My finished garment for the CLSC
Hello hello hello! I know there is a lot going on in this photo print wise, but I wanted to post this because it makes me happy. This is me on my bed, with my cats, wearing my Cat Lady Sewing Challenge completed garments.
First I'd like to introduce you to my cats since this is a sewing challenge inspired by cats and all. The black and white cat is named Stella and the orange fluff ball is Lebron. My husband surprised me with a cat nine years ago. I asked him if it was a girl because I really wanted to name it Stella (I had just finished reading The Witching Hour and was really into that name). He told me that the cat was a girl and "Stella" it was... until a few months later when little Stella had balls. We were still used to calling Stella by her name, so we kept it. Although sometimes we will say, "Stella the fella." :)
Our dog Frankie and her best friend Yuki are in the upper left corner. Apparently there is a cat corner an a dog corner on our bed.
When we were ready to adopt another cat I really wanted a girl since Stella is technically a boy. We went to the local shelter, found a fluffy cat we loved named Honeybun, and even though the info on the cage said "girl" we double checked with the person working to make sure that the cat was in fact a female. We got the thumbs up and had Honeybun sent to the vet to get fixed. The vet called and told me that the cat was actually a male and asked if we wanted him or if he should be sent back to the shelter. Hell no I wasn't sending a cat back to the shelter! My husband named him Lebron and we all lived happily ever after.
Now, let's talk sewing. Originally I had planned on making something totally different, but then realized that I couldn't due to the direction of the print. It was such a dumb dumb move, but I rarely sew with quilting cotton nowadays and usually sew with fabric that is 60 inches, not 45, so it didn't even cross my mind to check to make sure the directional print would work. I had to scrap my plan (didn't want sideways cats across my butt) and thought hard about what I should make. There was another skirt pattern on my table that I was about to cut out, but then I realized that maybe making a cat skirt wasn't the best idea considering I had just made one a few months ago. In the end I decided on making the Torfino pants by Sewaholic because, oddly enough, there is a gap in my wardrobe when it comes to pajamas and knew that pants with cats on them would end up being worn constantly.
My first pair of Torfinos were made in a comfy knit and are hands down the most worn pair of pajama pants that I own. However, the knit is 100% different than the Alexander Henry cat quilting cotton I planned on using (duh), so I crossed my fingers that the fit would be ok. In the end I would have to say that the fit is better than my first pair. There are no saggy butt issues, the waistband looks better, and this version has piping.
Pants are already appropriately covered in cat hair :)
For modifications I didn't do anything other than shortening the length by 2 inches. They could probably be shortened another inch or so, but we'll see how I feel about it after I have worn them more. I'm not crazy about the tie belt with this shirt, so I'm not sure I will wear this top with the pants, which is pretty lame on my part considering I made the top to go with the pants. Oh well.
The shirt is my go to t-shirt pattern, the Deer and Doe Plantain. There weren't any modifications on this either, except for changing the cutting layout for the neck binding to get a different stripe formation. The result is a neckline that isn't as flexible, but in a good way! It brings the neckline up, so the top isn't as low cut. While I am happy with the pattern, I am not happy with the fabric. It's from the Girl Charlee order I placed a few months back and I am having the same trouble with this fabric as with the others, it faded with the first wash :(
In the end I am happy with the pants and can't wait to make more! Quilting cotton was really fun to sew and is perfect for these pajamas. If you're going to make a wild clashing outfit then pj pants are the way to go, right? Oh, and if you guys want to make your own Cat Lady Torfinos the pdf pattern has just been released and is on sale for $9.98! I'm not getting compensated to say that, I just wanted to let you all know since I am a fan of the pattern and a fan of pattern sales :)
I can't wait to go lurk on all the completed Cat Lady Sewing Challenge garments! If you are participating please make sure to comment on this post for a chance to win a prize. Happy Monday!
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Cute! Love the bright yellow piping on them, it's perfect (purr-fect?) with the cat print. :-)
ReplyDeleteAwesome story about Stella and Lebron! Glad you kept their names!
ReplyDeletehaahah!!!!! Thanks, Kat! I might have to steal that line from you for the round up! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Maddie!
ReplyDeleteFab pj pants!! Your kittehs are so cute, and I love their backstories! (And OMG how did I effing forget to take pics with my cats in my Cat Lady outfit? D'oh!!)
ReplyDeleteThese pants are adorable, and it was great to meet your sweet kitties! I agree that PJ pants with cats on them would probably get worn all the time. Making a mental note... :)
ReplyDeleteYour pants look great! That piping is beyond awesome. I wish I'd been able to participate in this challenge like I'd intended. Alas, way too many to-do projects that need to be done last week.:(
ReplyDeleteI love the names Lebron & Stella!
These are so cute and I love the yellow piping! I loved hearing about Stella and Lebron too - made me chuckle!
ReplyDeleteSo cute! I love the piping! And it's ridiculous how much trouble you've had getting a female cat. I'm really debating picking up this pj pattern, even though I don't NEED another pattern.
ReplyDeleteSo cute - I definitely need to make cat pjs too!! I cannot believe the trouble you had with the gender of your kitties - that is crazy!! Still you ended up with two adorable kitties so all is well!
ReplyDeletePS - I have posted my Cat Lady dress to Flickr this morning and will do up my blog post tonight - thanks for the fun!
Oh, so cute! I saw so much good cat pajama fabric when hunting for this challenge, there's not really a reason to not have cat-themed pajamas for the near future! Your cats are so cute, too, I'm so glad you kept their names (and them!). I knew I wanted to name any pet I had after a flower and only envisioned girl pets. But then Dandelion came into my life and I just couldn't do a girly flower name even though it's not like he cares. Even with the relatively masculine name of Dandelion he was recorded as female at his first vet visit...
ReplyDeleteLove the outfit. You look so cute!
ReplyDeleteWhee!! Perfect cat lady outfit!! Because we all know that cats love lounging! Great comfy clothes!!
ReplyDeleteI love your cats so much, they look so so adorable! Also, your pjs look very very comfy, am quite tempted to make some for myself!
ReplyDeleteYour cat story is HILARIOUS!
ReplyDeleteOh, and Lebron reminded me of this...did you hear Charles Barkley saying like last week how he was going to fast until the Lakers won their first game?? I was cracking up...he is so crazy! http://www.latimes.com/sports/lakers/lakersnow/la-sp-ln-charles-barkley-vows-fast-lakers-win-20141107-story.html
OMG is Stella really a boy?! I'm so confused hahah! (Hey, I have a male cat who needed to be neutered TWICE. Don't ask lol) Well, maybe Stella prefers to identify as a lady cat and feels most comfortable as such, in which case I will continue to refer to her as a girl if that's what Stella wants. Either way, your kitties are beautiful and your outfit turned out amazing! I'm so happy you ended up making something you'll wear and love all the time. I LOVE the piping (totally worth the extra effort!). I'm so bummed I missed out on this challenge seeing as how I'm like the definition of a crazy at lady. I'm the worst friend ever :( I will try to redeem myself though by commenting on how amazingly smooth and healthy and manageable your hair looks! ;) ;) ;) No seriously though, it really does! <3
ReplyDeleteThat is so funny...oh Stella the fella!! Poor girl...guy...oh my he's probably so confused lol! :)>
ReplyDeleteCute and comfy pants I have to say! The challenge was much fun. Off to look at the other makes now.
These came out super cute. I've never made pj pants, but maybe should give it a try. Your kitties are adorable too!
ReplyDeleteI already posted a pic of my cat lady make on flickr...
What was the skirt pattern you were going to make instead? I still want to copy the idea! ;)
ReplyDeleteBahahaha your cat mixups!!! Too funny! These turned out so cute! I'm a little embarrassed to admit that while I love the look of these PJs, I've been avoiding the pattern because I'm too lazy to do piping. Naughty!
ReplyDeleteCutest pjs ever! When I first say the fabric I thought it was a spotty leopard print. Then I realised they spots were cats. Awesome non-droopy tee neckline. Will have to remember that. Cute kitties too :)
ReplyDeleteLebron too?! Lol :) I love your kitties! Great pjs--it's finally cold here and I'm wearing pj pants while I work at home now. I've gotten a few clearance knits, and they aren't holding up. Seriously, like one or two washes and they look ratty. I am holding out for the good stuff now!
ReplyDeleteCute PJs! The pop of yellow makes me smile. What a funny story. Was it the same shelter? Maybe they need more lessons in boy/girl differences! I've just got a cat and am so happy. She's a bit wary of my sewing room and prefer watching my fella play xbox! He's also jealous you have a cat named LeBron. We talk about it quite a bit! :-)
ReplyDeleteYou know, when I first saw that fabric, I thought PJ's so I'm super stoked you made some!! :D Do you know I've NEVER done piping?? Good on ya for tackling that, and it looks great too! :) Totally had a chuckle at your adventures figuring out cat gender; when I first got my cat Hutch (along with his brother Starsky of course) he had a pink collar on indicating that he was a girl; I made them check and it turned out he was a boy after all LOL - I love that photo of all you guys all cosy on the bed - everyone looks so adorable!! ^__^
ReplyDelete