Sewing with CATS (and how not to kill them in the process)

This is Vir, he's our costuming cat buddy! He'll hold down fabric, be a hat stand, and "decorate" all your fabric with the extra bit of fur that your costume needs! And Vir has a problem...like many cats....

HELP MY CAT WANTS TO SEW!

Vir eats thread. He unthreads sewing machines and sergers, sometimes while they are running. he takes apart spools of thread. And at one point he ate an entire one and ended up having surgery and getting 10 inches intestine removed thanks to his fetish. It's a common pet problem. I know you're shaking your head and going "jeez it's not hard to handle that...you dumbass!" Well sure it seems easy but have you ever head multiple people over sewing and multiple cats and dogs in your sewing room at the same time? Whatever, if you have never had a cat help you sew then good for you, go look at the Hawkeye Initiative. If you want to learn some quick tips to keep your furry friend from committing sepuku before the convention....

1. Spraybottles: not only can you mist down your fabric while pressing, you can also encourage your little friend to GTFO
2. COVER YOUR MACHINE! Yes if you are not at it or a friend is not guarding it, slap a cover on that sucker. It's your machine condom. You COULD spend good money buying one...or just use a spare pillow case. note if you cat is crafty just putting a towel or something off of it won't stop him. A pillowcase fits right around a sewing machine and wraps around the bottom to keep sneaky paws from grabbing the reads out. If you have a cone just tuck it up under the machine arm under the cover. Now you are free to get distracted elsewhere without your house turning into a spiders web of 9$ a spool embroidery thread
3. AGRO MAGNET! Got a kid? Have 'em play with your pet..or put some cuddles and snuggles in between the cutting and sewing. I barrow a friend's kid for this..works great when I'm teaching a sewing class at home and all the furbabbies want to help
4. Work with it: got a fatty boom boom? They make good pattern weights or foot warmers when you're hand sewing
5. TUPPERWARE! Alright threaded needles kill more cats that you'd think, do NOT put yuour threaded needle down unless it's stuck to your shirt and you are watching it. Putting it in a sewing basket won't stop mr fuzzles. Stick it in a tupperware or something you need thumbs to open, or finish that biit of thread and put your needle back in your pin cushion...
6. Put that spare Kanban box to good use! Give that kitten a box, kittens love boxes! Scientific fact. Toss some scrap fabric in the bottom and they may take your offering and hang out in there for a while, but if they don't...
7. Enjoy the chaos: sometimes shit happens...long as your buddy isn't eating thread or needles what's a little cat hair on a costume? nothing some masking tape on your hand won't fix!

Next time...what to do when your cat pisses all over your fabric that's not...exactly...washable!