Cat lovers are in for a treat. The Illustrated Cat has introduced an exquisite line of cat art note cards featuring fine art portraits of cats. The finely rendered depictions, by artist Johnnie Scoutten, are almost photographic in their realism.

Packaged as a set of eight cards with premium envelopes, The Illustrated Cat cards initiated the line with two featured portraits – My Tabby and Just a Baby. The line soon expanded to add new featured cat portraits, with each new release appealing to unique cat owners.

Each Illustrated Cat in the series is a close-up view of the subject cat’s face. “It’s the eyes that are so intriguing”, says the artist. “They are so expressive and reveal so much about personality and mood.”

Johnnie confesses she had to put stickers on each package of cards saying: ”Look Closely. It’s Not a Photo!” During test marketing, Scoutten says, she had to convince people the cards were not photographs. “Conversations would start out asking if I took the photo.” Scoutten says, but when she explained the portraits are tightly rendered in colored pencil, then the reaction was always, “Oh Wow!”

Johnnie Scoutten, fine artist and graphic designer, is not without inspiration for her Illustrated Cat Originals. She works surrounded by her own four cats who take turns vying for attention on her desk and claiming her lap. She created The Illustrated Cat to share her art with more than 88 million cat owner in the United States. “Penning a note to a friend, that arrives with an inscrutable cat face on the cover, is sure to brighten somebody’s day,” Scoutten says. “Cat lovers can’t resist the appeal.”