[caption id="attachment_304" align="alignright" width="300"] Early Zealandia cat designs shown in old catalogs[/caption] Cat jewelry can be found throughout the Zealandia Jewelry line, going back to the breakout designs of the early 90s. Cat behavior is enticing to design around: they can be playful, regal, mischievous, and compassionate. It has been long known that living with a cat can help lower stress, anxiety, and inspire happiness. Albert Schweitzer said, “There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats.”

New Zealandia Designs Cat Jewelry

We’re delighted to add two new cat jewelry designs to the collection this year: the sweet pin/pendant “Companion” and the whimsical “Cat’s Meow” that is available in earrings and a matching pendant. The carvings for both of these designs captures the varying attitudes of cats, sure to delight any cat lover. Speaking of which, those cat-loving people have a name: ailurophiliacs. The “Companion” pin/pendant features two faceted amethyst stones and a sterling silver setting. The affectionate kitty is carved from fossilized walrus ivory. The colors of such a unique natural material can vary from creamy white to darker greys and browns. Here’s an article all about the color variation in fossilized ivories. If you have a special request for the coloring of your cat jewelry, please let us know and we'll do our best to accommodate! [caption id="attachment_299" align="aligncenter" width="257"] "Companion" - Hand carved fossilized walrus ivory pin/pendant with amethyst accents.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_302" align="aligncenter" width="304"] "Cat's Meow" - Hand carved fossilized mammoth ivory cats with sterling silver dangling fish[/caption] The “Cat’s Meow” pendant and earrings are real show stoppers. The design is playful and unique, while still being exquisitely crafted. The carvings are gorgeous and perfectly capture the allure of cats. If you’re looking for the quintessential gift for a cat lover, we’ve got you covered with our selection of cat jewelry.

What Is It About Cats?

It turns out a cats and humans both have identical regions in their brain responsible for emotions. (This is not the case with dogs. No judgement. Just saying…) Some cats talk a lot, others not so much. But either way, their sweet head bonks and meows are their best way of communicating with us. Did you know that cats don’t meow at other cats? They just meow at humans! Fascinating! That means it really is more than just noise - they really are telling you how much they love you while simultaneously demanding food. There’s something to be said for the life of a cat. They sleep for 2/3 of the day and spend the other third being adorable.  Seems like a reasonable balance, right? [caption id="attachment_306" align="alignleft" width="253"] Cat spending time being adorable[/caption]

A few more fun facts about cats:

• • A cat has 230 bones in its body (24 more than humans) and each ear is controlled by 32 muscles (26 more than humans).
• • To climb down from a tree, a cat must climb down backwards. Every claw on the cat’s paw is facing the same direction, so it must back down the tree, tail first. (Squirrels have the same claw situation, however they can turn their back feet around to grip the tree while climbing down head first.)
• • From a stand still cats can jump 5 times the length of their body.

  There is some debate about who said it first, but whoever it was, I think we can all agree: “time spent with cats is never wasted.”