Repurposing An Old Cat Tree

 

Breathing new life into something old…My first instinct is how can I fix it. Tossing stuff out and buying new is always easier, but not always easier on the wallet, and besides that, I don’t always find the “new” better than what I already have. They just don’t make things like they used to. All too often I find that statement is so true. Though in this case, my cat tree is nothing special and yes, you can find this style and probably better, but my cats like it and that’s most important. So I’m going to spiffy this one up.

Before I show you what I did, remember when I made a cat tree/bed out of a wooden spool? You can see it here… That was when I found out how much they really liked to scratch on sisal. Which is why I chose to use sisal to freshen up this tree instead of wrap more carpet around it. I may do carpet again another time, but I have a few rolls of sisal, so sisal it is! Here’s what I did…

Supplies:

one old cat tree

sisal rope

hot glue gun

glue sticks

scissors

vacuum

Vacuum the tree really well. I usually get to it about once a week to help keep the hair down in the house. If I didn’t vacuum the house a few times a day, it would look like I live in a “hair” house! Ack!!!!

Cut/trim off any strings or carpet strands. See the hair? That’s because I had helpers while trimming, hence the need to vacuum a lot! Good thing I can vacuum the cats too. I put on the brush attachment and go at them. They actually like it! 🙂

I really let this tree go! You know, “Oh I will get to it later?”…

After trimming loose parts, I hot glued down carpet parts that have loosened. (That’s Evan the dog. He is one of the sweetest pups I’ve had the privilege to have in my life. He’s got the most unique fur. I will feature him in a post one day. He’s so cool, he has his own instagram!)

Depending on how your tree was originally made… I found the carpet was stapled along the seam. That’s fine, but if the cats scratched it loose around the stapled part, then the whole carpet piece was loose. I cut parts of the carpet off. Later on, I realized I could have left it. Either way I found it worked whether I left the carpet loose or cut it off.

Choose a good place to start. I hot glued at the beginning of the sisal rope and then as I wound the rope around I added more hot glue. I wanted this good and tight as I know my cats and they really, really love to scratch on sisal. 

Here you can see I decided to cut off the carpet. I didn’t see the sense in leaving a little piece here and there, though I doubt it would have made a difference under the sisal. BTW, that’s Chaz. My helper for the moment. 

Chaz didn’t move at all. I guess he found what I did interesting.

Find another section that needs sisal and keep on hot glueing around and around and around…

and around…

That’s Spencer at the top this time and Eva peeking through! One more leg to go…

The last leg! Finally.

Done!

Easy project. This did take longer than I expected. I think having “helpers” added to the time, but I wouldn’t have it any other way!

This time, at the top, is Sherlock. Aptly named as he is our most curious cat! And Chaz who is always good for relaxing “down at the club”. 

Tree looks much better! The best part is, the cats are happy to use it!

Tips:

Hot glue is HOT so be careful. You can use a chop stick or a screw driver to hold the sisal in place for a few seconds as it dries.

Sisal can poke into your skin. I had to tweeze out a couple “splinters”. You can wear leather gloves. I just sucked it up! Hahaha. I don’t do well with gloves. Which is why I have to deal with poison ivy on my hands when I’m out doing yard work.

You can hot glue a section and just wrap the sisal around a few times and then glue another small section. You don’t really need to glue every inch as you go along.

If your cat prefers carpet, home improvement stores carry carpet remnants. Rugs are also great and you can buy them at places like Target. They are smaller and easier to handle. I’ve used a good razor blade knife (be super careful) and cut the sizes I need.

The sisal I used for this project I bought at HomeDepot a couple of years ago. I did a check and they still carry sisal. Make sure it’s all natural, free from chemicals. This one states:  Safe for use with pet toys like cat scratching posts. Natural fiber-twisted rope is biodegradable and economical. Home Depot also ships! Since this project used up the last of my stock, I will be getting more. Sisal is really handy and I use it for many projects.

We know how finicky cats can be, so I hope this gives you an option to redo a cat tree your kitty already loves!

You are FABULOUS for reading this far! And I thank you so much for doing so! I hope you have a purrfectly happy day!

Koko

Surfboard Storage

At the moment, we are in a landlocked state. That means, no ocean touching our state on any side. Sadly, not even within driving distance. One day we will be near ocean again. It’s not a dream, it’s a reality! Until then, I wanted to store our boards in a way to still remind us that we surf, we love the ocean, we still are in the game!

There are many ways to store/showcase surfboards. Here’s what I did…

I got these cute dragonfly hooks. I used a stud finder to secure the screws into studs. The dragonfly hooks slips easily onto the screw. I bought these at Target.

I then used ribbon to hang the surfboard on and then slip the ribbon onto the hooks. Simple!

 

Here, I wanted this type of look. The wood adds a nice element and really ties the wood tones in this room. You can see the shelving unit I built here… You can see I kept the wood natural in the shelving. I knotted this rope because “Spencer The Cat” loves to play with the hanging piece! Picture of him can be found on my instagram! Though I do have a few felines, he’s one of the orange ones. Future post on all the abandoned critters that have found safe refuge with us coming… 🙂

And speaking of wood tones… I think it goes well not only with the shelving, but it goes nicely with the “drum” nightstand you can find that post here…  🙂 See that bottom surfboard? That was made by Rusty himself!

These simple hooks can be found most anywhere…Home Depot, Lowes, Target. They are around 3 bucks for two! Not bad.

I used cotton rope to hang these boards.

Oh hi! This is “Spencer The Cat”! He loves to sleep, take baths, and purr.

Surfer Magazine wrote in 2020 surfing will be an olympic sport! If you love surfing, whether you like to surf or just watch, this is exciting news! My family is super excited about this!

If you have surfboards, paddle boards, even light kayaks, this hanging system could be a fun way for you to store your equipment.

Happy Friday to all you AWESOME followers. Go find, be, do something that excites you!

Peace, Koko 🙂

 

Self Imposed Time-Out!

I’m a bad, bad, putty-tat!

My little demon kitty, I mean my little angel…I caught her like this.  She must have done something that I have yet to find out about and decided she better put herself in time-out before I did!  It was too cute to pass up!

What funny thing does your little creature do?

Is Your Cat In Pain? Signs To Look For.

Cats are master disguisers of pain. How are we to know when they are in pain? What are the signs?

First off, I hope you know your pet well. If not, get to know her, after all you are her life line. You are whom she puts her trust in. You are the one that feeds her and grooms her and hopefully plays with her. You know her likes, dislikes, wants, and needs. You know things that make her jump; fireworks, rowdy kids, doggie that loves to chase her…

How about the new kitty you’ve adopted or the one you are fostering? How can you tell if she is in pain? Here are some tips in how you can tell if your feline needs more than love, food, and comfort.

What is the difference between being scared or outright pain?

Is your kitty suddenly running off to dark small spaces?
Is she wailing/crying for no apparent reason?
When you touch her does she shy away/bite at you/claw at you?
Touch her paws and move up each leg. Feel around her neck, down her spine, around her tummy. How does she react? (That was the way I had confirmed my kitties pain and what needed to be done.)
Does she seem abnormally tired/sleepy/not as active?
Any signs of discharge from eyes/ears/bottom?
Is she eating normally?
How about her facial expressions? Is she holding her ears back or in an odd way? Are her eyes glazed/sad-looking? (When one of my kitties was ill, I could tell by the look in his eyes. He had a sad hollow look. His whiskers sort of turned down. He was having some issues with his urinary tract…BTW; he’s completely recovered, yay!)
Look at how she walks. Is her back hunched? Does she hang her head low?
Is her breathing odd, too slow/too fast?
Is she pacing the room as if she can’t get comfortable; laying down only to get right back up?

Hopefully some of these tips will help clue you in on your kitty’s pain. Noticing the pain is the first sign in helping her get better. The signs will be there if you just take a moment to look. Paws and kisses…Koko

Happy Fourth of July!

“HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!

Now mom, where’s my breakfast?!”