Did you know August 8 is International Cat day? "International Cat Day was created in 2002 by the International Fund for Animal Welfare to raise awareness for cats, celebrate feline companions, and learn about ways to help and protect domestic and stray cats."

What do Japanese and Ukrainian art have in common? If you guessed "tools", you are correct! Japanese artists sometimes use brushes made from cat fur for fine details or calligraphy. These brushes are called neko-ke fude 猫毛筆 (neko = cat). Ukrainian folk style Petrykivka (named after the village) uses a similar tool - the koshachka, a brush made from a few cat hairs. It’s valued for the same qualities: softness and the ability to paint extremely fine, almost invisible lines.