Quilting with Cats

Anyone who quilts and also shares their home with a cat has experienced the challenges of quilting under the supervision of a four-footed friend. They insist on being part of each step in the quilting process.

My cats will carefully inspect all of my new purchases, sometimes even checking things out before they come out of the bag. It is important to use caution when moving a stack of uncut fabric - particularly if it seems heavier than expected.

When cutting fabric, the cats feel obligated to double check all measurements. They carefully inspect the placement of the ruler, and no cutting can be done until they are happy with the positioning.

Of course, they will always be happy to re-arrange any of your carefully stacked cut fabric. Just to make sure that your colour placement is truly random, I'm sure. And when piecing blocks, the cats always want to help. The problem is, they can't reach the foot pedal and the fabric at the same time in order to run the sewing machine. So they generally resign themselves to inspecting the progress as it comes out of the machine.

When laying out the quilt layers for basting, prior to quilting, there is always a cat around who is willing to test the quilt for comfort.

And the final result will be claimed immediately by any cat in the vicinity. I have called a truce at my house. The cats get their pick of the finished quilts, and I get the rest.

The kitties and I are proud to be featured in this week's "carnival of the cats".