My cats give my quilts all the love they can. Something about the batting draws them like magnets. They purr and pour their love into the quilts just like I do as I sew them. I don't try to keep them off of my fabric or work. I did have a problem when I brought home the embroidery machine, the oldest one thought it was for her as she loves the vibration from it. (She was a refinery cat from Houston where the machine noises were prolific and the embroidery machine really brings back good feelings for her.)

Since the rest of the house has cat hair, this makes the quilts in progress fit right in. I would not give a quilt to someone without washing it and warning about the cat hair.

my house is a cat refuge haven. we have 7 cats. the first one I actually went and got from the pound. the other 6 showed up over the years and I have too soft of a heart and just couldn't leave these little critters to fend for themselves. I am a hand quilter and whenever I am working on a quilt I will fold it up and set it next to my side of the couch until the next day. there is just something about an unfinished quilt in my house that the cats have to sleep on!!
this is my youngest cat. Mia was about 5 weeks when she showed up and this was taken right away after her arrival.

me too scrappy cats, every quilt that I do has to go through the washer on gentle cycle and I could use all the cat hair in the lint trap of my dryer for some kind of natural hair batting or something. lol

Oh what a cutie!!!

This has turned into quite the thread~! I so love hearing all the stories about your kitty companions! Keep em coming!

I'm not going to do the water bottle because I don't want my stuff to get wet, but I will start covering my work area when I'm done. My problem is that I work sporadically, as much as my 2 year old toddler will let me...so it's one of the reasons I hardly put things away. I also have my laptop on the same table (im addicted to facebook and quilting videos on YouTube!) so I'd be covering and un-covering the table several times a day, prolly just as much as I would be yelling at the cats to get off my table, lol.

A spray bottle of water works wonders; I understand cats hate that. I don't have cats because it grosses me out to have kitty litter trained animals on tables and counters. I have dogs and they don't go to the basement where my sewing is, and if I have sewing in my lap they have been taught to not go near it.

I have 3 cats, and only 1 Marmalade likes to come and visit me when I am sewing. She particularly likes it when I spread a quilt out to sandwich it together. That way she can lay on it, make sure it's comfy, smells good, tastes good, and then wants to be petted too. She also likes it when I am cutting, cause she can stand on the fabric, play with the ruler and one of these days she is going to get her paw cut....

I am reluctant to spray any of my cats, because usually I am working on something they are laying on and I don't want to get it wet!

I'm not sure if you can train a cat to stay off food surfaces; but you sure can teach them that it's naughty behavior! keep a spray bottle with water handy, when ever you catch them on the table or counter, spray them with a nice strong stream; they'll get the hint pretty quick I used to have cats, poor babies passed on... I know they got on the counter when I wasn't home, cuz' cats like to be 'up' but, at least they didn't do it when I was around. another thing you could try.. spray a sheet of plastic with adhesive, just somethine cheap... lay it sticky side up over your work area.. they HATE sticky paws.

I am a cat lover. They are so sweet and cuddly. There is only one cat that I have heard of that doesn't like water but how would you like it if your child came into my yard and I squirted him/her with vinegar water? I cannot have a cat, I'm allergic to their dander. I have friends who have cats and I can't even enter into their homes/ Be happy you can have a cat because when they jump on your belongings, they are looking for love and just try putting aluminum foil over your ironing board, etc. They don't like that sound.

Frankly, don't see a problem here. Cat hair just adds that finishing touch!