Eight years of watercolour cards featuring house cats

Cat Cards 2003-2011 by Julia Minamata | Make Your Own Book

Yup, right on the heels of my portfolio book debut comes something a little bit different! For the past eight years or so, I've been painting watercolour cards for family birthdays, Mother's Days, Father's Days -- all occasions, pretty much. These cards often depict family hobbies and always feature the Minamata family cats: Leo, Sparky, and Dido. Leo is the grey tabby, Sparky is the fluffy orange and white one, and Dido is the dapper cat in the black and white tuxedo.

The book has fifty-five watercolour illustrations of cats playing racquet sports, Yahtzee, Scrabble, gardening, birdwatching, shovelling snow...

Most of the originals are framed up on the wall of my parent's dining room, although there isn't enough room to have them all up any more. Not all of the cards are in the same place -- some are with my sister, some with my parents, and a couple with my boyfriend. The book is the only place where you can have them all collected together!

Sadly, Leo and Sparky are no longer with us, but Dido is still going strong. Expect to see more cards starring her in the future!