New And Improved Size Chart For PurringPyjamas!

August 13, 2019August 13, 2019 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello, and happy August! Oh, where did the summer go? We had a few weeks of nice weather, then cold weather, then the heatwave, and now we’re in this weird middle ground, when it’s not hot, but not exactly cold either. Soon the leaves will start turning all colors of the palette over here in Finland as the autumn slowly creeps in, letting the winter to take over eventually. But while we’re in the summer, here’s something new: a new and improved size chart!

So, what changed exactly? Not that much, except I added one more size! This is how my size chart looked earlier:

XXXS – kitten size, price €28
XXS – small cat, price €30
XS – average size cat, price €32
S – cat a bit bigger than average, price €33
M – big cat, price €35
L – really large cat, price €37
XL – very large cat, price €39

And while these sizes have worked for my shop for those 4.5 years I’ve been selling, I got to admit – they are really big in comparison to the industry standard. I also noticed that there’s a demand for smaller kitten size. The old kitten size usually fit kittens from 4 months of age, or big 3 month old ones. On top of that, I rebranded recently, so the color palette and the style of my shop changed.

“Night Electric Night” sweater from the new collection. It is currently available at purringpyjamas.etsy.com! 🙂

These few factors helped me decide to take this step, and improve the size chart. So, I added a new size – an even smaller kitten size, and so now the lettering of the size moved one letter up. If you ordered size S in the past, now you should order size M, if it was M, then you should order size L, and so on. It’s important to note that PRICE DID NOT CHANGE AT ALL.

Here’s how my size chart goes now compared to the old one above:

XXXS (small kitten) – a completely new size, price €26
XXS (kitten) – the previous kitten size, used to be XXXS, price €28
XS – used to be XXS, price €30
S – used to be XS, price €32
M – used to be S, price €33
L – used to be M, price €35
XL – used to be L, price €37
XXL – used to be XL, price €39

As you can see the pricing stayed the same, only the “names” changed a bit. So far it seems to be working well, and the small kitten size hasn’t gone unnoticed by the customers either! I am very happy with how it looks and works now.

I hope you have a great week ahead of you, and don’t forget to enjoy the last bits of summer!

Follow PurringPyjamas on social media to keep up with the newest releases, discounts, never ending Sphynx cuteness and more!
Instagram: instagram.com/purringpyjamas
Facebook: facebook.com/purringpyjamas
Shop: purringpyjamas.etsy.com

asta

PurringPyjamas Featured In Australian Cat Lover Magazine!

June 21, 2019June 21, 2019 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello everyone! I hope your week went well, and you’re all ready for the weekend fun! It’s been SOOOOOO hot over here in Finland – can’t wait for the weather to cool down already. I mean, Finnish apartments and houses do not have air conditioning (unless some people, who OWN houses, install it, but it’s still very uncommon), so you can imagine how fun it is when temperatures rise up to 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit), and your apartment is on the south side… Great to get some light in the deep dark winter, but a whole lot of suffering during the heatwave! I mean, last year people were even advised to go to shopping centers to cool down during the heatwave as those are the only places with air conditioning lol. Anyhow, this is not a post about the weather, even though I hope it’s nice where you are!

You know where it’s definitely chillier? In beautiful Australia! And I am so happy to say my shop was featured in the newly created Australian Cat Lover online magazine. I was contacted by lovely Agnes, asking if I would be up to being featured in their magazine’s first Lifestyle feature. Of course, I said yes! I took some pictures of one of my sweaters, wrote a little description, and here it is – all nice and published, alongside other 9 beautiful things you can get for your feline friend:

purringpyjamas

When it came to choosing which design I wanted published, I knew instantly that this sweater from “Buttons up!” collection would be the one. It was the very first design I added to my shop back in February of 2015, and I still love it just as much as I did on the very first day. I had a little photoshoot with one of my beautiful kitties – Bacha. She always makes for such a great model!

Bacha

I am really happy with how the pictures, and the article turned out! You can check out the original article over here:

10 winter warmers for your cats in 2019

Have a great weekend, and talk to you soon!

asta

Introducing Vampiria: A New Fluffy Family Member

June 11, 2019June 11, 2019 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello! I hope your week is going well – mine sure is! Lots of work, lots of ideas – always good times when you’re excited about all the new things coming your way. 🙂

As you already understood from the title, we got a new kitten. And no, she isn’t a completely “fresh” member of the family – she’s been with us for 3.5 weeks (will be 4 weeks this Friday; we brought her home May 17th). As much as I wanted to, I decided to not introduce her “officially” yet, and rather concentrate on her quarantine time, and later – focus on introducing her to our other 3 Sphynxes.

Let’s start from the beginning. Vampiria was born on January 5th, 2019 – a tiny Sphynx baby. I found her breeder on Instagram, and immediately fell in love with her kittens. As soon as I saw the “V” litter (they were maybe 3-4 weeks old at a time?), I knew I had to have one of the kittens. She said that Vampiria was the only one left unreserved from the litter – and she was perfect. We reserved her asap, and then there was the looooong waiting until May when we could pick her up. Thankfully, the breeder updated her Instagram often, and sent pictures and videos of Vampiria, which made the waiting a whole lot easier!

Vampiria is seal point with white, in case you’re interested in her color. She is pet class kitten, and has some hair on her body, and very soft fur on her face, ears, paws and tail. And, of course, beautiful blue eyes, which suit her color beautifully.

vamp5

She’s very playful, loving and overall amazing kitten. She eats raw diet, but I will talk more about it in a different blog post – it’s always an interesting topic to explore!

So, you may ask how is she getting on with the other cats? Honestly, exactly, how I expected. Beliza is a “mommy” type of cat – she’s gentle, friendly, and always behaves like a mom towards kittens. She and Vampiria stopped hissing at each other after about 3-4 days when introduction started (just a note: once you bring a new kitten home, you should have 2 weeks of quarantine period, where the kitten is kept separately from other cats, but I usually see if there are any signs of illness, how the kitten and other cats are adjusting, and wing it. The minimum for me still usually is about 10-12 days, but I’ll talk more about it in a separate blog post).

vamp8

Well, and then there’s Bacha. Don’t get me wrong – she’s an amazing cat. She’s very loving, however, she’s been quite fearful of other animals since we got her as a kitten. She was fearful of Aether, when we brought him home two years ago, so I knew we will have to take special precautions when introducing Vampiria as well. We made sure to keep them at distance, we always watched out that Vampiria wouldn’t spook Bacha, wouldn’t playfully jump on her, etc. Bacha is NOT aggressive – however, she may react in a negative way if she gets spooked. Now that Vampiria has been out and about for almost 2 weeks, all is good. They hiss at each other a tiny bit here and there, but I am 100% confident they’re both in a good place. Bacha usually completely ignores Vampiria, and Vampiria learned that Bacha does not want to be her play buddy. They both have a healthy respect for each other (for now at least), so all is going well.

vamp9

Then there’s Aether. He’s a gentle soul and my love – he has a very special place in my heart as I feel we have a very special connection. Now don’t get me wrong – I love all my cats to bits, and they all get equal amount of love and attention, but I think we all have that special someone, who’s there when hard times hit. It’s normal. He was abused as a kitten by one mean spirited cat, so he always clung to me. BUT! This article is not about Aether – as I mentioned, he’s a very gentle boy, and I wasn’t sure how he was going to react to Vampiria. Well, he was very curious, but shy and a bit scared of her. However, you know the saying where curiosity killed the cat? Well, that’s what happened to Aether, haha! Vampiria isn’t shy, so she tried to play with him a few times, and now they’re best friends! I am very happy about it as Bacha and Beliza are sisters, and they always automatically just stuck to each other, and Aether was a bit left out. Also, they’re older, so they can’t (and don’t want to) play all the time with him. Aether and Vampiria are both very active and love spending time with each other – they always play together, run around, share toys, etc. They both seem to be very happy, which makes my heart sing. Even now I can hear them playing in the bedroom – they’ve been doing so for the past hour. 🙂

vamp10

I think I talked about everything, more or less. Getting a new kitten when you already have other cats can be quite stressful as you need to go through all the quarantine and introduction process, but it’s so worth it! In case you’re interested, here are Vampiria’s breeder’s Instagram pages (the breeder is based in Saint Petersburg, Russia):

Sphynx My Gremlins

Sphynx My Gremlins Cat

I hope you have a great week ahead of you, and talk to you soon!

asta

PurringPyjamas Christmas Collection 2018: Bling, Snow & Winter Greens

October 5, 2018October 5, 2018 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello! Ah, it’s so nice to finally release this Christmas collection! It’s been in the works for a few months now – all of the sweaters are “Ready to ship”, so I needed to roll up the sleeves, do quite a bit of knitting, and weave in those endless ends (pun wasn’t intended, but let’s just keep it there 😀 ). And hey, before you start shouting at me for talking about Christmas in early October – I am just trying to make sure everyone receives their Christmas gifts and jumpers for their family pictures! Considering I am shipping from Finland, and both the weather and the post office work in mysterious ways, it’s always nice to receive your stuff better early than late! Now after all that is cleared up, let’s get into the collection (yay!). 🙂

This collection contains 8 sweaters, and 3 of them have bows! I love bows, can you tell, haha? The first sweater is made from a very soft acrylic yarn that’s meant for babies, so rest assured – this sweater is REALLY soft, and it won’t irritate even the most sensitive skin. It is also very stretchy! It is available in quite a few sizes, so if you’re interested in checking it out, you can do so here: Red lace.

The next sweater is made of wool. The yarn has beautiful alternating red shades, but that’s not all! It also has a thin gold thread running through it, making the sweater shiny. It definitely won’t blind you, but it’s a nice detail that adds something interesting to the overall look of the sweater. It also features the very loved velvet bow and a ruby red bead. The sweater is available in a few sizes over here: Gold Ruby.

The third member of the bow family is this very Christmasy sweater in green & red colors. It features a cute velvet bow and a faux pearl. It’s a perfect choice for all the lovers of everything classy and elegant! The sweater is made of acrylic, making it really soft. You can take a closer look at this sweater over here: Pearl Christmas.

Another thing I’ve been loving lately is pom poms. I think they’re so fun, and can instantly make any and every sweater cute and festive!

For the first sweater I chose the classical bright Christmas red for the yarn and the 3 pom poms that shout Christmas, winter & fun – green, white & red! There’s also a “catch” with these pom poms – they’re shiny! Yep, these pom poms are fluffy, and all that fluff blings like there’s no tomorrow! The yarn is 75% wool & 25 polyamide, which means it is perfect for those winter evenings, when everybody just wants to be cozy. It will surely keep your kitty warm & comfy with all that wool & stretch it offers! It is available in ALL sizes, starting with XXXS (kitten size) all the way through XL. You can check it out over here: Bling all the way.

The second sweater is everything we love about winter! Well, if you love winter that is. Build a snowman with your kitty with the help of this sweater! It’s absolutely cute, and that 100% wool yarn offers all the warmth your kitty may need! Take a look at the sweater over here: Let’s Build A Snowman.

Many people think of color red when they hear the word “Christmas”. But Christmas to me is also all the greenery – the Christmas tree, the wreath… I love green!

The first sweater is very stretchy and has a nice fluff to it due to the yarn containing mohair. It’s also very soft and light, but it will surely keep your kitty warm even on the coldest of nights! It features an elegant deer button (there are 3 options of deer available!). The sweater comes in all sizes (XXXS (kitten)-XL). You can find the sweater over here: Oh Deer.

The second sweater is made of a high quality super soft acrylic yarn. It features a cute moose/deer (who knows?) button, so Rudolph will never forget to visit your home! If you’d like, you can visit Rudolph over here: Red Nose Rudolph.

And last, but definitely not the least, is this sweater. Or should I say a waistcoat? Well, it can be whatever you want it to be! It is made of 100% wool mint color yarn, and definitely is comfy and stretchy. And while you might argue this sweater is not very Christmasy… Well, it IS Christmasy to me! I don’t know exactly what’s so festive about it, maybe the light mint color, or maybe the shiny gold accents just remind me of calm of the wintertime, and that peaceful feeling of the Christmas eve. The sweater is available over here: Mint Peace.

And that’s it! The whole Christmas collection is revealed now and available for purchase! I wish you a great weekend ahead of you, and I will talk to you very soon!

asta

New Sweaters In PurringPyjamas Shop + Aether’s Debut As A Model!

August 29, 2018August 29, 2018 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello! How are you doing? Maybe you’re having a break from this heatwave? ‘Cause we sure have! It’s still warm, but we’re not melting at least! And while winter isn’t on your mind right now (or maybe it is? I can’t wait for cooler weather!), let’s talk about it as it will come in no time. Today I want to talk about the new additions to PurringPyjamas shop!

Being cute and very purrfessional!

The first sweater is blue and white, which can stand for many things. Over here in Finland it would stand for the saying about Finland being a country of snow and a thousand lakes (believe me, we have waaaaay more than a thousand of them, haha), to someone it may associate with white sandy beaches and sea, and to someone else it may remind about the dark blue skies and some white clouds – I am sure I am not the only one who used to try to find different shaped clouds that would remind of some animal or something. Whatever you associate these colors with, they are always fun to add to anyone’s collection!

Looking cute!

Curious about what’s going on.

Oh, and what’s there?

The front

The back

You can find these awesome blue and white sweaters over here: Blue & White Sails

Now the next sweater is something that will always be a load of fun! These stripes look sunny, bright and will keep your little Sphynx feeling like it’s forever spring! I love spring, and what about you? I think it’s amazing to finally get more sun and see the nature being reborn and blossoming. What a wonderful thing to see!

Hello!

Thoughtful.

So yes, as you guessed already, these minimalistic sweaters were inspired by spring. As cheesy as it sounds, a lot of the time we really do forget to just stop and smell the flowers around us. But cats never forget the little things in life, so it’s something useful that we can learn from our little friends. There’s beauty in simplicity, and for this reason these sweaters are what one might call “plain”. But I say they’re just enough! 😊

Bacha showing off her best poses. 🙂

The front

The back

You can get these super fun sweaters over here: Striped Spring

Looking for those toys!

Still looking!

And yes, we always have to have something pink! This pastel color striped sweater will fit many people’s tastes. It’s minimalistic with only 3 little beads attached to the neck, so this sweater isn’t for the flashy ones!

Where did all the toys go?

The front

The back

You can get the striped sweater here: Pink Stripes

Oh, that’s where the toys are!

Mom, what’s up there?

Now this pink is the complete opposite of the pastel striped sweater – it’s in neon coral pink color! The sweater is very bright (as I’m sure you can see from the pictures) and not suitable for the faint hearted! 😊 It also has a nice modern mixed with a classic touch to it – a beautiful decoration made from classy pearl and silver tubes.

Who said boys can’t wear pink? Aether looks fabulous rocking his pink sweater!

The front

The back

The decoration

The sweater is available here: Modern Coral Pink

Curious little creature.

Is that catnip that I smell?

Hearing the toys jingle.

And what’s up there?

And now… Welcome to the bow kingdom! These sweaters are not only cute, but they’re also warm! They’re perfect if you want to add some bling to your daily life – the teal color sweater has blue shiny thread running through it, while the pinky beige has a holographic one. Whichever one you choose, you can be sure about your kitty shinning bright like a diamond!

The front

The back

The front

The back

You can check out the teal sweater here: Teal Dreams

And you will find the beige one over here: Holo Fantasies

Looking cute dressed in purple.

Come here, toy!

Continuing with the shiny theme, here’s another sweater. It’s beautiful metallic purple, which you don’t see everyday. The sweater is super soft, very light and stretchy, but still very warm. The yarn itself cost me a small fortune, but I liked it so much that I decided to ignore a pretty big price tag. And I am surely happy I did!

A moment of silence.

The front

The back

This unique metallic sweater is available here: Shades Of Purple

Cute!

This sweater is basically the same color as her eyes. 🙂

And last, but not least is this super fluffy, bluish gray sweater. It’s pretty hard to describe it’s color – in some light it looks bluish gray, while in other situations it seems to be more of a grayish blue. However you look at it, the sweater is still just as beautiful! It’s very warm, thick and has a nice softness to it making it a really good option for cold weather. It also has some multicolored beads attached that make the sweater even cuter.

Calm.

The front

The back

The beads

You can take a closer look at the sweater here: Bluish Gray Softness

I hope you enjoyed this short blog post and a few of the new designs that had been just added to my shop! Have a great week ahead of you, and talk to you soon!

TOP 5 Online Cat Games My Cats Love

August 22, 2018August 22, 2018 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello! It seems like we survived the heatwave (yay!), and we can finally breathe again! It makes me so happy to see the cats being more active and playful instead of rolling all over the floor trying to cool down. Now that the playtime is back on the menu, I decided to share a few online games my cats love.

You can play them for your cats on your phone, laptop or tablet – all of these work well!

Number 1 and our favorite: catching mice!

Number 2: litter box fly!

Number 3: catching koi fish!

Number 4: catching a gecko!

And last, but not least: catching fish!

I hope your little friend will enjoy at least one of these games!

asta

Why Every Single Sweater Is A Trial And Error – And Some Cute Pictures Of my Cats

August 8, 2018August 8, 2018 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hi, everyone! It’s been couple of weeks, and it’s time for a new blog post! This one was planned already a week ago – I knew I will be writing about the new sweaters I will be adding to the shop (yep, it’s that time of the year already!). And I am writing about the sweaters I originally planned, just that they turned out to be… a fail. Yes, you heard me right – I am writing about the sweaters that failed, which also proves that not everything that looks good is actually practical.

Pretty in pink.

Curious.

So I got these super cute faux fur pompoms couple of months ago. They definitely were bigger than I thought when originally purchasing them, but I was like “Well, you know – go big, or go home! Bigger ones will look even cuter on the hoodies!”. And they DO look cute! However, they are very impractical simply because they’re too big, which results in them being too heavy.

Being lazy.

Oh, but what’s there?

What I mean by saying “too heavy” is that they would fall on the side of the cat’s neck, which means that the hood is in an uncomfortable position. It also would annoy the cat if they want to eat/drink. For this reason these sweaters definitely won’t be something I will be adding to my shop! Because even though they look cute, I wouldn’t be selling something I think is uncomfortable.

Not bothered by the hoodie falling in weird positions.

Activating playmode!

Everything is always tried out by my cats beforehand, and if I see that something annoys them, then it means it will most likely annoy other cats as well. I will definitely be making some kind of sweaters (maybe will stick with hoodies, just no pompoms?) from these green and pink yarns, cause they’re beautiful!

Thoughtful.

Typical Beliza – curious, but too lazy to do anything.

Hello, pompom, my old friend.

I hope you enjoyed some pictures of my cats and failed sweaters, haha! Talk to you very soon!

asta

Review: Catit Flower Fountain – Did It Work For Our Cats?

July 25, 2018July 27, 2018 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello! As always, Wednesday is here, and so is another blog post! Today we’re talking about dreams coming true – this product sure is Aether’s favorite thing that he “owns”. 😊 However, let’s not forget about the other 2 Sphynxes! Did it work for them? Let’s see, but first let’s get a little bit technical!

Catit Flower Fountain, third flow option

About the fountain. Catit Flower Fountain can hold up to 3 litres of water (about 100 fl oz/6 pints). It has a triple action filter, which removes magnesium, calcium, odours caused by bacteria and chlorine that can be found in tap water, and also retains stray hairs and any debris. Replacement filters are available for purchase, which is a great thing (a set of 2 filters costs €12.99 over here in Finland in Musti ja Mirri store). The fountain is made of plastic, but catit.com website claims that the plastics are BPA-free (BPA is an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics since 1960’s, and is associated with possible negative health effects on brain, behavior and prostate gland).

All parts of Catit Flower Fountain

Catit Flower Fountain, third flow option

There are 3 different flow options available, which you can see in the video below. My cats prefer the third option called “calm streams”. It is very easy to put together, and it also causes no problems when it comes to cleaning – it’s quick to take it apart, rinse, and dry; taking apart and cleaning takes under 5 minutes. Here’s Catit’s video about their Flower Fountain:

The price. Over here in Finland Catit Flower Fountain is available at Musti ja Mirri, and it costs €39.99. However, I bought it “used” (using the term “used” very loosely as the person bought it for their cat, she hated it and the person resold it) for €25. I think it’s definitely worth the price! I’ve had it for almost two months now, and it’s been working great. Also, it makes me feel better knowing that my cats drink cleaner, more fresh water.

Bacha trying to play with running water. 🙂

Aether is looking suspicious of the fountain.

Trying out the running water.

Finally getting it!

How did my cats react to it? Well, I KNEW Aether would love it (he loves running water), and he sure did! At first he was a bit suspicious, but a minute later he was onto it! Bacha tried to play with it at first, but now she’s loving the fresh water as well. Beliza doesn’t like it whatsoever. She’s what I call “an old fashioned grandma, who is grumpy at everyone and everything”. So true! 😊 Considering it’s such a hot summer, it makes me more than happy that 2 out of 3 Sphynxes drink more water than they would if I had only bowls available. It’s some food for thought for you as well – what could encourage you pet to drink more water? A fountain like this could be a great option! Another nice thing – while I am sitting at the computer and working, it’s very nice to listen to the sound of running water, so it’s a win-win situation!

Can’t stop drinking!

Got distracted for a bit, but still not going away!

It’s been almost two months, and still loving it!

I hope you liked this week’s blog post, and I’ll talk to you in couple weeks’ time again! Have a great week!

asta

A Short Guide To Buying Cat Clothes: What To Look For?

July 11, 2018July 27, 2018 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello! I hope your week wasn’t too harsh, and you’re ready for a quick dose of cats! As I mentioned in my last blog post, today I will talk about buying cat clothes, and how to make it an easy and positive experience. So let’s get into it, and see what things you should consider before buying cat clothes! 😊

Safety. Yes, I am starting with the most important one! And it is going to be a different kind of safety than what I spoke about in my last blog post. This time we will talk about the actual design of the shirt/sweater. A lot of the time I see sweaters that are covered in beads, little buttons, etc, from the bottom to the very top. Or sometimes sellers incorporate some beads in their cable knit that goes throughout the sweater. And it looks very beautiful! BUT! Have you ever thought that your cat can actually reach them? And chew on them/rip them off? Have you ever thought what would happen if the cat would swallow those beads? That’s one of the main reasons why I attach the buttons only at the neck using a special stitch, which: 1) it assures that the cat won’t be able to reach and chew on the beads/buttons, 2) the button is attached so strongly, that the sweater will wear out before the button comes loose (tried and confirmed by my cats!). So whenever you see something cute, think if it is also well thought through and safe for your pet, as that should always be your priority.

Always make sure that the clothes are not only cute, but also safe for your kitty!

Sleeves or sleeveless? Or maybe one opening for both legs? I talked about this a little bit in my last blog post, but this is my opinion in short: if it’s your first cat sweater or your cat is not comfortable in clothes, choose the sleeveless option. If your cat is OK with wearing clothes, you’re free to choose whatever you want. And what about one hole in front for both legs? That tends to be pretty comfortable as well, just like the sleeveless option, I have made sweaters with only one hole as custom orders before. But make sure that they’re made from a very stretchy material (like knit is, for example), otherwise your cat may and will feel restricted.

Always check a size chart. I can’t stress this enough – always check a shop’s size chart! Every single shop has a different one, and if in one shop you buy size M clothing for your pet, it does not mean that your pet will be size M in all the shops. Just an example – my sizes run big, so if your pet is a size M somewhere else, it’s a big possibility (s)he will be size XS or a S in my shop. If you check the reviews in my shop, you will see that most of those couple 1 star reviews that I have come from people complaining the sweater was too big/too small. That’s why you have to check a size chart! And this leads me to my next point.

Sleeveless sweater is always a good choice for beginner!

If your cat is in between sizes, request a custom order. Yes, that can happen, and it does happen quite often to be honest! Most shops do custom sizes, so feel free to ask about it. Never settle for an ill fitting clothing! I do custom sizes free of charge, while some shops may ask you to pay additional fee for making a custom size sweater.

When in doubt, ask. If you’re unsure about the sizing, always ask! Believe me, the seller will not think you’re silly or something! I know how difficult it can be to choose the perfect size. For example, when buying jeans, I always need to buy like 10 pairs at once and cross my fingers that 1 or 2 of them won’t fit weirdly! Similar is with cat clothes. Better safe than sorry!

Length of the sweater. You might have noticed that I do not put length of my sweaters in the size chart. And that is because I would need to adjust my size chart all the time, because I have so many designs! Some clothing is longer, while some is shorter, but overall most of my clothes are pretty long (I am pretty sure you can see that from the pictures! 😊 ). I always gladly adjust the length of the sweaters that are made to order, so if you’d like the sweater to be made longer or shorter (or maybe you have a specific length you want to request?), contact the seller and I am sure they will be more than happy to work on custom size for you.

Every design has a different length, so choose whatever you like the most. Or request a custom length – every pet is different and loves different things!

Difference between sewn and knitted cat clothes. If you had been shopping around for cat clothes, you may have noticed a few things: for one, those shops that sell hand knitted clothing have fewer items, and secondly, they’re often a bit pricier. And you may wonder why it is the way it is. As someone who lives in Finland – which is a pretty expensive country – I can give you a few points:

Yarn is often more expensive than fabric, especially fancy yarns like mohair or alpaca cost a lot more than a piece of fleece or jersey fabric.
Sewn clothes are significantly quicker to make. I am a quick knitter and I’m not that great at sewing, but even I can make a few sewn cat shirts in an hour. When it comes to knitting, depending on the sweater’s size and how intricate the pattern is, it can take up to 4 hours to complete a sweater. I am not talking about people, who use machines for knitting, but someone like me who hand knits and hand embroiders everything.

Super stretchy and soft acrylic sweater will make any kitty happy!

Should I go for knitted clothing or a fleece/jersey one? Now that depends on you completely! Knitted cotton clothing is great for summer, and wool or thick acrylic ones are great for winter. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, I chose knitting over sewing mainly because knit is much more stretchy than fleece, meaning that it will be a lot more comfortable overall. Warmth wise, bot fleece and wool clothing are warm.

Check shop’s reviews. Yes, that is important. What is even more important, it’s how the seller deals with negative feedback. We all are cute and lovely when we’re being praised, but how does the seller handle the criticism? If the review is 3 stars or lower, the seller can and SHOULD have a response, because 3 stars is not an amazing review. In other words, the buyer wasn’t satisfied with their order. If the seller has 1-3 star reviews, and there are no responses under them as to how the seller is going to handle an unsatisfied customer, that’s a red flag! That means there’s a big chance that when you receive your order and in case you would be unhappy with it, you will be ignored, and nothing will be done about it from the seller’s side. Also, if seller does respond, check how polite and helpful their response is. You wouldn’t want to buy from someone who is rude/unhelpful.

Always check the reviews – they’re very important!

If there’s a problem with your order, always contact the seller first. Those few negative reviews I have in my shop were left without my knowledge. Person orders without looking at the size chart, the sweater arrives, it’s too small/too big, and the person leaves a negative review without ever even telling me about it. I mean, there’s no way for me to know whether the sizing the person orders fits their cat (only they know it), and if someone orders a size XS, for example, I make them a size XS and send it off. There’s no way of me knowing whether it is the true size of the cat or not. I always assume that the person checked the size chart, which is available in each listing, and if they had any questions, they’d contact me. I have a good return policy, which some people choose not to use, but leave a bad review and then even after I message them offering some options, they never respond. Oh well. So, don’t be that person, and be smart about it – you can always get your money back or the product that you originally wanted. 😊

The only problem Bacha has is too few cat toys!

And last, but not least – don’t forget to leave a review! Always reflect on your experience regarding the shop. Were the products up to par? Was the seller helpful? Did the seller do their best to solve issues if there were any? These are just few of the questions that may help you reflect on your experience, and help others decide whether it’s the shop they want to go for.

I hope this blog post was helpful! I have something fun planned for the upcoming blog posts, so stay tuned and have a great week ahead of you!

asta

You Think Your Cat Hates Pet Clothes? How To Turn A Nay Into A Yay!

June 27, 2018June 1, 2021 / Asta Lamminen / Leave a comment

Hello, everyone! I hope you are doing well! In this post I will talk about what you can do if your cat hates pet clothes. A lot of the time I receive messages from customers, who even before receiving the sweater ask what is the best way to make sure the cat will love the sweater. And I am not surprised they ask it! I am sure we’ve all been in the situation where your cat becomes paralyzed, cannot run or jump, or is falling on the side while wearing a sweater. Yes, even one of my lovely cats, Beliza, who is now loving the warmth the sweater gives, was one of those cats. So how did she go from hating cat sweaters to enjoying and modelling them? Well, here’s some advice!

Lots of treats. Treats are the power, and you’re the one holding them! Cats love treats just as much as dogs do, and they can be used for a good purpose. When putting on and taking off the sweater, always be very affectionate towards the cat and give them their favorite treats. This way your lovely pet will associate wearing clothes with something positive, which is exactly what you want. A little bit off topic – still to this day I can’t understand why there are no freely available cat treats at the vet’s office? There always are treats for dogs, but never for cats. Double standards, considering cats need to associate the vet with something positive as well. We always take our own treats with us! 😊

My cats love wearing clothes! Over the years I figured out the best styles and materials that are stretchy and comfy. My cats not only feel comfortable wearing the clothes around the house when it’s chilly, but also modelling them. I think you can see how comfy they feel in these pictures! 😊

Keep it short. If your cat isn’t used to cat clothes, don’t keep the sweater on for long. First time, put it on for 5 minutes, while giving affection and treats, like I mentioned in the previous paragraph. Next day you can prolong it by 5 minutes and keep the sweater on for 10 minutes total. Keep on repeating it until your kitty seems to be comfortable wearing the clothes. It may look like a bit of a hassle (believe me, it isn’t!), but it’s totally worth it.

Do something your cat enjoys while (s)he is wearing a sweater. Does your cat love a certain game? Or maybe (s)he has a favorite toy? Do something your kitty enjoys while they’re wearing pet clothing, and they will forget they even have it on! 😊

Before investing in good clothing, try out the sock. Now you may think: “Hey, aren’t you writing this article in order to make us buy your clothing?” While I appreciate each and every single person who supports me and my small business, I would never trade my dignity or fairness. For this reason I will give you a simple advice – before going all out and spending hundreds of dollars on (hopefully) well made pet clothing, try out the oldie goldie sock. Just cut off the thumbs part, cut out two holes for the front legs, and ta da – you got yourself a simple kitty sweater! It’s great for training and also doesn’t cost a thing. You can also do the same trick with old shirt/sweater sleeve, it works just as well! Just make sure the sock isn’t too tight on your kitty! It should be fitted, but not tight by any means.

Always keep an eye on your pet. I personally have never ever heard anything happening to cats while wearing clothes that fit them well, but I always say: better safe than sorry! For this reason I suggest not leaving your kitty completely alone for long periods of time while they’re wearing clothes. I also have similar opinion when it comes to things such as bandanas, collars, etc.

Start with sleeveless sweaters. Sleeveless sweaters give more freedom than the ones with sleeves. It does not matter how well the sleeves are put in, sleeveless ones will always be more appropriate for a first time wearer. Not having the sleeves also gives less coverage, which is great for a kitty that’s not used to wearing clothes.

Sleeveless clothes are always good for starters! 🙂

Make sure the fabric is stretchy. One of the reasons I knit clothes is not only because I love it, but also because they’re one of the most stretchy things you will come by! While fleece is nice and soft, it is nowhere near as stretchy as knit fabric. That’s one of the reasons why my handknitted sweaters also have no seams – I try to make the sweaters as less bulky as possible, because every little bit counts. Especially if you own some active cats like I do!

I hope you liked this week’s blog post! Next time I will talk about the process of buying cat clothes and how to choose the most suitable ones for your kitty’s needs. Have a great day everyone!

asta