Pets on Quilts: Wheel Estate

Good morning, and welcome to the Three Cats Ranch. Smitty and Sadie here. Today we want to show you our mom's first entry into the Greatest Show on Earth, The Pets on Quilts Show, 2017.

Saaaaaaaaadddddiiieee! We have some work to do. We need to tell the humans about our mom's entry into the Pets on Quilts Show!

Sheesh, Smitty, you don't need to yell, I'm right here. Is this the quilt?

Yes, and we need to give it a once over and show the people its best propurrties. Furst of all, this quilt is named "Wheel Estate." Get it? Our mom is such a card.

Oh, Smitty, that is the worst joke ever. It's empurrassing when she says stuff like that.

Okay, well, let's just subject it to our most purrsnickety testing, shall we? Furrst...the toe test.

Okay, I call this test the purromenade with the allemande left test. You first step right, then glide left with your left paw.

Pawsome dance moves, Smitty. It feels purretty good on my toes. 

Why don't you purrform the scratch test, while I purrceed to the next opurration.

 Okay, well, let's paws here for a moment, Sadie and put it through its paces with the spa test. 

(lick, lick, lick)

(snorfle, snuffle)

(lick, slurp, bite, bite, bite)

Hm...what's hidden under here...

Oh, purrdon me...I got a little distracted there. It's a purroblem when you're a macho working cat like I am. Sometimes I get cocklepurrs in my furs.

Let's see, now where were we?

Oh yes, now, Sadie...these weird campers our mom quilted into this border have always purrplexed me.

There is no window, so where do the cats put their catio? 

Well, Smitty, I do appurreciate your purrsition on this.

On the other paw, this is my favorite place fur purrforming the snuggleability test. It garners top marks for snuggleability.

Okay, well, we should really tell the humans about the game they can play on this quilt. I call it "Where's Waldo with Cats." 

Even though our Mom used Amy Bradley's "Campers" pattern for this quilt, she purrsonalized it by adding a cat to every block. So, let's give it a try, shall we? Let's show the people all the blocks on the quilt and see if they can find the cat in each one. 

And, Sadie, no hints. And pointing with your paws!

Our mom really knows cats, doesn't she, Smitty? She has the cats doing what cats do best.

But she also likes those Oregon State Beavers, Sadie. This is her "Go Beavs!" block.

This cat is my favorite...it's the "born free" cat, Smitty. That's how I was before I came to live at the Three Cats Ranch.

This one is more my style, Sadie...relaxing in a chair. Oops...I think I just gave a hint.

This one knows what we wish for when we're traveling, Sadie. 

Smitty, this cat needs a catio!

There must have been catnip involved in this next quilt block, Sadie. Anyone can tell that cat is high.

Okay, Smitty. Well, I think there are still a couple of more tests to purrform on this quilt before we give it our final appurroval.

Furst...there's the lapability test. Check.

This is our most uncompurromising test since it must be purrformed both over and under.

Finally, Sadie...the tandem quilt-sitting test. And I believe this one passes with flying colors.

Okay then...this quilt may be entered with the kitties' Seal of Appurroval. It is definitely up to the highest-minded purrinciples of the Pets on Quilts Show!

Our judges have spoken. This is my quilt, "Wheel Estate." It was made for the 2016 Rainbow Scrap Challenge. It's fusible machine applique and free motion quilted on my Babylock Mid-arm machine. The pattern is Amy Bradley's "Campers" pattern, and it finishes up at 39 x 57 inches, putting it into the lap quilt category. As you can see, kitties like it for its many virtues, and I hope you like it too. We're entering this quilt in the Cats on a Quilt category.

 Here's how it looks from the back.

You can find my other entry into the Pets on Quilts show right here.

Now head on back there to the Pets on Quilts show and give my fellow pet quilters some great quilty love, purrs, barks, and chirps...or however you give voice to your cheering.

Pets on Quilts: Pawtrait of The Emperor

For this entry in the Greatest Show on Earth, I want to show you another of my favorite cats in the whole wide world of quilting. This handsome fellow is The Emperor.

His mom, Robin, was kind enough to send me his image, and The Emperor was kind enough to put on his best tuxedo so I could capture his likeness in fabric. This is The Emperor's Pawtrait.

All pawtraits start with a good image of the honoree, which is then "amped up" in saturation to bring out its details.

Then, a "posterized" version of the image is created.

From the posterized image, a transparency is created, 

which becomes the template used to create the appliqued pieces for the final pawtrait.

When all the pieces are in place, 

the whole is fused to a background fabric.

Then, borders are added,

and then it is sandwiched for finishing. 

From there, details are added with free-hand machine embroidery, and then the piece is quilted and trimmed for binding.

The Emperor was such an impurrtant furriend, that I had plenty of supurrvision from the resident mancat about the house, Smitty. 

And then the quilt was shipped off to its most impurrtant critic, The Emperor. And I think he appurroves!

The Emperor was kind enough to allow his mom, Robin, to examine his pawtrait.

It makes a nice addition to the walls of his home on the east coast.

This is the completed Pawtrait of The Emperor.

Here's how it looks from the back.

The Pawtrait of The Emperor is an original design from Robin's photograph of The Emperor. It is fusible applique and free motion quilted on my domestic machine. It finishes up at 14 x 11.5 inches, which makes it a small wall-hanging. The Emperor and I hope that you like his pawtrait. We're entering this quilt in the Pet-themed quilt category.

My sincere thanks go to Robin for lending me her handsome kitty for the creation of this quilt.

You can find my other entry into the Pets on Quilts show right here.

Now head on back there to the Pets on Quilts show and give my fellow pet quilters some great quilty love, purrs, barks, and chirps...or however you give voice to your cheering.