For the Cat Lover in the House, the 10 Best Cat Sewing Patterns

Every cat lover has a shelf of cat mugs and a drawer of cat socks, while the cat itself ignores the store-bought toy and sleeps in the box it came in. A handmade cat is a gift that actually feels personal. Good cat sewing patterns give you the finished size, the difficulty and clear photos of each step.

One thing to know first: these are cat-themed projects for people, not toys made for a cat to chew. The shortlist has five plush kittens and cats in different poses, a draft stopper, a felt bag with a mouse, a kitten eye mask, a black cat mini quilt and a felt Christmas cat. After the cards I cover what that means in a home with a real cat, how the faces and sizes can be changed, and the hand stitches behind the felt pieces.

Cat Sewing Patterns for Shelves, Doors and Gifts

Cat graphics, embroidery files and doll sets with outfits stayed off the list, and most cat mug rugs went to their own roundup. Every listing below states a finished size, so you know whether you are sewing a pocket mouse or a 23 inch draft stopper.

TL;DR: Ten cat-themed projects for people rather than chew toys: five plush cats from a 9 inch beginner kitten to a resizable curled cat, a draft stopper you can scale to your door, a felt cat bag with a mouse, a kitten eye mask, a 12 inch black cat mini quilt and a hand-sewn felt Christmas cat.

• Little Kitten Sewing Pattern PDF – Best first plush
• Orange Kitten Plush Pattern – Best sitting kitten
• Lazy Kitten Plush Pattern – Best lying kitten
• Cat Plush Pattern + Resizing – Best curled cat
• Kitten Plush Pattern + Resizing – Best resizable kitten
• Cat Draft Stopper Plush Pattern – Best for the home
• Felt Mouse & Cat Bag PDF Pattern – Best cat bag
• 2 Styles Eye Mask Cat and Classic Styles – Best cat gift for sleep
• PDF Pattern for Black Cat Mini Quilt – Best cat quilt
• Felt Christmas Cat Sewing Pattern PDF – Best Christmas cat

Quick Comparison

Made for Cat Lovers, Not for Cats to Chew

Read the listings and a pattern emerges: the designers describe their cats as gifts, home decoration, a bag, a sleep mask or a wall quilt. Only the orange kitten names a pet toy among its uses, next to a gift and decoration. The little kitten lists baby gifts, and the curled cat and the draft stopper are offered as gifts for a child or a friend.

So before choosing, think about where the finished cat will live: on a shelf, along the bottom of a door, in a child’s arms or on the wall. That decides more than the pattern does, from the eyes you add to how firmly you stuff it.

Faces: Embroidered, Appliquéd or Glass

The three resizable patterns from one designer offer several ways to make the eyes: embroidery, appliqué, buttons or glass cabochons over a printed iris, with an Eyes folder of irises and a guide. The listing favors the glass version, but it is best kept for display pieces. For a child, embroidered eyes are the safer choice, since there is nothing to pull off.

Embroidered faces on felt and fabric cats often use a backstitch for the eyes and mouth and a satin stitch for the nose, with the lines marked first in a fabric pen. Stitch the face while the piece still lies flat, before the body is sewn together.

Resizing a Cat Plush Without Redrawing It

The curled cat, the resizable kitten and the draft stopper each include a Sizes folder: unpaginated pattern images plus instructions for scaling them with free software and a printer, or by hand. The listed sizes are a starting point: about 300 mm from ear to back for the curled cat, 238 mm from ear to foot for the kitten and 580 mm long for the draft stopper.

If the pieces include the seam allowance, scaling them changes the allowance too, so a half-size cat ends up with half the allowance. In that case, trace the stitching line first, scale the shape from that line, then add the original seam allowance width back around it.

Hand Stitches Behind the Felt Cats

Two projects need no machine at all. The felt Christmas cat is sewn entirely by hand, and the bag and mouse set lists four stitches. Felt does not fray, so its edges can stay raw and be joined on the outside with one of the stitches below.

• Blanket stitch: wraps the edge and joins two layers of felt with a visible border.
• Running stitch: a simple in-and-out line for joining overlapped pieces or for decoration.
• Backstitch: a solid line for eyes, mouths and outlines.
• Ladder stitch: closes the stuffing opening with stitches that hide inside the seam.

Whichever project you choose, leave a small opening for the stuffing, push the fiberfill into ears and paws with a chopstick or another blunt tool, and close the opening last.

A Free Cat Pattern in Felt

If the 10 patterns above feel like a big project, a felt cat is a quicker start. This one is listed as a freebie on Creative Fabrica, so it costs nothing and needs no All Access trial. It’s a Christmas ornament, but the cat itself works well beyond December.

Cat Plush and Felt Questions

What fabric is best for a stuffed cat?

Minky, fleece, flannel and quilting cotton are all common choices for a stuffed cat. A cotton cat plush is usually easier to sew than a fleece or minky one, since those fabrics stretch and shift, and a small felt cat needs no edge finish because felt does not fray. Minky also has a nap, so cut every piece with the nap running the same way.

Can I sew these cats by hand?

The felt Christmas cat and the bag set are written for hand sewing. The fabric plush cats can be sewn by hand with a small backstitch, and the Tips and Tricks PDF of the three resizable cats has a section on hand stitches.

How long should a cat draft stopper be?

About as long as the door is wide, so no gap is left at either end. Many interior doors in the US are 28 to 36 inches wide, so the listed body of about 23 inches will need scaling up for most of them, which is what the Sizes folder is for. More projects for doors, tables and shelves are in the home and kitchen section.

Can the black cat mini quilt go into a bigger quilt?

Yes. The listing says the template also fits 12 inch quilt blocks, so the cat and pumpkin appliqué can become one block in a larger Halloween quilt, sewn by hand or machine.

Before a Real Cat Gets Hold of It

Cats chew, and some swallow what they chew. Thread, yarn, ribbon and string are a known danger when swallowed, and so are small felt parts and loose stuffing. That is why the garland, the felt mouse and anything with glass eyes belong on a shelf or a door, out of reach.

None of these patterns is built as a cat toy, including the orange kitten whose listing mentions one. These cat sewing patterns are written as gifts for people; for the other animal in the house, see the dog sewing patterns. If a finished cat does end up on the floor, check it often and throw it away as soon as a seam opens or stuffing shows.

You May Also Like

• 6 Best Dog Sewing Patterns, Starting with a Bandana in 11 Sizes
• Lambs, Lions and Teddy Bears: 9 Best Stuffed Animal Sewing Patterns
• Coffee, Cats or Christmas: 10 Best Mug Rug Patterns

This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Learn more.