DIY cat pillow – manufacturing options, photos

Various decorative pillows can add warmth and comfort to any interior. They can be different in size and shape, intended for sleeping or hugging, or can be used exclusively for decorative purposes.

Soft and cozy pillows will surely bring comfort to your home.

One of the original options could be a pillow in the shape of a cat. They can also be very diverse, from simple products to complex designs. In addition, a pillow with a picture of a cat on it can easily be made with your own hands. What types of pillows in the shape of a cat can you make yourself? Let's try to figure it out.

Scops owls, hugs, pillow toys - the variety of products is amazing.

What materials and tools will be needed

Before you begin making such a product, you must acquire the following materials and tools:

Such pillows consist of simple shapes and you can even sew them together with your children.

• pillow base fabric;
• filler for the product;
• pattern for complex shapes or individual elements;
• contrasting material of the required color, made of felt, fleece, matting, fur;
• decorative plastic elements that will serve to form the nose and eyes;
• rigid threads that hold their shape well for making mustaches;
• thread, scissors, ruler, sewing machine.

There is nothing easier than sewing a cat pillow with your own hands.

Why does a cat like to lie on its back?

It is no secret that to sleep, animals take the most unrealistic, sometimes hanging, poses and places that are not at all suitable for this matter: radiators, trees, flower pots, the owner’s face.

Table 2. Favorite cat sleeping positions

Habit since childhood

The funny pose was imprinted in the memory of predators at that stage of their life when their eyes barely opened. It is known that small kittens spend about 65% of their time in REM sleep. During these few months after birth, they are carefully licked by their mother’s tongue while the kittens bask under her warm fur.

Sleeping on the back is common for both kittens and adults.

These moments of calm and bliss are presumably stored in the pet and manifest as rare (or frequent) episodes in the cat's adult life. Returning to the “roots” allows animals to feel like carefree and happy kittens again.

Confidence

Just like for dogs, for cats, exposing their belly is a sign of friendliness. If a domestic animal is sure that it is absolutely safe, feels protected in a familiar environment with people it knows, then it can allow itself to roll over on its back and even fall asleep like that.

A cat can only allow itself such a vulnerable pose when surrounded by its closest ones.

At the same time, everything can change if new people appear around the pet. A cat, sensing an unfamiliar smell, strives, at a minimum, to protect itself with a more modest pose, wake up, or even run away to another place.

Comfort

When cats bend in a bizarre way and sleep soundly, you should not find a hidden meaning in this, call the doctor or forecast the weather. Basically, for pets, this position simply seems convenient. You shouldn’t deliberately turn them over and make them “the best way.”

Cats do not make unnecessary movements - if they have chosen this position, then it is the most comfortable

Need for affection

It is not difficult to understand what the insidious cat wants when it begins to sway and stretch, touching observers with its flexibility and grace. The animal thus demonstrates its humility and offers to immediately, before it changes its mind, gently and efficiently scratch its belly. For outsiders, displays of such emotions are rare, although in many cases it depends on the animal’s personal attitude towards people.

Sometimes the cat's bizarre pose is addressed to the owner and is a call to play

Attention! In the matter of affection, you should remain careful, since the graceful poses of a cat cannot always be regarded as an invitation to touch the beautiful. The stomach is the weak spot of any animal. For invading a cat's personal space, the punishment may be a blow with a clawed paw or a bite, which is a manifestation of a natural protective instinct. This rule of “mood” applies to absolutely everyone, both our own people and strangers, regardless of whether the cat is tamed or not.

When showing affection, be prepared for the fact that your pet may quickly change his mood

If anyone is interested in why cats roll over on their backs and pull their hands with their hind legs, then the answer is simple: this is inherent in their subconscious by nature itself. Similar behavior can be observed in the wild relatives of domestic cats: they do this to their prey, finishing it off, trying to rip open its stomach. In the case of domesticated pets, these traces of the hunting heritage remain intact.

Heat

Often it is the stuffiness that “falls” kittens onto their backs, forcing them to spread their paws in different directions, because with an open belly the body cools down faster. It is difficult for a person to understand this type of behavior, because at first glance, all cats, with the exception of some breeds, are equally fluffy in all places.

It is customary that the standard indicators of a cat’s body temperature are higher than the human norm. Even during the molting period, the fluffy coat begins to fit more tightly to reduce the air space that traps heat.

Lying on its back, the cat tries to lower its body temperature by airing its undercoat

In the hot summer, cats move to the floor even from the soft, barely occupied master's bed, because on the floor it feels cool. But such measures are not enough for cooling. Heat exchange in the abdominal area occurs faster, since there is less hair there, so cats “ventilate” by turning over on their backs.

Puberty

Discomfort in the groin caused by the desire of an uncastrated cat serves as another answer to the question that interests us. This revealing position helps ease the male's discomfort due to arousal. A person can only wait until the “March” period ends, or find a partner for the pet to mate with.

Binge eating

Tailed lovers of food and sleep have a habit of manipulating people by begging for food. Everything is used, from charisma to undisguised arrogance. Such manipulations sometimes backfire on pets: uncontrollable cat greed and boundless human generosity lead to overeating of the animal.

For overweight cats prone to overeating, sleeping on their back is the only way to rest without squeezing their stomach.

Having had enough, the pet craves only rest. And then he is faced with a problem: curling up into a ball or lying on his paws is painful and uncomfortable. Depending on the degree of overeating, he has to fall on his side or back so that nothing is squeezing his stomach.

Whenever possible, limit your pets from unauthorized access to food.

No matter how funny it may look, the gastronomic issue is not to be joked about. The owner, one way or another, takes responsibility for the one he has fed and tamed, so he must wisely calculate the proportions, making the cat’s diet balanced. If you are having difficulty weaning your pet from trying to eat the owner's food, below are some recommendations for pacifying the gourmet.

We stop the cat from begging for food

Other ailments

For a loving owner, his guests and just random passers-by, a cat resting on its back is a touching sight, a reason to take out a camera for a souvenir photo or to cuddle the animal until it recovers from sleep. Moving on to the planned actions, few people suspect about the health problems of the pet, due to which he selects this particular position.

In addition to behavioral characteristics, various diseases can also be the cause of sleeping on your back.

If sleeping on your back is a sign of illness, it will be accompanied by some of the following signals:

• the pet becomes restless;
• cannot find a place for himself;
• meows often and loudly;
• eats less often;
• cannot go to the toilet or does it too often.

If the cat behaves aggressively during palpation, then it is necessary to identify the source of pain

In this case, a visit to the veterinarian will not be unnecessary. Most likely, your pet may have:

1. Digestive tract problems;
2. Disease of the genitourinary system;
3. Ailments in the groin and other inflammations.

Often, a sick animal does not allow itself to be touched, and when palpation is attempted, even the kindest domestic animal unexpectedly responds with aggression. You can find out more about cat diseases on our portal.

The cause of diseases associated with the inability to lie on the stomach is most often disturbances in the gastrointestinal tract.

If the cat’s tests indicate the absence of pathologies, then the reason for sleeping on the back is one or even several of the above points.

Sometimes, sleeping with their belly up, animals sniffle and even quite literally snore. This is not a symptom of pulmonary or heart failure unless the pet suffers from shortness of breath, poor appetite and inactivity when awake. Otherwise, housewives have nothing to worry about: the nasal septum in an uncomfortable position is slightly depressed, as happens in a person during snoring.

General algorithm for sewing a pillow

Regardless of which design you choose to manufacture such a product, you must follow a certain sequence of actions.

Pillows in the house perform several functions: they make the house more comfortable, decorate it and serve as armrests and headrests.

1. Preparing a base pattern, which will actually be the pillow. It can be classic rectangular or square, or shape the body or face of a cat. When cutting out the base, it is necessary to take into account seam allowances, which should be at least 5 mm.
2. On the front side of the pillow, which will form the cat's face, sew individual elements - the nose, mouth, tongue, areas around the eyes - by hand or using a machine.
3. Carefully baste the individual elements in the form of paws and tail where they will be located near the pillow.
4. After this, sew along the wrong side along the entire contour of the seam, leaving a small part for stuffing the pillow with filler.
5. Carefully fill the pillow with filling and sew up the hole.
6. After this, you can glue individual plastic elements that represent the eyes and nose. Also, if necessary, sew on a mustache.

Nowadays you won’t surprise anyone with store-bought ones, but with hand-sewn cat pillows it’s quite possible.

Sleeping cat

A cat in the house can most often be found on the sofa or in an armchair. She's a sleeper. Let's try to sew a decorative pillow with a sleeping cat's face. This looks so much like her. For work we will need:

1. A piece of fabric (color as desired).
2. Threads, scissors.
3. Pattern.
4. Disappearing fabric marker.
5. Non-woven fabric.

We select fabric for the future pillow, the choice of which is unlimited. It all depends on what exactly you have on hand at the moment. Any type of fabric is suitable for living rooms; for a children's room, a pillow can be made from old children's things with a funny pattern.

We transfer the pattern of the main part onto the fabric using a disappearing marker.

We cut out the part, leaving approximately one centimeter for allowances. Now we transfer the pattern of the main part to the non-woven fabric, trace it and cut it along the contour. We do the same with the second part of the part, we make it from fleece. We make a pattern for the legs, tail and ears and cut them out. It is also necessary to duplicate parts.

Using an iron, we glue one part of the main part with the interlining. Now we take all the small parts: paws, tail and ears, fold them in pairs with the front side. After this, we grind each part down on a machine along the edge, leaving a small hole for stuffing. We process all the edges of each part with zigzag scissors or do it with regular scissors. After this, turn it right side out and stuff it with any filling, and sew up the holes using a zigzag stitch.

All the parts are ready, which means we need to sew them to the main part. To do this, we use pins and fix each part in the right place. Using a disappearing marker, draw a face on the pillow. Turn it over and place the fleece piece on top, sew it together, leaving room for filling. Turn it right side out, straighten and smooth all the seams well. The pillow can now be stuffed to the desired density with any stuffing; we sew up the hole. Now we sew on the paws, for this we use buttons. We embroider the muzzle with dark colored floss threads. The cat pillow is ready; if desired, you can decorate it with a bow, heart and other applique. On such things, a drawing made with acrylic paint looks quite good.

The simplest cat pillows

The easiest way to make a cat pillow is to use a regular rectangular or square pillow shape and stick an applique on it.

You can choose a material and take it to a workshop that specializes in thermal transfer printing - they will “draw” what you want.

In this case, the image of the cat can be absolutely anything. But it will look best if, for example, two cats sit on the pillow. They can be located close to each other - this is how you can make “cats in love.” Or, on the contrary, you can spread the image on different sides of the pillow, turning their backs to each other. We get – “offended cats”.

The drawing can be done with acrylic paints or special ones for textiles.

You can also make stencils yourself from scratch by drawing only the silhouette of a cat or a complex design with some details on thick paper.

It is very easy to make such products:

• you can sew a square or rectangular pillow that matches the shape;
• but you can take a finished product;
• in accordance with the size of the pillow, choose a pattern of two cats - in this case, the color of the animals should be harmoniously combined with the color of the pillow itself and be contrasting with it;
• It is advisable to choose a textured fabric for appliqué - this way the image will look more realistic;
• Recommendation: to cut a stencil out of fleece, you can use a sharply sharpened stationery knife;
• the applique can be glued using a special glue, or it can be sewn on manually using matching or contrasting threads, but at the same time, be careful about the accuracy of the stitch;
• if the image includes elements of a muzzle, then cut them out and attach them in the same way to the pillow.

For cutting, you should use a stationery knife; carry out the process itself by placing the sheet with the design on a wooden cutting board.

Made from fleece

We will need: a small piece of fleece of the desired color, a piece of light beige or milky felt, sewing threads to match the main fabric, holofiber, brown iris (or floss) threads, a fabric marker, needles, pins, scissors, lace, ribbons, buttons, beads to decorate your cat. Pattern with centimeter scale:

We are sewing two cats at once, so we have more details in the photo. We fold the fleece in half and transfer the pattern onto the fabric; this is very convenient to do with a disappearing fabric marker.

We sew our parts on a sewing machine along the contour, cut them out with an allowance of 0.5 cm.

We make an incision on one layer in the area of ​​the cat's muzzle and turn the body inside out. We also cut one layer of the tail at the top and turn it inside out.

We stuff the body and tail with holofiber.

We sew up the holes through which the cat and tail were stuffed with matching threads.

Cut out the cat's face from felt.

We mark it with a disappearing marker and embroider the face with iris or floss threads.

We try our muzzle on the cat’s body, closing the stitched cut, and fix it with pins. Using a seam over the edge, we sew the muzzle with threads to match the felt.

We try on and sew the tail with a hidden seam so that the cat can lean on it and stand on its own.

That's all, the cat is ready.

All that remains is to decorate it as you wish - with bows, braid, flowers, skirts, buttons - whatever your imagination suggests! Look, here's how different cats can be:

Travel pillow for Herodotus the cat

For those who want to travel comfortably on a bus or sit comfortably in a chair, you can sew a pillow under your head. In order for it to be truly ergonomic, you need to choose the right pattern. At the same time, take into account your own body parameters, although in most cases the dimensions are standard - the internal diameter ranges from 13 to 15 cm, the outer diameter from 43 to 45 cm.

How to make the road fly by unnoticed? That's right, ideally - sleep the whole way.

Such a half ring is first cut out on paper, and then the pattern is transferred to the fabric. In this case, it is necessary to make a reserve for the seams.

The first thing you need to do in preparation for the trip is to sew special pillows for the bus.

To ensure that the pillow is not faceless, it can be made in the shape of a funny cat. In addition to the muzzle, you can also form paws and a tail. The execution technique is given above. The only thing that can be recommended here is to sew on the elements of the eyes and nose with a zigzag stitch for secure fastening.

The eyes and nose are made of felt and stitched with a zigzag.

Features of cat sleep

Every average nine-year-old cat slept for at least six years! However, “overslept” is a rough definition, more like dozed off. Cats allow themselves sound, healthy sleep much less often; they spend most of their lives in the relaxation stage.

Video - How and where cats prefer to sleep

Sleep phases

Table 1. Physiological changes in different stages of sleep

During half-sleep, pets do not cut off contact with the outside world, but continue to receive a continuous stream of information about what is happening around them. This feature is reflected in the position they choose to rest. If we take a closer look at the position of the entire body, we will notice that in most cases the animal takes a “on the alert” position. This means that if an irritant appears, the cat is ready to jump up sharply, and then either run away or attack.

Behind the cat's apparent relaxation, combat readiness is sometimes hidden.

Light, short sleep helps predators quickly regain strength for a short period of time to do intense work before the next period of slumber.

It is impossible to stay on constant “recharging”, so cats plunge into a healthy and sound sleep at a certain moment for the full restoration of the entire body, in particular the immune system. In this case, cats do not immediately wake up in full mobilization of strength.

A cat may unexpectedly end up on its back while sleeping

You can tell that the cat didn’t just close his eyes for five minutes, but fell asleep fully by his posture. It happens that a cat falls asleep in a half-curled position, but over time it begins to toss and turn and ends up on its back, with its paws tucked or spread out. Lying with his eyes closed in this position, the cat is not just dozing - he is completely relaxed and immersed in deep sleep, being completely indifferent to external stimuli.

Cat fisherman

This pillow will be an excellent accessory for a child's room. It is quite simple to sew, but you will have to tinker a little. An applique of a cat with all the elements of the body - hind legs, tail, ears and muzzle - is sewn onto an ordinary rectangular pillow.

Funny pillow with a cat who caught a lot of fish.

The front legs must be cut out separately and hemmed under the applique;

Next, you need to cut out one or two fish - you can sew buttons instead of eyes;

A good and positive gift for an adult fisherman, and children will also like it.

Place the fish between the cat's paws and securely fix them - this way it looks like the cat is being held in an armful by a slave.

The cat pillow can be made in any size.

The place or atmosphere in the house is too warm and the cat is too hot

Most cat breeds have thick, dense fur, so they are much hotter than humans. The supine position improves heat transfer. This is especially important in the hot season, when you want to cool down. Then the cats lie on their backs so that the abdomen, on which there is much less hair, is ventilated and the body temperature drops slightly.

© shutterstock

Cat face pillow

For relaxation procedures, you can sew a mask in the shape of a cat's face. To do this, you need to choose natural fabric. Moreover, for the lower part you need to take the lightest possible canvas. Whereas on the top side you can use any color you like. Don't forget to sew on two small triangular ears, which will need to be inserted when attaching.

It looks just great on the sofa, and not only cats, but also guests like this toy.

Fill the pillow of your choice:

• aromatic herbs;
• buckwheat husk.

A pillow can be a great handmade gift

The muzzle can be decorated either with applique or simply embroidered with thick threads.

The pillow will look great on your sofa!

Sleeping on your back: normal or pathological?

The instincts, behavior and habits of cats are in many ways similar to human ones. This applies not only to reactions and needs inherent in nature, but also to banal physical states: relaxation, tension, etc. During rest, a person can lie on his back, stomach, side, or in the fetal position. This is often due to the level of fatigue, mood, or a banal habit.

In their dreams, cats encounter different emotionally charged episodes.

Curious! Scientists conducted a number of experiments studying animals during sleep, in particular cats were experimental subjects. It turned out that they, like people, are no strangers to emotional dreams. Moreover, it was possible to decipher their contents. Mostly these are episodes of hunting, exploring the area, irritation and even fear.

They say that a cat sleeping on its back sees only good dreams.

Human and cat rest are similar in that during this time both are capable of experiencing happiness. For cats, one of the indicators of this condition is sleeping on their back. This body position is absolutely normal. There is no need to worry about the health of a kitten seen lying on its back with half-closed eyes.

Knitted pillows

If you have experience in knitting or crocheting, you can make a pillow in the shape of a cat from threads. Moreover, you can use leftover yarn of different colors. One point worth considering! If you knit with knitting needles, the pillow will turn out soft, so this one can also be used for relaxation.

You can knit cute sofa pillows with your own hands.

If you crochet, the fabric becomes denser. Therefore, it is with crochet that more voluminous and realistic models of any complexity are created.

All over the world, things made by hand are valued. Things keep the warmth of the hands of the person who made them.

Simple knitted pillow

For those who do not have much knitting experience, you can choose the simplest pillow option.

These original sofa pillows in the shape of cats can be knitted

A rectangular fabric is knitted. The number of stitches cast on should be equal to the width of the pillow. Next, you can knit either with stockinette stitch or with a pearl pattern to a height equal to two heights of the pillow. After the required length is knitted, the loops are closed, the fabric is folded in half and sewn up on three sides. But before you sew the seam to the end, you need to add filler. The hind legs are sewn to the underside of the pillow, while the front legs are sewn to the sides. The paws themselves can also be knitted or made of fabric.

A tail is sewn to the back of the pillow. It can be knitted on circular knitting needles.

We decorate the face with applique.

After this, the front side of the pillow is decorated with the cat’s nose and eyes, as well as a mustache.

In order to form the ears, it is enough to sew two corners of the pillow, grabbing a little filler and, as it were, separating them with diagonal seams.

Crochet cat

In order to crochet a cat, you must first make a pattern on paper. The peculiarity of crocheting is that it is easy and simple to crochet, you can crochet absolutely any cat.

You can even sleep with such a toy, which is what children love so much.

If a pattern is made on paper, this will greatly facilitate the process, since you can constantly apply it to it during the knitting process and check how well the fabric matches the pattern. In order for the fabric to match the pattern, it is necessary to decrease and add columns. After two identical halves are knitted, they are sewn together and the pillow is completed according to the standard pattern.

These adorable cat pillows will bring you a lot of joy!

Children's

You can even sleep with such a toy, which is what children love so much. The cat pillow is very easy to sew. The pattern is elementary. You can make this craft together with your child.

Necessary materials:

1. Fabric in two colors (you can use more if you want to make the cat-pillow even more original).
2. Threads.
3. Needles.
4. Sintepon, cotton wool or granules for stuffing.
5. Pieces for eyes, nose and mustache.

Pattern

Those elements that are cut out in duplicate are made by folding the fabric in half, face to face. Cut out, making seam allowances. We sew the parts together, leaving small holes for stuffing. First of all, we sew the body, the head, then we sew the paws, tail, and ears to it. Using colored scraps, we make eyes, nose and mustache using the appliqué method.

In the video you will learn how to sew a cat pillow toy.

How to sew a cat pillow toy. How to sew pillow-cat?