Head Stone

My friend Carrie's kitty passed away last week after enduring some months of ill health. The kitty was old for a kitty (15) and was loved very much.

Carrie's husband wanted to do something for the kitty, and asked me if I had any ideas. My foray into pet product retail work taught me that pet retailers try to accomodate owners by offering grave markers, but that the commonly stocked markers aren't anything special. Knowing this, I told her husband that I could think of something more fitting for the kitty and her bereaved owner.

Some years ago, my sister gave me some terracotta pots so I could start a window sill herb garden. To keep my pots straight, I bought some Deco Art Patio Paint. It's an acryllic paint line that is supposed to be outdoor safe, colour-safe and weather proof. I knew I could use this for the marker, but I had to think of something to put it on. On a trip to Home Depot to scope out tankless water heaters, I found a 6" x 8" x 1.5" travertine paving stone, similar to this one. It's smooth, cream surface was perfect, and the heft of the paver meant that it could be a suitable grave marker.

Carrie likes sunflowers, so I sketched out an idea for the marker, and got her husband's approval on it. Then I collected what I'd need to complete the marker (brushes, paints, cleaned paver, and water). I used Sunshine Yellow, Red Pepper, Woodland Brown, Cloud White, and Wrought Iron Black for the sunflower and lettering.

The sketch is upside down in the top left hand corner of the pictures, beneath the brush tips.

I pencilled in my pattern, and began to paint. The Patio Paint instructions warn not to dilute the paint with water, so I had an interesting time blending the colours. It took several applications to get the opacity I was looking for in the petals, so I had plenty of opportunity to colour-correct and modify the design. To achieve the impression of the seeded center of the flower, I stippled on white mixed with brown, went over it with black, and then again with brown, stippling the whole time.

For the letter, I hand-wrote the words. I tend to prefer organic compositions, so I didn't bother to use reference lines for straightness and letter height. The paint had a tendency to get gloppy (it's a word!) as it started to dry, so some of the lines weren't as crisp as I wanted, but they aren't really that noticiable, unless you're examining it with a magnifying glass. For the inscription, I used the Colette quote, "There are no ordinary cats."

This is the finished project.

Here's the picture, with the flash, and you can see the side profile of the stone.

If you look REALLY closely at the top right hand corner, you can see the spaghetti and meatballs I made for dinner!

I think it turned out well, and in the VERY VERY VERY VERY far future when we'll need one for one of our beasties, I'll know how to do it.