hi
i'm laura mcclure and this is the cat mafia. i make things and i love cats and animals and lots of things: most things in fact. i'm a buddhist with late in life diagnosis of adhd and dyslexia (that's why words may be INCORRECT on this site) and dyscalculia. i'm married to a composer/artist/poet/teacher named martin graff.
we are currently the parents to three cats: flash, comet, & socko.
my etsy shop: catmafia.etsy.com
who i am
i am many things: i'm a lover of people, animals, and art. my art, craft, and maker journey began at an early age and i've been feeding it ever since. i've done stained glass, mosaics, quilting & sewing, painting in oil, acrylic, and watercolor, collage, assemblage, silversmithing & jewelry making, ceramics (hand building & wheel throwing), and drawing (paper and digital).
during the day, i work at the smithsonian's national museum of american history as the museum's primary mountmaker. if you don't know what mountmaking, you are not alone, here's a blog i wrote about working with cookie monster. i'm beyond lucky that i've found a career that allows me to
be creative.
the cat mafia origins
'the cat mafia' was born many years ago when i began to sell the things i made. i got my first cat, angus mcclure in college, she was a black fluffy polydactyl cat who was full of sass. then, i took in woobeecat a few years later. he was a short hair black cat who snored and drooled when petted, he wasn't smart, but very sweet.
when i moved to northern virginia, i met my MUSE: shemp (his face is the logo for the cat mafia). i found him as a kitten next to a garbage dumpster behind a Harris Teeter. he was VERY smart & special and turned anyone who would say "i'm not a cat person" into a cat person. he was my best friend for 18 years and i miss him every day, but life must go on.
my husband brought chloe, a tiny tortie into the house. we soon adopted flash, because i need black cat magic around at all times. when chloe passed into her next life, we brought home comet, who is a turkish van and is not from this planet: he is a king and a tube. finally, we rescued a sphynx called socko: he is a high-maintenance mushroom bat cat.
i surround myself with cats and they are my CAT MAFIA.
my muse: shemp
My Muse: Shemp
Shemp wore many hats (to his dismay)
Shemp during his RICO hearing.
My Muse: Shemp
my cat mafia
