Caturday Art Blog Hop

CAT WORLD DOMINATION DAY 2017

Caturday Art on Cat World Domination Day

As today is Cat World Domination Day, I asked Mom to use this photo to show my domination over Lily Olivia. She cropped it down for the art, so I am making her post the original as well. She says it is blurry. Well, of course, it is. She took it! That’s why we are using it for Caturday Art.

No matter, I am in the top position, inside the sphere, and Lily is stuck on the lower scratcher/shelf. Ha, ha. I’m the dominate cat over the queen of the house.

Cat World Domination Day is really about the dominance of cats over humans. It was established by now angel, Sparkle, and coincides with her birthday. Summer, Binga and Boodie (SparkleCat.com) have continued the tradition of celebrating as has most of the feline portion of the blogosphere. So lets all get together today and demand that our humans think ONLY of us and cater to our every desire. In other words, treat today like you would any of the other 364!

Cat World Domination Day

So now that we have established that today isn’t just about my domination of Lily Olivia, we must jump back to our Caturday Art. To create this incredibly, arty photo of me, she started in LunaPic. She applied the Fire filter, followed by the Surreal Painting and Beveled Edge effects. The final step was to add the Yellowed Papyrus filter with AdornPic. She thinks the end result looks unfinished, but all the other effects and filters she tried added nothing to my beauty. Both Dad Tom and I told her to quit fiddling, and she finally listened.

This is our entry in Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blog hop. To join the hop and/or view the other submissions, click on Athena’s badge.

Space Station Cat Toy Giveaway

If you missed Calista Jo’s birthday party, you also missed the opportunity to win the super fun Petmate® Jackson Galaxy® Space Station toy. You can see C.J. playing with it on yesterday’s post. If you’d like to have the chance to win, leave a comment on the party post, Birthday Party & Space Station Giveaway. You must comment prior to Monday, June 26, at 5 p.m. ET. The winner will be selected using Random.org and announced on the following day’s post.

Sunday Selfies Blog Hop

One of us will be right here tomorrow to host our popular weekly blog hop. We’d like to thank everyone who joined last Sunday’s Father’s Day hop. Tomorrow we will be dedicating the hop to two friends who recently received their angel wings, Minko (Meezer’s Mews & Freckles’ Woofs) and Bilbo (Da DB Boyz, formerly Dory’s Backyard). Both are members of blogs that have been consistent and long-time supporters of our hop. Please drop by and honor these special angel anipals.

Purrs and paw-pats, Lisbeth

ASTRID’S VINTAGE-INSPIRED CATURDAY ART

Caturday Art

Wow, are you as surprised as I am to see me here today? After being on Thursday’s poetry post, I thought I’d need to wait a while to show off my tortie cuteness. But the Mom took some snoozy photos of me a couple of days ago, and like magic, I’m here again.

We have a small cat “tree” on the landing between the second and third floors. It has a cubby at the bottom where Giulietta likes to stuff herself. The top is a platform. That’s where Mom found me, napping with a big, stuffed mouse, cat toy as a pillow.

Our art today is unusual. It’s not one of Mom’s wildly colorful, over-worked creations. It has a vintage look and was created using adornpic. Hope you like it.

Here’s the original photo. I was sad when my little toesies were obscured in the arty version. But now you get to see them. My grey mousie pillow also is evident.

This is our entry into the week’s Caturday Art blog hop. The hop is hosted by the lovely Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty. If you do not participate in this hop, you are missing out on oodles of fun. With several free photo-editing apps available on-line, it is easy to turn your photos (even the bad ones) into something fun and interesting. To join the hop and/or see the other submissions, click on Athena’s badge.

Father’s Day Sunday Selfies

Tomorrow is that special day when we honor our human dads. To say, “thanks,” to your dad, we encourage you to include him in your selfie tomorrow. We know many of you don’t have fathers, so of course, it is not a necessity—merely a suggestion. As always, all anipals, regardless of species, are invited to join in the fun with or without their dad. None of the Kitties Blue have volunteered to try to talk our extra special dad into taking a selfie, so who will be hosting tomorrow will be a big surprise.

Until then, thanks for joining me today.

Purrs and paw-pats to all and lots and lots of kisses to my husband Sampy, Astrid

June 17, 2017 by Janet Blue Caturday Art Blog Hop 18

GIVEAWAY GUESSING GAME FOR BLOGPAWS SWAG

Caturday Art

If you come by often for Caturday Art then you know the petretary often gets carried away. She has a tendency to pile on, and this week is no exception. Not only did she throw the kitchen sink at this creation, but she also included the dirty dishwater. She used Picasa, LunaPic, piZap and PicMonkey to create this colorful mess.

You most likely are wondering if she is off her rocker or if there is a method to her madness. We are happy to say that this art actually was created purposely. You may be able to tell from our post title, what that purpose is. Today’s art is a challenge. The first individual to figure out which of us (and it could be more than one) is hidden in this photo will win a prize package of goodies from our BlogPaws Conference swag. Now we know this is going to be difficult, so if no one guesses correctly, the petretary will use Randon.org to select a winner. For an opportunity to be entered in the giveaway, you must leave your guess in the comments prior to 5 p.m. EDT on Monday, June 12. We’ll show you the original photo on our Tuesday post and announce the giveaway winner.

This is our entry in Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blog hop. We hope she won’t reject our art when she sees how weird it is! To enter some art of your own and/or view the arty entries of others, click on Athena’s badge.

Sunday Selfies

Mauricio will be here tomorrow as host for our weekly blog hop. He’s a total ham and loves to pose, even when he’s snapping the photos himself. This is your early warning to get those selfies taken for tomorrow. And if you don’t mind, invite a friend or two to join us. After all, we feature the cutest anipals on the internet.

Until then…

Purrs and paw-pats, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth, Calista Jo and Cooper Murphy

June 10, 2017 by Janet Blue Caturday Art Blog Hop Giveaway Kitty Written Blog 28

FLOWERY ART & JACKSON GALAXY

Caturday Art

Here’s our cheery and colorful art for Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blog hop. Even with the wide array of colors, I think you will recognize ginger kitty, Cooper Murphy. As I like to do, I used a few different apps to transform the photo below. The Lunapic Nouveau art filter and glass tile effect were added first. I then increased the saturation and added a red border using Picasa. The flower border is from piZap.

To view other art and/or submit some off your own, click on Athena’s badge.

Kitten Impossible

If you are a fan of Jackson Galaxy, like I am, you won’t want to miss the episode of My Cat from Hell on Animal Planet, tonight (June 3) at 8 p.m. P/E and 7 p.m. central. Jackson Galaxy teams up with Hannah Shaw (a.k.a. the Kitten Lady) to transport 50 kittens on a life-saving road trip, as part of his Operation Homeward Bound program, to the Humane Society of Boulder Valley, where Galaxy got his start. You can also drop by the live video Q&A on the My Cat From Hell Facebook page prior to the show (7:30 Eastern/4:30pm Pacific).

I was fortunate to interview Galaxy by telephone in November 2015. If you missed the series of posts that resulted from that interview, you can read them by clicking on their titles: Jackson Galaxy Interview; Jackson Galaxy Interview Part 2 & Catify to Satisfy Review; and Jackson Galaxy Interview Part 3.

Sunday Selfie Reminder

Well, it’s time again to hijack your human’s phone or camera and take a stunning selfie of yourself to share on our blog hop tomorrow. Participation has fallen off the last couple of weeks, so Kitties Blue and I hope to see you here tomorrow. This week we are dedicating our post to Dash Kitten‘s Dusty, who recently received his angel wings. Please come by and pay tribute to him.

June 3, 2017 by Janet Blue Animal Rescue Caturday Art Blog Hop Transport 26

CATURDAY ART FEATURING GUEST, SOPHIE

Caturday Art

I suspect I’ll pay dearly for this post when I get home. I most likely will be getting the cold shoulder and silent treatment all around. Did I hear you ask, “Why?” I’ll let you see for yourselves.

Can you tell what the problem is? This cat may look a bit like Lily Olivia, but it isn’t. This is the sweet, birthday girl from yesterday, Sophie, from Kitty Cat Chronicles. She is here with Mom Emily and Dad Bobby as well as two of her brothers, Kylo Ren and Caster. Most of you know by now that my Astrid married Emily and Bobby’s Sampson at BlogPaws last year.

Sophie is so beautiful and charming, loves everyone and has no idea she has CH (Cerebellar Hypoplasia). I have delighted in watching Dad Bobby as well as Dad Tom walking her around on her leash. She exudes exuberance and unabashed joy. I cannot help but smile when I see her.

I created today’s art selection using PicMonkey. This is not my original version, which I unfortunately lost in a computer hiccup. When I tried to recreate it, I couldn’t remember in which order I’d used the various effects and filters. Consequently, this does not look as good as the original art piece.

Here’s the photo of Sophie I used as the base for today’s Caturday Art. She was sitting on Mom Emily’s lap.

This is my entry into Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blog hop. To submit some art of your own and/or see the beautiful art created by your fellow bloggers, please click on her badge.

I’d like to say, “thank you” to Athena and her mum, Marie, for having this hop each week. I always look forward to “playing” with all the various on-line, photo-editing apps.

Sunday Selfies

Here’s your usual reminder to get those selfies snapped for tomorrow’s blog hop. Since Dad Tom and I still will be at the BlogPaws Conference, a good chance exists that I will not be featuring one of the Kitties Blue. I doubt this will get me into any trouble with them.

Please keep in mind that you do not need to post on Sunday to participate. The hop always remains open through Thursday.

If you’d like to know what’s been happening at the conference, check-out Twitter for items posted with #BlogPaws.

May 20, 2017 by Janet Blue Asrid & Sampson BlogPaws Conference Caturday Art Blog Hop 19

BOX BOY MAURICIO

Caturday Art

I am the guardian of any unopened box, especially when I sense something for us kitties is waiting inside. Sometimes that job becomes totally boring, as those boxes don’t always get opened right away. This particular box from Amazon came on Thursday, and I spent the entire day and a good portion of the night napping on it. I was caught snoozing in one photo and posed for a second one.

Box boy Mauricio posing.

Mom used the second photo to create our art for the Caturday Art blog hop. She decided to first turn it into a pencil sketch using Picasa.

To create the final arty version, Mom applied the Transcendence effect from Dreamscope, pushed the contrast way up and added the flowers using piZap. The final border was added using Picasa. I’m not certain why she thought I should be plopped down in a field of posies, but I guess for the sake of art I won’t complain.

This is our entry in Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blog hop. You can join as well or view the other submissions by clicking on Athena’s badge.

I bet you are wondering how my bitten bum is doing. Well, I am taking advantage of our crummy, rainy weather to get lots of rest, as you can see in the first photo. Mom says that will help me heal more quickly. I’m not begging to go outside or trying to sneak out. I don’t know how long that will last. In conclusion, I’m taking life slowly and letting by body heal.

Sunday Selfies

Yep, tomorrow’s the day we kitties and our anipal friends love to hate. Our humans enjoy seeing all our cute faces, tongues, toes and tummies, but we abhor being forced to snap photos of ourselves. There’s always something better to do, like napping, snacking and watching bird and squirrel TV. Regardless, all the Kitties Blue hope you’ll take a moment to snap a photo and join our weekly blog hop.

As tomorrow is Mother’s Day, please include your mom or caregiver in your selfie if you like.

Ciao and meow, your pal Mau

May 13, 2017 by Janet Blue Caturday Art Blog Hop Kitty Written Blog 21

COOPER MURPHY IN REPOSE

Caturday Art

Today’s art feature’s Cooper Murphy. The original photo includes a variety of patterns and textures, which I thought would make for some interesting art.

So many of our friends have used LunaPic with great results. I, however, have rarely liked the art I have created using it. This week, I was determined to make something I thought worthy of sharing. I used the floating effect from that app followed by the painted effect. The border was add using piZap and the frame using Picasa. I like the spring-like colors and am pleased with the end result.

Here’s the original photo of Cooper. He was spread out in repose atop my laptop when I snapped this.

We are entering Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blog hop. This is one of my favorite hops. I am lousy at drawing and painting, so I enjoy being able to manipulate a photo and turn it into something that appears to be an actual piece of art. A large number of free photo-editing apps are available on-line and can be combined in an infinite number of ways. If you haven’t tried creating something for this hop, I encourage you to do so. Once you start, I predict you’ll find the process of experimenting fun as well as addictive.

To enter the blog hop and/or view the other submissions, click on Athena’s badge.

In the case of our art today, the word repose in the title has two meanings: 1) a state of rest, sleep, or tranquility; 2) Art: harmonious arrangement of colors and forms, providing a restful visual effect.

Sunday Selfies Reminder

It’s that time again, but no kitty at our house has stepped up to take the challenge of trying to capture themself in something other than an out-of-focus and out-of-frame photo. But those things aren’t as important as showing up. We sure hope lots and lots of our anipal friends will join us and invite their friends to do the same. In conclusion, Kitties Blue and I are looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.

May 6, 2017 by Janet Blue Caturday Art Blog Hop 18

KALEIDOSCOPE KITTY ASTRID

Caturday Art

Wowzers! This is my third post this week. It looks as if the newness of that ginger tabby, Cooper Murphy, is wearing off, and this little tortie is taking center stage. I heard a rumor that I might have the honor of being your host for Sunday Selfies tomorrow as well.

I think the petretary went off the deep end with the art today. And I am not certain that I like it; though, in one of the versions, I am front and center. In the other two versions, I’m not even recognizable. At least I convinced her not to share the exceptionally blurry photo she took of me and used for the basis of the art.

Here is the first piece Mom created using LunaPic.

The only thing I recognize in this kaleidoscope is the color of my collar. MOUSES! Interesting, but where’s the cat!

From this she thought it would be fun to turn me into a cube, using LunaPic again. Excuse me…I am soft and cuddly not all sharp and pointy. Sheesh!

She had some failures in PicMonkey (which I told her she was not allowed to save) before loading the kaleidoscope version into piZap, where she cut out my face from a better photo and plopped it into the center. Another fail, in my opinion. She promised me she could improve that rendering by “tarting” it up with some fancy borders and a frame.

Do you think she redeemed herself or is this just a cruel April Fool’s joke? I do like the colors and that I look as if I am the center of a flower. So, I am going to let her off the hook and accept this ~~abomination~~ art as satisfactory. But the next time she decides to make me look arty, she darn well better make me look pretty as well.

Though I am embarrassed about it, this is our entry in Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art Blog Hop. To enter some art of your own and/or see the other submissions, click on Athena’s badge.

KittyRoo Sweatshirt Giveaway

Yesterday we reviewed what Mom says is at the top of her favorites list—the warm and snuggling KittyRoo sweatshirt with cat-ear-adorned hood. She’s pretty excited to have been given the opportunity to give a KittyRoo to a reader. To enter our giveaway, leave a comment here. The giveaway closes Thursday, April 6, at 5 p.m. ET.

Sunday Selfies

That’s right, another week has flown by or blown away or…whatever. It’s already time to snap a selfie for our blog hop tomorrow. As I mentioned at the top of this ramble, I believe I’ll be back tomorrow as your host. If you have the opportunity, invite some friends to join in the fun. Until then…

Purrs and paw-pats, Astrid

April 1, 2017 by Janet Blue Caturday Art Blog Hop Giveaway Kitty Written Blog 18

C.J.’S RED & BLUE PERIOD

Caturday Art

Today I m going to start with the original photo. This is Calista Jo hanging out in the cat tree cubby on the catio. Though she barely fits, this is her favorite spot when the weather is warm. We almost reached 70 degrees F today.

Many Caturday artists have been using LunaPic lately, so I decided to start there. This is what I created.

To create this art, I first added Lego Style from Effects. Then I added the Water Filter and finally the Watercolor Art at about 70 percent. I particularly like all the various textures.

I needed a frame and added this one using piZap. As it covered up a good deal of the original art, I wanted to share the interim piece with you.

This is our entry in our favorite blog hop: Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blogshop. If you haven’t participated, why not? With all the free, on-line, photo-editing apps, there’s no reason not to give it a try. To enter some art and/or view the other entries, click on Athena’s badge.

Giveaway

A few days ago, we reviewed a fun “toy,” the Cat Massage Roller from Kooky Kittens. For the opportunity to win one, leave a comment here prior to Sunday, March 26, at 5 p.m. ET. Winner will be selected using Random.org and will be announced on Tuesday, the 28th.

If you don’t want to wait to get your very own Cat Massage Roller, they are available (along with a variety of other products) at KookyKittens.com for $9.95. The regular price is $14.

Bacon Harvest

It’s finally time to harvest all that nommy bacon that Angel Sammy and Teddy have been growing in their greenhouse over at Two Spoiled Cats. Don’t forget to drop in there today if you’d like to help out and harvest a bacon stash for yourself. Mau, Cooper Murphy and Mau’s lovely wife, Allie, will be there.

Sunday Selfies

It’s almost that time again to snap a selfie and enter our blog hop. We will be having a guest host tomorrow. Kitties Blue have been sworn to secrecy as to the identity of our host. We want to make certain that you stop in to find out who it is. We had a great turnout last week for which we are most grateful. Thank you, friends!

March 25, 2017 by Janet Blue Caturday Art Blog Hop Giveaway 23

LILY OLIVIA PRESENTS HER OWN CATURDAY ART

Caturday Art

I am so sorry we didn’t post yesterday, but both our humans are sick. So as not to miss another day, I have taken over the blog. The cat who takes over the blog gets to use her photo for Caturday Art. I decided to use an old photo of myself that I particularly like. After I created several versions of the art, I was unable to decide which I liked best, so I am going to present you with three, and you can pick your favorite.

Each version was created by first adding the water overlay from piZap to the photo and then the Lux filter from Dreamscope. After that I went back to piZap and added the borders to the first two versions below followed by frames using Picasa. The third photo has no additional border from piZap, just the frame.

I will be entering the final version in Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art Blog Hop. This is Mom’s favorite hop, and I think it is now mine as well. I had a blast experimenting. To enter some art of your own or view the other submissions, click on Athena’s badge.

Friendly Fill-Ins

I am a day late doing the Fill-Ins. I hope you don’t mind. Mom said that we cannot let down our good friends and hosts of this blog hop, Mom Annie (McGuffy’s Reader) and Mom Ellen (15 And Meowing). I sure hope I can come up with some clever completions today. My fill-ins are in teal italics.

1. I wish humans revering cats as gods would come back in style.

2. I always have catnip and Temptations in my purse. (Well, I don’t actually carry a purse, but if I did, that’s what I’d have in it.)

3. I think that I should get as much nip as I want whenever I want it. .

4. That I have to share my humans with seven other cats is a pet peeve of mine.

Sunday Selfies Reminder

I don’t know if posting tomorrow will again be my responsibility. I am the oldest, after all, so that may be the case. Speaking of age, my birthday is coming up on Tuesday. I will be 18 years old. Pretty good…don’t you think?

Anyhoo, I have no idea who will be in the selfie. If I have to write the post, I can guarantee it won’t be me. We had a great turn-out last week when the Welcome Teddy hop was happening as well. I sure hope I can count on lots and lots of you to return tomorrow. Mom promised us last Sunday that she was going to help us visit all the blogs of those who joined us. Unfortunately getting sick wasn’t part of the plan. If you can’t get here tomorrow, it’s okay. The hop remains open through Thursday.

PetSafe FroliCat Fox Den Giveaway

If you missed our Thursday post, we are giving away one of this super fun toy. To have the opportunity to win, leave a comment here prior to Wednesday, March 1, at 5 p.m. EST. The winner will be selected using Random.org and announced the following day.

Thanks for stopping in!

Purrs and paw-pats, Lily Olivia

February 25, 2017 by Janet Blue Caturday Art Blog Hop Friendly Friday Fill-Ins Giveaway Kitty Written Blog 22

YOU
For Fiona

It seems like only yesterday…
You were just a kitten.
When I saw your pleading look,
I was completely smitten.

Now at only six years old,
You are getting ready to leave,
Soon you will have your wings.
I’ve already started to grieve.

You’ve fought hard for the past year,
And I’m not ready to say good-bye.
I can’t imagine you not in my life
I am so sad…today I had to cry.

I am grateful and blessed
For my six years with you.
You’ll live in my heart forever.
You’re one of the best ever Kitties Blue.

YESTERDAY

Many yesterdays have passed since
You gained your angel wings. Today
Is six months since you left us behind
To remember and mourn. Our hearts
Continue to hurt, and we miss
You as much as the day you left.
Giulietta whined from the catio
Yesterday as I worked in the yard.
I know you put her up to it. That
Was your way of getting me to,
Allow you to join me as I
Gardened. You were there with me
In spirit. With every meow
I thought of you and how much I miss
Your sweet face and disposition.
In these past few months, many friends
Have traveled your same path in your
paw-steps. I am certain you were
Waiting to greet them with purrs and hugs.
I pray you and your friends are laughing,
Frolicking and having fun together.
Picturing that makes me smile, but
Does not lessen my sadness at your
No longer being here to snuggle
And receive our love, care and kisses.
Fiona, please do not ever forget
You are still and always will be loved.

ONE YEAR MISSING YOU

One year has passed since you flew away,
And I still think of you everyday.
I see your sweet face in my mind’s eye
And wish we’d never had to say good-bye.
It’s nice you’ve sent us kitties needing a family,
But my dearest love, we are now at capacity.
You thought it would take more than one cat
To take your place in our habitat.
We love Cooper Murphy and baby Sawyer dearly
But thinking either could replace you makes me teary.
You were one-of-a-kind and will stay in my heart
Until the day I join you and we’re no longer apart.
When once again I can hold you in my arms
And revel in all your love and feline charms.
Together with you and all who have passed.
I will spend eternity contemplating how blessed
I was to share my life with my furry children,
Each and every one of you one-in-a billion.

UNTIL

I miss you each day.
Until we meet in heaven,
The pain will remain.

ONE OF A KIND

I don’t know how to say good-bye.
I thought you were invincible; though,
You used up many of your nine lives.
You ruled us all with an iron paw;
Never took “no” for an answer
And always got your way.
If not, you’d bark to signal your
Displeasure and sometimes raise a paw.
I always joked that you were bi-polar.
When I told people you were a calico
They immediately understood what I meant.
Today was unnaturally quiet in the house.
Can a home seem empty with eight cats?
I will miss waking up at night to find you
Sitting next to me and staring at me.
I will miss you yelling at us as you did
When you wanted breakfast and dinner.
I will miss watching you lounging and snoozing
On the porch settee on a warm afternoon.
But most of all I will miss your kisses!
When kitten Sawyer befriended you,
We suspect you were imparting your
Wisdom and secrets for controlling us.
Time will tell if he was a good listener.
But whatever he may have learned,
Neither Sawyer nor any other cat
Can or will replace you in our hearts.
Lily Olivia, you were one-of-a-kind.