrumpycat See other Grumpy Mugs	A female African cheetah and her three cubs Postcards by NationalGeographic

Lounge Singer Cat T-Shirt
by ValeriesGallery

 
I am a child of the nineties and once of my favorite cartoons from that time is Rocko’s Modern Life. (For those of you who don’t know, the show is about a wallaby who moves from Australia to a place called O-Town (somewhere in the US) and his adventures with his dog, Spunky and friends, Heffer (a cow) and Filburt (a turtle). Of course I was thrilled when Netflix started to carry it (for a very very short itme) and then Amazon. It’s fun watching the reruns and having a new perspective on them for various reasons.

So what does Lounge Singer Cat have to do with Rocko’s Modern Life? There is an episode called The Lounge Singer. In this episode, it’s revealed that Filburt is a very talented singer and dreams of being a famous lounge singer.

Add in the fact that I had just finished Kitty Kawaii Band not to long before hand and that my cat Oreo enjoys watching television with us, and thus Lounge Singer Cat was born! Totally logical, right?

Did you know?

• I sketched Lounge Singer Cat while enjoying a delicious baked good at a Barnes and Noble’s Starbucks
• Lounge Singer Cat has inspired another musical cat artwork. (It’s sketched, but not completed yet.)
• Even though the official name of this artwork is Lounge Singer Cat, I keep referring to it as Lounge Singer Kitty. Whoops.
• Lounge Singer Cat is available at Valerie’s Gallery at Zazzle, RedBubble and Skreened

Has music or animals inspired you in any way?  Let us know by leaving a comment!

Lounge singing cats not your thing?  Enjoy some artwork by other talented artist:

Halloween cute and funny black vampire cat tshirt by TheHopefulRomantic	Cats Making Valentines (Bud & Tony) card by Betty Matsumoto-Schuch	Tuxedo Cat postage by WestCreek
Mix Tape Personalized iPhone 5 Case by JerryLambert	Mum Humorous Birthday Card – Dog with Headphones Listening to Music card by Natalie Kinnear	Speaker – Blues Cat by bkmuir
Guitarcase Cat Fridge Magnet by JKcoder	Cat Leash Humor Card by Leo Cullum	Singing Cat. Neck Ties by Animal_Art_By_Ali
Mewsician in training mug by Mewsicians	Congratulations for Dance Performance with Ballet Shoes card by Teri Nelson Kuster	Cat Playing Upright Bass Ornament by pogfrond
Sleepy Kitty {Tuxedo} Refrigerator Magnets by heartlocked	Christmas Cat With Decorated Christmas Tree Tail card by Will Davis Studios	green cat face tie by mailboxdisco
Rainbow Sheet Music Binder by UROCKDezineZone	Cat Art: Vintage Art Print: The Kitten’s Recital by VintagePets	Add a name to this birthday card with a violin by Eggznbeenz
Singing cat cards by deemac1	TEE Rocker Girl by teepossible	Retro black cat face with numbers wall clocks by Sideview

Kitten Christmas Surprise Ornament by ValeriesGallery
Make your own ornaments at Zazzle

The original picture was snapped during play time.  When they were kittens they both adored playing with boxes.  These days Oreo has more of a affinity for boxes than her sister.  She plays with them, sleeps in them, watches the world go by in them etc.  However, Olivia does have her box moments.  The joke around our house is just throw out the toy and give the cats the box!

A photograph of Olivia peeking int o a soda box

Oreo and her many boxes

To me, in the design photo, it looks like Olivia is trying to shove Oreo into the box. In actuality, it was more of a “Hey sis!  Let me see what you have there!” type deal.)

One day when I was trying to think of  Christmas designs and was going through some photos, I happen to stumble across this picture and something just clicked. I wondered, “What would a kitten want for Christmas?” Mice of course!

After adding the speech bubble, I thought it needed something to make it seem more Christmasy.  At first I considered putting a Santa hat on one of the cats or adding stockings, but worried that those would look fake.

Since the box was a plain brown box, I decided to dress it up by giving it a winter theme.

Did you know?

• Oreo and Olivia are now four years old.  (Time goes by so fast!)
• They are sisters.
• This design use to be available on a greeting card POD, but was pulled due to changes in their marketability and submission guidelines.  (It’s okay though, they accept a lot of my other designs so I really can’t complain.)
• This design is available on Zazzle on a variety of products.
• Oreo loves boxes!  She has quite a few around our house that she enjoys napping in!  Especially if its in a sunny spot!
• I actually made this design on Black Friday a few years ago

Does anyone (human or animal) in your house enjoy boxes?

And if you can handle any more cuteness, be sure to check out Neko Creations website by Neko Creations.  You may see my Fox in a Dress iphone case somewhere on the post about Kitsune Phone Cases!

Also, here’s some more Christmas and Cat designs by artist you may like:

Christmas Cat Magnet by DizzyDebbie	by Betty Matsumoto-Schuch	Photocard – Winter holidays with cat Photo Cards by FelineFriends
Christmas penguin holding candy cane card by RustyDoodle	by Valerie’s Gallery	Holly and Cardinal Holiday Letterhead by FalconsEye
Tuxedo Cat postage by WestCreek	by Olivia A. Kneibler	Merry Christmas Greeting Card by TheCreativeNative
Christmas Squirrel with Snowflakes Christmas Ornaments by funnaturephotography	by Valerie’s Gallery	Santa Claus Hat Christmas Owl Mugs by ArtsyKidsy
Black Kitty Face Tshirt by FoxxyTees	by ©Doreen Erhardt	Cartoon of a Cat in a Santa Hat and Beard. Tie by Metarla_Christmas

Polly the Cat

Toes the Cat

Sadly, her brother, Toes, passed away recently.  He was very friendly and had no qualms about sitting in your lap and saying hi!  Toes also liked to spend a lot of time staring out the window and watching the world go by.

Fire breathing cat poster by ValeriesGallery

Polly and Toes

This is one of my earliest digital art pieces.The original picture of the cats was taken when we went for a visit in 2004.  At the time, I was just starting to get into Photoshop and would photomanipulate any picture I could get my hands on and the idea of a fire breathing cat struck me as funny. As you can see, not only did I add in the fire, but I also cloned part of the rug and Polly to cover up a cat streamer.

The text reads, “And you thought it was a good idea to talk to me before I had my coffee, why?”.  It was inspired by my mom.  She’s one of those people who has a hard time functioning without her coffee.  (Some of you can relate, right?)

Also, when my sister or I would do something that maybe wasn’t the brightest thing to do, mom would say, “And you thought that was a good idea, why?”  So I imagine that if someone dared to talk to her before she had her coffee, she might say something like that.

Did you know?

• Fire breathing cat was one of the first pieces I uploaded to Zazzle
• I uploaded this piece before I realized that Zazzle offered customizable text. (Which is why you can’t customize the text on this product line.)
• My mom owns a travel mug with this design on it.
• Toes and Polly are brother and sister.
• Fire Breathing Cats are available at Valerie’s Gallery on Zazzle and on a pet bowl in my Cafe Press shop.

Have you ever made an art piece involving yours or someone else’s pets?

A Huge Thanks

• A huge thanks to Goosebury for featuring my Doves in a Tree pitcher on the blog, Home Accents on July 22.
• Also a huge thanks to Bebops for featuring my Five Orange Birds in a Tree poster on the blog, The Daily Rainbow on July 26.

Fire breathing cats not your thing?  That’s okay!  Here’s some other art work inspired by cats, coffee and humor for you to enjoy!

I need my coffee! coffee mug by Jicha	a cup of coffee and sweets clock by hutsul	Coffee Cup and Java Beans Business Cards by CountryCorner
Cat’s Face T-shirts by fstasu58	Mysterious Cats Throw Pillow by PillowParadise	Sleeping Kittens Notecard by WildDays
TEE I Work For Shoes Round Sticker by teepossible	Coffee the human battery funny humor quote mug by TheGreatestTattooArt	Bubble Rap Mug by ValeriesGallery
Coffee Prescription Caffeine Addict Mug by HumorMe	I love Coffee – custom text – Espresso Cup by likeit	Antique Coffee Grinder Mug by Pastimedesigns
Cat in the Window Mousepads by Bebops	Tabby cat in an apple basket basket pillow by ArianeC	I love cats coffee mug by Astriddesign
Meowy Christmas black cat Greeting Cards by magnoliaflowers	Red Tabby Kitty Rectangle Magnets by EMangl	Funky Cat – 3D (20×20 inch pillow) by HoMeArts
Mug – Polydactyl paw prints by FelineFriends	Cat eyes heart stickers by Nabucodonoshop	Meow cat graphic bright hot pink t-shirt by Mylittleeden
Lilac Purple cat pattern. Pillows by Animal_Art_By_Ali Browse Purple cat Pillows online at Zazzle.com	Life’s Too Short for Bad Coffee Mug by TempermentalMusician	Vintage Cat Writing a Letter Notebooks by JustRightGraphics

But wait a minute, you may say, none of the cats in the Kitty Cat Kawaii Band are black and white!  When I originally started working on the piece, the lead singer was suppose to look more like Oreo.

However, I didn’t like the way it was turning out.  Then I read a book about how to draw Kawaii style and that inspired the direction of the picture.

One of the pieces of advice in the book was to keep it simple and obviously it was simpler to keep the cats a single color.  I’m really happy with how it turned out.

Kitty Cat Kawaii Band Necklace by ValeriesGallery

• This is one of my favorite pieces of art that I’ve done
• I have made a Kitty Cat Kawaii Band animation.  You can see it here.
• The Kitty Cat Kawaii guitar player’s outfit was inspired by Green Day during their American Idiot period.
• Kitty Cat Kawaii band items are available at Valerie’s Gallery on Zazzle, RedBubble, Imagekind and Skreened

Have you been inspired by a pet or video game? Feel free to tell us in the comments!

Kitty Cat Kawaii Band not your style?  That’s okay!  Here’s some cat and music inspired work from other talented artist that you may like:

 

Grumpy Cat Glare iPhone 5 Case by thegrumpycat	Spa Treatments for Your Birthday, Cats Happy Birthday card by Sharon Fernleaf	Mr. Brown Ring Ring! Case-Mate iPhone 4 Cases by BusterNFriends	Grumpy princess cat and the pea colorful posters by LauraDaviesArt
Weapons of Mass Percussion T-shirts by shakeoutfittersmusic	Rainbow Glitter Music Clef Playing Cards by UROCKDezineZone	Rainbow White Music Notes Business Cards by giftsbonanza	Music Is Love Mugs by utachick02
Cute Cats American Mojo Throw Pillow by nyxxie	M is for Music Learn to Spell Shirts by FalconsEye	DJ Wedding Reception Thank You Stick Figures card by Sandra Rose Designs	Cats Sharing Martini Anniversary (Bud & Tony) card by Betty Matsumoto-Schuch

And from our friends at RedBubble:

• Kandy Kit by billyboy is adorable!  Candy and a kitten?  Yes please!
• The coloring in this picture by Christine Purtle is beautiful!