Hi everyone! I’m making quilts now! LOL this is new to me, but I’m loving it. This quilt features Maneki Neko, or lucky cats as they’re popularly called.

42″ x 36″ MANEKI NEKO baby quilt

100% cotton fabric & batting | cotton & nylon threads

fabrics on both sides and edges are designed by me and available through this link @ Spoonflower

The little Maneki Neko characters featured in my baby quilt design are actually nesting dolls. There’s a Richard Scarry in there as well as a Kit Cat Klock. You can even find the Nekomata nesting doll that I sold at a previous Fishcake Maneki Neko show (shown below).

The piece of fabric used for the quilt was originally printed to test the colors of the new Maneki Neko design. Also, to see if the seamless clouds worked. I used the Spoonflower Fill-A-Yard tool since it allowed me to print a bunch of designs on one yard in a seamless way. That way, I could use it for handbags and other projects. When the printed yard showed up, I became inspired to make it into a quilt, which I’ve never done before. You can see the raw fabric in the background of the photos below.

I want to keep this finished quilt – but I really need to have items available to sell at the show… So, I’ve already started another. Maybe I’ll try and sell both just to see if anyone else likes them as much as I do. Before printing the new yardage, I updated the pattern to be non-directional and added a purple variation. I can’t wait to see the finished result!

Working on this and more for an upcoming art show! As always, I’d love your feedback – so hit me up in the comments!

MANEKI NEKO @ FISHCAKE

17 October – 14 December 2024

Cool Cats (Participating Artists)

• Brady Evans
• Byron Inouye
• Cade Roster
• Donna Shimazu
• Esther Nowell
• Esther Shimazu
• Gemma Hazen
• Kalene Castillo
• Lauren Trangmar
• Masako Schwalbenitz
• Mariko Merritt
• May Izumi
• Megumi Harada
• Mike Watanabe
• Suzanne Wolfe

More about Maneki Neko

The Maneki Neko, which translates literally to “the beckoning cat” in Japanese. The lucky cat is a famous figure and symbol in Japan and is commonly an upright bobtail calico figurine displayed at the entrance of stores and businesses. It will bring you good luck. Maneki Neko raising the right paw beckons prosperity, while the left paw beckons people and customers.  Though its origins are in Japan, the maneki neko is widely recognized by multi-ethnic, locally owned mom and pop shops across the Hawaiian islands. Culturally significant and visually iconic, we celebrate the feline’s hard work in bringing us good fortune and new opportunities.