This was done for the Ripped Off Show for 2007. It was inspired by Susan Olga Linville's "Coffee and Cream". I love her observations of life with cats. I decided to visually show life with my cats, Alphonse and Toulouse. They're mischievous little buggers and are constantly pulling tricks on me. Alphonse has the white triangle on his chest. Toulouse is the perpetrator of the muffin napping. Though not a true self portrait, the woman is me in spirit. Being a former resident of the Puget Sound area, coffee IS my blood, but I've included the rolling hills and hay bales of my new home in Topeka, KS. The process begins with a light pencil sketch of the scene. I then ink the outline with Pigma Micron pen. I use Prismacolor colored pencils for the color and then re-ink for clearer definition. When complete it is sprayed with workable fix to seal and prevent the wax bloom inherent with the pencils. I work on 4 ply archival mat board. It has a good tooth and is strong enough to take the 3 stages of abuse.