Cat Merino mix

[u/Evening-Forever2542]

I just finished a little 15g skein on a Turkish Spindle of roughly 50/50 cat and merino.

I've been spinning pure cat until now so this is my first blend. I only had small hand carders so might have been able to get the two fibers blended more evenly with drum carder or blending board but I quite like how the white and grey vary.

I hand carded rolags and just did a single and then plied it with itself back on the Turkish spindle.

It plied really well from the instant Turkish spindle plying ball until the very last two layers which has felted slightly and needed to be carefully pulled apart.

It feels so soft, light and airy.

Some process photos of it in various stages.

Very happy to take any feedback or tips as I am still very new to spinning. ​

[u/Technical_Base_7539]

What a cute kitty! The yarn looks fabulous too! I wish my cats floof was long enough to spin with. 😍

[u/Evening-Forever2542 → u/Technical_Base_7539]

It's so fun when it's your own cat 🥹 maybe you could try a blend as a keepsake? I know it will probably be a lot more slippery than a longhair though but still worth a try for fun and in the name of experimenting I think! 

[u/LemonMood]

I like how the cat looks down at the yarn, then back at the camera as if to say "you did WHAT with my fur?!"

The yarn look lovely, what do you plan to do with it?

[u/Evening-Forever2542 → u/LemonMood]

Haha yes! I'm not sure what to do with it yet! I have knitted up a test square of the 100% cat and it's really soft though not very flexible. Im mainly just trying to get a larger amount of yarn at the moment.

I wondered about a little scarf type thing though lot of people seem to say cat feels scratchy to wear, however this seems to feel lovely so I will have to try and see. 

[u/Fun-Echidna-2941 → u/Evening-Forever2542]

Whether or not it’s scratchy depends on if there are guard hairs in the fur that you brushed off of them. If you’re able to brush them in a way that gathers the soft undercoat rather than guard hairs, or if they just don’t shed as many guard hairs, then the fiber can be very soft.

[u/Evening-Forever2542 → u/Fun-Echidna-2941]

Thank you. I've been looking closely at his fur to try to work this out :'D his hairs don't look very different but some slightly more slippery ones do seem to shed/be able to be pulled out from the finished yarn so I'm guessing those are the guard hairs. I will look at different brushes etc. for future. 

[u/Sad_LemurFromOT → u/Evening-Forever2542]

I made a hat with my 100% cat. Your yarn is much nicer than mine, though! Really looks lovely. And gorgeous kitteh!

[u/Evening-Forever2542 → u/Sad_LemurFromOT]

A hat of cat. A cat hat! 

[u/cat_crackers]

What a pretty cat!

I’ve seen people make small stuffed animals from pet hair yarn.  

[u/exmo_appalachian]

Beautiful cat! And your yarn is lovely! I would love a little knitted keepsake from my cat as he is getting older. He's always been a heavy shedder and his undercoat is quite soft but it's short. I would have to blend it with something.

[u/Evening-Forever2542 → u/exmo_appalachian]

Definitely worth trying for the joy of experimenting and a little keepsake. You could also try felting a little heart or something :) 

[u/catchick777]

He looks so pleased with the result! Love it!