Fresh Step Hot to Adopt Shirt c/o ||BCBG Max Azria Blazer || One Teaspoon Shorts || Sam Edelman Shoes c/o || Urban Outfitters Sunnies || Chanel Bag

Anyone who has met me (or started following my site) recently knows that I am absolutely obsessed with cats. I send cat-themed articles to my husband. I routinely stop by our neighborhood cat cafe (as my Snapchat/Instagram story followers well know). I'm even constantly brainstorming ways to help all of the poor street cats that Brooklyn, sadly, has far too many of. But my cat obsession hasn't always been this way.

Sure I liked cats. I think my Mom's cat is funny enough and I love playing with him anytime I go home. And, of course, there was the time when I was younger that my family rescued the pregnant cat that our neighbor had so rudely and, quite literally, coldly dumped out in the snow. That cat, and eventually her kittens, brought my sister and I so much joy and I remember we struggled to focus on anything but naming, caring for and playing with the kittens. Eventually we took them to a farm, which was a much more appropriate living space for a family of cats than our tiny home, but I still have pictures of them that I look at to this day. So while I had an obvious affection and relationship for cats, I still always considered myself a dog person.

That is until Mr. Stripey came into our lives. While he is mischievous and frequently standoffish, he's also such a furry, fluffy little bundle of joy. We frequently record and share videos of him with friends, we find ourselves watching cat videos and laughing at cat meme's, like "Oh my gosh! That's so funny but so true! Stripey would do that!", I have posted about him on my blog and we even talked about Stripey so much that our friends would make fun of us. It was clear that this cat had become the center of our universe. And also that we had most definitely become cat people, from zero to one hundred real quick!

Sadly, many cats in shelters never even get to experience half the love and affection that we were able to give to Stripey. That's because there are over 3 million cats that enter shelters every single year, and out of that 3 million only 37%, yes, 37%, get adopted. I don't know about you, but that makes me extremely sad. It also makes me want to get involved and help. You want to, too? Purr-fect! Because I'm going to tell you how.

For starters, let's change the perception of cat ladies being crazy to cat ladies being cool. One way Fresh Step is helping to do this is through their Hot to Adopt initiative. They've designed this seriously cute limited edition Hot to Adopt shirt where, for every shirt sold, $7.50 from the sale will go directly to helping cat shelters across the country (you can get your shirt here). Then show off that shirt, your cat or another fashionable feline-inspired photo, on Fridays, for what Fresh Step has deemed "Feline Fashion Fridays". Be sure to follow @FreshStep on Instagram, post your feline fashion photo and use #freshstepcontest to be entered to win some great prizes through October. [Official rules can be found here.]

While we're on the topic of cat fashion, let's also talk about the seriously fun feline fashion show I attended last weekend. Fresh Step hosted a NYFW Feline Fashion Lounge and Adoption Event. There were cat ears, cat cake pops, cats to play with and adopt, Katie Cassidy giving a cat talk (And reminding everyone that cat ladies are most definitely chic!), and even cats walking the catwalk. Models showed off a variety of trendy looks all while carrying cute, adoptable kittens. While all the looks varied, there was one trend that was so hot, each look featured it. You know what it was? That it's hot to adopt! I snapped up a storm from the show so hopefully you were able to catch that on my Instagram stories, but if not, I have plenty of event photos for you to peruse below.

Another easy way to get involved? Join Fresh Step's Paw Points Rewards program (sign up and find out more here) where you can turn purchases into points which you can turn into rewards which you can redeem for things like free litter and cat beds for your local shelter.

Of course, as you can tell by these pictures, I'm partial to getting involved with the Hot to Adopt shirts, but get involved in whatever way feels best for you. At the end of the day, all that matters is that you do get involved because adopting is one hot trend that is here to stay.

PHOTOS BY DAVID LEVINE

Thank you to Fresh Step Litter for sponsoring this post.