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Fascinated by the GoDaddy commercial featuring a (presumed) website featuring hats for cats, I went exploring around the Internet to see what kinds of things I could find that related to hats for cats. First and foremost, some of the sites I found had absolutely nothing to do with hats or cats or any combination thereof, so I am guessing it was just a random tag someone used to garner interest. It didn’t work. I didn’t look.
Suffice to say there were lots of different things out there, including this video for a successful Hats for Cats Kickstarter Campaign in 2013. The page did mention and Etsy site, which I also checked out, but it appears that, at the moment, anyway, there are no hats available for cats. There was another called Tiny Hats Fur Cats posted this year that was unsuccessful and no affiliation to the first. That said, there are a lot of people making hats for cats on Etsy, but more on that in a moment.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/578239036/hats-for-cats
I also found a really fun site called Pampered Whiskers that features a Himalayan named Bandit who was adopted from the South Texas Persian Rescue. In addition to some great hats, they donate $1.00 from every order to the rescue of choice by the buyer. Love that!
If you check out either Instagram, which has an assortment of both cats wearing hats and, apparently, some people who think they may be hat wearing cats, themselves, or Twitter, which was a little more to the direct point of it being hats for cats, it can be interesting to see some interpretations as to what that phrase means. Both did also have folks posting who make hats for cats, just in case you are in the market.
If you prefer DIY, head over to Amazon where you have your choice of Cats in Hats: 30 Knit and Crochet Hat Patterns for Your Kitty, Cat Hats: Sixteen Paper Hats to Put on Your Unsuspecting Kitty!, Tiny Hats on Cats: Because Every Cat Deserves to Feel Fancy, and for Kindle-users, Holiday Hats For Cats: 20 Easy Crochet Patterns. If you prefer to read about The Cat in the Hat, I counted some 20+ variations on the theme, primarily due to The Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library which has all kinds of interesting tales to tell. If you do poke around on the site, make sure you check out cat apparel, too.
Photographer Shaina Fishman and stylist Ryen Blaschke created an adorable project for Brooklyn Animal Action to focus on the adoption of shelter kitties. Love that to pieces and a fun way to send a great message, to boot.
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There were other random things floating around the Internet, including several sites that were supposedly called Hats for Cats but turned out to be student projects of one form on another with little to anything of even the remotest interest. I did, as mentioned earlier, head over to Etsy after reading an article in the Daily Mail about Meredith Langley who does, indeed, make hats for cats, and had the opportunity for my own interview with her, trying to see if I might find a clue as to the fascination of hats for cats.
Me: Why hats for cats? Was there a specific inspiration?
Meredith: I first taught myself to crochet as a means of entertainment when I was a stay-at-home mom to my youngest child. The idea of hats for cats began as an amusing novelty to share with friends and family. I opened my shop on Etsy per the suggestion of a family member, but I never expected my work to be so widely and warmly welcomed as it has been over the years.
Me: Do you have cats and are they your models?
Meredith: I currently have three cats of my own, and they are the models you see wearing my work in my shop and across the internet.
Me: What kind of response have you received from people who have seen your work?
Meredith: My work has received an astonishingly positive response over the years. I have made hats for cats to be part of weddings, birthday celebrations, graduations, and marriage proposals. Various humane societies and animal welfare organizations have used my work to help promote the adoption of homeless pets as well as important causes such as spaying and neutering. I often receive messages from people who have stumbled upon my work thanking me for making them smile. I never expected my designs to be so widely appreciated. It is a profound honor and privilege.
Me: Have you had some good success with your cat hats?
Meredith: The fall and winter seasons of every year tend to be quite successful for my shop. My hats for cats have also been featured by various news agencies, entertainment websites, and popular blogs.
Me: What is your favorite among your designs?
Meredith: My favorite designs thus far are The Turkey Hat for Cats and The Wizard Hat for Cats.
Meredith’s simple, down-to-earth approach was great. And the fact that her hats are adorable is an added bonus.
From all of this exhaustive research, okay, it was fun looking for hats for cats, I think one thing seems clear. Hats for cats, cats wearing hats, even hats wearing cats tickles our funny bones. It’s that simple. As to that GoDaddy campaign, sadly, it is fictitious, just in case you haven’t seen it, here’s the whole kit(ten) and caboodle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2e0oyXBZn0
BUT, those fantastic hats in the commercial that inspired it originally were all created by Amélie. Check out her fantastic shop, ToScarboroughFair – Hats for cats. The original, on Etsy. And get your cat the purrfect hat!
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