Ideas for · 2 min read · updated

Gifts for cat people

Cat people are hard to shop for and easy to please, as long as the gift has their cat on it.

The short answer

Get them something made from a photo of their actual cat: the cat in a crown repeated over a fleece blanket, its face knitted into a holiday sweater, the cat canonized as a saint, or hidden in a jigsaw crowd. All of these work from one phone photo.

The picks

  1. A yellow fleece throw covered in a golden retriever wearing a crown and bow tie, made with Good Boy Wallpaper
    Walls & mugs

    Good Boy Wallpaper

    The name says boy, but cats work. Their cat in a crown or a space helmet, repeated over a fleece blanket, with a royal decree along the bottom.

    Makes: Throw, bandana, socks, all-over tee

  2. A dog wearing a red knitted sweater with a golden retriever's face and Merry Woofmas knitted on the front, made with Ugly Sweater
    Knits

    Ugly Sweater

    The cat's face knitted into a holiday sweater. With four yarns for the whole sweater, tabby stripes become a few bold bands.

    Makes: Knit sweater, pet sweater, beanie

  3. A fanny pack printed all over with a smiling woman in a halo labelled St. Marisol, made with Saint Mode
    Things to wear

    Saint Mode

    The cat canonized with a halo and a legend of its miracles, repeated over socks or a fanny pack.

    Makes: Fanny pack

  4. A jigsaw puzzle of a crowded wedding party with a missing person case card in the corner, made with Find Dave
    Puzzles & flags

    Find Dave

    The cat hidden in a crowd of hundreds on a jigsaw, for whoever claims they'd spot it anywhere.

    Makes: Jigsaw puzzle

  5. A big head pillow of a man's face in red and yellow halftone with a #1 DAD ribbon, made with Big Head
    Pillows

    Big Head

    The cat's head, huge, as a pillow cut to its outline, ears and all.

    Makes: Shaped pillow

  6. A courtroom sketch of a cat in a suit on trial, in a red oak frame, made with Courtroom Sketch
    Walls & mugs

    Courtroom Sketch

    A framed courtroom sketch of a cat on trial for their cat's worst crime, with their cat's name on the caption. The drawn cat is a stand-in drawn from your description.

    Makes: Framed print

Getting a photo of a cat that won't sit still

You don't need a portrait. The phone cut-out has been tested on a tabby on a busy kitchen counter and on a tuxedo cat. Pick a photo with both ears showing, because the sites find the head from where the ears meet. Props like a crown can be dragged into place if they land wrong.

The photo stays on your phone until an order is placed. Then it's checked by Google's AI (no famous people, nothing explicit) and kept privately so it can be printed.

For the cat with a record

If the cat is famous in the family for its crimes, Courtroom Sketch puts it on trial. You name the cat and type the charge (the glass pushed off the table while making eye contact), and the court writes a case number, a ruling and a verdict, then sketches a cat on the stand in a tiny suit. That cat is a generic cat drawn from your description; the court never sees a photo. Their cat's name prints on the caption.

Questions people ask

Does Good Boy Wallpaper work for cats?

Yes, any pet works. Its cut-out has been tested on cats, including a tabby and a tuxedo cat.

Does the courtroom sketch look like their cat?

No. The sketch is drawn from the charge and a description, so it shows a generic cat in a tiny suit. Their cat's name prints on the caption.

How much detail survives on a knitted cat?

The ears and the outline of the head come through. Fine fur patterns get simplified, since the whole sweater uses four yarns.