Thor the kitten took a toy mouse up on the bed to play, and Izzy the cat heard the commotion and jumped up to investigate. They both then had to lay down and pretend the other didn’t exist, but I can see them earing each other. No, not earring, Spellcheck, ear-ing, verb, to point ears at another, not admitting existence, but keeping under audio observation. Very cat behavior. Should be a word.
As I was re-shelving my craft books and Thor decided the gap was a good place to settle. He certainly makes rearranging interesting.
Thor the kitten is about four and a half months old. Here he is stretched out on a large dog bed, which he has appropriated.
I can no longer hold him with one arm. I’ve been loosening his collar a couple times a week, so I think he is currently in growth spurt. It will be interesting to see when and where the growth stops.
Years ago I crocheted the mermaid tail blankets that were all the rage for my girls. The idea was cool, but they never used them. Getting in and out of a leg hugging device is a pain.
With my girl’s great room switch this summer, I found the blankets tucked in the back of their closets. One got sent to recycling, but Izzy the cat gave me an idea for the second.
Rather than sending the blanket for someone else to recycle, I could frog it (rip it, rip it out) and reuse the yarn. Bernat makes a wonderful blanket yarn that doesn’t shed and holds up well after years. So I found the end (by the way, weaving in the ends really does secure them well, it took forever to free the yarn!), and rather than undo all the stitches and wind a ball, I’m crocheting from one project to another. I frog a bit, crochet a bit, repeat. It skips the ball winding part and deprives the kitten of an opportunity to unwind the ball of yarn. What am I making? Cat mats. I use a smaller hook, and a single crochet stitch and make a rectangular mat. The blanket yarn and stitch make it thick and sturdy, and Izzy completely approves of the finished project.
In the background of the picture is an amigurumi bunny, also made of blanket yarn. I’m developing a mix and match pattern and will be teaching an upcoming class. The yarn from the blanket it too dark for critters, but I can take the mats to our local no-kill shelter.
Trying to spin while the kitten is awake is a dangerous undertaking. Trying to knit, crochet, sew, or do much of anything else with squirmy tempting yarn or thread is also prone to attract unwanted kitten curiosity. Luckily he does eventually sleep.
Critters and Craft 