We start with a beautiful Shaded Silver Persian who is in need of some relief from the hot summer months. He will receive the famous “lion cut.”

First we bathe the cat and blow out the coat to make sure it’s clean, fluffy, and tangle-free. Then we shave the animal down, carefully collecting each hair fiber.

We let the hair “cure” for a few days to remove all moisture. By doing this, premature felting is prevented before the spinning process.

The hair fibers are then carded. Generally speaking, cat hair is very fine, requiring it to be carded really well.

The carded hair now enters the spinning process. At Catty Shack Creations we use two spinning wheels: an Ashford Elizabeth and a Baynes double-treadle (oh so smooth).

Once the hair is spun, the knitting can begin. We begin with hand-spun, black Alpaca yarn. A few rows of black are created, and some purple eyelash is added for a bit of purr-zazz. Then the chatangora (cat hair yarn) is introduced into the knit.

This shows the handbag after it was knitted, but before it was felted.

The final product! The “Jasper” Handbag.