If you follow me on social media, you know that we’ve recently added a very unlikely member to our family. And when I say “unlikely”, I mean that never in my life did I ever think I would own a cat. My older sister was allergic to them, so I never had one growing up; and, I have always been a big dog person. Like, literally, big dogs. Not cats. While I love animals of all kinds, I just never had an interest in owning a cat. So a month ago, if you’d told me I was going to be publishing a pattern for a cat bed, I would have given you a very strange look.

But, here we are!

And that’s all thanks to Simba, the little orange cat that coughed and sneezed his way into a permanent place in our family.

He came to us with a bad upper respiratory infection, ear mites, and eyes so red and gunky he couldn’t hardly open them after a nap. And I tried really hard to stay unattached. But this kitty is impossible not to love. When I was crocheting on the couch one morning not long after we brought him home, he came over, wrapped his paws around my arm, laid his head on me, and fell asleep; and that’s pretty much how he is all the time — cuddly and sweet, and just wanting to be with people. When we didn’t receive any leads on our “lost kitty” posts for a week, I finally admitted to myself that even though I’ve never been a cat person, I really wanted to be his person. And we decided to keep him.

A few days after that decision, I hosted our church’s Women’s Life Group at my home as I do every week. One of the women who attends owns a large horse farm a few miles from our church (where my husband found Simba), and the moment she saw him, she immediately recognized him as one of her barn kitties that had been missing for a while. My heart sank. But when I told her we’d give him back (after all, my children had known from the beginning that his owners might show up), this wonderful woman didn’t even hesitate to say “No, he’s yours. I think he chose your family. God meant him for you.”

And that’s the story of how Simba chose our family!

Of course, I decided pretty early on that I needed to make him something. I thought a bed would be the perfect thing, and I wanted it to have a rustic look to it, so I headed to Michaels to find a thick, rustic yarn, and Loops & Threads Chunky was the perfect fit. I also designed a cute little tag for it and ordered the finished item from MemorableLand on Etsy. Dmitry did a wonderful job putting my vision on these wooden tags!

–

About the Rescued Tag

Now, I guess Simba isn’t technically a rescue pet. We now know where he came from, and had we not wanted him, he would have been welcomed back to his farm with open arms. But I had ordered these wooden tags from MemorableLand before we had that information… and given the fact that I was in a bit of a rough patch when this little kitty came into our lives, it’s safe to say that Simba sort of “rescued” me out of the funk that I was in.  Anyone who has a pet knows how healing they can be for the soul, and Simba has most definitely been that for me over the past few weeks!

The word “Rescued” holds a lot of meaning for me, in more ways than one; it’s also a meaningful reminder of how Christ rescued me, and that’s a wonderful thing to be reminded of, especially as we celebrate Easter this weekend!

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  Tabby Chic Cat Bed (Ad-Free PDF)

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TABBY CHIC CAT BED

Level: Easyish

Size: 17″ wide x 5″ tall

Materials:

• S hook (19.00mm) – and YES, I really did use an S hook, and that really is an S hook in the photos. I have a very tight tension. If you don’t, you should use a smaller hook.
• Yarn needle
• Approximately 140 yards of Loops & Threads Chunky (<6 skeins). Sample shown in “Oatmeal” (currently sold out online, but my store had plenty). Loops & Threads Chunky is a #6 super bulky yarn, HOWEVER, if you are substituting, I would strongly recommend using a #7 Jumbo yarn. (The yarn I used really should be classified as a #7, as it’s significantly thicker than any #6 yarn I’ve ever used.)
• Stitch marker or bobby pin

Gauge:
Your first 4 rounds should measure 7″ across.

Abbreviations Used:
MC (magic circle) – view my tutorial here
CH (chain)
ST/STS (stitch/stitches)
SL ST (slip stitch)
SC (single crochet)
HDC (half double crochet)

Special Terminology:
3rd Loop – Some rows call for the stitches to be completed in the “3rd loop”. Instead of putting your HDC in the top loops, reach your hook past the back loop where you’ll find a 3rd loop on the side of the stitch. Insert your hook there to create your HDC. This forces both of the top loops to rest on the front of your project, creating a ribbing effect. In other patterns it is also referred to as a Camel Stitch or RibHDC.

Notes:
(1) This pattern is written in American Standard terms.
(2) This pattern is worked mostly in a seamless round. At Round 10, you will chain and turn, and then continue on in a seamless round in the opposite direction. This is all noted in the pattern.
(3) Starting CHs do not count as stitches.

How To Make It Larger:
It’s relatively simple, so hopefully my explanation won’t sound toocomplicated. What you’ll want to do is continue increasing your base until it’s about 1-2 inches smaller than the size you want the bed to be. On the very last repeat of the last round you did, use SC instead of HDC for all but the last two stitches; use slip stitches for the final two stitches. (This is the equivalent of Round 9 in the pattern.) So for instance, if you did 10 increase rounds, your 10th round would be:

(2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 8 STS) 7 times. 2 SC in next, 1 SC in each of the next 6 STS, 1 SL ST in each of the next 2 STS. (80)

Then, CH1 and turn, and do a final increase round in HDC (this is the equivalent of Round 10 in the pattern). Continue on with Round 11 and follow the pattern as written (your stitch counts will be different).

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

To begin:
Using S Hook, make a magic circle.

Round 1:  CH1. 8 HDC in MC. (8)

Round 2: 2 HDC in each ST around. (16)

Round 3:  (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in next) around. (24)

Round 4: (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 2 STS) around. (32)

Round 5: (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 3 STS) around. (40)

Round 6: (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 4 STS) around. (48)

Round 7: (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 5 STS) around. (56)

Round 8: (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 6 STS) around. (64)

Round 9: (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 7 STS) 7 times. 2 SC in next, 1 SC in each of the next 5 STS, 1 SL ST in each of the next 2 STS. (72)

Note: The end of round 9 should smooth down your round to blend in, instead of ending with the jagged edge that working a seamless round causes. This will enable us to chain up in the next round, turn our work, and begin working seamlessly in the other direction.

Round 10: CH1, turn your work. (2 HDC in next, 1 HDC in each of the next 8 STS) around. Do not join. (80)

Rounds 11-14: In 3rd loops, HDC in each ST around. (80)

Round 15: In 3rd loops, SC in each of the next 75 STS. SL ST in 3rd loops of each of the next 5 STS. (80)

Fasten off and weave in all ends.