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Lots of knots, catnip knots for Alley Cats and Angels of NC

Catnip knots by Elizabeth RuffingThis morning, I bagged up the accumulation of catnip knots in my workroom for a local cat rescue, Alley Cats and Angels of NC. They’ll be heading to Peak Fest in Apex, NC tomorrow, and the knots will be going with them. They’ll have more catnip toys and purr pad cat mats available, if anyone is local to the Triangle area of NC and would like to go. All the proceeds go to their medical fund.

The catnip toys are also available online in Alley Cats and Angels’ Etsy Shop.

Catnip knots by Elizabeth RuffingI had no idea how many catnip knots I had. I rolled and cut some more yesterday, to use up the pile of fleece strips I had sitting next to me. The bag was looking rather large. I had some cello sleeves I had ordered in a size I wasn’t using, and the knots fit nicely inside. I put five in each pack, and ended up with sixty-five packs! I closed the top edges with some Scotch tape, to keep the catnip fresh and to keep the smell inside. They were getting pungent!

Catnip knots by Elizabeth RuffingI made a header to fit the bags, and printed pages of them on card stock. I cut them out, folded each in half, and taped them onto the cello sleeves with double-faced carpet tape. Luckily, I had picked up a small pair of nonstick Fiskars scissors at Michaels. Cutting carpet tape with regular scissors was very difficult. It is so sticky. Getting the paper backing off was a bit tricky too, but all in all, they turned out really well, I think.

Catnip knots by Elizabeth RuffingI still had a big recycled box of peanuts in the back seat of the car. My mom helped out and scooped the peanuts into a bag, while I finished packaging the knots. We filled the box with the knots, and off we went to drop them off at the rescue, on our way to run some errands. A pretty good day’s work.

Alley Cats and Angels at Peak Fest 2011Update: Here they are at Peak Fest.

Feral Cheryl, sock cat by Elizabeth Ruffing at Peak Fest 2011Feral Cheryl the sock kitten was on hand too, to demonstrate how to safely trap a feral cat. She’s been working hard at rescue workshops in our area.

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Blue, turquoise, blue

Baby blue, turquoise, and light blue Fleece Hug Me Slugs by Elizabeth RuffingJust a quick update today. I have three new Hug Me Slugs, in baby blue, turquoise, and light blue. Those are my attempts at naming their colors. The two light blue slugs are slightly different in color, as I have so many colors. I’m never quite sure what to call them. I pick up whatever colors I think are pretty. I will be posting my new handmade stuffed animal toys in our Ruffing’s shop

Light Blue Fleece Hug Me Slugs by Elizabeth RuffingI am still trying to include the blooming flowers in the yard as I photograph my slugs, but today, I wanted to include my kitty assistant too.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyWe also just posted Cleo, Max Bailey’s latest Siamese cat original, one-of-a-kind art doll. I was finishing up editing her photos just this afternoon. We will be posting our new original one-of-a-kind anthropomorphic cat art dolls in our Ruffing’s shop as well.

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Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max Bailey

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyCleo the Siamese cat was named after Cleopatra, in whose time cats who looked much like herself were held in high regard.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyCleo, with her regal and sophisticated looks, is greatly admired. She holds her head high and walks softly with a graceful air, as though she might be a member of the royal family.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyAs beautiful as she is, Cleo is neither proud nor conceited. She is a gentle soul, never demanding, and is considerate and polite to everyone.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyCleo is dearly loved.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyToday, Cleo is wearing a simple blue dress with ruffles at the shoulders, and an orchid satin rose at the center of the front.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyShe has a dark blue blouse with orchid bands on the neckline and sleeves.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyThe blue and orchid stripes on her tights match the colors of her blouse.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyHer pantaloons are ivory, and brown high-button shoes cover her kitty feet.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyCleo is an original one-of-a-kind work of art, created from my own design and pattern. She is made from 100% cotton fabric which has been sewn, stuffed, and completely hand painted with acrylic paints. Her whiskers are made from stiffened cotton thread.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyCleo’s paws are needle-sculpted, and her arms are button-jointed so that she can pose. Her face was sculpted from paperclay smoothed into her fabric head.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyCleo’s curled tail enables her to sit by herself on a shelf or a table, or in a cabinet. She can also sit on a chair, or stand with a doll stand. (Chair and doll stand not included.) Cleo is meant for display only.

Cleo, Original One-of-a-kind Siamese Cat Art Doll by Max BaileyCleo is signed and sealed with matte varnish for protection and preservation. She is 8 and 1/2 inches tall.

Cleo, Lillie, and Minnie, Original One-of-a-kind Cat Art Dolls by Max BaileyUpdate: Cleo has been adopted. Thank you!

Cleo’s friends are Lillie the white cat, and Minnie the tabby cat.

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More fleece, more Hug Me Slug handmade stuffed animal toys, more drawings

Orchid Fleece Hug Me Slug by Elizabeth RuffingToday has been such a beautiful day that I decided to sit outside and finish some Hug Me Slugs. I’ve been wanting to photograph them in the flowers that have been cropping up everywhere, but rain was interfering with my plans.

Orchid Fleece Hug Me Slug by Elizabeth Ruffing, with Purple Siberian IrisThis orchid-colored Hug Me Slug is posing with my purple Siberian Iris.

New Fleece Hug Me Slug Hang Tag by Elizabeth RuffingI made a new hang tag for my slugs. I’ve redone all my tags, or added new ones, and am in the process of getting them ready for the web.

Deep Red-orange Fleece Hug Me Slug by Elizabeth Ruffing, with Mock OrangeI had a small amount of this deep red-orange fleece, and made a slug from it. He or she is posing in front of some mock orange, the smell of which I love. I will be posting my new handmade stuffed animal toys in our Ruffing’s shop.

Hug Me Slug and Hug Me Kitten pencil drawings by Elizabeth RuffingThese are this mornings sketches of Hug Me Slugs and a Hug Me Kitten. They are still very rough. I’m going to clean them up, pen-and-ink them in, and try working on them on the computer.

The Painter 11 Wow! Book by Cher Threinen-PendarvisI finally got myself a book so I would be less intimidated by trying Painter. I hope that does the trick!

Cutting out piles of fleece for art toysI have also been cutting up insane amounts of fleece. This is only a very small portion of what I have. I must cut it and organize it by color, or I have no idea what I have without lifting boxes and boxes.

Cutting out piles of fleece for cat toysThese are some of my scraps that will become catnip knots. I will be putting them in packets for fund raising for a local cat rescue.

Santana the Peeping Tom Cat peeps at JosephineSantana the Peeping Tom Cat, at long last, showed up in the window while Josephine was watching, and while I happened to be here too. I am sure he has seen her many times already, but this time I caught him with my camera. Fresh cat.