Cat Hammock sewing tutorial

I’ve always had this creative side to me and if I'm being completely honest I just always lacked the motivation to do anything consistently. I always just helped out my dad building all kinds of things so when I asked my mom for a sewing machine I stepped into a whole new world, kinda.

I had all these plans to just jump right in and build a full cosplay with a jacket but that wasn’t the case. I had a fear of cutting the fabric wrong and wasting so much precious goods so I decided to start small. I saw a cat hammock at a local craft fair and thought my cat would love one of these. However, the one I saw was way too tiny for my large fluffy bundle of joy. So I decided to buy some soft felt and use my brand new Singer to make some extra large cat hammocks. That’s a good way to practice a straight stitch right?

Here’s where I dive deep into the simple process of making a cat hammock if you would like to try one for yourself!! (If not you can buy one premade from our shop here on the website or contact us for a custom made one).

STEP 1:

Gather whatever material you would like. I use a soft fleece because my cat just adores it. You need two rectangles and it can be the same patterns or you can make it a reversible one. Whichever your heart desires. So go ahead and cut out two rectangles at 32 inches x 17 inches.

STEP 2:

You can use whatever you would like to use for the strings to use for securing the hammock to your desired location. Most ones I’ve seen use a velcro kind of material or even a clip however the savvy reuser I am decided to use some thick cotton strap like ribbon and it worked wonders. So that’s my go to now and forever! If you are going my route you need two 22 inch pieces per corner so 8 in total.

STEP 3:

Take the two rectangle fabric pieces you cut out and put them together with the outside sides facing inward towards each other. Using a straight stitch, sew together all four sides. IMPORTANT: make sure to leave the corners unsewn(about 1/2inch on both sides of the corner) for the ties and leave a part of one side unsewn so you can flip the fabrics so the patterned sides are facing outward.

STEP 4:

Next you’re going to turn the two fabrics right side out. Take each corner and fold in the two fabrics to make a straight corner like shown in the picture. Place two of the ties inside this pocket about 1/2in to 1in. Pin them in place. Also close off the open side by folding 1/4in of each fabric inward. Use a straight stitch and sew along all four edges to “seal” the hammock shut.

STEP 5:

For the corners use a Box X stitch to hold the ties tightly in place. I go back and forth across the top and bottom of the box a few times to provide a more solid hold.

STEP 6:

Lastly to seal the edges of the ties I cut them diagonally and burn the edges with a lighter. Please use caution with the open flame and let them cool up to a minute before placing them on fabric. I use this method so they are pet safe. My cat likes to chew on the strings at times and I didn’t want to use a chemical fray sealer to avoid ingestion and a sick cat :)