cats Archives - Page 2 of 3

Adorable Gray

An animated gif of the adorable gray cat (currently called “Gray” until his real name emerges) my Momz and I adopted from the Humane Society. He’s getting along well with Lola, whom we adopted a few weeks earlier.

Now we have 2 perfect cats, we’re not adopting any more.

Death and something new

Having sold one This Land Is Mine quilt and sent the other to my brother, it was time to make a new one. This is my first two-sided quilt. One side features the Angel of Death. The quilted outlines of the men killing each other give him texture.

This time I didn’t pre-wash the fabric, so the colors are very slightly brighter.

Another first for me: hanging tabs, so it can be hung from either side.

Death seemed like a fine piece to work on, since I’m grieving my beloved Bruno. That said, my Momz adopted a new cat from the shelter a few days ago. Her name is Lola, and she thinks my sewing machine is a toy.

I didn’t get pictures of her batting at the needle (it goes up and down! Toy!) last night because I shut off the machine and took her out of the room instead. These photos are from earlier today, as her interest was waning (which was why I was able to finish the quilt).

Lola is nothing like Bruno. That’s one of the reasons we chose her. I’m not looking to replace Bruno, he is irreplaceable and I miss him terribly. Nonetheless Lola is an excellent cat. She is friendly, curious, and outgoing. She seems to completely lack any neuroses, which is unusual for her species. Also she is tiny and cute. She’d make a great therapy cat.

R.I.P. Bruno Schwartz, 2000(?) – March 1 2013

I knew it had to happen some day. Bruno stopped eating a little over a week ago and when his decline went into suffering (his purr box broke near the end, it was heartbreaking) we were lucky enough to get an angelic female vet and assistant (Bruno likes women and is afraid of men) to perform the kindest, gentlest euthanasia at at home. I have the flu so I was in bed with him his last several days; there’s nothing he would have wanted more, I think. I still have the flu, and a broken heart, but I’m very grateful for the 10 years of love this wonderful cat gave me.

Bruno Quilt

This small project took a long time to finish, because it’s hot and my interest in sewing has dropped precipitously. I only touched it every few days, and then usually for less than an hour at a time. Anyway, it’s done now, and on my floor:

Just like Bruno himself. Here’s the source photo, taken a few years ago but not at all an unusual pose:

And here’s what it became in fabric and thread:

It’s 30.5″ x 17″. Very small compared to what I’ve been making lately. Here’s the back:

This technique looks a lot better stretched, as in Air/Nude. But since the black side has contrasting thread, it’s OK.
The quilt came out smaller than I expected. Bruno is a huge cat, this quilt leaves the impression of a normal-size cat. Here’s Bruno being an art critic:
But before I got the camera out he was trying to sit on it, which I interpret as praise.

The Elusive Peanut

My friend Ken Levis named this beautiful, shy, wild yet affectionate creature “Peanut,” which may explain why she hides most of the time. I’m the only human other than Ken she will leave her hiding place in the closet for, and I’m cat-sitting this weekend. Peanut trusts me, but she doesn’t trust cameras, so I had to take these pictures from a distance with maximum zoom. If she finds out I turned her into this silly animated gif, she may never let me rub her belly again.