Aby-a-Day – 23 Juli: Louis Wain (Cartoon Tuesday)

In London, we spent a good bit of time looking for treasures in second-hand shops. I was on the hunt for anything regarding the early Abyssinians, and I figured England might be the place to find it. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any Victorian-era cat breeding books, but I did find a print by the pre-eminent cat artist Louis Wain. There were a couple of different ones, actually, but I thought the limerick was charming:

A girl, who was dreadfully flustered,
Helped Ma-in-law to a spoonful of mustard!
Her Ma-in-Law stared,
Asked how she dared!
But she told her she thought it was custard.

The print was marked as being from 1910.

When I got it home and framed it, however, I discovered it wasn’t just a print…it was a page from a book! And the other side was also very cute…but there’s a mark on it that I Photoshopped out when I scanned it, so I kept the limerick side out. Louis Wain is known for more than just his drawing…he also had some sort of mental issues (possibly dementia or schizophrenia; mental illness wasn’t as sophisticated 100 years ago), and, even though he was put in an asylum, he kept drawing cats that became more and more psychedelic as his illness progressed. In the filigree decoration on the back of page seems to presage his future drawings.

He was an incredibly prolific cat artist, and his work was published in books and as postcards. I found this very Aby-looking fellow online as a part of series of postcards celebrating “taking the waters” at Harrogate, one of the first ever “spas” where people went every summer for sulphur treatments. The treatments involved both drinking and soaking in the water, and Wain did four series of six cards each as souvenir/advertising. After finding the Abyssinian “sulphurer,” I became fascinated by these little glimpses into history…probably because, as a kid my dad tricked me into drinking sulphur water from the Lithia water fountain in Ashland, Oregon. I know what it tastes like!

In researching Louis Wain’s work (I was unable to find my images online anywhere, believe it or not, so I don’t know what book my page came from), I also came across this happy little guy. I know know much about him…but doesn’t he look like Izaak!? It actually kind of reminds me of that sketch of Zak I did back in March.

Aby-a-Day – 13 Juli: Getting grabbed by a pussy (Silly Singapura Saturday)

Yesterday, I showed you the cat toys I found in London to bring back for the cats.

But what did the cats think of them?

I got our resident soft toy expert, Izaak, to examine them. First I gave him the Donald.

Zak really liked “killing” this toy…even before I had a chance to take it off the cardboard!

So what did he think of Donald when I took him off the card?

Yep, still good.

Putin was also a hit. Not as much as Donald, but still worthy of a solid kicking.

The Catmium credit card and the Catberry were…okay. Zak liked the card’s rattle.

But which was the “best” toy?

ALL of them, apparently! Although I think Zak’s favourite is Donald. The hair probably reminds him of his mousies.

Aby-a-Day – 12 Juli: Cat toys trump all (Fashion Friday)

In Kensington High Street, I discovered a brilliant card shop called Scribbler. But not only did they have cards (of which I purchased many), but they also had cat toys. I was not expecting that.

And these weren’t just any cat toys…these were none other than the leader of the flea world, Donald Trump cat toys.

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Well of course I had to. In case you were wondering, the UK really dislikes Trump – the rumours are true. He’s the only non-UK political figure to be made into a cat toy. That’s saying something.

It was our last full day in London, and it occurred to me that we hadn’t gotten any souvenirs for the cats. So, I Googled “best cat shop London” and found Pet London. It’s not a big, fancy store, but it is awesome and a definite must-see on a trip to London if you need souvenirs for the kitties, especially since most of the shops I found catered more to the canine crowd.

It’s definitely a hidden gem of a shop. It’s on the top floor of a rather ordinary office building in Marleybone. We almost didn’t see it.

You ring the buzzer to be let in. There’s a tiny elevator (Björn and I were very cozy) and, of course, stairs.

But it is so worth it! They had an amazing collection of cat items – including kitty clothing!

A lot of their items were their own designs, too. They even have a plushie of their feline mascot (I told them that if they ever mass-produced them to save me one).

That’s not all they had…they had a different Trump toy, this time for dogs.

And they also had a catnip Vlad Putin to go with that catnip Trump I bought earlier!

Shirtless, of course…complete with cowboy boots. Of course I had to buy it. Oh, yeah.

And nifty story, the catnip Putin and Trumpy chew toy are from a company based in Vermont.

I also got this Catnium credit card…

…and a Catberry, both with their signature kitty on them.

Both of them have catnip inside of them. The credit card rattles, and the Catberry has feathers on its antenna.

But, as we’ve seen before, cat toys that appeal to humans don’t always appeal to their target audience. So, did the cats enjoy their British gifts? To be continued…

Aby-a-Day – 9 Juli: Art in Camdentown (Cartoon Tuesday)

Our first full day in London, we went to the Camden Market. Neither Björn nor I had even managed to make it there on our previous visits to the city. But one booth in particular caught my attention: An artist, Carlotta Mascolo. She said she would do a drawing upon request.

Well, how could I resist? I showed her this photo of Jacoby wearing his Red Sox gear after Game 6 of the 2013 World Series. Since we were in London to see the Red Sox, it seemed appropriate.

This is the drawing Carlotta did of Jake. I absolutely love it. It’s perfect, especially the expression on his face.

I also bought a couple of her printed cards as well. I mean, how could I resist this illustration of a “cat show”? I’m pretty sure the bottom left cat is an Abyssinian.

And this one of a dad-cat carrying his kittens up to bed…so sweet. I am so glad we noticed this little booth amongst all the shops in Camden Market!

Aby-a-Day – 8 Juli: Phrenology Cat (Miniature Monday)

One of our stops in London was to visit Forbidden Planet, the world’s largest comic, science fiction and fantasy book and toy store.

Both Björn and I found some good things, but literally the last thing I saw as we were leaving was this porcelain Phrenology Cat.

It wasn’t even that expensive…

…and, even better, it was a pound off!

Alfred was very interested it the little cat head.

Included in the box is a small, well-bound 32-page book about cat phrenology. Really a nice little package, and a lovely find.

There’s just one thing I didn’t notice until I unboxed it…all the writing on the back of the head is mirror-image.

I’m not really sure if it’s meant to be like this or not. Maybe Phrenology Cat is printed backwards on the other side on purpose, and it’s meant to be placed in front of a mirror? I don’t know…so I emailed the company just to be sure. Or, maybe that’s why it was discounted. I have no idea. But it’s still a cool little figure.