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How to sew the prettiest quilted Cat Bed...

23/2/2022

12 Comments

 
There is something to be said about quilters and cats, right? At least it seems like every quilter has a cat, or is it just me? 
This super adorable fabric line called 'Cats Meow' from Riley Blake Designs
​
had me thinking about my cats immediately. I mean doesn't a quilter's cat , deserve a quilted cat bed? 
I sure would think so.
​So here we go, I made the cutest quilted cat bed pattern... 
quilted cat bed
quilted cat bed
How to sew a quilted cat bed?

Quilted Cat Bed: please read through the instructions first
( finished size aprox. 18" diameter and  4" high)


Tools needed:
-sewing machine
-cutting mat/ rotary cutter and acrylic ruler
-pins or clips and iron
optional tools to make your life easier:
-spray baste
-fabric glue pen for your foundation paper piecing 

Materials needed:
-
the sleeping cat ​quilt block in size 10"x 10" (will be 10 1/2" square when sewn together)
or the Cat's Back or Yarn Ball quilt block or any other quilt block of your choice.
- 56x 2.5" squares for the bottom of the cat bed to surround the quilt block
(note, you will cut off 4 of the corner squares when cutting the bottom of the cat bed into a circle, but it's easier to sew with these 4 corner squares in place)

- 135x 2.5" squares for the edge of the cat bed.
​- a piece of fabric about 18"x 18" for the bottom backing of the cat bed
- a piece of batting about 18"x 18" (I used a thicker wool batting I had left over from a quilt)
- stuffing for the edge of the cat bed
- a 56" bias binding strip 1 1/4" wide

Instructions:
sleeping cat quilt block 10
sleeping cat quilt block 10"x 10"
Step 1:
Sew the sleeping cat quilt block in size 10"x 10".
The quilt block will be 10.5"x 10.5" when sewn together, this includes the 1/4" seam allowance.
Picture
Step 2: 
Cut all the fabric squares. There are 56 fabric squares around the sleeping cat quilt block for the bottom of the cat bed and another 135 fabric squares for the edge of the cat bed. (which we will get to later)
Place the squares around the quilt block to your liking, I like to place them totally random, and as you can see, I love fussy cutting. 
So as with some of my other sewing projects I used parts of these super adorable prints to highlight my fabric squares.

Start by sewing the squares together into rows.
​Begin with the inner squares and then do the outer squares.
​I like to sew the squares at the top and bottom of the quilt block together first and attach them to the quilt block, that's 5 blocks at the top and 5 at the bottom.
Then sew the squares at the sides together into a row, that's 7 squares on each side and attach them to the quilt block.
Repeat for the blocks of the outer row.
'quilt sandwich' for the bottom of the cat bed
'quilt sandwich' for the bottom of the cat bed
Step 3: 
Place the piece of fabric for the bottom backing in from of you, with the wrong side facing you. Place the batting on top of the back piece of fabric then add the patchwork top of the cat bed bottom on top of the batting, the right side facing you.
Essentially you have a 'quilt sandwich', backing, batting and quilt top.
I like to use spray baste (ex: Odif Temporary Adhesive Spray) to keep the layers together.
But you can just as easily use safety pins or use basting stitches.
measure a circle from the center of the square
measure a circle from the center of the square
draw a circle on the square
draw a circle on the square
Step 4:
Draw a circle on the square. I measured 9" from the center of the square ( as shown in photo 1) and drew a circle on the square for the bottom of the cat bed.
Sew along that circle for extra support.

Now quilt the bottom of the cat bed to your liking.
I did some hand quilting around the shape of the cat in the sleeping cat quilt block, and added some straight line quilting to the squares.
Then cut the bottom of the cat bed along the circle line that you drew/sewed onto the square.
My circle ended up being a little less than 18" diameter through the quilting.
bottom and edge of the cat bed
bottom and edge of the cat bed
Step 5:
Sew the squares for the cat bed edge into one long rectangle of 5 squares high and 27 squares long. (it should now be 10" high and 54" long)
Again I placed the squares totally random, it's up to you, just let your creativity run wild.
Then fold the rectangle for the edge in half, right sides together so the two short ends align and stitch them together. You now have a circle for the edge of the cat bed.
Then fold the rectangle in half lengthwise, wrong sides together.
This will be the edge 'tube' of your cat bed.
clip the tube for the edge of the cat bed to the bottom of the cat bed
clip the tube for the edge of the cat bed to the bottom of the cat bed
Step 6:
Clip the 'tube' rectangle of your cat bed edge to the bottom of the cat bed.
Right sides together to the right side of the bottom of the cat bed. (as shown in the photo, not the quilted top!)
Stitch in place with a 1/4" seam allowance but leave two 3" openings for stuffing your 'tube'.
If your 'tube' rectangle and base are not 100% the same length, it's not a problem at all.
Let the fabric gather a little bit as you sew. This will not be visible at all after you stuffed the edge of the cat bed.
Leave the two 3" openings on opposite sides of the tube. This makes stuffing the tube easier.
Stuff your tube pretty full, as stuffing tends to settle with use.
Then sew the two gaps closed.
attach binding to the cat bed
attach binding to the cat bed
stitch binding in place
stitch binding in place
Step 7:
I like to finish the inside seam of the cat bed with a bias binding.
If you want, you could also just use pinking shears and cut along the edge. This seam or edge won't be visible, since it's under the edge tube. I personally think a bias binding just gives your cat bed the deserved finishing touch.
Clip or pin the bias binding, right sides together, in place.
I did this from the 'tube' side. So when you fold the binding over, you have more room to sew it in place.
Fold over the beginning of your binding for a 1/4". Then stitch the binding all around with 1/4 " seam allowance, when you get to the end, just let it overlap. 
fold over binding and clip or pin in place
fold over binding and clip or pin in place
hand stitch the binding to the bottom of the cat bed
hand stitch the binding to the bottom of the cat bed
finished binding
finished binding
Step 8:
Fold over the binding towards the 'cat' side and clip or pin in place.
Then hand stitch the binding to the bottom of the cat bed. It's very tight to machine stitch here, since the 'tube' is already stuffed. It's much easier to sew the binding by hand.
Once you're done turn the cat bed, so the binding edge is tucked in on the inside of the cat bed.
The clean finish is now on the outside of the cat bed.
the cutest quilted cat bed
the cutest quilted cat bed
And there we go, it's all done. And I think you have to agree, this is the cutest quilters cat bed ever, right? 
Thank you so much Riley Blake Designs for the opportunity to design this cat bed pattern and this small quilt block pattern series to match it. Thank you for supplying the super pretty fabric series 'Cat's Meow' designed by Shawn Wallace, that I used in this quilt pattern series.
Picture
Isn't this cat bed an absolute jewel?
​I'm sure any cat would just love to cuddle up inside this beauty.

​Ohh hey, go figure, my cat just did... :-)
Picture

​Happy sewing....

Ingrid x

x

12 Comments
Aj
23/2/2022 13:38:25

Oh my goodness, I love this! My family just adopted two sweet kitties. I’m off to dig thru my scrap fabric :)

Reply
Ingrid link
23/2/2022 13:51:25

Ohhh thank you so much for letting me know, I’m so glad you like it, and for two little kitties, this will be soooo pretty 😻

Reply
Fatima
26/2/2022 12:10:51

You have out done yourself, Ingrid. It is sooooo adorable. I need to get going and make at least one for all of my kitties, who will fight to get in it!!! THANK YOU, thank you for such an adorable project.

Reply
ingrid link
27/2/2022 11:53:15

Awe Fatima, thank you so very much ...
my kitties are fighting over it, so I will have to make another one :-)

I wish you so much fun sewing yours...
talk soon
Ingrid

Reply
Silvia Maria Ansaldi Corsi Lückmann link
17/3/2022 09:19:12

Great job

Reply
ingrid link
17/3/2022 09:24:10

thank you so much, that makes me very happy :-)

Reply
April
21/7/2022 19:53:21

Going to make a couple of cat beds for my dogs. They fit just right in a cat bed!
Thanks

Reply
Dog car bed link
3/10/2022 07:18:46

Article is great. Thanks for sharing

Reply
Lori
25/3/2023 07:17:19

Thank you so much for the tutorial! I make beds for local animal shelters and I am always looking for cute ideas - a home made bed makes for a happy cat and a happy cat (or dog) are more likely to be adopted. 💝

Reply
Aileen
2/11/2023 18:17:22

This is so adorable, and a great xmas gift for friends. thanks so much for sharing a great pattern. I love the way it is written, too. It is very clear.
cheers, Aileen

Reply
Jauffret
16/9/2024 00:18:30

SUPER idée pour utiliser les chutes

Reply
Bella
10/4/2025 11:33:41

This looks so adorable, I can't wait to try it out! I was wondering, is there maybe a pdf version of the pattern available?

Reply



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Ingrid Alteneder
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