Cats cats cats cats cats cats CATS.

I like cats. Judge me all you like, but I have a husband who tolerates me being a mad cat lady. To be fair, if it wasn’t for his excellent beard and the fact he owns a massive toolbox, I would call him a mad cat lady too. Last week I overheard him singing Liberty X to the moggies while he made them dinner.

For a few months now I’ve been on the hunt for some feline fabric that I could make some bags out of. After all, the dogs, flamingos and rabbits went down so well last year. However, being a design prima donna, I couldn’t really find any I loved loved LOVED. And I didn’t want to settle.

The things Bergerac does for art.

I decided to use my own cats Bergerac and Columbo as inspiration. They are very patient models and make excellent (if bossy, smelly and fat) muses. When they are asleep.

: Columbo celebrating the launch of his signature fabric.

I wanted it to seem like it could have been designed any time over the last 40 years, and was particularly inspired by 1960s high street haberdashery paraphenalia (two of my favourite words).

Printed by the lovely Woven Monkey in Derby (they take a couple of weeks but the quality and colour is fab) and made in my dining room, I have two size bags and two different linings (because I’m indecisive) available. Being made from cotton, meaning they fold down very small for posting or packing away.

All seams are double-stitched for extra strength and they are perfectly roomy for any pens, make-up brushes, hair rollers, nail varnish, rulers, and other cluttery things. Unfortunately, cats will not fit in them no matter how Bergerac and Columbo tried to transform my one into a nest. (Approved by cats though! Yay?)