Quilting News

Cats in Castles and the Cats in Pajamas Quilt

The latest quilt by Elizabeth Hartman is her Cats in Pajamas Quilt and I’m in love. I’ve decided to make the small version of her pattern using our new Playful Plaids collection by Paintbrush Fabrics. The plaid in these prints is diagonal so the movement the pajamas have is delightful!

Cats In Pajamas Quilt Kit

The Cats in Pajamas Quilt Kit includes the pattern and comes in two sizes:

Small Quilt finishes 55″ x 55″

Large Quilt finishes 72″ x 72″

Your Quilt Fairies here at Quilted Joy have created a Cats in Pajamas quilt kit featuring those Playful Plaids and we’ve selected a teal background fabric for the Cats to have their sleepover party in the quilt kit. We have both a large Cats in Pajamas quilt kit and a small Cats in Pajamas quilt kit!

I decided to make the small 55″ x 55″ version of the pattern and I wanted to make each cat look like the cats in my family. I started with the two cats my daughter has. She likes to remind me that they are royal cats because they were born in a castle. While I dispute the royal lineage, I can’t dispute the castle!

From Stray Days to Pampered Purrfection

Meet Teri and Theo. These kitties were born in the Castillo San Felipe del Morro known as El Morro in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Construction on the Castillo started in 1539 and was designed to withstand cannon ball attacks. In fact, Sir Frances Drake attacked El Morro in 1595!

After that it became known as the gateway to the Spanish Empire. And while its history is fascinating what we are here to chat about is its current residents- CATS! In fact, there are so many stray cats at the site the government is leading an effort to have them relocated.

My daughter’s partner was stationed in San Juan and the two of them decided to foster some kitties who were removed from the castle. In the group they fostered were Teri and Theo. Many times, in large colonies of stray cats, rescue groups will spay and neuter as many cats as they can catch, and during that operation, they clip one of the cat’s ears. In this way, they can look out over a group of stray cats and immediately tell who has been fixed and who hasn’t. This is why one of Teri and Theo’s ears are clipped.

Feline Fancy

My daughter decided to relocate Teri and Theo to her apartment in Kentucky after her partner was deployed to the West coast. These two cats are completely spoiled rotten (as all royal cats should be). They also have numerous outfits and costumes they like to wear. Here they are in their Halloween costumes.

So, when I made the blocks to represent my daughter’s cats I picked out fabric to represent their fur colors but I also made one of their ears clipped! Being able to customize her kitties like this was so fun! If you want to know how I did it, don’t miss our recording of the sit and sew I did showing all my tips on creating the Cats in Pajamas Quilt Block!

Purrr-iffic Notions!

There are some notions that will make everything easier when piecing this block. And, it is all traditionally pieced- no paper piecing!

The top of the list is Wonder Clips and Organizing Stickers by GEasy Designs. I placed a sticker on each Wonder Clip to label each piece I cut for my kitties. I even needed to grab a Sharpie and write the letter that corresponded to the units in the pattern on the empty stickers. This made it FAR easier to know which piece to stitch with which piece. I can’t imagine trying to make this block without them.

The other notion that was essential was a fabric folding pen. To use this pen you fill it with water and put 4-5 drops of the solution that comes with the pen into it. Screw the top back on and use the felt tip on the pen to paint your seams. The softener in the solution helps keep your seams laying so incredibly FLAT!

I know it may seem like one more step, but trust me, the difference it makes is worth the effort. This is especially true when you are working with a block with so many seams. Everything will go together so much easier!

Whiskers & Stitches

I made a block to represent my big tom cat Oskar. He’s a black and white polydactyl kitty that is 15 years old now. He’s a sweetheart and he has a light pink nose so I made his pjs to match his nose.

My youngest kitty is Bruce. He is chaos and is always on the move or completely passed out. His coloring is stark. The black on his face stops right at his jawline, so it looks like he is wearing a cowl, just like Batman. Hence his name… Bruce for Bruce Wayne!

I made his pajamas blue with yellow accents that look like a utility belt so that when he is fighting crime at 3am in my living room he will be ready for anything. Next up, I’ll be creating a Cats In Pajamas quilt block for Ms. Luna. She is quite sure she is royalty as well, but I keep reminding her that she was born in a field under the hood of a dilapidated car and not in a castle-like her cousins. She tells me I’m wrong. 🙂

Cats In Pajamas Quilt Kit

The Cats in Pajamas Quilt Kit includes the pattern and comes in two sizes:

Small Quilt finishes 55″ x 55″

Large Quilt finishes 72″ x 72″

Would you like a Cats in Pajamas Quilt Kit? We have them! You will have so much fun with this Elizabeth Hartman quilt and I’d love to see it when you are done. I know it will be PURRRFECT (sorry… I couldn’t resist). 🙂