Cats and quilts just go together

My little Sally found one of my quilts, neatly folded in the laundry room. I had just washed and dried it. Too bad it had been there for a while so it wasn’t still warm from the dryer. She would have really liked that. As any cat owner knows, cats gravitate to warm places, despite their little bodies seemingly radiating heat as they sleep.

I’ve always been amused at how cats just seem attracted to quilts. I have always had cats in my quilting life, which began nearly 30 years ago. Whenever I finish a quilt and lay it out on the bed or the floor, frankly to admire my handiwork, it is almost impossible to keep a cat from snuggling or writhing around on it. That is fine with me, since I love both cats and quilts and think they just go together.

So many of my quilting pictures have cats in them, like this one at right. I was in the process of machine quilting this quilt and Ryan wanted to help. I have had to stop many times because she wanted to be part of the action. I was never too busy for a little cuddle time with Ryan. I have so many photos of her, who I lost a few years ago. Ryan was THE cat who will always have my heart. She was the first of five kittens born on the front porch almost 18 years ago. Only two of them are still living.

And then there is Sally. She is the most recent of my kitties. And she is nothing like Ryan, or any other cat I’ve ever had now that I think about it. She was abandoned at a friend’s house not long after I had lost Ryan. I couldn’t resist her beautiful face so I was happy to take her in.

But Sally was no Ryan! She had none of the traits that I feel in love with. In fact, she was a mean kitty. She wasn’t very trusting, and certainly wasn’t a cuddler. Anyone who tried to get that close to her often got a face full of claws; ask me how I know. Sally was dumped, maybe abandoned. Who knows what her early childhood was about? Who knows if she had a nurturing mother or if she was weaned way too early and had to fend for herself? She was pretty young when she came to me, so I don’t know her story. I do know that she didn’t get the kind of human attention as Ryan and her siblings. They were adored and held and snuggled, from the moment they took their first breath. Sally has had to learn what love of humans is all about.

The first person she took to was my late husband John. He was definitely her person. She was pretty devastated when he died. She was even meaner to me and to the other cats. But she is coming around. Rather than curling up in a corner somewhere all by herself, she has found the comfort of a folded quilt in the laundry room. I see that as a very good sign. She will be 3 yrs. old in April and is starting to trust again. She is becoming a sweet, loving kitty. Seeing her all comfy and cozy on one of my quilts makes me happy. Love me, love my quilts because we go together and there is always room for kitties.

Love it when projects are completed

I feel as though I've been gone a long time from this blog. It occurs to me that it is very difficult to write about quilting when you are so busy quilting. 

I just completed another project though, which leaves me a little free time. I made a wall hanging for my daughter, Jenny, who will turn 35 this week. She and her husband have recently relocated to the Boston area, so I made her a quilt I thought might be appropriate.  

I had a great time working on this, although I didn't give myself much time. I started it on the 13th of August and just finished it yesterday, the 24th. Her birthday is in a couple days. I am grateful to Debbie Mumm for the design and pattern, as it is just what I was looking for. I searched the Internet, knowing I wanted something with a lighthouse. This was perfect. 

Completing this quilt gives me the courage and inspiration to do more like it. 

Discovering applique

I have always been a little shy about applique. The sea shells, ship's wheel and anchor are all appliqued, while the ship and lighthouse are paper pieced. The rest is just pieced. 

I've never really been good at needle-turn applique, so when I saw the curves on those shells, I wondered what I was letting myself in for. But, I took it one step at a time, watched lots of You Tube videos, and finally jumped in with both feet. The shells are now my favorite part of this quilt. The ship's wheel really gave me pause too, until I figured out I could do it in two phases, the pegs first, then the wheel appliqued on top of it. I'm really pleased at how all the pieces turned out. 

Then I thought I would quilt it sparingly, until I got started. I was like a drunk who just took his first swig of whiskey. Once I started, I couldn't stop. The sashing is really densely quilted. But, that's OK, because it toned down the brown fabric. The white thread on top of the brown was just what it needed to blend the color a bit. 

The only fabric I didn't have in my stash was the border fabric. I actually went to the quilt store to pic out something. What I wanted was a nautical-themed neutral color. No such thing existed, however, so I settled on this mottled gold color. I think it further helped the dark brown blend as well as tying in the color of that one golden sail and the anchor. 

One more thing, cats just love quilting, as shown. Thanks JR for helping hold this quilt for the picture!

Cats and quilts just seem to go together

Not only am I enamored with quilting, but so are two of my four cats, Ryan and Kasey. 

For me, sewing is rarely a solo act. 

I call these two the twins, the first and fourth born of a stray cat that came to visit one day about eight years ago. Timi picked us to be her forever family. The rest is history. 

Ryan and Kasey's siblings, Kenni and Junior haven't caught the quilting bug. They prefer their quilts to be completed and on the bed before they wrap up in them.

I quilt in front of a picture window that overlooks the backyard. These two simply love birdwatching out that window. 

Even when I am sewing, Ryan isn't afraid to walk behind my machine or on top of anything nearby, the higher the better; Kasey likes anything cushy where she can stretch out and make herself at home. The pile she seems to be holding onto at left, is a stack of ready-to-quilt blocks for two different projects. The quilt sandwiches are already layered, so this is probably as soft as a feather bed. 

I've even had times where Ryan, the most gutsy cat I've ever known, will sit on top of a quilt while I'm stitching it. The machine noise doesn't even deter her. 

That isn't true of Kasey, a.k.a. scaredy cat. She is probably the most nervous cat I've ever known. That doesn't seem possible in her stress-free pose, but if she heard a noise, she would be out of there in a flash.
 
The cats absolutely love my quilts, at all of their stages. In fact, most of the time, if I take a picture of a quilt, whether it is complete or in progress, Ryan is there. Here she is pictured on the quilt top of my now-completed yellow quilt.