Custom Cat Portraits: Everything You Should Know Before Ordering One

Most custom pet portrait studios are obviously dog studios. The samples are all dogs. The marketing is all dogs. The captions on Instagram are all dogs. Cats get treated as an afterthought, which is a problem because cats deserve better art than that.

Painted Co paints cats. All nine styles work for cats. Here's how to think about commissioning one and which style fits your cat.

Which painting style fits which kind of cat

The dignified senior cat → Renaissance

Long-haired Persians, distinguished tuxedos, anyone with a serious face. Renaissance oil style gives them the gravitas they've always deserved, with a Dutch-master glow and a gilded gold frame. Reads as "this cat owns property."

The chaos-agent kitten → Watercolor or Pop Art

If your cat is mid-zoom most of the time, the softer watercolor styles tend to capture motion and personality better than the formal styles. Pop art is also great for a younger cat because the four-tile silkscreen breaks them into different moods at once.

The black cat with attitude → Royal Court or Stencil

Black cats are notoriously hard to photograph and easy to render flat. Royal Court (with the velvet collar and crown) gives them a regal contrast that pops. Stencil works similarly with the negative-space silhouette emphasizing the shape rather than fighting it.

The orange tabby → Anime or Ghibli

The bold orange palette of a marmalade cat is built for warmer, more saturated styles. Anime and Ghibli both lean into the warm color story and make the cat look like a main character.

How to take a photo of a cat that will paint well

Cats are harder to photograph than dogs. Here's what works:

• Get on their level. A photo taken from above usually flattens a cat's face. Sit on the floor.
• Use natural window light. Direct flash makes their eyes glow alien-green and washes out the fur texture.
• Catch them mid-stretch or mid-stare, not mid-blink. A cat's eyes carry the personality.
• Skip the costume props. The portrait styles already do the costuming, so just send a clean photo.

How long it takes

The preview shows up in about 30 seconds. After you approve it and order, the print ships in 5 to 7 business days. So from "I want to commission a cat portrait" to "it's hung above the couch" is usually under two weeks. Memorial pieces sometimes get expedited if you reach out to orders@paintedco.com.

Memorial cat portraits

Losing a cat is its own kind of grief. People underestimate it because cats are quieter than dogs. A custom portrait helps in a real way: it gives you a corner of the house that still belongs to them. The Renaissance, Watercolor, and Royal Court styles tend to work best for memorial pieces because they read as art rather than as a snapshot.

If you're commissioning a memorial cat portrait, mention it when you submit the photo and we'll handle it with care.

Start the preview

Upload your favorite photo of your cat. The preview is free. No card needed. Pick whichever of the nine styles your cat would actually approve of.

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