Building the Dolls

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The Chairman's letterhead complete with his photo and pawprint.

Organization Must Be The Magic Formula

Ever since the Kreatrix organized her art lair she's been on a creative bender! Which is good because this is happening:

A brand new soft sculpture cat is featured in a photograph. He is seated with with his back to us and his tail wrapped around. He's made out of a man's charcoal grey tweed suit.

YAY! She won't let me show his face, yet, because he hasn't gone through the initiation. And there's two more underway!!! Eve is helping the Kreatrix with one of them.

Eve, the cute soft sculpture cat doll made out of sixties paisley fabric is doing some hand sewing on a new doll.

We're none quite sure what she's up to here but it seems to make her happy.

A photo of rubber stamp carving tools and some stamps that have been carved.

And this, too. She's got a cool old metal rolodex full of cards she uses to do quick designs that only take about 15 minutes.

Colorful rolodex cards decorated with scraps of paper, sewn threads and drawing.

We wondered why she was hording all the scraps of her designs she printed up when working for clients those-who-shall-not-be-named. I spy a few of them up there! You may remember these rolodex cards from a year ago.

Catberry_Collage2

Catberry_Collage_Group1

Annnnd then she got all excited when she found this stuffed in a drawer.

Very colorful, large hand painted journal with a ribbon tied around it.

I didn't want to be rude but I asked:

What the heck is that?

She showed me some of the inside parts.

More colorful handpainted pages.

More colorful hand painted pages.

She tells me this is a journal she began making over a year ago.

I had to ask:

Why do you have so many journals you've made with nothing in them? Don't you have anything to say?

Oops.

She just stared at me with her mouth kinda open. I must get to the bottom of this unique twist! I'm on it!!

Stay tuned because there is a whole lot more goin' on here than just the above shenanigans! All will be revealed!

 

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The Chairman's letterhead complete with his photo and pawprint.

At Least It's Not Contagious

Kreatrix had a bad case of Leaky Eye Syndrome. Apparently you humans can get upset and your eyes squirt water and sometimes it's accompanied by words that make you feed my curse jar. Just sayin'.  WOOT for me, BOOHOO for your wallet.

We did kinda gang up on her last week (see here).

Good news!

It worked! Kind of. She got so upset at not being able to find any of her supplies (and everything being such a mess) that she gutted her magic lair and redesigned it. And since this is where I live with the World Domination Gang we got more room!!!

HANG ON! Look what we found while helping her clean out a closet:

A partially finished cat doll made from a man's suit. It's a little stiff but the face is cute.

She gasped and says all dreamy-like:

I'd forgotten I ever made this doll and I just  asked for a sign if I should continue pursuing making the dolls.....

WHAT?!! So I sez to her:

NOW WAIT JUST A DARN SECOND! GET THE CURSE JAR 'CAUSE I AM NOT HAPPY! You are wondering if you should make more of MY COMMUNITY? Explain, please!!!

I even threw in a few words I haven't repeated here. She tells me:

It's very hard to build a business alone, especially when you already have a very demanding job.

I had a great comeback:

Well, little missy, maybe you should have made me with opposable thumbs and I could have helped!

I dragged the strange little dude over to see Dr. Rascal, who did some ancient woo-woo energy healing work on him.

The adorable cat doll named Dr. Rascal, sits in his chair with his paws on the old doll as The Chairman cradles him in his arms.
Notice Dr. Rascal's steely concentration...

Doc explained to me that he senses very good energy from this doll and that I should convince Kreatrix to finish sewing him up and keep him as a reminder she is on the right path.

Well. I ,for one, am a bit disturbed by his inner head gear falling out the side.

Closeup of the cat doll with stuffing coming out the side of his head.

After I cooled off I asked the Kreatrix why she didn't finish him.

Well, I made him about 8 years ago out of an old suit belonging to the Prof. When I showed him the doll he told me his nose looked like a man's  #$%&*  so I tossed him to one side and didn't finish him. BUT the fact I was trying to make dolls back then tells me how passionate I must be about doing this.

Well, well, well. So "We" got all frustrated over a little joke!

OK. So it does look like a  #$%&* but SO WHAT!

I'm just gonna hang with the weird little guy until she finishes him.

The Chairman takes a selfie with the old cat.

Stop looking at his nose and get your mind out of the gutter.

 

 

 

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The Chairman's letterhead complete with his photo and pawprint.

StrangeHappenings2

m'kay, people...this thing appeared in our front yard IN THE MIDDLE of a plant that has done nothing but sit there as long as I've been alive.

A 10 foot tall, magnificent thick trunk has emerged from the center of a very large succulent.

It's at least TEN FEET TALL!

What? Did the Kreatrix plant some magic beans and now some big hairy giant dude is gonna come down and get me?

A closeup of the trunk of the unusual foliage in the middle of the large succulent.

Seriously...this is some interplanetary species the Kreatrix has imported from her home planet.

She came inside from photographing her alien plant and left these on her desk.

Five avocados are laying on the desk.

ALIEN EGG PODS!

I let out a little scream which paled in comparison to the scream that came from down the hallway at the same time.

We all went running and found Bandit with some body parts.

Bandit, the very cute soft sculptured cat doll, has a frown on his face as he is grasping a cat doll arm.

Kreatrix looks at me and hisses

Didn't you tell him?

I whimpered back

I didn't tell him, I thought you did. And you shouldn't leave body parts lying around!

Well, well, well...seems somebody slipped up and neglected to explain to Bandit how we "come to be". Ya know, how we get hatched/stitched/birthed.

First we had to pry the limb from his grasp.

Closeup of Bandit's paws hanging onto the limb.

We see Kreatrix hand calmly reaching for the body part while Bandit looks uncertain.

And then Kreatrix had an idea to get him to let go. She left the room while I talked softly to him.

I gasped when she entered the room with the alien egg pods!! Nooooooo.

She explained to him he needed to watch over these until they were "ready".

Bandit gathers the avocados on his lap.

READY!!! Ready FOR WHAT?????!!!! Hey Kreatrix, you left that part out!

And now Bandit is filled with purpose.

Bandit's smile has returned as he guards the avocados.

Last I checked he had Ginger sitting on them to keep them warm.

I had to get some air, so I went out on the back patio and found this.

A very large terrarium filled with odd succulents and a small cactus. It's actually quite stunning but very unusual.

CatberryTails_Terrarium1

Is this what hatches out of the pods? I...I...

I needed to lay down, so I came indoors and this appeared:

What the...

Apparently, I passed out and am now resting comfortably far away from the alien egg pods and that bad Santa dude.

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Very lovely paper bunting hanging from a black and white shoelace. It reads meow! Underneath it reads It's a Boy. A blue pawprint is included.

Dear Rascal,

You are quite the character! A little rough around the edges and with eyes that are making the Catberry Tails girls swoon.

An adorable soft-sculptured cat doll sits with quite an attitude on a bench. His eyes are heavily fringed with black wool and Ivory yarn. Very much the rockstar.

And you are the first to break in our new bench! What a flea market find this was! And so beautifully reupholstered by Rosa Renae Martel of Heart & Soul Antiques On The Go here in Southern California. Yay Rosa!

Up close photo of Rascal's face. His eyes are beautifully fringed with textured black, frayed wool and ivory yarn.

I tried something different with you, Rascal...heavier fringe around the eyes, more hand sewn detail and a padded nose. I felt you needed to look more like a rascally tom cat.

Another detail of Rascal's fringed eyes.

However, you ended up looking a bit more like a rockstar.

Rascal is seated with two other recently sewn cat dolls, one of whom is a female and is holding hands with him.

Bandit and Penny have really bonded with you. Especially Penny! We all noticed the hand holding.

A closeup of Penny and Rascal paws.

You have a frayed belly patch and the cutest little nipples.

Rascals belly patch complete with cute little pink nipples.

And those feet!!

A detail shot of Rascals feet and legs dangling over the edge of the bench.

The Chairman is very pleased with your confidence and "hotness" (his word, not mine).

The Chairman sits on the bench with Rascal.
The Chairman and Rascal

I loved bringing you to life! You will also be going for a ride in the World Dominationmobile along with Penny and Bandit!

A full body shot of Rascal as he sits on the bench.

With Love,

The Kreatrix

 

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Adorable bundting in bold black and white with touches of pink and a pink paw print announcing it's a girl.

Dear Penny!

Adorable soft sculpture cat doll made out of vintage 1960's fabric. She sits in front of a green and white polka dot background and has two colorful pinwheels next to her.

Welcome to the Catberry Tails gang! You are a very close cousin of Eve 2.0! In fact you're cut from the same cloth...very soft paisley fabric from an old tablecloth.

Penny is shown from the back. You can really see the paisley pattern in the vintage fabric. Her arms and paws rest by her side.

You were created during 90 degree weather in the month of November! Thank heavens I had you to keep me occupied inside with the air conditioning!

An upclose shot of Penny, the adorable soft sculptured doll. Her mouth is hand stitched.

I apologize for accidentally sewing your legs on backwards. The Chairman was more than happy to give me his curse jar to feed while I performed surgery to correct my mistake.

Penny sits with one leg crossed over the other and her arm around the pin wheels.

Not to worry. Look how adorable you turned out. And you helped the Chairman buy gas for his World Dominationmobile!

Penny, the adorable soft sculptured cat doll, sits with her legs crossed on a navy blue doll chair.

Welcome to the gang, little one. You'll be going for a ride in the World Dominationmobile along with Bandit!

A butt shot showing the floral button under the tail and the official Catberry Tais tag.

Look at that booty! You have your own buttonhole and proof that you're an official member of the Catberry Tails' gang.

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Very lovely paper bunting hanging from a black and white shoelace. It reads meow! Underneath it reads It's a Boy. A blue pawprint is included.

The World Domination Squad Welcomes A New Member!

Dear Bandit,

Adorable soft sculpture cat doll with large black velvet spots. He sits on a turquoise rug with turquoise and white wallpaper in the background. He poses with a sign that reads: life is short. Play with your cat. You have an important mission in life! You must make humans' smile and laugh because they need some humor and love these days!

Bandit is photographed from behind where his large black velvet patches are on full display.

Don't be afraid to strike a pose! Remember the lessons the Chairman taught you.

Bandit sits in a small upholstered chair looking imploringly into the camera. His legs are crossed, very human-like.

You were made with a great deal of love by the Kreatrix. Her assistant for your delivery was Mr. Rudy Rudmann.

A beautiful long-haired orange cat with a very determined expression.

Notice his steely determination as he helps with your stuffing.

Rudy, the beautiful long-haired orange cat has some doll stuffing on the end of his paw. He looks like he is really helping!

Meanwhile...across the room...this one was absolutely no help.

An adorable black and white cat is sound asleep, twisted into an unbelievable position.

Welcome Bandit! You'll be going for a ride in the World Dominationmobile very soon!

With Love,

The Kreatrix

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Ginger has her own letterhead now! She is an adorable soft sculptured cat doll. Her letterhead features beautiful handwriting and a beauty shot of Ginger.

Updates From The Studio

Hello Sweet Peas! Ginger here, feline reporter extraordinaire! Lots to tell you so let's jump right in!

Remember this guy who appeared in our back seat and we decided to keep him but didn't tell the Kreatrix?

Ginger and The Chairman are driving in their World Dominationmobile. A large, but adorable Yoda head from Star Wars is peeking over the backseat.

Well...the Chairman had us practice posing like dolls with the funny looking dude quietly in the background. This way the Kreatrix won't notice anything unusual.

Check out my "dead-eye" doll stare we were all instructed to use by the Chairman. (EVE, YOU CHEATED! You look too alive!)

The dolls sit with eyes staring at the ceiling and Yoda sits calmly in the background. Eve is looking sweetly at the camera.

So far so good. Kreatrix hasn't said anything about the green guy (who is actually quite lovely and verrrry intelligent...talks weird, though).

More community members are coming!!! Lookey here! Body parts:

A close-up shot of various arms and legs for the dolls.

A photo of the Catberry Tails label sewn onto fabric and a button flower above it.

Eve helped pick out a fresh batch of eye balls. Ew!

Eve is adorably posed with her paws sifting through a large collection of green buttons used for the eyes.

Okay. Get ready. I have some really big news.

EVE 2.0 IS ATTENDING A HUGE COCKTAIL PARTY THIS WEEKEND!

Remember the big bash at the fancy estate coming up this weekend? The Stray Cat Alliance is having their yearly fundraising benefit for cats (yup, the same one Sherlock is helping raise money for) and Eve will be attending with the Kreatrix and the Prof!!!!

The humans have to wear cocktail attire. So -

Jewelry, people! Eve gets to wear a necklace for her cocktail attire!

Lovely costume jewelry spread out dramatically on a black velvet background.

Kreatrix presented some choices for us to see. Us girls helped Eve pick one out.

Three adorable soft sculpture cat dolls are huddled around the jewelry. Ginger is holding one across her paw.

Hopefully, yours truly will get to wear a necklace like one of these someday. Sigh.

Kreatrix has been so busy, Wally has taken to flopping on his back in a desperate bid for her attention.

Wally, the real life cat, is flopped on his back, belly up, in an adorable pose.

I'd feel sorry for him but she smothers him with so much love it's ridiculous. Usually when he does this she screams:

Kitty Belleh!

And drops to the ground to kiss his stomach. Hmmmm.

Stay tuned for more news from the World Domination Squad!

Toodles!

 

 

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A crazy looking white cartoon cat instructs us to listen up because the Kreatrix has something important to say.

Meet Ben

Today I introduce you to Ben, the rather disgruntled looking white tom cat in the header. I commemorated Ben some years back by designing his own line of fabric, which sold in stores throughout the USA.

A photograph of the fabric featuring Ben, the cat from outer space

Despite his appearance, the result of a birth defect, he couldn’t have been sweeter, more bizarre or funnier. Ben is in the background behind his buddy Simon.

A most unusual looking skinney white cat posing with his best friend Simon.

The Prof and I adored him. He had a meow that could last for an entire minute! We claimed he was from another planet – Planet of the Cats, to be precise. Ben has since returned to his home planet but was originally rescued off the mean streets of Los Angeles.

Having been in the trenches of animal rescue, my respect runs deep for organizations working  non-stop for those without a voice. One such organization is:

Stray Cat Alliance

Mission, Vision and Values

Mission: Stray Cat Alliance educates and empowers the community to advocate for every cat’s right to be safe, healthy and valued. We are building a no kill nation, one stray at a time.

Vision: Stray Cat Alliance envisions a time when all cats are cared for, all kittens and domesticated cats are in loving homes and there is a healthy, but declining sterilized feral cat population. The feral cat colonies that do remain are monitored, fed, and treated medically when needed by their caregivers.

Poster for the Stray Cat Alliance fund raiser on October 18th.

Sherlock will be participating in a silent auction to raise money for cat rescue. I am thrilled beyond words to be a part of this.

Adorable soft sculptured cat named Sherlock. He is gold color with soft butterscotch color patches. His tail is striped.

The auction begins online October 6th. And then he’s off to a fancy party for the live part of the auction held at a lovely estate in Brentwood on October 18th!

The Chairman is here with me saying:

Punch it up some. Tell a joke!

I’ll hand over the keyboard to him…make it short, buddy.

The Chairman's letterhead complete with his photo and pawprint.

Get ready to laugh:

What do cats eat for breakfast?

Give up?

Mice Krispies

Kreatrix just rolled her eyes.

And now she left the room. Gotta go-

 

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The Chairman's letterhead complete with his photo and pawprint.

My Community is Growing

I've named him Sherlock.

CatberryTails_Sherlock

He's got really soft patches on his body.

CatberryTails_Sherlock2

Kreatrix says he's made out of raw silk and chenille. All I know is that she had to feed the curse jar until she figured out how to sew with this fabric.

Ginger is flirting with him a little too much for my liking. Here I am telling her:

Ixnay on the flirtsnay!

CatberryTails_GingerFlirts

Notice the stink eye Ginger is giving me! Whew! Kreatrix didn't want me to post the picture because we look ticked at each other.

I think it's positively dramatic! It shows my tough side.

Also, I wasn't quite sure what the little pink knots where on Sherlock's belly but I'm told all cats have them.

Hello. I don't.

Just when I think I've got it all figured out.

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Ginger has her own letterhead now! She is an adorable soft sculptured cat doll. Her letterhead features beautiful handwriting and a beauty shot of Ginger.

That's Right. Sheesh!

This next phrase has to be whispered due to The Chairman's reaction to it:

Last week the Kreatrix threw her back out again.

Shhhh. You'd think the Chairman would have learned from the previous time it happened, but he went outside to the garbage can and searched for her back. Then he pitched a tent next to the garbage can when it got dark. He was certain someone would come and steal her back "which she must have thrown out by mistake!"

Stop rolling your eyes. He loves her.

Now for the other Sheesh part. She was flat on her back and couldn't work on our community for the Zoo To Do.

However, she did finish this chap before she hurt herself:

Ginger poses with her cousin, a new cat doll, made out of the same 60's vintage fabric as Ginger.

That's Newman up there with Ginger! He's a cousin of hers.

Kreatrix has propped her self up and is hard at work on this beauty:

A doll underway and being made with vintage Chinese silk brocade fabric used to make kimonos.

That is vintage silk brocade from Asia! Kreatix found it at an estate sale - about 10 yards of it for only a few buckeroos!

Apparently it's hard to work with because she keeps having to feed our curse jar! YIPEEEE.

Ok, sweetpeas - more photos to come.