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Jessie and Jeannie, Original One-of-a-kind Art Cat Doll Figurine by Max Bailey

Jessie and Jeannie, original white kitten figurine by Max BaileyWhen Jessie woke up this morning, her soft little kitty doll Jeannie was right next to her, just where she was supposed to be.

“What do you want to do today?” asked Jeannie, who is one of those dolls who can talk, and always does.

Jessie and Jeannie, original white kitten figurine by Max Bailey“Sleep some more,” mumbled Jessie, opening one eye. But it was such a lovely spring day, filled with sunshine and adventures yet to happen. Jessie took Jeannie over to the window to look out on the garden below, and they purred together at the beauty and excitement of their little world.

Jessie and Jeannie, original white kitten figurine by Max BaileyJessie dressed Jeannie in her favorite blue dress, the one with the lilac ruffles at the neck and at the bottom of the sleeves, with matching lilac pantaloons and little black shoes. She picked out the pale pink petticoats that exactly matched her own. Jessie dressed herself in a light beige dress with blue flowers and pink polka dots. Over it she wore a rosy pink jumper that she tied in the back with a big bow.

Jessie and Jeannie, original white kitten figurine by Max BaileyJessie and Jeannie are original one-of-a-kind works of art, and are meant for display only. No molds are ever used in my work. They are hand-sculpted from paperclay, and are entirely hand painted with acrylic paints. Jessie’s whiskers are made from stiffened cotton thread.

Jessie and Jeannie, original white kitten figurine by Max BaileyJessie is signed and dated, and sealed with matte varnish for protection and preservation. She rests firmly on a turned wooden base that is stained and sealed in golden oak.

Jessie is an itty bitty kitty. She stands only 4 3/8 inches tall.

Jessie and Jeannie, original white kitten figurine by Max BaileyUpdate: Jessie and Jeannie have already been adopted. Thank you!

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Tulip the Dutch Bunny, Original One-of-a-kind Black-and-white Rabbit Art Doll Figurine by Max Bailey

Tulip the Dutch Bunny, Original One-of-a-kind Black-and-white Rabbit Art Doll Figurine by artist Max Bailey

Tulip the Dutch Bunny, original black-and-white rabbit figurine by Max BaileyTulip is a handmade original, one-of-a-kind black-and-white Dutch bunny rabbit art doll, hand painted and hand sculpted in paperclay by artist Max Bailey.

I am pleased to introduce Tulip, a hard working Dutch bunny with a very serious nature.

Tulip was named after her very great great grandmother Tulip, the illustrious founder and President of Tulip’s Tulip Farm, where the most spectacularly beautiful tulips in all the world are grown.

Tulip the Dutch Bunny, original black-and-white rabbit figurine by Max BaileySomeday, Tulip will be President of the farm. For now, she loves to go out into the fields in the fall, and dig perfect little holes with her front paws. Her brothers and sisters follow along behind her, rolling tulip bulbs carefully into the holes. Cousins and second cousins follow along behind them, filling in the holes with dirt to cover the bulbs.

Tulip the Dutch Bunny, original black-and-white rabbit figurine by Max BaileyIn the spring, when the tulips burst into bloom, all the Dutch bunnies dance through the fields in celebration of the beauty they have helped to create. Tulip loves the lavender tulips the most. You can tell from the lavender tulip pockets she has sewn on her sky blue dress.

Tulip the Dutch Bunny, original black-and-white rabbit figurine by Max BaileyTulip is an original one-of-a-kind work of art, and she is meant for display only. No molds are ever used in my work. She is hand-sculpted from paperclay, and entirely hand painted with acrylic paints. Her whiskers are made from stiffened cotton thread.

Tulip the Dutch Bunny, original black-and-white rabbit figurine by Max BaileyTulip is signed and dated, and sealed with matte varnish for protection and preservation. She rests firmly on a turned wooden base that is stained and sealed in golden oak.

Tulip is an itty bitty bunny. She stands only 4 1/4 inches tall. She comes with a hang tag, a certificate of authenticity, and a copy of her story.

Tulip the Dutch Bunny, original black-and-white rabbit figurine by Max BaileyTulip is available for $149.99, plus shipping. Please inquire to [email protected]

Her friend, Matilda the Tuxedo Kitten, on the right, has already been adopted.

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Mock orange and a new kitten figurine

Mock orange in bloomI went to the crawl space for a shovel to work on planting my blueberry bushes, and I was surprised to find our mock orange in full bloom. I wish I’d planted it in a more prominent location, because it’s one of my favorite bushes. I love the smell of the flowers, and it’s so beautiful.

Mock orange in bloomI think I just put it in an available spot when we first moved here, to make sure I got it in the ground. Someday, I’ll have to move some, or plant some more, where I can enjoy it.

Jessie and Jeanie, white kitten folk art doll figurine by Max BaileyI just put up the web page for “Jessie and Jeannie”, Max Bailey’s new one-of-a-kind, original white kitten folk art doll figurine. Be sure to go read her story. I love the part where she and her talking cat doll purr together as they look out their bedroom window. I think they are just adorable!

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Happy Easter to you!

Happy Easter! I woke up very early this morning, and couldn’t get back to sleep. Rather than flop hopelessly from one side and then to the other for another hour, I decided, since I’d never gone to the Sunrise Easter Service at the North Carolina State Capitol before, that it would be a good time to go.

I made it there just before the sun came up over the horizon. The weirdest thing happened just as I was approaching the Capitol. When I’m driving in low light, I always fret that animals will cross my path. So, I jumped when I saw a low-flying dove come flying out right in front of my car. I just missed it, but it was grazed, at least, by the car next to me. I went back, and couldn’t find it. It must have just been stunned, and then recovered. I hope it was okay, but I thought, that is the strangest thing to happen on an Easter morning, and to a dove of all birds.

I parked in the church lot, which was mostly empty, and walked to the Capitol. I just listened for a while, and then I took out my camera. Cameras are funny. People change when they see them. One man waved at me, and another just kept smiling and smiling. I guess he wanted to make sure he was smiling in case I took a photo? A young couple stopped me and asked me if I could take their picture with their camera too. I tried to get a couple of good shots for them.

The news teams were there, and some press photographers. One man was sitting in the grass, with his dog. Church where you can sit on the grass with your dog sounds appealing to me. I don’t have a dog, but I bet I could easily find one or two who would enjoy such a thing.

After the service, I walked around for a while. One of the cool things about going out when other people are “in”, is that you can stand right in the middle of the street. You can’t do that in Raleigh most of the time. And, of course, the other cool thing is watching the sun come up.

When I got back to the church parking lot, there were some homeless people just getting up. One was still asleep on the steps, and another asked me if I had enough money for a bagel. I hope he got himself one. And then, there was this lady, sitting barefoot, on a bench out front, with two kids, a teenaged girl next to her, and a young boy who was exploring. She’d taken off her silver or golden shoes, and was playing a flute of some kind. She was facing the sun, as it was coming up, and seemed to be playing directly to the sun, like she was paying a tribute. She was very absorbed in her song, and didn’t seem to mind, or maybe even notice, me taking photos of her. Then, I got in my car and headed back home, glad to have a nice, comfortable one to go to. When I returned, everyone was just getting up. Had I not left a note, no one might have known I’d even been gone. I went back to work, at our beautiful new computer, and felt stupid for all the things I was chewing on earlier, while I was tossing and turning. We’re doing just fine.

I did some photo editing. We’ve got a new little bunny that I just put up on her own web page. Her name is Tulip. You can read Tulip the Dutch Bunny’s cute story here. I think I’m going to take the plunge and switch to WordPress very soon. So, our blogs may be on our home pages, at ruffings.com and elizabethruffing.com the next time you visit. If that doesn’t work, there will be a note there instead! Check our Ruffing’s Facebook page too. I’ve been updating that with any new items. Enjoy your Easter and your weekend! I’m hungry from getting up so early! Got to go get some lunch…