I have been a member of this board for almost a year and I just got into quilting about a year ago. ALL OF YOU LADIES post pictures of the most beautiful quilts I have ever seen (I'm so envious...I'll get there one day..LOL).

What does bother me and is a question for all of you cat lovers...HOW DO YOU KEEP THE CAT HAIR OFF OF YOUR BEAUTIFUL QUILTS AND FABRIC? I see so many picutes of quilts, fabric, blocks, etc. that have your cats/kittens laying on the quilt, sewing machiine, block, fabric, and I'm sitting here thinking OMG, all that cat hair.

I do not mean any dis-respect to any of you cat lovers (I am a shih tzu lover...I have 9 of them) but I don't let my dogs lay on any of my quilts or fabric. They don't shed hair, but I don't care, they ARE NOT laying on my fabric, becuase I don't know where that fabric will end up at as a gift.

Lint brushes and rollers work well. Also, if I'm doing a quilt for someone else, I wash it first. That gets the oils off it from my fingers, takes away the cat hair, gives it the comfy look and a wonderful smell. :thumbup:

The washing machine as soon as it is done and frequently thereafter :-)

My cat's don't lay on my fabric while I'm working. I always shoo them away, I'm afraid the rotary cutter might get too close to them. My cats do stay in my room while I'm sewing. I know there is cat hair all around me. If I was giving a quilt to someone, I would wash it. I do that with my crocheted afghans because I know it's picked up some cat hair while I've been working on it. I don't leave my ongoing projects out for little paws to get a hold of, I always put it away in the closet to keep it away from them.

I buy a lotttttt of those cheaper lint remover rollers....

:thumbup: :thumbup: ;) ;)

This is me!!

If it is a small wall hanging I'd use a lint roller or brush. If it's a larger quilt, I'll wash it - especially if it is a gift. In general, I try to keep the cats off my project while I'm working, but hey, they are cats and for whatever reason, they want to sit on your fabric!

I always wash before gifting, my fabric is kept in cabnets unless I have my hand on it, if I leave the room, for ANY REASON, I have large towels to cover anything I have out, Otis thinks she is part dog and grabs fabric and runs! When not in use my machines are kept covered, we live in a very dusty area, I dust every day during spring summer and fall, the wind blows all the time. Even my LA has a cover that covers everything, machine and table, so if I have a Quilt on it and need to leave the room I just flip it on. You get used to it, it becomes a habit like brushing your teeth every morning you don't think about it, you just do it.

I always wash my quilts.
There is a new product out for removing hair and it is wonderful, I use it for everything except quilts.
Its called Pledge Fabric Sweeper for Pet Hair.
It works so much better than sticky rollers.

me three!!!! it's so hard to keep cats away from your work as they so want to be right in the middle of everything. my one cat likes to knock things off my sewing table when i shooing him from wanting to lie on my fabric. i also cover my projects when i leave them out.

but lots of lint rollers work and washing when giving to someone else.

I just make sure all recipients are cat lovers, problem solved! Just kidding, the washing machine is a wonderful invention

I have nothing to contribute to this thread other than ti say HELLO! Shih Tzu lover. I only one and his name is Sapper! He is awesome!

I belong to the lint-roller club, too. :D

I have 6 cats and 2 dogs. Hair just finds it way everywhere. They don't have to lie on anything.

Agreed! We have <mumble, mumble, mumble> cats and I wouldn't bet that there's a single horizontal surface in the house that wouldn't have a fine coat of cat hair if it hadn't been dusted - including places that I know they've never visited. So, even if they could be kept off of everything having to do with quilting the final product will need to be cleaned if it's for someone else.

Packing tape is a great hair remover, too.

I have a lot of allergies so I am indifferent to people who "suffer." It's just life to me. That said, I have never knowingly given or sold anything to a sufferer.

Same here, my cats are in my sewing room when I'm there. Somehow, they know not to get in the way when cutting or using the sewing machine. If I'm gifting a quilt, I use a lint roller. I'd wash them except, with four cats, I'm not sure I could get it from the dryer to the outside without picking up hairs again! :-)

If anyone would refuse a quilt because my dog or cat had touched the fabric...... Well, they're never on the quilt list again.
Fabric is just another surface. It's not hallowed ground in my house. My furbabies are way more important!

I don't exactly 'let' Puddin' lay on my quilts... She does what she pleases.... you can shoo her off , but other than closing the door to the sewing room; you can't keep a cat off anything.... If I have something that's a gift, I make sure I put everything away each time I take a break or cover it with plastic... On something for myself... she'll be on it eventually, so if she wants to 'help' I let her.

I wash and dry all mine just before they go to their next destination. My cats and dog are part of my family but I realize some folks are allergic so try to get it all gone before sending them on, also use hypoallergenic wash soap because most of mine are for children's charities.

Believe me, you cannot stop a cat if they want to lay on your fabrics...you just need to keep a good supply of lint rollers or masking tape on hand...when I finish a quilt for a customer or a gift , I hang it on the wash line and attack it for a good 15-20 minutes with the rollers....when it's all done, I wrap it in a cotton pillowcase to keep any new hairs off until the quilt is given to the recipient...
My cat also likes to knock my sewing items off my table and for some reason, he likes to pull the straight pins out of my quilts with his teeth ! It terrified me that he might swallow one so I have to be really careful with my pins now...when I have something pinned, I roll it up so the pins are on the inside and he can't get to them...

There is a product on the market called the furbuster by bamboo. It looks like a razor, but it's not sharp. You just run it along your fabric, and the clumps of hair just clumps up on the thing. I got mine from the animal shelter when I got my cat.

When I'm ironing my top and back and steaming the batting, I take this opportunity to use the sticky roller on them. Then it's ready to be basted. Flylady has a Rubba Scrubba that works really well for pet hair also. Hair all over is just something that goes with the territory when you have pets.

I come from a long line of pet lovers and owners and we pretty much view kitty fur as extra insulation!! And then we launder all our quilts!!

I couldn't imagine quilting without my cat. When we used to live in NJ and I sold something at a fair, it was required (at that time) to put the fiber content on the item. For instance a quilt might read "100% cotton fabric, polyester and cotton thread, 100% cotton batting" mine would read "100% cotton fabric... 99.9% cotton batting and .1% cat hair". Seriously I wash anything when it is done. If it is mine, I put it where it belongs, if it is to leave the house I wrap it in a clean sheet (or pillowcase) so it stays that way.

Another note - I used to use a ton of lint rollers until my daughter suggested I use rubber kitchen gloves (you know the kind you get at the grocery store). I put those on and rub the quilt and the hair comes off I think better than the lint rollers!

Like the other response, lint rollers, washing machines and covering up works in progress with other material are how I deal with the hair. I'd much rather clean up hair than try and keep my furry muses away from my work area. :D

I always wash quilts before I gift them. I'm a hoop quilter and my quilts get drug around alot. The dogs lay on them while I'm quilting and so do the cats. Plus, if the fabric hasn't been washed before (depending on the fabric) you don't know where it's been!

I have a high tolerance to cat hair. But I do understand that not everyone feels the same. When I make charity or gift quilts I wash them when finished and bag them up tightly right out of the dryer so the cat can't get to it.

Ditto here!!!!!! Every morning after I make up my bed I run a lint roller over the top of it. This is as much of a ritual as that first cup of coffee :lol:

Speaking from a mom whose daughter is highly allergic to cats....cat dander is the "stickiest dander ever." It takes 9 months of vacuuming every week to get rid of the dander in your home---and I mean vacuuming (remove couch cushions and vacuum like never before, curtains, couch pillows,etc.)

A friend, whose son has asthma, poor littel guy would end up in the Emergency room monthly---she FINALLY got rid of her two cats, as advised by the allergist. She vacuumed like mad and the child has never had another asthma attack since---and it has been a few years.
Sorry, cat lovers,,,,couldn't have your quits in my house.

Well, you keep lots of those sticky rollers around and on a generally cat hair free area( like the dining room table) I roll off the hair and fold it right side in and put it in a plastic bag ( zip lock makes some really big ones) and zip it closed. I either give it in that bag, or take it out at the last minute to wrap it.

I too buy rollers, dollar store stocks them just for me, im sure! I dont have dust bunnies in my house, I have hair-balls!

I will have to get that Pledge Fabric Sweeper.....
LOL.....Yes, it just seems that cats and quilts go together.
It is very hard to keep them out of my sewing room and off my quilts......but I have several quilts that are made for the cats.
Sticky rollers - in everyroom of my house....and in my car.
(and a cat in my lap while I work on the computer).

My cat doesn't like to sit on my projects, thank goodness. Having said that, I can't believe the amount of hair comming from one small cat. Judging by the amount of hair all over, she should be naked by now. It's unbelievable. I do wash everything when it is finished.
Sue

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Speaking of lint rollers ... can't live without them! They are super handy for cleaning up ripped out seams or just thread bits & pieces and cat lint. Oh ... and this cat ... Mr T thinks he's a little person and he pretty much does what he darn well pleases! :)

I don't have a problem with cat hair. I love my cats being around me that's what I have them for. If I am giving the quilt as a gift I wash it first.

I have three cats and they aren't allowed into my sewing room, nor the guest room where i tend to lay out my quilt tops and store them.
sad thing is i can't use a quilt on my bed very much because of hairballs! so i can't enjoy my own quilts other than the wall hangings or sofa cover ones.
Linda, that is funny. just like saying I will bring, when it should be I will take. no one says take any longer. I've noticed that in 1960 movies too. when did that happen? the English language hasn't changed. or has it?

I try very hard to keep my cat off my quilts and fabric. I don't always succeed. I have a test FMQ pannel that I used to practice on that I leave for her to lay on. I also covered the top of a little cupboard right next to my sewing machine with fleece for her to lay on and watch the birds outside. So she doesn't get on my fabric very often. I wash my quilts when I am finished so hopefully if there is any cat hair on them it will come out in the wash.

I thought everyone knew that cats were quilters in their former lives...that is why they come running to the sound of a rotary cutter and a sewing machine! Kind of like the Pied Piper.....