Life with Tigers

Swim against yourself?

2012-01-12T15:51:00.002-05:00

I wasn't sure how to start this post today. Originally, I was going to start off by talking about how wonderful this holiday season was for Life with Tigers. Craft fair sales have been excellent, new ideas are brewing and new opportunities to expand our little furry empire are on the horizon. In general, it's exciting to start planning projects and products for the upcoming year, and the thought of making more of my tried and true favorites makes me very happy. New doll designs, on the way, severed legs-a-plenty in the works, and lovely new topiary designs have made their way from paper into production. And then this is where I got stuck, because I recently found something that stopped me in my tracks.

Somebody on Etsy has copied one of my products, spec by spec, and has begun to sell them as her own.

Now, I won't say what item, and I certainly won't draw any attention to this person by name for what she is doing, but it brought me into the ever growing world of creatives dealing with copyright violations, trademark infringement and the unpleasant taste of unscrupulous folks who have no respect for the creative process and what goes into making something from concept to completion. I was quite aware of the incidents involving major retail chains stealing ideas from small online businesses like those that appear on Etsy or BigCartel, and there is even a blog called You Thought We Wouldn't Notice that chronicles incidents where independent artists and designers work has been blatantly ripped off. It is the risk creatives take when presenting their work to the world. And while the internet has made it super easy to steal somebody else's ideas, it happens at art fairs, craft fairs, shops and galleries too.

Strangely though, when it happened to me this week, it wasn't anger that welled up inside me, it was sadness. Anger is what happened when my bike was stolen from outside the laundromat. Sadness is when somebody takes something that was born from your imagination, brought into the world through your own pin-pricked fingers, and shared with other like-minded folks who then shared it again with people they love through gift giving.

And while there are things that can and will be done about it, my only small consolation is that the copies are quite ugly. I don't think I have to worry about swimming against her bad imitations of my work in the Olympic-sized pool of the market place. As long as I keep creating, keep being innovative, original and keep producing items of the highest quality possible, I feel I will only have to swim against myself.

NYCC Official Data Dump!

2011-10-17T23:10:00.000-04:00

It happened, and it was awesome! The 2011 New York Comic Con has packed up and left the Javits Center, but the memories (and in some cases aromas) linger on. Face paint? Check! Swords and guns? Check! Body parts, organs, monsters and zombies? You bet! And just how did it go? How did the Indie Toymaker Roundtable turn out? I'll get to that in a sec, but here's a few pictures to set the mood:

The place was packed! Sold out! At capacity. More geeks than you can shake a stick at. Exciting is hardly the word. I came, I shopped, I drank three cups of coffee:

I sought out Wendy of I Heart Guts, the brains (pun intended) behind the panel. Her booth was in the CultYard section of the hall, which was very large. In fact, it took me about an hour to find her because I didn't want to bust out the program! I did end up buying a uterus from her!

I ran into some resistance along the way:

And this guy was there to keep me out of trouble. This was happening everywhere! Watch your parts closely because they were likely to get chopped or burned off with lasers at every corner!

It wasn't all scary stuff though, for example, a blue, one-eyed fuzzy monster ugly doll walked by....

...who was probably chasing after this blue guy....

I snapped a picture of the panel room sign, just to make sure it was really all happening. Yup, there we are. And this is Wendy, checking her phone for important note type things:

And now, onto the panel itself! We were let into the room a bit late, and we thought it was gonna be just us: (left to right: Wendy at the podium, me hiding behind the laptop, Phil Barbato, Shawn Smith of Shawnimals, Nitin Bhargava from KidRobot, Joshua Ben "Longoland" Longo and Kris Schantz of Happy Worker):

But it turned out to be not just us at all!

A most-excellent turnout to hear all about independent toymaking, turning characters into toys, manufacturing, marketing and more:

And then it was my turn. My moment in the sun. My time to shine. My time to talk about something that brings me so much joy, so much happiness, and something I actually know something about. Toys! Cats! Robots! Here was my queue...

And then, I started talking, but I went all shy, and didn't speak as much as I had planned to:

I kept sneaking a peek at Phil's laptop because I couldn't see the large screen from the end of the table:

Everybody's presentations were amusing, informative and interesting! You couldn't tell at all we'd been drinking:

We had giveaways at the end of the panel, and everybody I spoke to was super nice and encouraging. Some future makers in the crowd, for sure! Meghan, Phil's "CEO", gave me an awesome set of X-men/bear buttons:

So what did I learn from this experience? That being a superhero is hard work...

...and so is being a cheerleader for my own cause. Yes, public speaking is hard, but really, if I can't talk about what I love, what lights my fire, and what drives me to create, in front of INTERESTED people no less, than I need to work on more than just getting my seams straight. A missed opportunity? Sure, I think so, to some degree, but I feel that the next time something like this comes around (if I am that lucky), then I will have a better chance of making the best of it, because I think i DO have something to share, and I'd love to share it with you, regardless of whether you are dressed like an investment banker or a pirate.

I have also been reminded that there are some fantastic, like-minded folks out there. I cannot thank Wendy enough for the invitation, and I am pleased that Kris DID get the cheesecake he was searching for before heading back to Canada, and a big thanks to Phil for mentioning "stretch needles". It's nice to learn things over beers!

And I have come out of it a bit more of an optimist (prime). Sorry, couldn't help but slip that one in!

I AM...The speaker of the house!

2011-10-14T12:17:00.004-04:00

And there it is....my speaker's badge for NYC Comic Con. Today is the big day, and here I am with a severe case of jet lag from my trip to London for Renegade, plus a cold I picked up somewhere over the Atlantic. But I will be there with a bag of severed legs, ready to dish on whatever is asked of me. A word of warning...I am a terrible public speaker! Here's the info in case anybody has a boatload of money to blow on admission!

Today, Friday October 14
8:45pm - 9:45pm
Room 1A23
Javits Center, NYC

I went to pick up the badge yesterday, and as soon as I walked through the door, I saw a guy in his underpants standing next to somebody dressed as Kick-Ass. I knew I was in the right place!

Breaking news! The New York Comic Con has officially sold out!

And please stay tuned this weekend for my epic 2-part wrap up of the London Renegade European adventure!

Renegade Craft Fair London!

2011-10-04T10:05:00.001-04:00

Part of the LwT staff is super excited about this coming weekend! It's the first annual Renegade Craft Fair in London, England, and Life with Tigers will be sharing a booth with Ink and Sword at The Old Truman Brewery on October 8+9th. An international cast of characters will be there with us, featuring artisans from around the globe! Free stuff to do, awesome goodies to peruse, severed legs to sell and super expensive treats to enjoy! Sign me up!

And no matter what anybody says, I WILL be eating fish and chips. I realize that there is more to culinary England than battered fish, but imagine coming to New York City and not eating a slice of pizza, or going to Paris and not eating crepes, or going to McDonaldland and not eating a McNuggles or whatever they have there...you must do it, do it all the way, do it proud, and blog about it later.

The other part of the staff is not so pleased. As much as I'd like to take the "Tiger" parts of LwT across the waters, they will be staying stateside, free to engage in all manner of forbidden activities while the management is away. Believe me, there will me supervision, but you know how kids behave when the substitute teacher shows up. Intern Moo has already begun sleeping in places previously considered off-limits, and Ash has taken up residence in my sock drawer. Shadow has claimed the luggage. In a lame attempt to make myself feel better about missing out on a few days of hardcore cuddles (and believe me, they've been very hardcore due to a significant change in the weather pattern to the colder side), "operation overfeed" has already begun. Don't worry kittens, cuddles will resume on their normal schedule before you know it!

Operation Promo is go!

2011-09-26T16:42:00.000-04:00

From the land of mega coolness, here are the promotional postcards for the Comic Con "Indie Toymaker Roundtable: Turning Characters into Toys" panel on October 14th, courtesy of Wendy at I Heart Guts.

Even more fun is this blog update Wendy put up last week. Look, I'm a robot! Woo hoo!

Now, back to leg making...Renegade London is approaching fast, and I want to make sure there are enough severed leg catnip toys for our feline friends who call England home!

Stop it, you are making me Plush!

2011-09-20T20:04:00.001-04:00

I was concerned that I was turning the corner into serious geekdom last year when I opted out of my AT&T iPhone contract to get my hands on the Droid R2-D2 phone (this IS the droid I'm looking for). Even more so when I realized I know what a Browncoat is (gratuitous Firefly reference). But today, I am coming out of the closet to announce to the whole world that I will be participating in something quite geektastic, in public, for all to see.

I am going to New York Comic Con. Not just going there, speaking there. As in, with a microphone. And not a crazy person with a Mr. Microphone standing outside dressed in a tin foil slave Leia-esque bikini, telling everybody that I am really a cylon (gratuitous Battlestar Galactica reference), but as an invited, semi-respectable-guest-type person.

I will be participating in a panel discussion moderated by the "Queen of Spleens" Wendy Bryan of I Heart Guts entitled "Indie Toymaker Roundtable: Turning Characters Into Toys" on Friday, October 14th at 8:45pm. There are going to be some amazing creatives up there with me, including Shawn Smith of Shawnimals, Joshua Ben Longo of Longoland, maker of fine plushables Phil Barbato, plus the director of merchandising from KidRobot and a rep from custom toy maker Happy Worker. There will be severed legs on hand, of course.

And it is of course worth mentioning that there will be big stars there (well, at least in MY 'verse), including Frank Miller, Mike Mignola (Hellboy), Stan Lee, Herbert Jefferson Jr (the original Boomer from the Battlestar Galactica of my childhood), Kaylee from Firefly, Cally from the new Battlestar Galactica, Lou Freakin' Ferrigno and the cherry on top, Marc Hamill, the ACTUAL Luke Skywalker, who by the way, has graciously scheduled his panel RIGHT BEFORE OURS. Coincidence? I think not..such a sweetheart to "open" for us. ;-)

Robots and Fire and Circuits = Fun!

2011-09-19T12:08:00.000-04:00

I took a short break from sewing mushrooms and legs this weekend to slip in a visit to the Maker Faire at the New York Hall of Science in Queens. Part Burning Man, part science fair, part DIY mega paradise, this is THE event to go to when you need your fill of robotic technology, body paint and terribly long food lines. And while I didn't get to see Arc Attack because of the length of the lines, I did feel fulfilled at the end of the day having enjoyed watching lock-picking classes, robots doing roboty things, robots doing people things, fire-breathing contraptions, a car covered in singing lobsters and fish, 3D printers and feeling a tangible creative energy I haven't felt in a long time! I just wish the Mentos and Coke Zero fountain show still used Diet Coke...I don't like that stuff, and seeing all that delicious Coke Zero shooting skyward made me very thirsty! Here are some highlights:

A solar powered carousel. I didn't find out why they are all white:

Fire breathing monsters are always on hand:

Plenty of places to learn something new, like how to knit or build robotic bugs:

Here is a two-person mini car, and a thai chi dancing robot...a real charmer in his bandana!

And a special treat, while testing the camera before leaving for the fair, a photo of our intrepid intern, Moo.

I AM....in a tailspin.

2011-09-10T15:23:00.000-04:00

So it certainly has been very busy here at the LwT studio. Much to say, much to announce. Where to begin?

Let's begin by announcing that Life with Tigers will be making it's international debut at the Renegade Craft Fair in London. It is Renegade's first ever fair in Europe, and we are so pleased to be sharing a booth with Ink and Sword there on October 8th and 9th at the Old Truman Brewery in East London. This means Eurokitties will get severed legs without paying for international shipping, which is wonderful, because I feel nothing spreads good will across international boundaries like a tasty severed leg.

That seemed like the best place to begin. Great news. Great event. I am feeling happy.

Then, came the buzzkill, as this morning, I stepped on intern Moo's tail. She squealed. I panicked. She ran. I chased. I inspected. She forgave me over breakfast. She will be just fine, but I may never recover!

More news coming up this week, including a few new items to announce, an interview and something about a date with Luke Skywalker! Oh, ya, my geek flag is gonna fly high this week!

Brooklyn, here we come!

2011-05-17T15:05:00.000-04:00

Wait, we live in Brooklyn. Well, Williamsburg, here we come. Wait, we live in Williamsburg. Uhhhh, ok, Renegade Craft Fair, here we come! Yes! That's the ticket!

Renegade Craft Fair is returning to McCarren Park for the 7th Annual Brooklyn Fair on June 11 +12, 2011, from 11am – 7pm! Life with Tigers is happy to announce that we will be available for all your Severed Leg Catnip Toy buying needs. Simply stop by booth #120, near the entrance at Union and Bayard Streets. It's a good location, as we will be within walking distance of Saint's Alp Tea House on Bedford Avenue and their delightful Honeydew Sorbies for two whole days!

Perhaps this year, we won't have a rainstorm/tornado/heat wave/windstorm. Perhaps this year I won't spill a Lime Jarrito down my leg. Possibilities abound! This year, though, there will be new items available, plus more robots and art prints. If you can, swing by, say hi and see what I've done with some of those cat food cans that Shadow, Ash and Moo go through every month!

A new print is in the shop

2011-04-17T21:06:00.000-04:00

Happy Day! A new art print has made it's way to the LwT Etsy shop, and it is a PSA that we need to heed here in the studio! Sadly, I must confess, I OWN A FAT CAT. And he's not the first fat cat I've had either. GUILTY! I am an enabler. I can't resist the "please feed me" face. But when I learned the fact that there are more overweight cats than normal size cats in the U.S., I knew I had to get the word out. Join me in helping to slim down our portly pussy population, starting with that lump of love on your couch right now! (This means you, Shadow...it's time to trim!)

This new art print is the first of five in the works. Some of the others will include messages about dog fighting, canine oral health and service animals. They will also be available in the Ink and Sword shop shortly.

A new litter has arrived

2011-03-03T21:21:00.000-05:00

Hooray! A litter of 6 new dolls has been added to the Life with Tigers Etsy Shop this week. Like apples? Chickens? Plaid? Chickens? Flowers? Chickens???? Then come on over and check them out, or you can take a peek at them here as Ashes, our art director, sets up a promotional photo:

There are more dolls on the way too, but they are currently in various states of completion, and certainly not ready for their close-ups yet.

I Have Cat? You better believe it!

2011-02-09T22:16:00.002-05:00

Want a Severed Leg Catnip Toy for your kitty this Valentine's Day? Don't wanna pay for it? Well, cheapskate (er, I mean, beloved reader), here is your chance to give your tiny tiger the gift of carnage next week for nothing more than a minute of your time. Mosey on over to the uber-cool blog I Have Cat and leave a comment on the "A Valentine for Kitty (Giveaway)" post for your chance to win a severed leg of your very own (well, your cat's very own). There are THREE up for grabs, so enter now before your cat finds out you put it off and you end up giving her a lame box of drug store chocolates, which she can't eat anyway. She WILL get even, trust me on this. Oh, yes, I know......

Tamar has a good thing going on over there at I Have Cat AND on her Facebook page (holy crap! 11,333 fans!!!), so I suggest you add these to your RSS feeds, friends lists or whatever else you utilize to get your kitty fixes! Before you jump on over there and catch up on the adventures of Petie, Kip and Haddie, enjoy this moment of zen, provided by I Have Cat regular contributor, Haddie:

But wait a minute, that's not all! Our sister shop Ink and Sword, where we sell a boat load of Pet Care Public Service Announcements in oodles of sizes, is in on the fun too! Until the end of February, everything in the shop is 20% off if you use the coupon code IHAVECAT at check out!

And just in case you are wondering where the name I Have Cat came from, please read here...it's so funny...and so true. It is a rallying cry. I just wish I could master the cat-hair-free-clothes part.

They're here!

2011-01-27T21:22:00.000-05:00

New fabrics in the studio mean new topiaries, new dolls and most importantly to cats everywhere, new severed legs! Swing on by the shop and see all the new styles. Don't see something that floats your boat? No worries, because there are even more new designs on the horizon...just as soon as the sewing machine gets unstuck!

They're coming!

2011-01-24T23:10:00.000-05:00

No, not aliens. Not monsters. Not things that go bump in the night...scratch that...the cat will be going bump in the night chasing around his new severed leg catnip toy! Awesome new fabrics for you, same great cat-pleasing goodness for your furry child. Kitty won't know the difference between the "Potato Sack" sock or the "Paternity Test" sock, but YOU are the one who's gonna be looking at that thing laying on your floor while the cat naps on your shoe. Be sure to check the Life with Tigers Etsy Shop this week to see the new styles!

A carnage filled christmas morning!

2011-01-09T20:27:00.001-05:00

A big thank you to Tim for sending us video evidence that west coast cats not only appreciate Severed Leg Catnip Toys, but nifty bed linens as well. Señor Juan Julio Esteban de Gato seems to be living it up and we wish him many continued pounces with his new toy!

Bloggy McBloggalot

2011-01-07T21:23:00.001-05:00

Now that LwT HQ is done with the craft holiday blitzkrieg, I've actually had a few moments to snoop around the web and see what our friends, old and new are up to. I stumbled upon a few very cool things...

Coolhunting.com featured the Severed Leg Catnip Toy as a favorite pick for imaginative gifts right before Christmas.

The legs also showed up at Petopia, though I must disagree with their thoughts that the Toilet Paper Organic Catnip toy would hold up a cats teeth and claws better than a severed leg...these babies have been thoroughly tiger tested and there are STILL four-year-old (and much loved) prototypes kicking around the studio.

The fine folks at the blog Newf and Hound included some photos of the Life with Tigers booth in their San Francisco Renegade Craft Fair roundup, plus some extremely kind words.

Jess over at the kiddins tumbler site included us in her Renegade round up too. Totally cool, and Jess has excellent taste (NOT saying that because she featured us, but I'm just sayin')...look through her site and ADMIRE those hedgehog mittens then continue on to Spoonflower where you can buy some of her custom fabric. Thumbs up!

Renegade Craft Fair got a shot of our booth from the San Francisco show on their Flickr stream too! We hope they will have us back again this year...by far our most favorite craft events are run by these guys.

Plus, our Pet Care PSAs were featured on DogMilk, the Daily Tail, and Phetched!

A big thank you to everybody who took the time to mention us on their blogs and websites! Now back to sewing more goodies...I've got a new fabric stash and I'm gonna use it!

Post holiday wrap up

2010-12-29T15:36:00.000-05:00

No more packing, no more flying, driving or repacking. The holiday season is over, and Life with Tigers has come though with only minor scratches. Here's a quick recap of the last two weeks:

It all started at the Bust Magazine Holiday Craftacular here in NYC. LwT shared a booth once again with our friend Jed at Ink and Sword, and I think we did an excellent job of cramming two tons of excellent merchandise into 8 feet of space. The rains came and threatened to sweep away the shoppers, but they persevered. Met some wonderful people, like Sarah at Mountain Ash Design and Tamar at ihavecat.com.

After the Craftacular, I kicked it into high gear for the Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco the very next weekend. This was my first attempt at doing bi-coastal fairs back to back but I must say, it all went along pretty smoothly. We had a much larger booth space with two tables, and even though the heavy rains followed us to Cali, we managed to avoid getting rained on indoors when the water started to come through the roof.

That's me, a flurry of activity setting up on day two. That is not an action shot however, I always look that blurry.

Here I am adjusting my high-tech foam core topiary display stand. Not much to look at, but it packs up light as a feather! Just behind me is the booth maned by Sally at Birdy Botanicals. I must proclaim that the Grapefruit and Lemongrass Antioxidant Lotion is excellent. I now look for reasons to smell my hands regularly.

To everybody who told me they looked for my booth this year just to pick up a severed leg catnip toy for kitty's stocking, a big THANK YOU. You really made my weekend! And so did this little fellow:

This is a fluffy doggie buddy who enjoyed his new severed leg catnip toy. We don't discriminate here at Life with Tigers...dogs are welcome to enjoy plushy carnage as well!

Life with Tigers (meaning me) then took a mini-vacation in California to visit family, and managed to roll back into New York City on Christmas Eve, just a day before the big blizzard forced everybody to stay indoors and play new video games and eat those delightful little rumballs and whiskey-filled chocolates that their moms sent them home with. Lots more to update you on, so stay tuned!

The Final Countdown

2010-12-09T16:19:00.000-05:00

It's almost time. This Sunday is the Bust Magazine Craftacular in New York City. It's been a busy, busy flurry of activity around the studio. Legs to make. Topiaries to sew. Dolls to create. And just to make sure we don't run out of severed leg catnip toys this year, like we have during all previous fairs, we may have gone a bit overboard...

That, is a pile of 230 legs. That is also moments before intern Moo took a flying leap into the pile. Now, a stack like this doesn't come without consequences. Behold, the mighty LwithT sewing machine after the completion of the legs (warning: graphic content):

All that fuzz does strange things to the average sewing machine, and a trusty can of compressed air solves that problem, but creates a slightly more amusing one...cats apparently don't like the sounds that come from compressed air cans. They tilt their head. They make "rawr rawr" sounds. They slink around low to the ground like they were being chased by attacking seagulls. Something to keep in mind when dinner time rolls around and I find a paw in my potatoes.

Cool Hunting for tiny tigers

2010-11-20T17:36:00.000-05:00

The holidays around LwithT HQ can be quite busy. Lots of orders to fill, art to make, dolls to sew...you get the idea. While sequestered in a foggy frenzy of thread and ink, I was beginning to think that I just may, in fact, reach my inventory goals for the holiday sales and craft fairs coming up.

Cue interruption.

Actually the interruption was a welcome one! I was approached by one of the editors of CoolHunting.com and asked if I would like to participate in their Cool Hunting for Gap Pop Up Shop on 5th Avenue in New York City. It is their first ever pop up store and it brings together products from local, independent New York companies in a beautifully designed space located next to the Gap.

I said OK. They said send 100 legs. I said OK. They said they need it, like, right now. I said OK. Cue Benny Hill theme song.

Here is intern Moo checking the order for quality before it left for the shop earlier this week:

If you find yourself on a pilgrimage to St Patrick's Cathedral, the window displays at Bergdorf Goodman or just feel like you want to get into the sometimes nutty Holiday in the Big City mood, stop on by the shop...it will be there seven days a week through January 2nd for all your Severed Leg Catnip Toy / bikes made of bamboo / foam ducky sponge / chocolate made in Brooklyn needs!

Hmm, I don't remember the ledge being this small

2010-09-26T21:31:00.007-04:00

In the early days, our intrepid intern Moo needed some time to adjust from the life of a free-spirited stray to the constraints (and luxuries) of indoor life. One such adjustment was to learn that walking on the wrong side of the mezzanine safety rail inside the LwithT Headquarters was an unfortunately quick way to reach ground floor. Twice, little Moo had dabbled in the "dark side" of feline safety and suffered the consequences...a 12 foot drop to the hardwood floor. She also single handedly proved that cats do not always land on their feet. It has since become obvious to even the most casual observer that Moo is what the scientific community would label "clumsy as hell". She seemed to learn from her early mistakes, and has realized the benefits of using the stairs. She has even started to copy the stair-descending styles of Shadow and Ash which has resulted in a strange combination of Ash's "graceful as a butterfly, quick as a cobra" style and Shadow's "two feet in unison, ca-clump, ca-clump" style. Now that Moo is growing, I figured the days of walking on the wild side were over.

Until this morning.

Moo has yet to learn that now that she is growing bigger, that deliciously scary ledge on the wrong side of the safety rail is going to appear smaller, and right when it appears that a u-turn is in order, there is no place for the caboose to go except over the edge. Please note this artist's rendering of the event in question:

I am, however, happy to report that this story has a different ending that the previous ones. As I lunged (as much lunging can be done in the early morning hours of a Sunday), little Moo pulled herself up using a "grasping at straws" technique that usually only works in cartoons. She managed to return herself safely to the correct side of the safety rail just in time to see me awake and to remind me that it's breakfast time, complete with an escort to the food bowl. All of this makes me think that she CAN learn from her mistakes, and that it may soon be time to consider elevating her status from intern to junior-level assistant. We'll see how she does on her 1 year review this December.

I AM... a leopard lollipop

2010-09-20T21:21:00.009-04:00

It seems that Shadow, Director of Ops here at LwithT HQ believes that 6:00am is the NEW 7:30am. For several days, he's been determined to get the day started early and take everybody else along for the ride. The situation finally hit critical mass today when he decided to turn my face into a leopard lollipop and lost all sense of feline fundamentals. He bit my face, that little cuss! Of course he didn't mean any harm, but many people with cats, or perhaps 2 year old children, can recognize...THAT look. The look that happens a moment before they lose their minds and act like...an animal. I am, however, very grateful that what woke me up wasn't this:

In case anybody wanted an update on intern Moo, this is her, eating her way through inventory.

Rosie "Pro Pouncer" Falco likes her leg!

2010-09-02T13:39:00.000-04:00

Rosie the kitten displays her pouncing prowess with her Severed Leg Catnip Toy on what could be the best rug EVER seen here at LwithT HQ. Kudos to Dana, not only for the video, but for her excellent taste in floor coverings!

We all scream for ice cream!

2010-08-24T20:47:00.006-04:00

OK, now THIS is what I'm talking about. Big Ed from Chicago gives us all a lesson in leading a happy life...enjoy your severed leg catnip toy to the FULLEST by treating it like an ice cream cone, then toss it around a bit. Big thanks to Catherine for venturing close enough to the tiger and his prey to capture this video!

Azriel loves his severed leg.

2010-08-10T16:19:00.004-04:00

Dispatched from the west coast, for your amusement, is Azriel, the Bengal. He thinks his new Severed Leg Catnip Toy is a delightful substitute for his owner's ankles. Perhaps now Jane, Sage and Isaac can walk the dangerous journey from the living room to the kitchen without getting pounced on. Ya, probably not.

2010 Renegade Craft Fair San Francisco Recap

2010-08-10T15:55:00.022-04:00

Despite a rather amusing fire alarm evacuation on day 2, the price of shipping stock across the country, uncomfortable airline seats and one the of the strangest rental cars ever, the Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco was, for us, a great success and a pleasure. Here's the blow by blow of how it went down:

We arrived in the Bay Area after a delayed flight, late at night and eager to jump into the rental and head straight to the nearest Carl's Jr. drive-thru for a Western Bacon Cheeseburger. After a few deflected attempts to "upgrade" our car rental reservation, we staggered to slot Q45 and found a red, strangely shaped vehicle awaiting us. A Chevy HHR to be precise...a car so strange, it doesn't even have a name...only initials. 10 minutes of figuring out what HHR could be an acronym for faded into the night as the drive-thru came into view.

Here is the vehicle in question, as presented by nephew and assistant for the weekend Sage:

The fair was at Fort Mason Center, which is a wonderful venue for a fair like this...not too hot, not too cold, outstanding views, the smell of sea air, parking. We had an excellent booth assignment. Close to the door, the restrooms, the snack bar, the composting bins and a high-voltage power box.

Life with Tigers partnered up with Jed at Ink and Sword again. Our joint booth at the Brooklyn Renegade was so nice, we had to do it twice! Here is the combination Life with Tigers/Ink and Sword booth:

Day 1 was great. Sold out of severed leg catnip toys despite the loss of the credit card processing abilities of my iPhone (why, oh why, wouldn't my phone work on a pier out on the water, standing in a metal building, serviced by AT&T?!?! heh). The only other hiccup was when I was notified by Cat Sitter Extraordinaire Michelle that back in Brooklyn, intern Moo had gone missing. Hiding to be sure, but her secret place had not been discovered and an open window just added to the "I lost my friend's cat" angst. As we suspected, she made a brief appearance at feeding time the next day. Michelle could breathe again.

Day 2 had the early morning fire alarm and evacuation, but it was short lived. We congregated just outside the doors, suspecting nearby barbequers for the interuption. One of my softbots got a new home:

I waited patiently until about 3:00. Then, while the booth was being supervised by assistants Felina, Isaac and Sage, I made a break for it...I couldn't wait to shop! I had been seeing all this outstanding stuff walk past my booth for a day and a half and I couldn't take it anymore. I ended up this print from Seattle Show Posters, a beautiful Letterpress print from Dutch Door Press, and a dinosaur I Love SF totebag from Seibei. We took a moment to reflect on the fair and take a photo, which sums up our feelings by 6:00pm on day 2:

The vendors at this year's fair were top notch and we were very pleased to be included. We met so many wonderful people and want to thank everybody who came out to support the vendors, many of whom I discovered, were not local and had travel stories of their own. We hope we are invited back next year!

Plus, Jed had MANY family members come out and help/support/assist/and generally make us happy, so a big THANK YOU to them as well. You know who you are!

2010-07-10T13:27:00.002-04:00

If anybody happens to see Oliver, the tuxedo cat anywhere, let us know...Rob and Annette in NY are looking for him. Until he comes back, they will have to settle for an Oliver doll, custom made for them with the highest hopes for Ollie's safe return!

Cartwheels are cool.

2010-07-05T15:03:00.005-04:00

Hey everyone. While recovering from your Independence Day celebrations (as in, while you are still digesting all that BBQ), why not take a look at an awesome new blog called Cartwheels in my Mind. Why, you ask, should I visit this particular blog on my day off? Well, glad you asked...because I was recently tapped by Cindy for an Art Shoppe Interview there and it went up today. I enjoyed this interview very much and am sooooo pleased that they took the time to reach out. Plus, I'm sponsoring a giveaway there! An art print and a fabric greeting card. All you gotta do to enter the drawing is leave a comment on that post. You can read the whole interview here! And for those who may not be familiar with the Life with Tigers staff, the kitty giving me that big hug is our Art Director, Ashes.

We're havin' a sale!

2010-06-12T17:43:00.003-04:00

We wanna keep the Renegade fun rolling until our next appearance in San Francisco in July, so we're now offering art prints at craft fair prices! 5x7s for $10! 8x10s for $15. Stroll on over to the Life with Tigers or Ink and Sword Etsy shops and pick one up for you, your kid's room, your cubicle or one of the other strange places people have said they've hung these in!

Airborne mushrooms, jumpy robots and legs that smell like lime

2010-06-09T22:04:00.012-04:00

We did it! We survived the Brooklyn Renegade Craft Fair. We had windy conditions (and a tornado warning). We had torrential rains. We had sweltering heat. We had coconut ice...lots of it. Check out our booth!

Here's the Life with Tigers display on day 1:

Here is the Ink and Sword display on day 2:

Those winds caused a lot of ruckus...we had flying mushroom topiaries, dolls that would not stay on the table, artwork and postcards flittering over the lawn like war propaganda dropped from airplanes and a spilled Lime Jarrito all over my legs. At least it smelled good.

A special thank you to Jed at Ink and Sword for reaching all the tall things, fastening down all the floppy things and holding back the tent backing that promised to envelop us both. You rocked! And to all of our friends, thank you so much for showing up in the heat and showing your support either through a much appreciated purchase, assistance in retrieving blown merchandise, using your umbrella to cover the art boxes or engaging in friendly conversations. You all deserve beer and BBQ.

And look! We were even mentioned on this blog in their post Renegade wrap up...mega cool.

Oh, the carnage!

2010-05-25T23:11:00.004-04:00

It's sew-a-poluza here at LwithT HQ. We're up to our knees in legs and fungus and ink and paper...all the things that make us happy. Moo the intern has had her first go at a wave of severed legs, successfully pulling one from beneath the closet door. Fortunately, that one leg has been the only casualty in an onslaught of creative production in anticipation of the Renegade Craft Fair, now only 2 weeks away!! I must keep the dispatches short, as there are many things to cut out, paste on, sew up and clean up after.

Let the Pigeons Loose!

2010-03-13T15:55:00.004-05:00

It's official everybody. Life with Tigers will be a vendor at the 6th Annual Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn. The two day event takes place on June 5th and 6th in Williamsburg's McCarren Park. There will over 250 vendors there, and as always, the Fair is free to attend! All the info you need is located at the Renegade Craft Fair website. We will be sharing a booth with our sister company Ink and Sword. Cat dolls? Yup. Topiaries? Of course. Art prints? More than you can shake a stick at. We are very happy to have been selected to participate and hope you can come and say hi!

Moo the Intern Performance Evaluation

2010-02-27T23:12:00.005-05:00

It's been a big week at LwithT HQ. Our intrepid intern Moo has been to the vet, received a clean bill of health after being poked, examined, probed, combed, injected, injected again, lifted, weighed, had her teeth looked at and had her nails clipped. We left the vet, rabies tag in hand, to begin "Operation Integration". I am happy to report that she has been successfully inducted into the pride, though there were a few flair ups from Art Director Ashes. And as a special reward for her excellent behavior and inspiring mental disposition, Moo received a visitor...her mother. The severe snowstorm that has blanketed NYC this past week brought indoors the normally wild but still affectionate "Stray Cat Mother of the Year" Gretel. After a warm (relatively speaking) day today and sufficient snow melt, she is now back outside in the jungle that is Brooklyn, exactly where she likes it. You can now catch of glimpse of Moo and Gretel durability testing some severed leg cat toys on our new Facebook page.

Doctor, Doctor!

2010-02-12T15:08:00.005-05:00

How awesome is this? Anastasia over at the Dr Frankenbaby Blog has chosen our PSA posters to be her Friday Etsy Find! We think this is just fantastic, because we actually have a few NEW posters in the works for this series, including posters extolling the virtues of canine oral cleanliness and feline litter box maintenance.

There are a few friends of the studio with babies brewing, so we will definitely be directing traffic over to enjoy the antics of the good Doctor, her lab partner and their little monster! Thanks Anastasia! If only you could provide me with something to curb my sense of smell...our intern Moo has demonstrated an impressive ability to create litter box sculptures any adult cat would envy!

Super Crazies

2010-02-08T17:20:00.006-05:00

Ever have one of those days...you know...where everything is going your way, and you feel a bit strange because of it. You know in the back of your brain "nothing this good happens to me" and you become a bit suspicious of your sudden good fortune. Well, I had that feeling this past weekend. Because of my interview with LA Weekly, Life with Tigers experienced quite an upward shift in orders this weekend (everything is in the mail, folks!). While packaging orders, sewing more catnip toys, fighting off the toe pouncings of Moo the Intern and answering emails from a lot of great folks, I began to have that feeling..."this is good. Almost too good..."

Then it happened. The neighbor broke my window...with a couch.

Somebody thought it was a good idea to hoist a couch up 4 flights of stairs with nothing more than a single rope. Needless to say, couches rotate and sway when they are hoisted up into the air by a single line. Ugh. I knew I should have listened to my brain...it was going too well.

Anyway, thanks to all who ordered this weekend! I know there is gonna be some happy cats in Illinois, Wisconsin, Oregon, New York, San Francisco, Honolulu, Melbourne, Iowa, Belgium, Georgia, Nova Scotia, Florida, Washington, New Jersey, Missouri and Los Angeles!

All the meows that are fit to print!

2010-02-03T09:28:00.004-05:00

We are excited here at the bigger and better LwithT HQ, not just because of the toe-pouncing talents of our intern, but because I was recently interviewed for LA Weekly about my severed leg cat toys. You can read the entire article here at your leisure. A big thank you to Gendy for this! Good thing I've got a collection of new legs in the works, as well as a litter of dachshund puppies featuring some gorgeous fabrics. A few topiaries are sprouting now too, so updates are on the way.

Our New Intern

2010-01-12T14:29:00.004-05:00

We're still digging our way out of our recent move to the new and improved LwithT HQ, but this is a most important development. It seems that word got around that LwithT was coming to the neighborhood, and on move-in day we found this inquisitive little applicant on the patio space. She wants a job. We don't currently have an opening, but she has accepted a temp-to-perm position as intern. At the moment, her name is Moo. Director of Operations, Shadow and Art Director, Ashes have mixed feelings on the performance of this new worker. Among their primary concerns are excessive playfulness, an over abundance of curiosity and a seemingly bottomless pit for a stomach. They also take issue with the name. Instead of Moo, they think her name should be "Interloper". We'll keep you updated on her performance evaluations.

keep those kitties moving!

2009-12-17T20:20:00.003-05:00

News has been slow coming out of Life with Tigers HQ lately. That's because we are in the middle of a much anticipated move to a new studio space! Hello, gigantic windows. Greetings, more room to create. How do you do, outdoor space. Is that you, natural light? It's been a while!

When we get to a point where things are no longer in chaos, we will have a few happy announcements. Until then, let's all sing "moving, moving, moving, keep those kitties moving..."

Around the world 30 minutes.

2009-11-23T22:59:00.002-05:00

What do Madison Wisconsin, Kansas City Missouri and Sheffield South Yorkshire have in common? Those cities all have cool people in them who placed orders in our shop today... all within 30 minutes of each other. As Shadow, LwithT's Director of Operations always says, "I love da internets."

Thanks everyone! Oh, and thanks to you guys in Kansas City, Pompano Beach, Lewis Center and New York too! I am grateful to you all.

the pen AND the sword are mighty indeed!

2009-11-09T16:40:00.003-05:00

Great news! There's an awesome new shop at Etsy called Ink and Sword and you may see a few familiar things in there. Life with Tigers Creative Director and Chick-in-Charge Karen has teamed up with Illustrator/Photographer/Designer Jed Dore for a collaborative project featuring way cool art and design prints! Come by and check it out...you'll see the 'ol familiar Pet Public Service Announcement prints but you'll also see the amazing Superstition Series. My favorite is the Naked Lady on a Boat, for sure!!!

...and yes, I was referring to myself in the third person. i HATE that! :-)

Sniff, Sniff....Helllllllloooooo

2009-10-29T16:51:00.004-04:00

New item alert! New item alert! Woot. Woot. Woot.

Drop somebody an overdue "Hello" on some cool miniature note cards. These come in a set of 5 blank cards with matching envelopes. People would love to hear from you in a format that's more personal and doesn't include the words "tweet" or "thread". Dogs say hello by sniffing each other's butts. Before you try the same and land in jail, just send one of these "well, hello" butt-sniffing substitute note cards. Available in the shop today!

Ooooooh, that's awesome!

2009-10-06T18:06:00.005-04:00

Everybody here at LwithT HQ was delighted to find that we've been on a few people's radar lately. First, we were pleased as punch to see some familiar cards featured on Design*Sponge. Now, we read this blog daily, so we're not sure how we missed it...must have been busy in print-making land. Then, it got even better, when we discovered some wonderful words about us on Ohdeedoh, which is in kahoots with Apartment Therapy. Thank you so much for taking the time to feature us!

Also, just so you know, there's a few more prints in the shop and some awesome things to come!

I love print. I love TO print. Print is good.

2009-09-24T17:47:00.007-04:00

So it is with great pleasure that I introduce the newest line of goodies to the Life with Tigers shop...Pet Care Art Prints! Leash your dog, wash your cat, don't kill your fish and a bunch of other designs are now in production. There are already 4 prints available in the shop, with 6 more on the way. Affordable. Cool. Informative. Did I mention cool?

Fresh off the assembly line!

2009-09-08T18:51:00.006-04:00

Meet Cosmo, Tweak and Blip. They are the first of the new "Softbot Series" of dolls developed here at LwithT HQ. They can be programmed to guard your remote control, monitor the ice cream levels of the refrigerator or simply keep you company. Best of all, they do so in "quiet" mode...which is great...because nobody likes a mouthy robot. Visit them in the shop.

Elephants on Parade

2009-08-26T19:04:00.007-04:00

Here they come...Hippety hoppety...but they're not pink! A new blank greeting card design hit the shop today with more on the way. Joining them are, for the first time, topiary mobiles with bugs suspended from them. Head on over there to take a peek!

Behind the Scenes at LwithT HQ

2009-08-12T17:36:00.004-04:00

There is a new topiary design coming to the shop soon, and Ashes here is art directing the photo shoot. The first prototype did not pass inspection, and was promptly eaten by our Director of Operations, Shadow. Although these are not catnip toys, and are not intended for cats, marketing indicates that these tree topiaries have an appeal beyond their main target market.

1% inspiration

2009-07-29T15:13:00.004-04:00

There's a bunch of new things being created over here at LwithT HQ, and while not all of them involve sewing, that's still my main focus. Whenever I get too distracted by fancy new reciprocating saws or two-part epoxies, I take a gander at these fellows:

These rabbits are handmade from Kimono fabrics, and quite possibly one of the best gifts I've ever received. Just holding one in my hand all those years ago rekindled a long dormant interest in sewing and creating with fabrics. They fit in your hand and have such delicate little personalities. They watch over us here and remind us everyday...hey...you should be sewing!!!

Whew! Updates make us sleepy.

2009-05-30T21:36:00.004-04:00

Yes, yes, we are aware it's been a while, but it's not like we were ditching school or anything. We were hard at work updating the Etsy shop with all matter of stuff. We got dogs. We got chimps. We got cards. AND we have the triumphant return of the severed leg catnip toys!!!! Updates are still happening over the next few days, so get your party hats on!

Roll out the Rollei

2009-04-11T14:23:00.005-04:00

A recent trip to California resulted in a wonderful surprise! It seems that my father remembered some obscure reference I made a year ago that I was looking for a certain old camera. On a recent trip to his local flea market, he found these...

JACKPOT!
I'm touched that he remembered my search for an operational Rolleiflex, and giddy that he picked up the Ricohflex as well for what he referred to as "decoration". Now I need a little instruction from my favorite photographer, Jed, who turned me on to these wonderful cameras to begin with several years ago.

THANKS DAD for the VERY early birthday present. I'll always think of you when I use or admire them!!!

I, SoftBot

2009-02-11T19:45:00.006-05:00

Between another sickness and projects involving metal and tools, the sewing machine has been pretty silent around the LwithT studio. But there is always room in our hearts for both metal AND fabric, so the SoftBot was created to bridge the gap. He's a prototype for future robots that will hopefully make their way to the shop.

Here kitty, kitty.

2009-01-15T22:41:00.010-05:00

Cats rule! Dogs drool!

No, not really, but 4 new cats have made their way into the Etsy shop! There will be an update soon for more severed leg cat toys too! That's almost as cool as a nap in the fresh laundry pile.

Blue Christmas.

2008-12-26T18:16:00.031-05:00

The tradition around here at the LwithT Studio is that Christmas cards usually go out late. But due to the passing of our President this past November, Christmas cards won't go out at all this year. Instead, in honor of Misha, I've decided to feature just a few of the holiday cards from Christmases past. The cats have always had a front row spot on our holiday cards, and I wanted to remind myself of how much he loved the holidays, chilling out under the tree, flossing with ribbons and laying on the wrapping paper before I was done with it. Click on the photo to see the card in it's entirety. Hug your cats, kids or whatever makes you happy, and Merry Christmas everyone!

It wasn't a bust.

2008-12-17T23:21:00.009-05:00

In fact, the Bust Magazine Holiday Craftacular went pretty well. The severed leg cat toys sold out, and the response to the mushroom topiaries was very complimentary. I am so grateful to all who stopped by with kind words of encouragement. I've received a few e-mails too from you guys, so thanks to everyone...I enjoyed meeting all of you!!!

Since I've never had a table at a craft show before, I must say that the speed in which people set up was amazing. The only unhappiness that occurred was the HUGE pillar that sucked up half of the space behind the table, causing much inconvenience and Matrix-style maneuvering. Here is how the Life {with Tigers} table ended up, pillar and all:

The LwithT table was shared with Jed Dore of Colorswirl, who created these amazing art boxes. These belong in a gallery, really. He will have his shop up and running soon where these and other works will be available for purchase. I hope he sells prints of the Red Riding Hood image on his postcards. If you got one of those, you are so lucky!

Oh, and THANKS to Softies Central for featuring a topiary in their post on December 15th! I check in with them quite often and was giddy when I saw something familiar!

Oh, This is Craptacular

2008-12-12T11:02:00.002-05:00

Here we are, less than 3 days to the Bust Magazine Holiday Craftacular and I've been a busy bee here sewing up all kinds of goodies. Our booth number will be #32, by the way (towards the right hand side wall when you finally get into the main floor area). There was some concern that we had not received any information from Bust in a while, then we discovered that, for some reason, any mail from Bust Magazine doesn't get delivered to me...even though I have no junk mail filters set up. "Some email servers think we're porn" says Susan, the event coordinator. Nice.

Then, this:

That is not a fine art piece...this is the ceiling, dripping it's ass water onto where 4 weeks worth of sewing had been stored!!! Now, anybody who knows me knows I have a tempermental roof, but why did this have to happen now? Usually a call to the landlord will result in it being "fixed", as in a little old man with a bucket of tar and a mop shows up a few days later and sloshes the stuff around the neighbors roof instead of mine. Thankfully, the dreaded drip drip was heard before it could do any real damage...I only lost a few gift boxes to the toxic sludge.

Giving Thanks.

2008-11-27T16:28:00.015-05:00

It's Thanksgiving again, and while it is a sad time here at the studio due to our recent loss, there are still things to be thankful for. I am thankful that there are still tigers in the world and in my home. I am thankful for the kind words of support and love I've received from friends and family around the country. I am thankful for those dandy little peppermint brownies at Starbuck's. Most importantly, I am thankful for the good times I've shared with people and creatures during my lifetime who, through nature or happenstance, can't be here to share their lives with me any longer. Thank you so much.

Now, something else to be thankful for...some good news!

Life with Tigers has been selected as a vendor at BUST Magazine’s Holiday Craftacular here in NYC!

Sunday, December 14, 2008
10:00am – 7:30pm
The Metropolitan Pavilion
125 West 18th Street, NYC

For more information, visit the website. We have been working feverishly getting as much good stuff ready as possible. Hope to see you there...it's a cool event!

Life without Tiger

2008-11-10T15:47:00.004-05:00

His name was Mishiko. He liked guests. He liked freshly swept floors. He liked to jump into boxes too tall for him. He liked deli slices. He liked sleeping on the sofa bed. He had the heart of a lion, but the roar of a kitten. His purrs sounded like pigeons. He liked to help build stuff. He liked to get his face rubbed at exactly 12:00 midnight every day. He had sabre teeth. He had bear claw paws. He had a secret tickle spot. He was a carpenter. He was a samurai. He was a trooper. He was sometimes a pillow to smaller tigers. He was our inspiration. He was our therapist. He was our dose of common sense. He was our first-born. He was our companion for almost twenty years. He was our most beloved friend. Our hearts are broken, and we will miss him terribly.

Greetings, Little Doggie

2008-11-09T21:07:00.004-05:00

We love paper. Always have. So we are adding blank greeting cards to the shop soon. These little babies have real fabric on them! There will be kitty and monkey cards to, but here's a sneak peak of the doggie cards:

Working on these cards has helped distract us here at Life with Tigers HQ, as our beloved President and Co-Founder Misha has taken very ill. We are crossing our fingers, paws and everything else crossable that he will soon recover. He has been the cornerstone of our nutty family for almost two decades, and has single handedly put the "Tiger" in our lives.

Robot Love

2008-11-02T23:11:00.000-05:00

Who is this handsome fellow? He's the newest creation around the studio these days. See, we here at Life with Tigers HQ are big fans of robots, and we wanted one of our own. He lives in a diorama with it's own lighting system in a dark corner, which makes him look like he's performing on stage. We are considering making him some friends to share with others, because as much as we love our soft and huggable companions, everybody could use a bit of robot love.

There's a Fungus Among Us

2008-10-26T21:20:00.000-04:00

There are six new Topiaries on their way to the shop this week, and a new doggie too! Thanks to everyone for their comments and critiques of our fungus.

We've started monkeying around

2008-10-22T23:45:00.000-04:00

Promises, promises. But this time, it's finally true! A new doll design has found it's way into the shop, inspired by cats that act like monkeys. This is Kirby, and he's actually a chimp (no tail!) He's got another monkey friend, but he may not make his way out of the studio because we've grown so fond of him! New dogs have made it into the shop as well, and 6 (count 'em, 6) new topiaries are almost done and will appear very soon!

Thanks Winsome Hollow!!

2008-10-19T19:33:00.000-04:00

We are so happy here at Life with Tigers HQ that Katy over at Winsome Hollow has put one of our topiaries in her Saturday Shopping List!! And such a lovely description, we were blushing all weekend. Check out her Etsy Shop as well...absolutely charming!!!

Wow, Last Post in February?

2008-10-15T22:38:00.000-04:00

We've been busy here at the Life with Tigers studio, and it's amazing how fast time flies when you are distracted, diverted, lazy, locked away and generally disfunctional. So what's been going on here?

Well.

New products are finally on the way. Over at the Etsy Shop, there are new Fabric Topiaries, Cat Toys, and coming up, lovely handmade greeting cards, at least 3 new dogs and....drumroll....monkeys! Have a peek at one of the topiaries.

Numero Uno!

2008-02-12T23:51:00.000-05:00

We've been sitting on the edge of our seats here, cheering for Uno at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. (He won!) There are dogs all over New York this week, and Olivia here is taking in the sights, although it got a bit windy for her taste! She has settled into the Etsy shop until she can find a permanent home, preferably someplace less breezy.

We Love Cuteable!

2008-01-30T23:07:00.000-05:00

Emmerson was a "cutable find" over on the awesome blog Cutable back in December, and we can't believe we missed it!!! He is still for sale over in the Etsy shop.

There will be some new items joining Emmerson soon, so be on the lookout.

A Sunny Day in Brooklyn

2008-01-03T22:32:00.000-05:00

Once in a while, the sun pokes through the winter skies here in the Borough of Kings. That's when kitties with flowers come out for a breath of fresh air, away from radiator heat, leftover holiday food and the "back to work" duldrums. This kitty is modeled after a beloved feline friend.

Stuff to Hold Your Stuff

2007-12-24T20:45:00.000-05:00

Here is a zipper pouch made from wool and cotton with some charming lining. These are fun to make, so you'll probably see some more in the near future. Not tonight, however, because it's Christmas Eve and there's fresh pie waiting! Yes, of course with ice cream. Silly.

Gone to the Dogs

2007-12-24T00:09:00.000-05:00

Felina here has found a new home before making it to the store. She's ready for a New York winter with her scarf made from wool. She is one of several dogs created for our canine loving friends. Other doggie designs will be on the way soon, after the holiday rush, unfortunately.

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

Baby, It's Cold Outside

2007-12-19T20:38:00.000-05:00

Still waiting for the weather to improve to take some photos of the new dolls, so in the interim, I made some ornaments.

Right now, this is the ONLY ornament on the tree. This time of year leaves little time for important thinks like, oh, I dunno, cooking, cleaning, or tree decorating. This poor tree has been here, naked except for lights, for two weeks and it's starting to give us guilty feelings. Our only hope is to have it done before New Year's at this rate!

Oh, ya, and cats love to drink sappy tree water. At least their cat breath has switched from 3 day tuna to something minty fresh!

Don't Shoot!

2007-12-16T13:14:00.000-05:00

Yes, that's an apple on her head. She's one of two new cats that will appear in the shop shortly. The weather here is crap, so proper photographs will have to wait. There will also be a jungle cat and a girl dog too, so check back soon to see if they are available!

Ready, Set, Go!

2007-12-14T22:34:00.000-05:00

Here we go...
The website at www.lifewithtigers.com is still under construction, but I'd LOVE to thank Melissa and Rachel for purchasing several of the dolls already before it ever went live. I'm very pleased that someone will be receiving handmade goodies for Christmas!