kansas city kitty

Love Ticket meet & greet

2012-02-09T08:58:00.000-08:00

Special guest in the shop last Friday...thanks to all who braved the storm to come show your support!

These Love Ticket bracelets are so super sweet and lovingly crafted.

All in all, I'd say we're pleased.

2012-02-07T13:21:00.001-08:00

Featured this February: Love Ticket

2012-02-01T15:21:00.000-08:00

Stoked today to introduce you to our newest featured local artist! The name's Love Ticket and the goods are good!

Love Ticket's repertoire is vast. The one woman creative powerhouse behind the Love Ticket name cranks out beautiful totes, tee shirts, dresses crafted from men's suit jackets...for her stint at KCK she's created a line of special love cuffs in honor of this upcoming month of...well, love.

"I couldn't think of anything better for Valentine's day than leather and lace! Each leather cuff is hand sewn with embroidery thread and adorned with vintage or natural (hand painted coconut!) buttons! Each metal piece is hand stamped, literally, with LOVE...and filled with enamel. The stack able, thinner bracelets represent the city of love...Paris! There are two variations; one style is red suede with vintage lace and various adorable buttons. The other is on black and white knit and has 2 vintage buttons to adjust size. The ribbon sweetly states..."je t'aime"...I love you in french. Most all the lace and buttons were found on vintage garments, gifts from dear friends or purchased locally at Mama Said Sew. The sizes of these cuffs and bracelets vary...there are those for teeny-tiny wrist all the way to luscious wrists! Wear them alone...or make an impact and stack a few together! There could never be to much love...help spread it this Valentine's day season!!!"

xoxoxo,
Love Ticket

Love Ticket is Sara Hale. You may recognize her sweet little giggle and friendly smile from the Fort Collins Food Co-op, where she is the designated herbal genius. Apart from that, she can be found pretty much any place where creativity is involved.

Sara Hale, aka Love Ticket: seamstress, screen printer...what can't she do?

Seeing her always brightens our day, so we are extremely excited to have her be a part of our shop for a whole month!

Please stop by the shop this Friday, February 3rd between 5.30 and 7.30 pm to meet and chat with Sara about her lovely Love Ticket bracelets. Trust me, you want to get to know this lady.

Her pieces will be with us all of February so make sure you come say hello to them.

baby shower!

2012-01-27T11:53:00.000-08:00

Photos from the Wolf Guthrie baby shower hot in the KCK inbox! Thought we would share.

friends, friends, everywhere!

Future buddies for the little bambino.

Uncle Chad!

Ruthie collected the cupcake decorations to play with.

YUM!

Cripple in a highchair boozin'.

The mama herself.

Opening the gifts...

Chillin' children.

But then, the strangest thing happened at the end of the evening. Trista, what did you put in those cupcakes?!?

What the heck, winter?!?

2012-01-18T12:43:00.000-08:00

That's right folks. You are all personally invited to attend our "what the heck, winter?!?" sale. Featuring...you guessed it! Lots of Kansas City Kitty gems, all at a price that will make them January doldrums melt away.

Currently, we have not one but TWO sale racks in the shop. Whoa. As this isn't enough excitement to make you squeal - everything has been marked HALF. OFF. Or more. That's 50%. Do you even know what that means?

Cheap. That's what that means. Good stuff. Cheap prices. WOWZERS.

Don't you just want to cozy on into the middle of all these luscious coats? I do.

Allow me to take you on a visual tour that will blow your mind with greatness. First, the pants.

The Brewster Slim by QSW

Dem II Pant by RVCA (in grey, too!)

Great green cords

Only two pairs left of these awesome green Obey pants, too good to not include here!

Sweaters!

And coats!

Two of these wonderful Obey vests remain with us...not for long, I suspect.

Super sweat bomber jacket. This one will be great for the transition to spring.

Take this RVCA beauty with you on a romantic road trip.

Holy 70s! In the best way possible...what a coat.

Pretty, feminine number.

I can think of one great style icon who'd be all over this sweet little cape...

This beautiful pea coat from Matix...a relic from their last season of women's clothing.

Holy moses! The Obey Dover Street is half off?!?

What are you waiting for? Come get some great goodies!

Celebration time at KCK

2012-01-15T12:33:00.000-08:00

Oh gosh golly, have we ever had some exciting times at Kansas City Kitty. Let us review, shall we?

First and foremost. We must mention that our favorite little gal grew UP. That's right boys, Rose DiBlasi is 21 and spunky! Here's a review of the special occasion:

Here she is in the SPOT getting gussied up for the big night.

Rose and the usual suspects were spotted first at the ever classy Ace Gillett's Lounge sipping on raspberry (and olive) garnished cocktails.

We then progressed to our new neighbor: The Astoria! What a beautiful revamp they did to the place.

Our night concluded at the one and only Surfside 7 where we were serenaded by the famous Mr. Chad Price.

This is Stacie and Dad.

This is Stacie and Mom.

This is Stacie and baby.

All in all, I'd give it a "v" for victory.

And so did Rose.

Oh wait! There's more! Then we had our Christmas party. Yummy nummies from Bisetti's...

...where we simultaneously celebrated the birthday of Mr. Chip Guthrie (also famous!!!)

Happy 40th, Chip!

New jewelry in today!

2011-12-20T17:07:00.001-08:00

Seventh Annual Bake Sale

2011-12-13T09:55:00.000-08:00

This past weekend marked the seventh year for Kansas City Kitty's benefit bake sale. Each year, we bake up a storm and sell sweet treats in our shop and donate the proceeds to a very important organization in town - Crossroads Safehouse.

Crossroads has provided Northern Colorado with resources for victims of domestic abuse for over 30 years, making free safehousing, advocacy, legal assistance, transitional housing, and education available to our community.

So we'd like to say "thank you! thank you! thank you!" to all of those wonderful people who helped us support Crossroads this past weekend. Thank you to everyone who stopped in and bought a yummy baked good. And thank you to those who dropped off delicious goodies (skull shaped sugar cookies! pepperoni bread! yum) to contribute to the sale. We certainly appreciate your support in our endeavors to give a little something back to our community.

Join us for our annual bake sale!

2011-12-06T15:40:00.001-08:00

Cupcake Cook Off

2011-12-04T14:39:00.001-08:00

Oh boy! On Saturday we participated in the Cupcake Cook Off. The Cook Off is an annual fundraiser to benefit Hammer Time! Projects, a community center here in town. Hammer Time is located at 1000 E. Laurel Street and is host to a tool cooperative, community garden, fiber arts creation station, free store and info shop.

Kansas City Kitty cupcakes are: classic Red Velvet and Orange Cheesecake...marbled together! Oh my golly, were they good.

So many great businesses and organizations participated: the Bean Cycle, Mama Said Sew, FortZed, Unchained Books, Starry Night, the Cat Rescue, Cafe Ardour, Brand Spankin' Used, several CSU student groups (we're forgetting names there were so many!)...all sorts of people, all coming together over a small perfect little type of cake.

We had a wintery white wonderland theme for our display. And what a turnout! We've never seen the Bean Cycle more packed.

We sure didn't win anything, but we always win when we're together. :)

Fun new jewelry...

2011-11-30T16:34:00.001-08:00

We'd love to introduce you to Susan Hazel Rich!

2011-11-29T09:18:00.001-08:00

We are all makers here at KCK, and as such nothing fills us with more joy than supporting the creators in our community. This week, I'd like to introduce you to some special guests in our shop for the coming month of December:

Some beautifully hand-adorned, one of a kind sweaters. But goodness me, to call them mere sweaters is to not give them the introduction they deserve.

This, above at right, is Susan. Susan Hazel Rich. On paper, Susan is the Lead Designer for Interweave Crochet, a magazine published by Interweave Press based out of Loveland, Colorado. But beyond that, Susan is a making machine. Before I knew Susan the lady, I knew Susan as Hazelmade - the design name from her work with the Food Co-op, the Bean Cycle, Mama Said Sew, FREEdom Market, and her countless other crafty endeavors all about this little town.

Starting this Friday, Kansas City Kitty will give you a chance to own some of this talented gal's work. She's spent just a bit of time creating a batch of twenty unique hand-appliqued sweaters for us to showcase. Says Susan of these pieces:

[I've] created a series of one-of-a-kind, hand adorned, applique sweaters and like much of [my] crafty work this series hopes to repurpose the unlikely into the fashionable through upcycling, repurposing and detailed craftsmenship. These pieces start with high quality vintage sweaters selected for their potential, style, high quality yarn and overall goodness. [I] then meticulously select from [my] stash of vintage and new fabrics, notions and trims. When the right combination of colors and textures surfaces [I] then hand cut each piece of the puzzle and arrange these unique, simple and elegant designs onto each sweater. Each sweater is finished and secured with layers of hand embroidered chartreuse stitching.

Oh! And Susan will be hanging out in the shop for the art walk this Friday. From 5 - 8, swing by the Kitty to meet Susan and see her lovely sweaters.

Sweaters will be available in the shop until they're gone throughout the month of December!

Introducing...Rose, designin' demon of Kansas City Kitty.

2011-11-16T13:46:00.001-08:00

Hello! Today I'd like to announce an exciting development in the KCK family.

This here is Rose. Rose DiBlasi. You may recognize her spunky smile and her sweet little Missouri twang from our shop. But what you don't know about her is that she's the new official Kittywear designer!


Rose's designs for the "Do you believe?" series tees...coming soon!

With the holidays swiftly approaching, Rose is busy as a little bee designing away to get some great Kittywear printed for all of you to enjoy. Her first designs will be printed (by Wounded Heart Press, of course!) and on the shelves of our shop oh so soon. I thought I'd take this opportunity to give Rose the web debut that she deserves with the following interview.

*Rose, where’d ya come from? How’d you get out here to little ol’ Fort Collins, and how’d you find KCK?

I moved here from Mexico, Missouri in order to surround myself in a more progressive community. I was caught under the sweet charm of this place when I would come out to visit during my spring breaks and stay with my sister and brother -in-law. Having a guilty pleasure for “New Age” beliefs and strong will to further myself in a creative path, I hoped, and now feel that Fort Collins was the right step for me. When visiting I would always come into KCK, because they had the coolest stuff and where so friendly! I applied here first thing and hey it worked out!

*What is your creative background? What is your preferred creative medium?

Growing up I was always a visual learner and art class was my favorite. I continued to pursue it in high school and tried to take as many art classes as possible. When given the opportunity to paint with oils I found that they were my favorite medium, sadly I have not worked with them since then.

Self portrait, October 2010.

*Where did your interest in graphic design come from?

Like I said I took as many art classes as I could in high school and thank goodness my town was just big enough to support a graphic arts program, so I studied it for two years there. I pretty much took any classes that I could use my hands in, not just sit in class where my mind wondered too much. I continued to go on and study graphic design for two more years at the community college, and now here I am!

*What is the most difficult part of the design process for you?

Creativity blockage. When I'm in the zone it kind of flows through me, designs, ideas, and inspiration will come naturally. Otherwise I just force it and stay open to new inspiration and perspectives. I love to work with all sorts of styles and mediums and mostly working on the computer for the past couple of years has dimmed my work in other areas. I dream of the day when I will have a breakthrough and allow myself to focus on my drawing and painting work again.

Photoshop fun by Rose, September 2010

*Can you tell us about some of your favorite techniques to use when designing graphics for KCK?

So far my favorite technique has been to hand draw a piece and scan it into the computer and go from there. I like the organic look of hand drawn designs because they have a certain essence and feeling when you look at them.


Design in progress...look for this sweet coocoo clock on a hoody soon.

*What can KCK shoppers expect to see from Kittywear now that you’ve taken over the reigns as designer?

FUNKY FRESH! I hope that my work can be creative and appealing for everyone. I want to have that visual pleasure effect, not just an image on an article of clothing, but something fun, different, and meaningful that catches your eye right away. I want to push limits a little bit and present images in a new way, whether it be by attaching an idea into the work or displaying a fun land of new perspectives.

So there you have it, world. Rose DiBlasi, comin' at 'cha! Keep those eyes peeled for her wonderous and whimsical designs in our shop!

friday, november 25th

2011-11-15T12:25:00.001-08:00

Ways to warm your neck:

2011-11-10T10:25:00.001-08:00

with a bright pop of color...

...or a cozy chunky cowl...

...with parrots chirping near your ears...

...in multicolored knits...

...or with some sweet skulls.

new arrivals from mukee

2011-11-02T14:37:00.000-07:00

mukee is jewelry handmade by a fella named Derek who lives down in denver. he makes all these lovelies out of old skateboards. Check out his newest design, these sunburst goodnesses below...

and new colors in our old favorite designs.

[all available now in our shop!]

A celebratory tale in honor of nine awesome years.

2011-10-27T09:59:00.000-07:00


This past weekend our shop turned 9 wise years! We celebrated with a fun filled day made possible by our little sister business - Wounded Heart Press. Wounded Heart screenprinted a bunch of awesome stuff for our party. Thanks WHP! Please allow me to tell you the tale of our magical anniversary day.


We started our day as any group of ladies preparing for an event should - with sugar and caffeine.


Our party was on the same day as the Old Town Zombie crawl. Here are the three baby kitties getting their sugar skull makeup on, courtesy of the lovely & talented Stacie (of the SPOT hair design studio fame).


Look! Famous people came to our store that day. Like Polly Todd! Children went crazed over Friendly Monsters. Even our windows were decked out spookily for the event.


The treats of the day: cupcakes for the SPOT (who turned one this year), a ghosty cake for us, and MAGIC CYCLOPS!!!


Here are Christie, Megan and Stacie displaying the range of emotion we all experienced that day: ecstasy, shock, contemplation.


So that was all during the day, but perhaps you are wondering what the evening looked like? Well, if you're that curious, just imagine how these people felt! Folks could hardly sit still in their anticipation of a night full of great music with...

Ben Roberts, Chad Price and Talisker Skye!

Oh! And how could I forget about the raffle? Look at these excited winners, receiving Wounded Heart Press tees, KCK gift certificates and even onion shaped salt & pepper shakers. Ooh-la-la.

So there you have it folks. A much anticipated day filled with laughter, excitement and smiles. And none of it would ever be possible without...


you guys!

that's right, all of you!

So THANK YOU! Cheers to nine years. It's true, we couldn't do it without you.

TIME TO SHINE.

2011-10-05T15:47:00.000-07:00

LET THE KITTY HELP YOUR LIFE SHINE JUST A LITTLE BRIGHTER!

WITH OUR SPECIAL EDITION SPARKLE GOODIES!

LIMITED EDITION SPARKLE FRIENDLY MONSTERS!

ADD SOME SHIMMER TO YOUR OUTFIT WITH SOME SPARKLY DELURE STUDS! ONLY HERE AT THE KITTY!

OH AND P.S.

WE LOVE YOU ALL!

Everywhere I turn...

2011-09-03T10:58:00.000-07:00

....I hear the phrase Steampunk.

Soooo what is Steampunk?

Steampunk, in my gathering is a sci-fi, technologic, romantic, mechanical style with a lovely hint of darkness. Every dreamer/nerd's fantasy right? I know I sure can't resist the appeal of the trend. Apparently this craze has been around for quite some time but it's finding it's way into more and more hearts by the hour. To give you a better visual of the steampunk style here are a few gorgeous handmade necklaces from Denver that the kitty has been carrying !

You can check out more of these lovely works here at the gold bug's etsy or just come on in to the Kitty!

Get creative...Rock it and Reuse it.

2011-08-20T18:18:00.000-07:00

Bicycles are GREAT! Bicycles are FUN! They provide transportation, blissful joyrides, and great re-purposed jewelry! Yes ladies and gents, we here at the kitty love supporting creative ways to recycle and reuse! That's why we are happy to announce that the Kitty is carrying Beatrice Holiday's line of accessories created from recycled bicycle inner tubes! Come in and check out her beautiful jewelery for yourself. Don't hesitate to check out Beatrice's website and blog to learn more about her and her inspirations, and to see more lovely products available at her online shop!

New designs from Andi Rose!