Yes, I Will Have Halloween Cards, and Christmas Cards, and Hanukkah Cards…

Holiday cards from Portraits of Animals!

People have been asking! It’s time to order holiday cards for personal use or for your professional practice, and of course, I offer cards for Halloween—with six black cats and two former torties that’s a natural—and a big variety of holiday cards featuring my cats! All of my cards are designed from my photographs and paintings, and often you’ve seen these works as they appear in my daily posts. Here is a preview of what I have to offer, but just wait until October—I’ll have special offers for both individuals and animal professionals to stock up on these designs, plus other fun products that incorporate these designs and others! You will be able to purchase cards individually, as a mixed set or a set of all the same design.

In addition to my commercially-printed cards I also have a few designs which are hand-printed as block prints for a completely unique card which becomes original art.

Customized messages inside the card…

Some designs have a message inside, others are blank, but I can custom print a message or logo for you for $2.50 per dozen for a minimum of two dozen of the same design, allowing an extra two weeks for delivery for special orders.

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For Halloween Fun…

Madame Mewsette will tell your For-tuna

You see my daily photos, sometimes several each day, all the time, and I often receive suggestions for how they could be used as greeting cards and merchandise. Much like I turn my daily sketches into merchandise, I listen to those suggestions and also keep my eyes open for daily photos that can become something new and exciting.

So what better to do with a family of five black cats during the festive Halloween season?

“Madame Mewsette” began as a daily photo like the ones you see every day, first posted on October 31, 2010; another, in the design below, was posted on October 30, 2010. They were completely unposed—I got out the pumpkins, but my black cats organized the creative compositions and it was all I could do to get a good clear photo in challenging lighting because surely they would never pose like this again! From the moment I took these photos, posted them and received the feedback about it, I’ve held onto a creative idea for those images: Halloween cards!

I don’t like to associate black cats with Halloween for various reasons so I actually tried to avoid this, but from the combination of looking at cards in shops whenever I get the chance, and, last year, compiling my holiday card designs, I decided I really did want to create a few Halloween cards—especially with the first two images.

And it’s never a bad thing to have cats of any color or pattern on a greeting card for any holiday. I so love to see my cats in my design work and share them with others.

Click here to preview the other designs!

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For Christmas, Hanukkah and Winter Seasons

I also offer Christmas, Hanukkah and winter holiday cards featuring natural scenes, winter scenes and backyard birds; honestly, winter is my favorite season for art and photography.

Since the late 1980s I’ve handmade my holiday cards or designed and printed them from my art, and eventually began offering the designs for sale to others. Then after my exhibit “Winter White” I decided to branch out to offer my artwork from that show, other artwork as well, and then my photos too, and last year designed cards with cats and nature for all the winter holidays.

Cookie’s Full of Holiday Cheer

Cookie’s Holiday Cheer

You know that Cookie is usually the sweetest tortoiseshell kitty you’d ever want to meet, but she’s less than thrilled about modeling. Especially when she’s been…”decorated”.

Inside card.

On the back:

“You’ll Pay For This.”
Photo • 2006

“This is not how I want to be remembered.”
It all started when I set the silver sparkle ball on Cookie’s head, and she gave me the tortie look, but stayed put. Cookie isn’t really wild about modeling for her mom’s stupid pictures. But you don’t see her running away. Too bad for Cookie.

Click here to see more samples!

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And Featured Today on The Conscious Cat

A new sympathy card, dedicated to Lakota.

Ingrid King has featured my Animal Sympathy Card selection on The Conscious Cat today! You may not think of sympathy cards for persons who’ve lost their animal companions at all, or until the time comes to purchase one. You’ve read my story about how I came to design my own because I knew how difficult it was to find an appropriate card. Whether you are an individual or an animal professional, every once in a while the need arises for a sympathy card, and as you browse the fun and lovely Halloween and holiday cards, also browse my Animal Sympathy cards.

Every custom order for Halloween or holiday cards can also include cards from this assortment. Whether you are an individual or an animal professional, sending a card through the mail is still an important custom.

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Ordering Information

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Ordering Single Cards

You can purchase individual cards from any of my shops, and I will generally mail them them out the same day in first-class mail.

Custom Sets

Right now custom ordering is done by contacting me directly, but all 5″ x 7″ cards in my Etsy shop and on my websites can be mixed and matched for your own custom set. If you’d like a few regular sympathy cards and a few other cards to complete your order, you can simply list them and send me an email, I’ll return a PayPal invoice. You can choose cards from anywhere on my website or in my Etsy shop.

Wholesale for Animal Professionals

All cards are available for wholesale prices and quantities to animal professionals, and likewise you can also assort all cards for your order. Please contact me for details.

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Cookie and Kelly are ready to supervise my work!

Take a look at other new merchandise and featured artwork.

Once a week on Thursday I feature something new in my “shop”, whether that’s here on The Creative Cat, in my Etsy shop, on my main website or even at one of the bricks and mortar shops that carry my work.

Read about creating custom items

Find out more about creating custom items for your own home using the images you see here. Visit the “Ordering Custom Art” page to see samples and read bout how to order.

It’s all done under the close and careful supervision of my studio cats!Click here to subscribe to The Creative Cat e-newsletter for specials on exclusively feline-themed art and merchandise.

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All images used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission. Please ask if you are interested in purchasing one as a print, or to use in a print or internet publication.

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“Feline Greetings” Greeting Cards

These greeting cards are created from paintings of the cats with whom I’ve had the pleasure of sharing my life—and that includes a few friends’ cats as well. It was through observing their feline grace and their individual natures that I found my muse as an artist and finally decided to get down on paper what I saw with my eyes and felt with my heart.

While I render many other subjects now it all began with my cats and the hopeless affection I felt for each of them and all their moods and quirks and manners of affection toward me. This is the gift they gave to me, and I will be forever in their debt, spending a lifetime to pay it off by sharing them with others.

Medium and Style

I’ve included a mix of pastel and watercolor and a mix of styles, from realistic detail to loose impressionistic scenes so you have a choice for all occasions.

Specifications and Ordering

• Greeting Cards are 5″ x 7″, printed on 12 pt. card stock and include a matching envelope.
• Some cards are also available as a 5″ x 5″ square card, as noted.
• They may be ordered in matched or mixed dozens, and can also assort with 5″ x 7″ Animal Sympathy Cards to make a dozen.
• These cards are blank inside but can be customized with your message, minimum order four dozen of the same design. If you are in business I can add your logo or company name and a message, and these have also been used as invitations to events or messages to friends. Please contact me if you are interested in customization.

Peaches and Peonies

Peaches and Peonies © B.E. Kazmarski

Pastel. There it is, that moment that turns on all the lights for me…one of my cats in the sun, the conditions that have inspired most of my portraits. Cats are creatures of habit, and Peaches chose this spot to have her after-dinner bath every day for a few weeks when the sun was right; I knew it was a keeper whether a photo or a painting, so I photographed it several times over a period of several days, knowing I’d use at least one photo or all the photos as reference to create one painted image. Read about the Senior Pet Adoption Donation Program through “Peaches and Peonies”.

Are You Looking at Me?

Are You Looking at Me? © B.E. Kazmarski

Pastel. As a background on this work, this is the guy who started it all–and nearly the last one to have his portrait done! He fostered every stray kitten and cat I ever brought into my home, and shepherded me through the ups and downs of the fifteen years he was with me. More intelligent than many people I’ve met, friends of mine will remember him as the cat who opened the refrigerator door, took out a container, opened it, and helped himself to the contents. I’ve used his image in other works, but I’ve finally decided that the best depiction of his personality is of him being silly, rolling around in the sun and making sure I noticed how handsome he was.

Waiting for Mom

Waiting for Mom © B.E. Kazmarski

Pastel. Fawn was a real live wire as a kitten–always swinging from something and talking about it–and was very attached to me; I had known her from her first moment of life, thanks to her mother, a stray, who honored me with choosing my home for the birth of her kittens. And even though, years later, we’d moved and changed the bedspread and dust ruffle, at least once a day when I went upstairs Fawn still dove under the bed and peeked out, waiting for me to walk past so that she could grab my foot. The challenge of not overdoing the cute kitten, plus the richness of the wood and the deep shadows and the multitude of reflected color in the “white” dust ruffle inspired me to render this one.

Darling Clementines

Darling Clementines © B.E. Kazmarski

Watercolor. Namir was a great model, and in the years he was with me I think he learned to intentionally strike a pose so that I’d take his photo or paint his picture. He may be posing here, but he’s also engaging in a very cat thing, gazing out be back door at the sunrise, and for once my housekeeping comes in handy as the container of stuff that needed to be taken to the basement made a very nice still life accompaniment. He’s also the subject of “Warm Winter Sun”, below. Note: If you are attending BlogPaws 2010, I am entering this work in the silent auction.

Holly on the Rocker

Holly on the Rocker © B.E. Kazmarski

Watercolor. I went to visit a friend and mutual “cat person”, and her new kitten was such a doll, and my friend’s house so beautiful that I had to paint at least one scene. I may paint more since her house and her cats are so beautiful.

Warm Winter Sun

Warm Winter Sun © B.E. Kazmarski

Oil Pastel. Nothing is so clarifying as brilliant early morning sun, and nothing chases away the chill of a winter morning. Here, Namir was lulled to sleep by the natural warmth and comfort. While the main body of this work is lit by direct sunlight at that beautiful, long angle, the rest of the work is lit by reflected light. You may also recognize this from the header of my blog The Creative Cat.

The Perfect Camouflage

The Perfect Camouflage

Pastel. This was something I thought all cat companions could relate to, human and feline. Sophie really thought I couldn’t see her because she thought she blended right in with the flowers. She almost had me fooled until I saw one of the flowers looking back at me and I knew I had to investigate. Her ulterior motive was to eat the flowers, something I hate to clean up after.

Interior with Cat

Interior With Cat © B.E. Kazmarski

Watercolor. Those calendulas, which had braved a pretty hard frost, opened fully when the sun shone in the windows the next day, and that was the first inspiration for this piece. I photographed the calendula, intending to paint only them, but when I looked over the photographs in preparation for painting, I noticed the cloth, the paperwhites in the pot (before I realized they were toxic to cats), the light glare on the table, and of course, the cat. It developed into a much larger work than I had wanted, but it was a real challenge to create something from a different perspective than I usually have. And since I create so many other works involving my cats, I really tried hard to keep the cat out of it, but it just wasn’t complete until I painted her in.

Sunday Morning

Sunday Morning © B.E. Kazmarski

Pastel. Moses made it back upstairs after breakfast before I had a chance to make the bed, and I didn’t have the heart to move her. So I got a sheet of drawing paper and my pastels and did a quick sketch of the scene, finishing it later from a photograph. It was a pleasure to work in a looser style and just to catch the mood, but not all the details. Now, years later, it’s a pleasure to have this memory of a house I moved from long ago, and a happy scene with gentle little Moses.

White Cat Reflecting

White Cat Reflecting © B.E. Kazmarski

Pastel. My white cat was endlessly inspiring to me, and I would need two lifetimes to recreate all the images of her that I have photographed and saw every day. Sally was deaf and spent most of her days in her own little world in pursuit of her own happiness, which when possible included a rest, nap or long snooze in the sun. Here she alights briefly on the stool, reflecting the sunlight onto all that is around her while she reflects on the events of her day so far and just what is to be done next. Note: If you are attending BlogPaws 2010, I am entering this work in the silent auction.

Afternoon Nap

Afternoon Nap © B.E. Kazmarski

Pastel. An old cat, a gentleman, he has found a quiet spot, upstairs in the afternoon, and has so perfectly placed himself a little off-center on the expanse of white bedspread, illuminated by stark winter light through the window. (Stanley finds all the best places.) Stanley was in his early 20s at this time, and this was one of those moments when I looked at him sleeping and got so emotional I nearly cried, but instead got my drawing materials to record the moment, including my deep feelings for Stanley.
5×5 square: $10.50 per dozen
Minimum order is one dozen. These cards come with 5.25 x 7.25 envelopes to avoid postal surcharge for the square envelope.

Winter Window

Winter Window © B.E. Kazmarski

Pastel. I was casting about for an image for my holiday card, and little Kelly conveniently pauses in the stark pastel light of a winter afternoon through the big north window in my studio, absolutely still in contemplation as she watches birds flit about at the feeders or Buddy the squirrel making a fool of himself. Kelly is petite for an adult cat, making the window seem vast, and the light is so diffuse that nothing has a hard edge. It is a scene I remember even in the heat of summer.
5×5 square: $10.50 per dozen
Minimum order is one dozen. These cards come with 5.25 x 7.25 envelopes to avoid postal surcharge for the square envelope.

Peaches’ Nap Spot

Peaches Nap Spot © B.E. Kazmarski

Pencil and watercolor. Peaches joined my household at age 15, and in the four years she’s been here she’s been the subject of quite a few creative endeavors. At her age, she is best at napping, and here she sleeps on the fleece cushion on a chair that gets the sun for just a few hours a day. This began as a pencil sketch, but I love Peaches’ clear peach and gray spots so decided she’d look best with a little color added.

Buster Lookin’ at His Toes

Buster Lookin at His Toes © B.E. Kazmarski

Watercolor. A friend of mine showed me photos of her cats, and this was apparently a typical posture for Buster with his legs stretched out and “looking at his toes”. I loved the sheer curtain and the traditional wooden windowsill, but rather than my usual pastel, I decided this would be more interesting as a simple little watercolor. She had just purchased a new home, and his became a housewarming gift.

Art for any size notecard may be cropped to fit the dimensions.

You can order these notecards from the online Marketplace on my website.