BENEFITTING THE HSUS:
WILD SAFARI — Small Dog Care Package
BACK TO SCHOOL — Medium Dog Care Package
PUPPY LOVE — Big Dog Care Package
PRETTY IN PINK — Cat Care Package
LADYBUG LADYBUG — Cat Care Package

BENEFITTING HEIFER INTERNATIONAL:
BONE APPÉTIT — Candy Colored Lampwork Bone Bracelet
YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND — Dog + Cat Lampwork and Pearl Charm Bracelet

SOURCES:
Janet Crosby — Custom-made Lampwork Beads “that bring imagination to light!”
Lindsay Designs — Designer Collars + Leashes
BioBag Dog Waste Bags — 100% Biodegradable
Simon & Huey’s Doggoned Tasty Treats — Pure Goodness for your pooch!
Feline Inquisition — A better cat toy

You can help these terrific non-profit organizations by bidding on these auctions, spreading the word or donating directly. Please tell your dog and cat loving friends, and like-minded individuals about these charity auctions. Thanks so much for stopping by. Until next time, take care & stay well.

One of the human bling pieces I’ll be offering features gorgeous 3D bone beads in luscious candy colors by Lampwork artist, Lori Flanders. I kept the design modern and simple to let the beads shine on their own. 100% of the proceeds from this particular piece will go to Heifer International.

I’ve always admired this organization’s mission and have wanted to be involved in some way. They help families and communities throughout the world set up sustainable animal and agriculture projects. In turn, these families and communities that have received the aid, agree to pay forward the gift by giving their animals offspring amd passing on their training & skills to other families in need, thus, creating a chain that affects thousands of lives. Isn’t that great?

Find out more about this wonderful organization by clicking the link above. Want to help? Donate directly to the organization, bid on this auction or pass the word. I’ll have direct links to all seven PAWS FOR A GOOD CAUSE auctions tomorrow after it goes live, after 7 p.m. PST.

Thanks so much for your interest and for stopping by. Hope to *see* you at the auctions!

I have at least 10 things to get done on this upcoming project, a million things on my mind and a bottomless mug of stress on getting this whole project done. There never seems enough time to take the pictures, write the descriptions, and figure out a marketing plan to make it work. Nevertheless, these experiences are always satisfying when they are done and benefits what I hold dear in my heart, the animals.

Let me start off tonight with a sneak peek at one of the cat care packages. To reiterate, the 2 cat care packages come with:

1. Handpicked designer collar from Lindsay Designs
2. Custom designed Lampwork beads especially made for these charity auctions and generously donated by favorite glass artist, Janet Crosby
3. A Lil Sumptin Sumptin human bling for the kitty mistress
4. 2 cat toys/treats

Since these cat packages were going to be smaller than the dog ones, I had to find some pretty special toys. My search all over the internet, some at fancy schmancy online pet stores, finally led me to Etsy’s own Feline Inquisition.

Their listing for their Differently Abled Mouse toy made me chuckle and stop to look closely at the rest of their handmade cat toys. What can I say? I’m a sucker for humor. Their cat pictures and glowing feedback sealed the deal. I ended up choosing two very impressive toys, color coordinated with Lindsay’s collars.

The first toy is the Deluxe Feline Ring Neck Pheasant Spinner. I’ve had many cats before, at one time as many as 7, but they’ve never had the privilege to play with anything like this. Just look at those feathers! These long feathers “give a graceful spin and large target for quick cats”. In addition, the felt head is great for pouncing. This superb toy will come with a high quality spinner wand made of acrylic and hefty cord.

The second toy is their Petite Catnip Love Sock. If this toy is “petite” it must be on steroids. This toy is as huge as some Los Angeles city rats (the four legged kind) you see walking the power line tightrope, or scurrying down one of those sewage drain grills by the sidewalk. Just what your cat dreams about and craves for - a nice, plump, juicy prey. Covered in half rabbit fur, half faux fur, this toy is great for snuggling, licking, rabbit kicks and stuffed with a good dose of premium organic Catnip to drive ‘em batty.

Check out Feline’s resident quality control tester in action by clicking the thumbnails below. Then click on over to see the rest of Feline Inquisition’s terrific handmade cat toys. Even better - they donate 5% of all their sales to feline based charities.

All cat photos courtesy of Feline Inquisition.

Know a good ol’ dog or cat that deserves a new collar and/or leash? Or perhaps someone adopting a dog or cat into their family? As part of “PAWS FOR A GOOD CAUSE #4″, I’ll be offering 3 dog packages, one each for small, medium and big dogs, and 2 cat packages.

BACK TO SCHOOL — Medium Dog Package Detail featuring Lampwork beads by Janet Crosby

Each package will contain:

1. A Handpicked Designer collar from Lindsay Designs
2. 1 or 2 interactive learning and/or fun toys
3. A Lil Sumptin Sumptin bling for the dog or cat lover

In addition, the dog care packages will have:

4. A matching designer leash
5. A package of BioBag Dog Waste Bags — Certified 100% biodegradable
6. 1 pound tub of Simon & Huey’s Kickin’ Chicken Soft Training Treats — handcrafted with love, made with the finest ingredients

WILD THING — Small Dog Care Package Detail featuring Lampwork heart and bone focal beads by Janet Crosby

But best of all, these care packages will include one or more custom Lampwork beads especially created for these auctions and generously donated by one of my favorite people, glass artist, Janet Crosby.

Janet is known for her exquisitely crafted sculptural beads of chicken, fish, bugs and what I call “Fido” dogs - fashioned after Nipper, the RCA Victor dog. Her chicken beads are so gorgeous they would make Martha Stewart green with envy - lol. In the past year or so, she has expertly added new and exciting beads to her repertoire - tribal masks, mischievous ferrets, silly monkeys and more - all in her signature whimsical style. She recently started her own studio, Firefly Art Center, where she teaches and offers a variety of classes, workshops and fun events relating to glass bead making and jewelry making techniques.

Click the thumbnails below for a preview of a few of the special custom Firefly Lampwork beads used in these care packages, as well as a sneak peek at the medium dog care package, “Back To School”. Then check out the rest of Janet’s wonderful creations at her gallery at BeadArtists.org and GlassArtists.org. Or purchase your own special Firefly bead at her Etsy store and you’ll be amazed that this incredibly talented artist has only been lampworking for 4 years.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Please stay tuned for more previews and sneak peeks in the next two days.