Quick Specs
- Type: Round lidded box
- Size: 4 1/2 x 3 inches
- Material: Resin
- Lid: Grinning Cheshire Cat face
- Colors: Magenta, mint green, lavender, cream, gold
A Plump Magenta Cat With a Grin That Takes Over the Lid
From the front, the box is one big face. The cat’s head is round and plump, with pointed ears at the upper corners and fur carved with short, slanting strokes in deep magenta. Mint-green and lavender stripes sweep across the brow and the cheeks in wide, slanted bands, so the face looks painted for a party, and inside the ears the magenta deepens toward plum. The eyes are large and glassy, shaded from yellow-green at the center to teal at the edges, each with a tall black slit pupil and a heavy black outline. A pink nose sits above the wide cream-colored grin, which is blushed with yellow at the cheeks and edged with an orange-pink lip, and fine vertical lines mark off the teeth. Below the face, mint and lavender stripes and two gold curls decorate the base, and pink paws with dark claws peek out along the bottom edge. The face is symmetrical, with the nose on the center line and the eyes level, which makes the expression easy to read at a glance. The proportions are rounded and soft, so the cat looks more mischievous than menacing.
The Cheshire Cat comes from Lewis Carroll’s 1865 book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and its wide grin has stayed the character’s trademark. This box turns that trademark into the whole object: the grin fills the lower half of the face and the eyes sit high above it, so the expression reads from a distance. In the story the cat talks with Alice in puzzling ways, and the box carries some of that mischief in its arched green brows. The palette of magenta, mint, and lavender keeps the piece lively, and the gold curls at the base add small touches of shine. At 4 1/2 by 3 inches the box is small enough for a desk or a shelf and large enough for a few rings, charms, or folded notes. Because the lid carries the face, the box looks best with the cat turned toward the room, where the glossy eyes and the grin meet whoever enters the room. Gold appears in only a few places, so the curls read as jewelry on the cat.
Practical Ritual Applications
Give the box a spot on a desk, a dresser, or a bookshelf where the grin can greet you. It keeps a few small things together: earrings, a ring, a handful of charms, a small crystal, or a note you want to keep private. A Wonderland shelf needs only a few pieces to feel complete, such as a vintage teacup, an old copy of the book, and a deck of playing cards beside the cat. The bright colors suit a bedroom, a studio, or a reading corner where something cheerful is welcome. As a gift, it fits a friend who loves Alice in Wonderland, a cat collector, or anyone who keeps small treasures. For more pieces with a playful streak, browse my novelty and gift ideas collection.
How to Display and Care for Your Cheshire Cat Box
Give the cat a low, steady spot, lift it by the base, and dust the fur with a soft brush.
- Choose a Low, Steady Spot
Set the box on a flat shelf or table a few inches back from the edge, out of reach of bumps and curious pets. The ears stick out above the head, so leave some room overhead and around the sides. Indirect light shows the colors best, and long direct sunlight can change the colors of decorative pieces.
- Lift It by the Base
Pick the box up with one hand under the base, and lift the lid with the other. Care guides for decorative figures advise extra care with thin and protruding parts, and the ears and the curls are the parts that stand out most. Set the lid down on a soft cloth while you add or remove items.
- Dust the Fur Texture
Dust the box about once a month with a very soft brush, such as a clean makeup brush, working along the carved fur and around the eyes with no pressure. Care guides advise against detergents and wipes on decorative figures, and conservators advise skipping commercial dusting sprays, so keep the cleaning dry.
The Tarot Fellow Standard
I stock this box for the cat: a magenta Cheshire Cat in resin with a grin that fills the lid, striped in mint and lavender and finished with gold curls and pink paws. It keeps small treasures in a form that is fun to look at, and it suits anyone who loves Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. I carry it for readers, collectors, and gift-givers who want a box with some mischief in it. If you want a place to put more of your small things, my boxes, chests, and tables collection has more to choose from.
Frequently Asked Questions
In Carroll's text the cat vanishes slowly, beginning with the end of the tail and ending with the grin, which remains for some time after the rest of the cat has gone. Later Alice sees only a curious appearance in the air, realizes it is a grin, and thinks, “It's the Cheshire Cat.” When the cat's head appears at the croquet game, it fades away again before the Duchess arrives.
Cheshire is a county in England. Lewis Carroll was born in Daresbury, in Cheshire, and grew up in the county. An Oxford University Press language writer notes that something he heard there may have inspired his image of the cat, and the origin of the phrase “grin like a Cheshire cat” has never been explained.
In the sixth chapter, the cat tells Alice that everyone in that place is mad, the cat and Alice included. The same chapter gives the first description of the cat: it sits on the hearth in the Duchess's kitchen, grinning from ear to ear, and Alice notes that it looks good-natured but has very long claws and a great many teeth.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet