SCB Second Annual Holiday Gift Guide

Ever year as the holiday season gets closer, I anxiously await to see what adorable cat products I can share with viewers. So snuggle up with your cat and enjoy browsing our 2014 Holiday Gift guide! (See last year's 2013 gift guide here).

All items are pinned on my Sandpiper Cat Blog 2014 Holiday Gift Guide board. Follow me on Pinterest and continue to check back as I add more gift ideas!

Category 1: Cat Toys

My lovely friend Shelley Rinker of Whimsily Ever After sells the most adorable cat toys in her Etsy shop. For the holidays, she is selling these uniquely designed toys including a dreidel with gelt ($16), a candy cane ($13) and lumps of coal ($6) (for naughty kitties). I appreciate that Shelley included a dreidel as an option for us Jewish folk, who have a harder time finding Hanukkah cat toys!

Shelley creates her toys from scratch, using her sewing machine! She stuffs her soft fleece toys with organic catnip from the USA. Piper reviewed Shelley's macaron cat toys and she can attest to the potency of the nip!

Category 2: Books

It is always so exciting when a purrsonal friend has a book come out. Our friends Teri and her cat Coco have a beautiful new children's book, The Adventures of Coco le Chat: The world's most fashionable feline, that we are thrilled to share with you!

Coco the Couture Cat is off on a fashion adventure in the city that never sleeps, New York City! Dressed in the chicest of clothes, Coco has fun zooming around the city doing her favorite activities. A stop at the Met, ballet at the Lincoln Center and Broadway are just a few of Coco's marvelous stops. She even makes a friend -- but you will have to read the book to find out more about that!

The fashion in this book is fantastic! I spotted a 3.1 Phillip Lim purse, that I recognized right away. Coco and I definitely share the same taste in fashion. I would love to spend a day on the town with Coco.

Coco le Chat is the perfect gift for all cat lovers, adult and children alike. You can purchase a copy on Amazon here. If you're interested in a paw-tographed copy, signed by Coco herself, you can email her owner Teri at furrydance@gmail.com. She accepts PayPal (shouldn't it be PawPal?), $15 a copy + ($6 shipping for one book, $7.50 for two books, $8 for three books.

Next in the book category are two fantastic memoirs that would make an excellent surprise for your favorite reader. Cleo and Cats & Daughters both by Helen Brown, are two heartwarming stories that detail two different times in the author's life. 

Cleo, came into brown's family after a devastating loss - and she changed everything. I gave a copy of Cleo to my dad one year for Hanukkah and he stayed up all night reading it - every last page. The story has just the right balance of sadness and joy, bundled up in a sweet black cat.

Cats & Daughters (also known as After Cleo Came Jonah) comes after Cleo's passing (don't let that deter you from reading Cleo, as she dies an old, happy and loved cat who had a long & amazing life). Brown swore she would never have another cat after Cleo, but as they say - never say never! Jonah helps the Browns through life's many changes and Jonah certainly gets in trouble along the way! Visit Helen Brown's Facebook fan page and keep up to date on Jonah's current doings!

Category 3: Human Accessories

I think most people swore that after the 90s, we were done with hair scrunchies. Hauspanther is bringing hair scrunchies back! And these aren't just regular hair scrunchies, they are in a custom junk-food (dry cat food) pattern.

Available for $6 a piece here, these scrunchies are one of a kind and super fun. And don't forget kitty - you can even get a matching cat toy to match!

The winter is my favorite time to accessorize with all sorts of scarves. And of course, any scarf with a cat print is a must-have! Triple T Studios has a gorgeous cat print scarf, that is sure to please the cat lover in your life!

Available in black, beige and pink. $9.99 per scarf. Free shipping!

I remember spending quite a great deal of my childhood in Minnetonka moccasins. When I saw that Minnetonka teamed up with Sanrio for a 40th Hello Kitty anniversary mocc, I knew I had to get a pair! And I am so glad I did, because they are the most comfortable shoes! I have a hard time finding shoes that fit and are comfortable, so I'm glad I gave these a shot. Available for purchase on the Minnetonka website here, $49.95 in pink (pictured), brown and black. Size 5-11 US.

Category 4: Miscellaneous but Marvelous

The Shu Uemura x Karl Lagerfeld line, Shupette, features a adorable white kitten on the products and it is a beautiful make up collection. For more information, read about the line in one of my recent posts here.

There are quite a few pieces in the collection and they are selling fast! I picked up the eye need shu trio for $35. It is nicely packaged (I'm a sucker for good packaging) and it is also high quality make up.

The Animal Rescue Site has the purrfect item for the baker in your life. The paw print muffin pan is fantastic for baking - I can attest as I own two of the pans! The muffins I baked went in and out of the pan with ease! And they really looked like paw prints. I highly recommend! Single pan, $12.95, two pans $19.95.

Wow, well I think that just about does it for our holiday 2014 gift guide! I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season - whatever you may celebrate, and enjoy the togetherness of the winter season as well!

Love,
Rachel & Sandpiper




Disclosure: Some of the items in this blog post were sent to me for review. Receiving complimentary items did not influence my posts or opinions and never will. Some items were purchased with my own money.

Review/Giveaway & Coupon: Whimsily Ever After Cat Toys

It's no secret that Piper loves a good cat nip toy. Even little Bobby goes crazy for pure cat nip, straight from the source. For Valentine's Day, I featured Whimsily Ever After's cat nip macaron cat toys on the 3rd Annual Valentine's Day Gift Guide for Cat Lovers.

Today I am featuring the mastermind behind Whimsily Ever After, Shelley Rinker, and her beautiful creations. Shelley makes all of her toys in Ventura, California. The winner of the giveaway will be able to pick a cat toy of their choosing up to $15. Shelley also has kindly offered a 15% off coupon, find all information below.

Sandpiper Cat Blog: Did you know you always wanted to be involved with designing toys, let alone your own toys?
Whimsily Ever After: I actually learned designing toys was an option after high school. I had a crazy turn of events junior year that opened up my eyes  to the toy industry. The super condensed version is: I signed up for a fashion design class which turned into a doll fashion designing class, that turned into winning a competition and have my design produced and debuted  at the International New York Toy Fair. While in NY, I along with the doll designer, did a signing of a special release of the first 500 dolls at FAO Schwarz. That was my introduction into the world of toys; so when I found out senior year that Otis College of Art and Design was offering a new Toy Design Degree I signed up, and off I went. After getting my Bachelors of Fine Arts, I went on to designing toys for a handful of well-known toy companies.

The doll Shelley designed, Gene/Sparkling Seduction.

SCB: How did you decide to make cat toys? What was the first cat toy you made?
WEA: After working 13 years in children's toys I was at the point where I delegated a lot of the "Making" to other people and toys were manufactured in China, and with the bottom line being everything the quality and the cost would bump heads. I am a very hands-on person - making [things] is what makes me happy. So after a lot of planning I bit the bullet and started Whimsily Ever After as a place for me to "Make" again. As the mom of two wonderful kitties, I felt that their time had come to get some design love. The first cat toy I made was just a run of the mill mouse. Right after I finished it I realized that there wasn't much humor in a mouse and immediately thought my cats  (and I) would enjoy a more "human food" toy and the idea for the cheeseburger was born.  The S'mores and Macaron followed very soon after, since they are favorite treats of mine.

SCB: What is the inspiration behind your name "Whimsily Ever After"?
WEA: I created Whimsily Ever After as an idea  of taking time and enjoying the fun  that should be part of every day. The purpose of Whimsily Ever After is to hopefully inject a little lighthearted quality fun into people's lives. When I hear the phrase "Happily Ever After" I think  of a Prince and Princess fairly tale, like an unattainable goal. Personally living Whimsily Ever After sounds like way more fun than happily. 

Piper tasting her macarons for the first time.

SCB: What is your favorite part about making cat toys?
WEA: My favorite part is the very end result. I LOVE it when my customers send in videos and photos of their cats going crazy "opening" their new toys. Or when a customer emails me that they almost couldn't get the toy out of the shipping package because their cat was stuffing their head into the box and wouldn't get out of the way! That brings me so much joy; I like to imagine that part as I make each toy.

SCB: Who are your kitty muses?
WEA: My kitty muses are all cats I come in contact with, but mostly my two kitties Pebbles and Mika. I adopted Pebbles back in May of 2001. I was looking for a pure white cat and instead I locked eyes with Pebbles (an almost everything but white) tortie calico. It was love at first sight. I was taking her in for some kitten shots a month later and there was Mika, a skittish gray tabby  that needed a safe and loving home. All pets are awesome for their love, loyalty and the joy that they bring all of us every single day. I'm just trying to make toys that give a little payback to them and trick their humans into taking a timeout to play with them, making take a few photos of their cat biting into a macaron or sushi toy!

SCB: What do you think your cats would say when they get a new one of your creations?
WEA: "Oh jeeze, not another one...OK I'll humor you and pretend to love it for the next 20 minutes so you get all your photo taking out  of your system." 

Hahaha! No I hope that isn't what they say, but they are basically my guinea pigs. My kitties teach me a lot because they both like to play with their toys so differently. Mika does full on nosedives into the toys and seems to get stoned out after a few minutes. Pebbles is a licker, she will grab a toy with her front paws and just lick and lick and lick for at least ten minutes. Because of her, I am working on a set of toys with anti-pill fleece that can withstand the licking from a cat's brush-like tongue. My Valentine's Macarons are the first toys I have released in this fabric. 

*******

Sandpiper Cat Blog enjoyed interviewing Shelley and learning all about how her creations came to be. The winner of the giveaway will get to pick one of Shelley's creations (of a value up to $15).

Everyone can get a taste of "Whimsily Ever After" by using the coupon code "SANDPIPER15" to receive 15% off a purchase.  Coupon expires April 30, 2014.

And now for our giveaway! 

Rules:

• Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below
• Open to United States & International (yay!!)
• Winner will be contacted by email
• Giveaway to run from Monday March 10, 2014 12 am EST to Monday March 17, 2014 12 am EST.
• Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

3rd Annual Valentine's Day Gift Guide for Cat Lovers

Valentine's Day always holds a special place in my heart (no pun intended) as I always received an M&M candy heart from my grandparents. Even though I am no longer a kid, my grandma still buys the candy hearts for my brother and me.  It is a tradition I look forward to each and every February 14.

My latest Valentine's Day tradition of the last two years, has been writing a Valentine's Day Gift Guide for Cat Lovers! This year is my third year writing the guide. View the last two years here: 2012 Valentine's Guide & 2013 Valentine's Guide.

All items are hyperlinked so it will take you directly to the source where you can buy the item.

Without further ado...here is the official Sandpiper Cat Blog 2014 Valentine's Day Gift Guide for Cat Lovers!

This beautiful Himalayan Cat pendant from Susan Faye, is just striking. With the lilac purple backround and the pop of pink flowers, it is sure to please the jewelry lover in your life. Susan creates all of her designs and her pendants are exquisite! In September 2013 I wrote a spotlight post about Susan and her jewelry, which you can read here.

Susan also creates beautiful fused glass art and this love star is a perfect piece to hang in your home for Valentine's Day and all year round.

It isn't Valentine's Day without those delicious candy conversation hearts, now is it? These catnip pillow toys are the perfect way to tell your cat you love them! They are made to order so the 100% organic catnip stays fresh.

Now, no cat lover should be without this item...

This Cat Print Tote is from the one and only Target. I love sharing my love of cats with the world and this bag is certainly an eye catcher. It can be found both online and in stores.

In a holiday all about love, there are certainly a few anti-love on February 14. Of course, one of those anti-love felines is Grumpy Cat of course! This Grumpy Cat Valentine Plush can be customized to say exactly what you want!

Macarons have become increasingly popular recently, and I absolutely love them. I even made macarons last weekend and they were delicious. So now I can share the love of macarons with my cats! I came across these adorable little Valentine's Red & Pink Macaron Cat Toys on Etsy, made by Whimsily Ever After. These are the perfect treat to tell your cats "I love you!" ~~ Stay tuned for a review and giveaway of Whimsily Ever After's macaron cat toys, coming to you right here, later this month.

And last but not least, the Peach Industries Kitty Lounger Mini in Pixie. Pixie is a raspberry pink print. I have previously reviewed the Peach Industries lounger, which you can read here, and can definitely say that their modern cat bed is the best (and most coveted) kitty snooze spot in our household!

I hope you've enjoyed this list of fun Valentine related cat items. Let me know which item is your must have! Happy Valentine Shopping!

xo >^..^< ox