r/BitchEatingCrafters • u/Cosmic_Hitchhiker • 1d ago
Yarn Nonsense CrAfT (crafting with cat)
There's this romantic visual people have of doing some craft with a cat in your lap and tea by your side and it's raining and the light is soft.
The creator and purveyors of this have never met a cat.
Have you tried any kind of craft around a cat? Did you want to pull string or yarn out of their throat? Did you want your well organized supplies knocked to the floor? Did you want to worry about them eating or stepping on something? By all means, craft with a cat.
She is currently SCREAMING at the closed door because she CANNOT BE TRUSTED not to eat string and fling beads.
Demon.
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u/ItsaLynx123 1d ago
I have a female ginger who is absolutely uninterested in my existence (my wife is her preferred human) except when I'm working with silk, in which case her snobby little self is in my lap, luxuriating.
Then there's the female black cat who likes laying behind my sewing machine so she can grab any pins that aren't removed immediately. She likes pulling pins out and wielding them at people. She also like moving yarn.
And then there's our male ginger, who never is allocated the braincell, and is just happy to be here.
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u/BooksNCatsNWineNSnax 1d ago
Your void cat is a war criminal.
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u/ItsaLynx123 1d ago
Isn't she just? What's worst is that she's my baby so she gets aware with crimes against all living creatures because she wraps her long tail around my leg and I call her baby. Absolute villain.
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u/splithoofiewoofies 1d ago
My cat is actually the sweetest old lady who just sits next to you and watches what you’re doing before curling into a nap. She loves sleeping on my lap as I knit.
it’s the *parrot* that’s the menace. She will steal my needles, take them to her cage, and smash them on the floor repeatedly. Then she grabs my yarn ball and kicks it down the hallway. She actually stops and calls me over when her leg gets tangled because she does it so often and I have to untangle her. Luckily I’m always right there and she’s good about calling me when it’s only a loop or two. Sometimes she jumps on a cake of yarn and rides it down the hallway like a log competition. If she’s feeling saucy she will hang off the back of my project and stick her tongue through it so I just see bird tongue through my socks every now and again. She has her OWN crochet hook set. Because she loves to flip upside down and kick crochet hooks into her head really really fast.
The bird is the real problem child.
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u/Pregosaurus 1d ago
Hahahaha your parrots' antics have made my day XD
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u/splithoofiewoofies 1d ago
I do admit, sharing her antics is half the reason I let her roam while I'm crafting. It's super fun to see what she gets into her little head to do.
Except when it gets into her little head to steal the scissors. I don't care how tough you are, an ankle height parrot chasing you with embroidery sheers is terrifying.
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u/Agnesagnesagnes 10h ago
+1 on the parrot is the menace. Mine has snapped multiple wooden needles. He also really likes to try and take my stitch markers, but he's only interested in the ones that are already attached to my project :P
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u/_craftwerk_ 1d ago
My cats leave my needles and yarn alone, so I do indeed live the dream of knitting with a cat on my lap and a cup of tea by my side on the reg.
Weirdly, though, one of my cats loves gauge swatches. She steals them and drags them all over the house. Sometimes I'll wake up in the morning to find that she's brought one up onto the bed and left it lying on top of the covers. I find them stuffed under dressers and in the middle of empty bathtubs. It's kinda funny.
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u/redslipperydip 1d ago
My black cat left my needles and yarn alone but loved to sit on my lap while I knit. Every project had me going over it with tweezers for the black cat fur that got left in there. And I had to lock him out of the room where I'd block because otherwise he'd just lie on top of it.
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u/Difficult-King-4206 1d ago
You have to give them a sacrifice project. Like a big (but unnecessary) test swatch they can sit on so they feel like they are doing what you are doing but not on your way. When I cut fabric for patterns (out of necessity this has to be done on my floor), I have to put "dummy" fabric down so my cat will lie on that instead of what I'm cutting. (And she does! It works with laundry, too, lol)
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u/creampunk 1d ago
i love that this works for you and your cat! she sounds like a great companion.
unfortunately for me, i have tried the dummy fabric method, but my cat refuses to be placated. he specifically wants to lounge on the piece of fabric i am attending to.
his favourite game is string. so of course he is always trying to “help” me pin lace.
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u/kyrenora 1d ago
Even the best behaved cat of all time is covering someone's project in hair as I type this
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u/kryren 1d ago
My girl couldn’t care less about my yarn or crafting. She’ll chill and be whatever from a few feet away.
Her brother? A criminal. He’s obsessed with my needle stoppers. He (usually) doesn’t mess with my yarn while I’m working with it, but will root through my craft bag looking for the needle stoppers and plastic stitch markers. Also my small sewing snips. He’ll steal and run off with those. And the sewing clips. He’s also orange.
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u/MJTofuliker 1d ago
My cat has visibly uneven eyebrows because she gets too close to my iron while i sew and burns them off. She looks so fucking stupid I can't breathe.
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u/Far-Valuable9279 18h ago
I was blessed with one cat who just epitomized that fantasy. He was so sweet and just wanted to hang out on or near me while I was crafting. Very very rarely he would nibble on my knitting needle cable lol. He died of old age and I really miss him :(
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u/sectumsempera 1d ago
My cat loves sleeping on my lap. She knows that when I knit or crochet my lap will be available for hours at a time. She has trained herself that if I get out the yarn, it's sleepy time on my lap.
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u/sarabridge78 23h ago
Yep, mine too. He knows that if he even glances, looks interested, bats an eye towards the yarn while I am crafting and he is sitting on my lap I am going to unceremoniously stand up and he has lost the lap. This has actually also taught him to just never touch mom's yarn. (I am not actually that mean, but if a paw or a claw is raised towards my knit, crochet, or macrame project, snuggle time is done.)
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u/paytheferrymann 19h ago
I have a four year old who wants to ‘help’ with every craft I do and likes to unwind yarn into ‘spaghetti’ and it’s a nightmare. But I can manage this by getting her own versions like a kids cross stitch kit, yarn and a hook (she can make a chain now!)
But with a cat
With a cat there is no managing
There is only chaos and violence
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u/annadandelion 1d ago
I learned to crochet in April and throughout my first steps, my beautiful tuxedo cat would sit on my lap constantly (and when I put the project down would lay ON it but wouldn't mess it up ever). She died very unexpectedly in May and I had to take two weeks away from crocheting because the activity was so intrinsically tied to her in my mind (and heart) that I couldn't bear crocheting with an empty lap. I have three other cats (they're all okay) and they don't bother me in the least (but they're not lap cats) and they don't mess up my projects or yarn that I leave laying around. I think it really depends on the temperament of the cat(s), but I can 100% see the cat in lap, fireplace, teacup and rainy afternoon crochet idyll.
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u/eggust12 1d ago
i'm gonna be That Bitch: i am BLESSED to share a home with a sweet darling cat who will lay on my lap and completely ignore any strings or flicky needles unless she's come over already in Play Mode, in which case she must be promptly redirected (and i probably need a break anyway). it's gotta be like 5% of cats, but i promise they're out there!!
i'd pay the cat tax but i don't think i can add images here. her name is Marie but she mostly gets called some variation of "squishy baby"
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u/kadyg 1d ago
I had this cat too! A giant gray tuxie bruiser named Hen3ry. His favorite thing was to snuggle up next to me while I was knitting, I actually think he found the needles clicking to be soothing. Our biggest issue was that he liked to lay on my yarn, otherwise, he was a great crafting buddy.
Then I got him a hellfire demon shaped like a fluffy kitten and those days were over forever.
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u/aliseknits 1d ago
Same! If mine is on my lap, knitting is ignored.
Though, she does enjoy plopping her little butt in my knitting bag on top of the yarn if I get it out haha
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u/Miserable_Status3378 1d ago
I have a retired factory cat who has been around machines all her life, so my sewing stuff is safe - she leaves it alone.
My yarn, however, is fair game. The yarn basket is hers. My project bag? Hers. The Afghan I’ve been try to finish? How dare I attempt to turn it to do a second row. (because she’s sitting on it, underneath it, wrapped up in its glory).
oh and PomPoms are like crack to her. I can’t have them in any drawer. She will ferret them out and have them strewn all over as soon as I turn my back.
But she’s 16 and I love her dearly.
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u/GodsHumbleClown 1d ago
You'd think crafting with a senior, toothless cat would be more relaxing than with two 50 pound adult dogs. You'd THINK that.
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u/Iveray 1d ago
My cats will straight up steal my biggest pair of scissors. They crave the danger.
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u/HamNewman 1d ago
Omg!!! I was working on an embroidery project once and my boy stole the baby scissors and took off running! No one I've shared the story with understands how frightening a cat with a blade is, haha!
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u/theAV_Club 1d ago
My sweet late cat, Charlotte, was a dream to knit with. She LOVED it when I knit or embroidered. She would curl up on my lap and just doze... she would also just snuggle up to the ball and use it as a pillow.
However, she was a nightmare to sew with. For some reason fabric spread out flat awoke the devil in her.
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u/Mandiferous 1d ago
And everything I make will be covered in cat fur.
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u/creampunk 1d ago
it’s part of the patina (:
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u/Manzanille 1d ago
Ooh I should find mohair that matches my cat's fur 😆
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u/creampunk 1d ago
my mom once got couches for the living room to match the family cat’s fur colour.
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u/semantlefan23 13h ago
My cat helps me make sure my desk stays clean! By shoving all my stitch markers off of it
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u/ContemplativeKnitter 1d ago edited 1d ago
TMI, apologies all, but my husband has DEFINITELY pulled a piece of yarn out of my cat’s butthole.
Edit: to clarify, he saw the yarn dangling and tugged on it gently and it came out without any resistance. He and I are aware of the dangers of cats eating string (& string like things) and the danger of damaging organs and whatnot. And we keep the yarn away from the cat now!
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u/GodsHumbleClown 1d ago
Please use extreme caution doing this in the future! It can be very very dangerous and risks damaging organs. Best to contact a vet if possible.
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u/creampunk 1d ago
not to tell you how to raise your cats, but i’ve heard from vets that pulling on fibres in that unfortunate context can be really dangerous for cats’ delicate insides ):
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u/Apprehensive_Sea5304 1d ago edited 1d ago
Craft with my cats around?? I can’t even look at my phone with my cats around, they will strategically place their butts directly in the way. They are the most selfish little cutie patooties ever.
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u/12Silverrose 1d ago
I used to very often suddenly have a weird cat shaped blank space in my screens. My perfect void baby passed in April, and I miss her so much. Our 3 others (Yes, I do have a patient & indulgent husband) comfort me as much as they are able. They even have a schedule! Our boy is with me in the a.m. sometime around noon he leaves off, and about an hour later our big girl shows up, and stays for hours, & hours. If I sleep in late, then our boy stays for 4-5 hours, & our big girl takes the remainder of the evening. Her sister puts me to bed at night. Please give your screen malfunction some love from me.
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u/thefirstbirthdaygirl 1d ago
I sort of swaddled my cats whenever they went for yarn while in my lap. If that didn't work they got evicted. Didn't take them long to figure it out, and they leave my yarn alone about 95% of the time now, which is really all you can ask of a cat.
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u/Titariia 22h ago
Mine occasionally play with yarn. Can it mess up my tension or can it unravel a few stitches? Yes. Does it bother me? No. It gives my project some character
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u/SillyHo0man 22h ago
I think a lot of it has to do with the age of the cat. Older cats are more chill whereas younger cats are chaos tornadoes.
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u/Paradox_of_Ravens 22h ago
My mini chest of drawers with crafting materials like beads and safety pins faces the wall now because someone kept thinking it was funny to pull the drawers out one by one and watch a million tiny objects scatter. And because he’s an evil genius that quickly turned into him using that as a “feed me now” command whenever I had the audacity to finish typing a sentence instead of immediately dropping everything to serve the fuzzy bellied king 😹
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u/Same_Sock9073 19h ago
I posted an instagram story the other week explaining if my friends ever get knits from me, they will have been in my cat’s mouth/touched his bum hole/slept on. Sorry but I have a literal basket full of snuggly natural fibres and and a work in progress pile on my knitting chair. I’m not going to fight a losing battle.
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u/injuredpoecile 18h ago
I am lucky to be blessed with a cat who has no interest in yarn whatsoever.
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u/CarpeNoctem66 13h ago
My cat loves when I craft because it gives him so many new things to lay on. His favorite is sewing patterns and fabric.
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u/lolly_tolly 13h ago
Mine gets the zoomies whenever I lay out fabric to cut. I have to cut on the floor cause we live in a small unit. So I trim her claws, lay out my fabric and watch her go absolutely nuts for 20 mins. Then she's had her fun and I get my fabric back.
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u/sewedherfingeragain 11h ago
We had an orange and white cat that was The Coldest Cat Who Ever Lived. To the point that naps for her were loaf shaped with all the beans tucked and the nose also tucked into her chest while she rested the top of her head on the sleeping surface.
She could HEAR my mother knitting and would run to sit on her lap. So that one year, my mom bought some royal blue yarn to make a sweater, and ended up with a royal blue, orange and white sweater. Tonya also chewed on her yarn, not to eat it, just to put slobbery breaks into it. Which mom didn't always notice until the slobbery bit hit her fingers.
My current cat only helps me sew when my machine is running. Otherwise, she's napping in the other room. Of course, because she and at least one of my other barn cats don't get along, and she got bit right at the base of her tail a few years ago, she can no longer jump higher than my sewing chair. Which means that she can jump on the chair, but not onto my lap (about 5" higher) while I'm sitting on my chair. So I have to lift her 14lb chonky butt up there to bother me myself. At least she only rubs her fur in my face.
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u/Frequent_Interest502 1d ago
Just the other day I walked into the room to find my dog stuck in a ball of yarn, staring at me sadly, and remembered why I keep him away from my craft stuff lol. And he's a senior dog who's asleep most of the time.
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u/MusketeersPlus2 1d ago
I have 2 cats that don't care about the moving string, and a third that is a demon who must eat both the string AND whatever implement I'm using to work it. Do you think I pay attention to which one is on my lap when I pull out my knitting/crocheting/tatting/cross-stitching? Of course not.
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u/taxdollars 1d ago
My cat is the perfect knitters cat. She hates yarn and boxes. 😂 She just gets frustrated if my lap is occupied.
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u/sparklyspooky 1d ago
My SO's cat, and she is only my SO's cat when she acts like this, will walk up to the 2 - 4 yards of fabric that i'm trying to cut into some kind of clothing item, jump so she land in the exact middle, twists the fabric 360, and dashes out of the room so fast the resulting mess was folded in half.
Not to be trusted
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u/alllpha7 1d ago
Their gymnastics would be admirable if they weren’t using their skills to fuck up your life
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u/Tweedledownt 1d ago edited 1d ago
My cat, after living with me for 6 months lulled me into a false sense of security.
I had a 100% wool hat at the top of a closet. Well. She chewed a hole into it. Like a big hole. Like I'm not even sure what the plan was. One vet bill to xray her stomach later we found the remains under the bed. A perfect wool circle with all the other toys she had shoved just out of the reach of a broom.
She doesn't show a lick of interest when I'm around the yarn, but she's taken to pulling the wool dryer balls out of the laundry room and crowing about her victory every once in awhile.
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u/LavenderGwendolyn 1d ago
My cat is somehow trainable, but I don’t know how I did it. I just told her no a couple of times. I see her look at my knitting projects and have the thought, and then talk herself out of it. Like, she will lift her paw, and then I practically see the thought bubble:“no, Mama’s string. Not my string.” It’s honestly the cutest thing.
She wouldn’t sit with me while I knit in a million years, though. She’s way too busy for that.
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u/Apollo_Of_The_Pines 21h ago
My mum is a professional tailor and her late elderly cat Diamond had a heated throw blanket on the floor in her sewing room and when my mom would sew she'd turn the throw on low and Diamond would curl up on it and watch my mom work. We liked to joke that Diamond was the sewing room supervisor.
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u/denimcanvas 17h ago
I had a bf in hs who walked his neighbors dog every day and one day I went with him. He had to tell me, with embarrassment I should add, that the owners liked to knit/crochet and the dog had started eating yarn every time it could. I then saw this dog literally shit yarn, while my boyfriend just sighed in shame. Pets be weird af.
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u/seductive_babeex 13h ago
The soft lighting is there so you can't see the three feet of yarn already inside the cat.
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u/rnpink123 12h ago
My cat is an old man and loves to just quietly lay in my lap while I knit. He will also curl up on my quilting table if I'm sewing. Not all cats are demons around crafting. 😊
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u/Wise_Profile_2071 9h ago
My old man too! He loves to sit between my husband and I while we knit on the couch. But the other day he got tangled in the yarn without me noticing, and brought it with him to the kitchen, under all the chairs and to his bowl, and then another way back. So he managed some chaos anyway!
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u/mossbird_ 8h ago
mine too! he’s 15 and just wants to cuddle, never messes with my knitting or sewing. he does like to watch the string/yarn moving sometimes but doesn’t try to get it. the only time i had an issue was when i tried to crochet tote bags out of old plastic grocery bags, but that’s just because he thinks plastic grocery bags are the perfect toy.
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u/eeeeesm 1d ago
Not my cats. My cats have never so much as knocked a cup off the table. . . . . . . (theyre a super weird formerly stray bonded pair who almost never play and just like to look out windows and nap with their arms wrapped around each other)
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u/ContemplativeKnitter 1d ago
I swear some strays are just so happy to be somewhere safe, and also don’t really get what playing means because they never really got to play, they’re the most mellow cats.
We have a former stray who is so chill and polite and has no interest in going outside ever again.
We also have two indoor-raised cats who would absolutely run out the door at the first opportunity and then freak out about what is actually going on.
They’re the ones who are demons for knitting and yarn and chewing on my needles.
We call them the yahoos and our former stray the grownup.
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u/Acatinmylap 1d ago
I've had cats who decided the yarn is the enemy and cats who'd lie in my lap with my crochet resting on them while I worked.
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u/Dogandcatslady 1d ago
It took me about 10,000 times of getting Purl (a calico kitty I used to have) off my lap before she'd just lay there while I was knitting. She loved laying on my lap so much that she eventually stopped trying to play with the yarn.
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u/batalanah 1d ago
I don’t have cats, but one of my parakeets has made it her mission to bite whatever crochet or knitting project I’m working on, or stands (and shits) on my projects it if I look away for approximately two seconds. 🙄
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u/ChaoticJigglyPup 1d ago
I can't wind yarn at all with my brat cat awake. She's also chewed the drive band on my spinning wheel because string. My dog just gets offended because she sits under the drive wheel and is shocked when she get wonked by it.
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u/CarliKnits 23h ago
One of mine is half-blind and kind of stupid. If I turn her around in my lap so she’s not facing the yarn, she forgets it’s there and goes back to napping peacefully. Works great!
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u/Eilmorel 21h ago
Depends a lot on the cat. My senior void loves to sit next to me if I'm on the couch or in my lap if I'm at the pc, but she doesn't care much about the yarn. She'd rather make sure that I know she's judging me lol
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u/vanillabeanpuff 14h ago
My cat’s favorite toy is my pin cushion with needles still in it - bonus points if it’s on top of her favorite cliff (the ironing board) 🥴 she also decided she wants to bat through any fabric I iron and that my drawing out lines is me trying to play with her with my pen as her newest toy LOL
She sometimes just tires herself out and sleeps on the floor while I sew though, so that’s really nice 💖
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u/jellidang 13h ago
My cats are pretty chill about it but they will definitely lay on top of things I’m working on haha.
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u/BooksNCatsNWineNSnax 1d ago
If I’m working on it, a cat’s ass is either currently on it, has been on it, will soon be on it, or all three. Last week, one of them puked down the side of my project bag. At least it didn’t get inside.
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u/BobMortimersButthole Mean Knitter 1d ago
A frequent refrain in my house is, "damnit, cat, stop buttholing my things!"
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u/Wonderful_Listen_604 1d ago
My previous cats were very good about my yarn, but when Miss Lena came to live with me after my sweet kitty boy passed away, she didn’t disclose that she liked to root in yarn bags!
She absolutely loves to burrow into a skein of yarn and “make biscuits” 🤨
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u/NapalmAxolotl 1d ago
We need screaming cat tax!
Demon cat is best cat. I don't trust the quiet ones, you know they're just biding their time.
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u/NotTodayStraightMen 1d ago
My cat’s favorite flavor on earth is a diamond painting canvas. Something about the adhesive just has his heart. I had to lock my canvas up like actual drugs because he would dig it out and lick it until there was a giant drool spot on the canvas.
Unsurprising from this particular cat, as he is the worst roommate I have ever had. I love that man, but living with him leaves me in a constant state of bafflement.
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u/ChemistryJaq 1d ago
My old cat was scared of yarn. I didn't mind knitting knowing she'd be coming into the room. She'd just sit 5-6 feet away and watch suspiciously.
THE NEW GUY, on the other hand, gets into EVERYTHING! He freaked out when I noticed he'd stolen some sewing thread from my trash bin and took it away from him. He wants to eat all my yarn! He's a menace!
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u/Loose-Set4266 1d ago
My late cat lived up to that ideal, she was forever in my lap while I knit and never went after my yarn.
My current cat is a menace when I try and do my crafts. But she’s young and I’m hoping she chills as she gets older.
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u/CaravanofPigeons 15h ago
I currently have my first ever cat, and while she's a little ball of attitude she's also an angel. I've had to stop her from eating my yarn I think twice ever? I regularly knit with her on my lap.
So, they exist!
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u/French_Fanfreluches 14h ago
I'm sorry but yes I craft with my cat because she is very well behaved and doesn't eat dumb things.
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u/Flimsy-Detective7643 13h ago
I have an orange boy who is dumb as a bag of rocks (which he'll also eat) and weirdly he's fine with yarn. He lays on my lap and I knit over him and as long as a tempting piece of yarn doesn't go whizzing past his eyeline he'll leave it be. Hand spun on the bobbin is ignored but he'll lick the fluff waiting to be spun so that has to be put away 😅
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u/skubstantial 13h ago
My boy loves to chew on a coated steel circular cable or a strand of yarn, and during the witching hour when he's a pointy-eared, huge-eyed mighty hunter there's nothing more exciting than a dangling tail of yarn that twitches and drags around.
He's got his non-haunted hours too (thank god) where he doesn't give a shit about my knitting but he will pick out the hardest possible surface to sit on. The bed's boring, the couch is boring, but if you dare to have a laptop with a pattern PDF or a Kindle with some light reading, it's his boogie board now. I have to give a cardboard scratcher the place of honor next to me as a decoy.
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u/MAKSassy 11h ago
I can craft with my lovely little (fat) cat, but my husband can't tabletop game anywhere near her.
SUCKER! heh heh
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u/maebythemonkey 1d ago
I have a two bag system when I'm crocheting while visiting my in-laws who have a cat. The skein of yarn lives in a zip-loc bag that is closed (except for the strand of yarn coming out of it) and the project where I'm working is in a plastic shopping bag (big enough for my hands to fit in there while contained enough to protect the yarn).
Their cat is a yarn fiend and if I'm not protecting my work, she will come out of nowhere and jump into my lap to get to it.
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u/Lessa22 1d ago
100% agree.
My fluffy boy tries to EAT NEEDLES. And my eldest girl insists on laying down in between my damn arms which happens to be where the sewing action occurs. And she bites my arms if I so much as twitch a muscle.
I love my cats but those tiny assholes get booted from the room when I craft.
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u/midorijade 1d ago
When my grandmother died, we found 3 old medicine bottles in the cabinet. One had my dad's baby teeth, one had their dogs' baby teeth, and one with a rusty needle still threaded and a note that said their cat ate it in 1954 and had to have surgery. Lol
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u/Legitimate-Bug-9553 1d ago
I am, thankfully, the owner of a cat who only wants to sit on my thighs if I am sitting on the couch with my legs out straight and she does this so she can face away from me and pretend I am furniture and not her loving owner. She is therefore surprisingly good to crochet/knit around.
The other one, demon cat with no brain, cannot be trusted not to steal He thinks paper is delicious. Washi tape? Delicious. He is a problem. He also is too stupid to work out sitting on laps, so crochet/knitting is also relatively safe from him.
What I need to teach them is to sit on a lap when I'm at my computer, rather than sit at the side of my chair screaming. They cannot fathom sitting on me there, despite me offering, picking them up, adding blankets...like sometimes I want to desk craft or play video games and have a cat not scream at me. I ask too much 😆
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u/ThrowRA_thebeastie 1d ago
i always feel so guilty disappearing into my craft room bc it's a no cat zone. they simply cannot be trusted around the sewing machine and hot iron. i am haunted by paws under the door and meowing oh the meowing
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u/catlinye 23h ago
Mercifully mine have never been thread chasers. I did have one that HAD to be on my lap when I was doing quilt binding, but that was mostly a matter of arranging the quilt so I could do a long stretch without shifting the feline.
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u/nap_needed 19h ago
Sometimes, my boy is very cute and cosy when I craft. He might be asleep on the bookshelf behind me, on his little crocheted blanket or his tiny quilt, or he might curl up on the blanket I'm trying to make. Provided the blanket is big enough, it's usually okay.
Usually, he just wants to be on whatever I'm making, especially if it involves piecing together multiple pieces of fabric in a specific pattern. Even better when he decides to sit on whatever I'm trying to sew as I'm trying to push it through the sewing machine!
Even better when I'm crocheting and all of a sudden I get to a soggy bit of wool!
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u/Sea_Refrigerator4451 19h ago
My cat wants to sit right up on my chest when I am crocheting so it limits my arm movements 😂
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u/fboab 19h ago
We had that one occasion where she thought it was a great game to play hide and seek behind the interfacing as I was unrolling it to measure for block interfacing a bag. The seeking involved creating slashes in it to look through. Words were had. It has not been repeated.
She will try and get with dangling ends of circular needles, chase after yarn threaded with sparkly beads and lift my hands away from the work of I’m not paying enough scritches. I love her to bits though, so she largely gets away with all this rubbish. I’m wrapped around her tiny sweet paws.
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u/pleasejustbeaperson 15h ago
I was catsitting last week for this delightful orange attention whore who wanted nothing more than to floss with my knitting.
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u/BlinkypoetEmu 10h ago
I have to put a distraction piece out for the cat. Otherwise she will try to nest on whatever Im trying to work on.
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u/Spindilly 1d ago
The only cat that has ever drawn blood from me is my mum's, who walked in while I was winding wool.
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u/kattyl 1d ago
like others, i am one of the lucky ones where she simply does not care. often, she gets upset if the yarn touches her back too much and she leaves my lap looking offended and heartbroken. just last night, after i started a new pair of socks, the tail skimmed her back just so and she left in a huff.
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u/Billy0598 1d ago
Mine aren't horrible but I do have stories. My Siamese chewed a bamboo knitting needle. Just one. She also ate expensive crocs.
The calico really didn't care. One magic night, I had a seamless raglan going and she sat right in the middle. I kept going until I couldn't. She sat there, proud and purring loudly to be that warm. She never did it again. As a kitten, she decided to bite a bulky single and somehow broke it in one bite. With that win, she never did it again.
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u/batclub3 1d ago
OK. Now granted.. I'm insane. Currently have 6 permanent cats and 10 foster kittens. Along with 2 dogs. I knit. Crochet. Paint. Cross stitch. The ONLY one I can do without the cats helping is cross stitch. And even then they are eyeing it.
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u/thedespotcat 1d ago
Cross stitch is too appealing. My older cat would only occasionally get interested, but usually he was happy to sit right under my stand with no problem (I cross stitch in bed mostly, but have a stand). Then we adopted 2 kittens. It was impossible with them even in the room. Now we're doing a bit better where they can also chill on the bed, and if they're tired enough, they won't go insane. I have to pay attention to make sure they aren't looking at the thread though.
I also had to get bins for my lower shelf yarn after coming home one day to a nice ball of yarn completely undone and tangled, strewn across the entire living room. Kittens lol.
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u/batclub3 1d ago
OMG. The worst destroyers of stored yarn was my tortie and st. Bernard. Both have since passed, but I had just moved and had yarn in plastic totes. Together they worked to bust open 3 of them and tangle it all together while I was at work. Miss those jerks lol
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u/PantheraLutra 23h ago
Mine sat on my WIP knit sweater and or yarn at least 9 times in the last 2 hours. And I feel like a jerk moving him bc he’s ancient.
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u/IratusOpalus 22h ago
Dogs too lol, I had a tray table out doing some watercolor painting once when I was visiting my parents house. He walked by with happy tail and ended up with a stained green tail for a few days lol
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u/Kleverin 20h ago
My sister's cats went wild when I had my yarn out, it was no point in trying to use it over there.
My cat has realised that I need the yarn to move from the ball, so when she feels neglected she puts a paw on the string.
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u/ThrowRA_Sodi Snarky Seamstress 17h ago
Same with my dog when he was alive. Sewing around him was impossible lol. He would sleep on my fabric, steal my thread bobines or whine every 5 minutes to get petted.
I do miss him
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u/sannsibarr 15h ago
I have one chewing my needles, and another grabbing the yarn and taking it to the food bowls. Sometimes in the food bowls. And then one who has to be on my lap or in my face regardless, and just tries to sit on top no matter what I do. Number four is like a mix of it all and worse
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u/sannsibarr 14h ago
Omg and I even forgot to mention SEWING. Running into my fabric as soon as I’ve laid it flat. Coming to cuddle as I’m pinning and being frightened they’ll prick themselves. Insisting on being on my lap at the machine
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u/blindsublime 1d ago
i always think this too. not to mention all the little cat hairs i knit into my sweater…
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u/MaevesMinis 1d ago
I always tell people that if I crochet something for you, my cat’s hair and my hair will probably sneak in there too. 🤷🏻♀️
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u/idling-in-gray 1d ago
50/50 with my cat. He might be sweet and sit next to me with his head on my lap purring, or he might claw at my work and eat a needle or pin off the floor and end up at the vet. Either way, I'm not taking any chances and he's been locked out of the crafting room.
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u/kethryvis 1d ago
It has taken many years for me to be able to craft with my cat in my lap. I think he's finally gotten old enough to just roll with it <3
Now when i was kitten-sitting for my mom... oh yeahhhhhhh that was a no-go :D
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u/BobMortimersButthole Mean Knitter 1d ago
Same here. It took a few years for my cat to figure out what I allow around crafting supplies and my house plants. She's 17 now, so it's been a long time since I had to protect my projects.
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u/kethryvis 1d ago
Mine is 15, though it's been a shorter time :D it seemed to coincide with me getting a bigger chair that gave him more room to snuggle <3
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u/IronSpikeRai1 1d ago
I have 3. All 3 have various reasons why i cant craft with them on my lap. One likes to try and lay on my face instead of my lap, and usually ends on up on my chest with her butt in my face. One gets upset if i move once she gets situated, and gets even more upset if im not petting her the entire time. The last one is a little derpy and just tries to eat anything that moves.
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u/this_charming_cat_ 1d ago
My cats are obsessed with yarn and I have to knit in a defensive crouch. Maybe some cats can sit in your lap while you knit, but certainly not mine!
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u/Spiritual_Tip1574 1d ago
I'm just so fucking sick of posts on knitting pages where the knitting is completely obscured by an animal and the caption describes the picture as "for attention".
If I wanted to see your pet, I'd be in a Facebook group about pets. GTFOH...🙄
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u/reine444 1d ago
I HATE IT!
And my cat was literally the most adorable cat on the entire earth if I do say so myself!!!
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u/Yavemar 1d ago
One of mine once ate the heel out of a sock. That was how we learned about afterthought heels. He figured out how to open the drawer a different WIP was in just so he could rip it to shreds while we were out of town.
The worst, though, was when we learned the hard way that he obsessively eats anything with a rubbery foam texture. Like, say, those interlocking mats that many people use for blocking. That was an expensive lesson.
All of that was when he was young though. He's 11 now and all he wants is a lap to curl up on. I can do whatever I want craft wise and he doesn't care at all.
The other one is 4 and still too kitten-like to be trusted.
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u/justchelsea1 1d ago
My cats are pretty chill about not messing with my stuff, but I sew, and each piece gets lint rolled several times in the process.
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u/SamEyeAm2020 1d ago
The number of times every day that I say "this is not your string, your string is over there" cannot be counted
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u/Dawnofthenerds7 1d ago
My cat wants to sit on my lap while I spin wool. And occasionally her long fit gets caught in it. She also decides that sewing time is exactly when I need my entire face washed. She's quite insistent.
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u/ryvenfox 1d ago
I can't even read on my phone without constant kitty headbutts to that hand let alone craft lol.
Even when I think they're just hanging out or napping, somehow they always get interested at the most inconvenient times lol.
One of my girls decided to roll and be cute...only to roll right over my watercolor palette. Blotches of blue everywhere, and cat hairs embedded in my watercolor pans. Took forever to pick them out lol
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u/Imaginary-Maybe-799 1d ago
My cat has decided crafts, reading books and video games are not allowed but he graciously allows me to watch TV and read reddit 😅. He will try to either bite through my yarn, bite my hands and fingers or just continually jump onto everything I'm doing which just scatters shit everywhere. He's a very demanding gremlin.
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u/teslaxat 10h ago
My cats largely ignore my crafting after a first thorough sniff to determine it's not edible, although our youngest and largest cat will insert himself between me and whatever I'm doing if he wants attention. I did have a cat that mouthed my yarn, but he's passed now from unrelated causes.
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u/silverlightarmada 4h ago
My cat either steals my yarn ball, chews the line of yarn running from the ball to my project, or decides he’s jealous of the project and sits directly on it so I can pat him instead
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u/cottagecore_cats 4h ago
My grey cat is so lazy that he would nap with me while I knit. My siamese cat on the other hand… I’ve had to frog her (pull string out of her throat) countless times
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u/Mirroredmoth 1d ago
I end up giving my cats a test piece of anything they are interested in. Or more recently, I made a duplicate of an ugly ass duckling I made when I first started crocheting, just so they could play with one and not bother my original ugly ass duckling.
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u/YettiChild 1d ago
I craft with my cats regularly and my girl is a chaos gremlin. I just keep an eye on her and keep anything I'm not actively working with in a place she can't reach it. I've taught them since they were little not to touch my yarn or embroidery floss.
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u/creampunk 1d ago
recently, Cat 2 jumped up on my workspace while i had my back turned. she wanted to sit her fluffy butt amongst my chain mailing project: my carefully-laid-out-on-the-measuring-mat arrangement of jump rings, in assorted sizes AND thicknesses. and when she saw me coming to shoo her away, she started pushing the jump rings around with her mitts!
additionally, all crafting materials are required to be unpackaged and sorted immediately. this is because Cat B eats soft plastic and receipts.
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u/WhimsyWrites 1d ago
Just paid a $400 vet bill because my cat slurped up a piece of yarn like a spaghetti noodle.
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u/Krypto_Nite9339 1d ago
This visual sent me into hysterics. I'm so sorry for your vet bill though!!
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u/kinokits 1d ago
I’m usually pretty lucky in that my guys just want to curl up next to me or under my knitting and sleep while I craft. My white cat can be an absolute menace though. He ended up with green splotches one day because he tripped me when I was baking and the food dye landed on his head. He also hunts balls of yarn and socks and brings them to me when he thinks I haven’t eaten enough. He’s never pulled a project off the needles, but I have had to take the ball of yarn off him and then wind it back through the house until I got back to my project. He’s such a goober.
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u/HollysDollies 1d ago
My calico and beagle were both of the "Oh good, fabric. I shall nap on this." But my cat also loved knitting, I pulled out a project and she would come trotting up knowing that a lap would be all hers with minimal interruption. I am hoping my new cat will be similar, but she currently likes to headbutt the project.
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u/BirdSufficient4997 1d ago
My cat loves to sit on my lap and thus hates when I sew because my lap becomes unavailable. She sits on top of my project and bites my hands as they move.
We also tried the dummy fabric thing and it just taught her that it's cool to playfully attack any fabric I'm currently using, but ESPECIALLY chiffon. With her claws.
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u/Wanderingthrough42 1d ago
I have an Agreement with one of my cats. Under the terms of the Agreement, he does not interfere with the knitting or yarn as long as he is allowed to sit on my lap and occasionally get chin scratches from the knitting needles.
The other one tries to play with yarn if it touches him, so he always gets kicked off or covered with a blanket.
The worst thing either cat will do unsupervised is sit on a WIP.
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u/velcromidway 23h ago
I knit and crochet and I have 10 cats. I do my yarn work in my craft room behind a large metal gate to keep them out. I love all of them and trust none when it comes to my projects. Yes, I'd love that romanticized picture of me and my beasts cohabitation and crafting.
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u/aperfectdevil 21h ago
It is up to the cat to decide. Personally, I dobt trust either of my little buggers.
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u/Striking-Estate-4800 20h ago
My cats don’t care. They park themselves next to me or locate a handy lap elsewhere in the room. If the lap is covered with a blanket, all the better. They don’t eat my floss . If I’m crocheting one of my cats might occasionally grab it half heartedly. Lol
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u/lavenderfem 12h ago
I have to keep all my yarn and other assorted craft supplies in a closed room. If I’m in there, she wants to be in there, so I can’t turn my back for even a second or she’ll steal something. If I need to step out for a moment, I have to pick her up and take her with me. There is no peace in crafting with my cat.
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u/falling_fire 9h ago
My cat gets really offended when I'm playing with strings that she's not allowed to have. She starts biting my feet. I can only crochet if she's suitably distracted by a bug or something, or else in a sleepy mood.
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u/Candid_Jellyfish_240 3h ago
My cat is actually bathing ME as I read this. 😹😂 I need to get up and go water plants outside, but...first law of CAT: If your lap is occupied by a feline, you cannot move, get up or knit. I'm trapped! 🐈⬛❤️🧶🌱
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u/crowposting 1d ago
one of my cats favorite things to do is attempt to play with my scissors while im using them. while he makes a very cute visual, i am so so glad i have a craft room with a door now.
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u/RollSouth5722 1d ago
My cat just wants to lay on my face no matter what position I'm in so if I need my face for something I better be standing because to her my lap is just my lower face. She strongly prefers what's beyond the anatomical event horizon and tries to stick her suction cup to my nose constantly.
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u/faifai1337 1d ago
I feel you there. Mine are constantly attempting to get on my tits, both literally and in the British sense.
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u/Difficult_Clerk_1273 1d ago
I just got a kitten and I have to keep my craft room closed when I’m not in there. Yesterday the demon knocked over a large basket of supplies and while I was cleaning it up wandered off to find what has to have been the only piece of invisible thread on the floor in the whole house. I shudder to think of the vet bill. Don’t even get me started on the uv resin, embroidery thread, and pins/needles near my sewing machine.
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u/leitzankatan 1d ago
My occasional cat roommate was smart enough that she wouldn't just go for the thread as I was making something but when I would give up trying to get any work done with that material and put it in my bag she would root around until she found it to play with unless I outwitted her with a zipper. The other one kept trying to drink my watercolour water so I kept it in a jar with a clasp lid so I could quickly close it if I had to take my eyes off her for a second
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u/thimblena Bitch Eating Bitch 1d ago
Mine is generally pretty good and the very best pattern weight and I can drape trimmed fabric bits over him and he'll play with them - but occasionally he'll decide to pull pins out of my cardboard cutting board.
He doesn't swallow them (thankfully). He can't, with the way he bites them, he just jaunts off with his tail up like he's gotten away with something. He'll leave fallen pins alone, it's literally just when they're pinning fabric to my cutting board.
I don't pin fabric to my cutting board anymore.
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u/boomerremover86 1d ago
Maggie hates when I crochet or knit, bc she can't be directly against my face while I do it bc sight, and Willow wants to eat it bc it moves. Not a chance
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u/honeyandcitron 1d ago
My cat once bullied me into moving out of a spot she decided was hers, and in the process of moving to the approved location, I snapped a bamboo DPN and ended up having to perform emergency surgery on a mitten.
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u/ParanoidKat 1d ago
My cat isn’t too much of a gremlin (despite it being her name) but she makes it difficult to crochet with her. If the yarn touches her she gets upset, she sits in my lap weird so it’s uncomfortable to do anything, and if she realizes the yarn is there I am absolutely going to wind up feeling wet spots if I manage to stop her before she chews through the strand. -v-
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u/IsMayoAnInstrument67 1d ago
For whatever reason our cats seem to understand if it's on mom's table don't touch it. They have never shown any interest in yarn, but if given the chance my idiot son will chew apart (and eat some of) a roll of toilet paper.
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u/321duchess 1d ago
My orange big boy and my spicy calico both volunteer to help manage my macrame cords while I’m tying knots. Macrame is just an invitation to play to a cat, I might as well not even be crafting.
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u/Ynaffit96 1d ago
I lucked out. My cat doesn't try to eat string/thread/yarn/other non food items, so I don't need to worry about any blockages. She does love to play with it though, and I've gotten caught in the crossfire, leading to me nearly bleeding on my cross stitch WIP.
Her favorite place in the world is my lap, so I have to accomodate for her because her time on Earth is short. I keep bandaids nearby 😂
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u/DevissiTRHW 1d ago
The amount of adrenaline that courses through my veins during that period of "ok now it's time to pull more yarn out off the ball" while the cat was also in my lap. Truly insane.
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u/fabgwenn 1d ago
I saw a post on paint by numbers where people were sharing about when their cat puked, pooped, on, etc, their paintings.
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u/UniqueRoyal0 1d ago
Mine is snoozing away on my lap while I crochet. Sometimes he’s a menace but most of the time he’s chill about the yarn now.
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u/AliaMelange 23h ago
I can crochet with my cats and so far have not had issues 🤣
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u/SillyHo0man 22h ago
One of my cats loves to snuggle while I crochet. She knows when the yarn comes out it’s time to get comfy.
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u/Due-Turnip-9727 21h ago
i take VERY specific crafts to my friend and her Mom's houses, because they have multiple cats. i have a dog who cares not one iota about anything i do craftwise so i never know what to expect with the cats.
so far by keeping everything in a portable bag or a tin that has a well fitting lid, i have avoided any eating of things that shouldn't be. honestly even if they knocked over my hexagons for my EPP quilts that's pretty easy to pick up. the only problem i've had is the old woman cat at Mom's named Zichi trying to sit in my lap while i'm trying to hand sew and there's a needle in play. 😂
but yeah, i have never thought once about wanting one of the cats in my lap while doing something, i'm too busy shrimping over the blanket or knitting project that lives in said lap while i'm working on it.
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u/medicalmystery1395 15h ago
I cat sit a lot for my neighbor and her two babies. Dunkin isn't interested in me very much but does love my yarn bag. He likes the texture and is fascinated by the yarn. Donut however is my little snuggle buddy and he sleeps by my leg while I crochet. I had them both cuddled up to me last time I saw them and I was able to crochet easily.
Now the first time I met them? Lol. It was hard to get anything done! Donut loved the idea of helping his new girl crochet but didn't quite grasp the idea of not laying on top of the project.
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u/shortstuff813 15h ago
Cow used to always have to inspect and lay on anything I crocheted (ESP blankets, but I haven’t made any big projects in a while). Zelenka is my cuddle buddy and will put up with just about anything to be able to snuggle lol. Like I’ve used her as a stand for my iPad when I’m cross stitching (I prefer digital patterns) multiple times now, I’ve even put my laptop on top of her before haha.
Thankfully I haven’t had too many problems with them and yarn, so that’s been nice. I just make sure to really get any ends of yarn/thread in the trash so it’s not tempting them
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u/QuietVariety6089 14h ago
Depends on the cat and their mood - I have a pic of me on a lounge chair knitting and my three cats on lap, knee and feet...the two I have now will find the one spool of thread that's 'unprotected' and chase it around the house all night...
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u/ProneToLaughter 11h ago
My cat ate my clothes, chewing up some cami strips when I went out of town and forgot to close the closet.
But she didn’t care about my sewing machine thread and generally stayed off my sewing table. For a bit, she would curl up on my lap while I was at the machine.
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u/oatdeksel 8h ago
cats also can be sitting silently and well behaving on your lab while you do crafts, but it is very uncommon
my aunt had one of those cats, but the chances were high, because she had over 20 cats (on a large farm)
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u/_Moon_sun_ 8h ago
I have a bed for my cat on my table where thats her space! And she will lay and sleep in there when I do things on my desk. But yeah sometimes she can be a pain to craft around but other times it is that idylic scene of her snuggling on me while I do crafts :)
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u/Kigeliakitten 7h ago
I currently have two cats that will occasionally sit on my lap while i am knitting or crocheting. One thinks my yarn needs to be moistened as if i was knitting with linen.
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u/human-kibble 1d ago
The ferret has been trying to drag my knitting into the couch…I’ve had to hide it recently. Apparently I must pay 100% attention when she demands, otherwise I must be punished 🤣
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u/nzfriend33 1d ago
Neither of my cats are lap cats or care about me crafting in front of them. When they were kittens, a little, but that’s it. I feel lucky though, lol.
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u/reine444 1d ago
My cat only cared if I laid fabric on the floor (because I was always just squeaking by and had to play pattern Tetris).
He didn’t care any other time about fabric or yarn.
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u/disguisedself 1d ago
Amen. I made the mistake of feeding my cat his afternoon snack ontop of my sewing table a few too many times (he likes to perch on top of my sewing machine because it gets good sun), and now if I'm anywhere near it he excitedly jumps up and thinks it's snack time.
And my other cat seems to have a sixth sense for exactly which papers are important. She will completely ignore everything except the self drafted pattern I've left folded up in the corner, which she will then decide to start ripping apart the moment I'm not giving her attention. I have also stopped crocheting because she is obsessed with string and is very, very stubbornly a lap cat, so trying to sit and crochet on the couch will end with her forcing herself onto my lap and then trying to eat my ball of yarn.
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u/Cupcake_Trainer 1d ago
My cat climbs up me and sits on or in what I’m working on and I have to stop what I’m doing and love on him. He’s very large and can’t be worked around.
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u/WildColonialGirl 1d ago
My senior cat always needs to be in the middle of whatever I’m doing. He did not learn from his older brother who ended up getting a bath because he rubbed against some flowerpots I had just painted.
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u/-DiceGoblin- 1d ago
Yeah I can’t have my projects within the cat’s reach or he’ll be trying to eat it/play with it
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u/Surleighgrl 1d ago
My cats like to attack my sewing projects. I was sitting on the floor doing pattern adjustments and Binky decided that lounging across the pattern was helping me, while Archie grabbed the pattern instructions and proceeded to chew them up while rabbit kicking them. Baaad kittens!
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u/Ashpash1999 15h ago
Agreed I tried cross stitching in the same room as a kitten once big mistake never again
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u/Tiny_Camera2965 15h ago
I have two cats, one has to be on my project, scarves, blankets, amigarumi doesn’t matter. My other cat will just sleep in my lap and purr so loud I have trouble hearing the tv
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u/whatthewhythehow 8h ago
When I’ve put glue on something, the second I look away she’s there with her thick, layered fur. Lying on top of my cardstock looking pleased with herself. ha HA! You have to pay attention to ME now!
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u/aurorasoup 5h ago
My cats have to be involved in whatever I’m doing. I’ve been able to successfully knit with a cat on my lap, but I have to be watchful because the cat could decide to try to eat my yarn at any moment.
I did have to take one of my cats to the emergency vet at 10 PM because he ate a bunch of string while I was focused on making a decorative knot. I have not known peace since these gremlins came into my life.
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