11/05/09

Thursday Thirteen: 13 Kitty Costume Ideas for Thanksgiving
Karen Nichols

This week, we’ll cover 13 Thanksgiving Costume ideas in our Thursday 13. With the holidays fast approaching, you cats need to cut down on the naps and focus and how you can be the star of your family’s Thanksgiving celebration.

The cat above, the interwebs sensation, Daisy the Curly Cat, is showing off her pilgrim attire. Her strict attention to detail has paid off in a stunning Mayflower ensemble. She even has a lifelike turkey prop which, unfortunately, is inedible.

The top three feline Thanksgiving costume options include the Pilgrim, the Indian, and the Turkey.


Tabby has gone for traditional Pilgrim attire above, but ate so much turkey she can’t get up. Make sure your costumes have enough room to accommodate a big meal.


Mao and Skeezix were pilgrims one year. As you can see, Skeezix rocks that pilgrim look.


Here’s Daisy again, but this time in a more casual Pilgrim look, with a sporty tee-shirt and hat. If you plan to romp around in the Autumn leaves before dinner, this is a good choice.


Scooter the Pilgrim Cat (above) shows off an authentic Puritan look, which is also worn by the Pilgrim cats below:



For every Pilgrim costume, there’s usually an Indian costume.

Ko nails the native American look:



As does this Indian Maiden cat:

Taz has been practicing his gobble-gobble for a stint as a turkey:



While this cat seems to be using the disguise to lure unwitting turkeys into his clutches:



If you’re just not into the whole costume scene, it’s purrfectly acceptable to arrive for dinner wearing an elegant sweater with a seasonal applique:

Whatever you do, don’t let someone trick you into wearing a chicken outfit instead of a turkey outfit! You’ll look like a real turkey if you’re dressed as a chicken on Thanksgiving!

hweenChicken

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08/13/09

Top Five Tips for Photographing Your Cat
Karen Nichols

mspetsThis month, Skeezix was one of the winners of Martha Stewart Pets’ Patriotic Pets Photo Contest, and I got a barrage of questions like, “Isn’t it all just Photoshop?” and “How do you get him to pose like that?”

No, it isn’t all Photoshop. We get him to pose by picking a time to photograph him when he is still a bit sleepy from his afternoon nap, and hubby does the wrangling while I shoot. Plenty of treats and toys make it a fun activity for him.

It takes about six minutes to get a usable shot, which is about the length of Skeezy’s attention span. When he mews, “I’m outta here,” we pack up and call it a day.

Lest you think, “I could never get my cat to do that,” or “I don’t have the professional equipment to take good photos,” I’m going to share my top five tips for photographing your cat, all of which are within reach of the average camera-toting cat lover.

Before you start to shoot, engage the services of a cat wrangler to position the cat while you man the camera. (I use my hubby, who happily complies because I let him move five he-man explosion movies to the top of the Netflix queue every time he renders his services. Your bribes may vary.) Employing a cat wrangler will decrease the complexity of the shoot by about a million percent.

Once you have engaged a cat wrangler, you’re ready to shoot. Here five tips to ensure success in photographing your cat:

1) Shoot in natural light; don’t use flash.

Shooting indoors using a flash does not usually produce good photos. You’ll have to deal with red-eye and color correction, and the flash will cast unwanted shadows. In addition, once cats learn that the box you’re holding is going to flash a bright light in their face, they squint whenever you point the camera in their direction. The solution is to shoot in natural light (daylight) without a flash.

If you have large windows with indirect light, you might be able to shoot indoors. Otherwise consider shooting outside  (with a “cat wrangler” to keep hold of the cat at all times) in an enclosed area from which the cat cannot escape if she gets loose.

We set up on a table on our back deck, in an area that is out of direct sunlight. Early morning, late afternoon and early evening are the optimal times to get the best light.

If you absolutely have to use flash, consider using a diffuser to soften the light. For cameras with built-in flash, just tape a bit of tissue or a white coffee filter over the flash bulb. Stand at least six feet away from your subject to avoid an overexposed nuclear glow and harsh shadows (preview each shot to determine the optimal distance). Shooting from an oblique angle will decrease the red eye problem.

2) Use a fast shutter speed.

There’s nothing worse than capturing the purrfect pose, only to discover that it’s blurry.

Even most point-and-shoot cameras now give you the option of shooting at a fast shutter speed. If you have “modes” on your camera, this is usually the “sports” mode. It will eliminate the inevitable blur from your cat’s movements to ensure a nice crisp shot.

If you have a drive mode on your camera which allows you to fire off 5 or more shots at a time, use that as well. It will allow you to shoot several photos in rapid succession increasing the odds of getting one good shot.

3) Shoot against an uncluttered background.

A pile of dirty laundry on the floor behind the cat will take attention away from the subject. For best results, use a backdrop.

Although I have a professional backdrop, I never use it for the cat photos. My favorite setup is very inexpensive, portable, and only requires a trip to a good office supply store.

Take two 24″X36″ pieces of foam core. One forms the base (on which the cats sits), the other forms the backdrop. Then staple a piece of posterboard that has a sky pattern on it to the piece of foam core that forms the backdrop. And you’re done!

Position your cat a foot or so away from the backdrop so as not to cast any shadows.

4) Hit the floor.

Get down to the cat’s level. My knees are shot, so it’s easier for me to set the subject on a table. Otherwise, get down on the floor at cat-eye-level to take your shot. It can be the difference between a good photo and a phenomenal photo.

Gordy won the World’s Coolest Cat Contest with the photo on the right. It’s a brilliant concept, purrfectly executed. Can you imagine how much less impact it would have had if it had been shot from a standing position instead of at Gordy’s level? So get down, people!

5) Be generous with treats ‘n’ toys.

Skeezix’s favorite tinsel wand toy is indispensible in getting him to look directly into the camera. We reward him with treats to ensure that he views each photo session as a pawsitive, fun experience… for all of us.

His brother, Mao, loves having his photo taken so much that the minute I start setting up he jumps up, assumes a position in the center of the scene, and puts out a paw for some treats.
 

Here’s How it All Comes Together

Here is an example of the setup with the “backdrop,” set up on a table on our back deck. As you can see, it’s low tech, nothing fancy. And you’ve got plenty of time to practice before you take your Christmas card or World’s Coolest Cat photos!


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07/08/09

Snuzzy is Seeking MJ Tribute Photos
Skeezix the Cat

Hey evrybuddy, Skeezix heer.

You mite be sik to deth of all the Michael Jackson coverage, but maybe yer cat wood like to pay tribute to the self-proclaimed King of Pop.

If so, Snuzzy wants you! Hed over and uplode your MJ tribute foto today!

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03/22/09

Survival Tips for a Snowy Spring
Karen Nichols

tuxedo.jpgHey evrybuddy, Skeezix heer. I’ve herd that thare are more than a few Catsters out thare hoo have welcomed in Spring with new snowstorms! If that’s the case, don’t furgit to bundle up, and make shur yoo look good doing it!

Heer are sum sugjestions:



Think Pink and cuvver yer head and ears:




And don’t sit down ware the snows are!



Pink swetters are byootiful and fesstive, but horizontal patterns arn’t vary slimming, as Piggy demonstrates:



Lastly, don’t “go” if yoo see snow:


Better yet, stay inside and make yer peepul tern on the fireplace and nap until Spring arrives fur good!


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03/11/09

6 Days to Go… Will You Join Me in the Wearing of the Green?
Skeezix the Cat

icon_stpats.jpgHey evrybuddy, Skeezix heer. With fewer than six days to go before St Pawtrick’s Day, I hope yoo’ve fownd a kyoot green outfit to ware. If yoo haven’t, I have some bandana sugjestions from Hands n Paws.

These grate St Paddy’s Day bandanas are affordable, starting at $5. Most of them are available in 5 sizes, from X-small (9 inches) to XL, and they’re masheen washable. Best of all, they are eezier to ware fur cats hoo are used to running arownd in the nood. (Ware only with soopervision.)












CALLING ALL CATS! Wood yoo like to be feechered in the Cat’s Meow’s on St Pawtrick’s Day? Send me a link to a foto of yoo waring a kyoot green owtfit (and yer catster ID or blog url). The best fotos will be feechered in a St Paddy’s Day strole on The Cat’s Meow!



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03/09/09

What Will You Wear for St Paddy’s Day?
Skeezix the Cat

icon_stpats.jpgHey evrybuddy, Skeezix heer. Do yoo have a kyoot owtfit to ware for St Patrick’s Day? If not, yoo’d better hurry cuz time is running out and if yoo don’t ware green on St Paddy’s Day, yoo’ll get pinched!

The kyoot owtfit above is from one of my favorite fashun lines, Loki’s “Chat Couture” clothing. Loki is an innernet sellebrity with his paws in all kinds of diffrint things like purrdoosing and starring in “Orange Cat Blues,” deezining kyoot owtfits, and even writing books! The dress above is modeled by his housemate, Laz. Yoo may know Laz frum Loki’s vlog on likking, ware Laz nommed Loki’s hed! It krakt me up!

Loki’s deezines allow for a full range of motion in the arms, wich is vary important fur cats, so they are vary cumfterbul to ware. This is an importunt thing to remember win shopping fur St Patrick’s Day clothing, sinse yoo’ll be dansing lots of jigs and reels and drinking Mother’s Milk wich makes it hard to walk strate or find the litter box.

I know all this abowt Loki’s Chat Couture clothing cuz I own sum of it myself. In fact, win I wint to Ireland, I wore my Irish vest that was deezined by Loki. Win I wore it, I looked like a native:

dolmenhotel.jpg

If your person is good at sewing, Loki also has purrdoosed a “How to Make a Shirt” video in which he shows yoo how to make a cat shert yerself.

Drop by his Etsy shop and tell him Skeezy sent ya!

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01/15/09

And the Winner of the Dress Up Your Cat Contest is…
Karen Nichols

Susie! Susie’s name was drawn at random from all the entries, and she wins 25 zealies.


Thanks to everyone who entered — you all looked pawsome!

Concatulations, Susie!

Check out all the great entries below!


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01/14/09

National Dress Up Your Pet Day Entries
Karen Nichols

Hey evrybuddy, Skeezix here. Heer are the entries for The Cat’s Meow National Dress up Your Pet Day contest. I’ll continue to add entries as I get ‘em (Klik heer for deetales). Dedline is midnite PT tonite. Tomorrow morning I’ll annownse the winner (pikt at randum frum all the entries), who will git 25 zealies.



























Eva








Taz



Ko





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01/14/09

Today is National Dress up Your Pet Day!!!
Skeezix the Cat

National Dress Up Your Pet Day

Hey evrybuddy, Skeezix here. Today is the day I most look forwerd to all yeer: National Dress up Your Pet Day! So dig into yer clozet and find sumthing reely kyoot to ware!

And heer’s yer chance to win some zealies! Send me a link to a pikcher of yoo waring a kyoot owtfit. I’ll post them on the Cat’s Meow Blog and draw a name at randum frum the fotos that were submitted. The winner gits 25 zealies!

Just email me a link to a foto in wich yer waring a kyoot owtfit, and be shur to purrvide yer name and a link to yer Catster profile or blog.

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12/31/08

Catster New Year’s Stroll
Karen Nichols

Have a Happy Catster New Year! These Catsters are celebrating in style!



Napoleon




Charlie Girl





9



Pixel



6



Phoebe



Rocky the Gutter Cat



Mr Fuzz



Jake



Bailey



Cyclone Elizabeth Connolly



Sabrina



Gino Bambino



Azrael



And last, but certainly not least, da grate Jeter Harris (”owtta da howse!”) with his best friend, Reebok da grate, and da beautiful Madison:


Jeter, don’t furget to come home after pawtying in Times Square!

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