Homemade Cat Tree

Our Cat Lemmy is always diving all over the place but always on places he should be going so we decided to make him a cat tree so that he could go up, without being told to get down!

Originally we were going to buy one from the shops but they are soooo expensive and never in colours that go with your decor so I got designing and before we knew it we had bought everything we need for it and got to work.

What you will need:

Plank of wood

black paint

twine - we used this bakers divine twine (2 rolls) to get a black and white effect but you can use any

shelves - we got ours from homebase and used 2 small, 1 medium and 1 large

doormat or rug - we got a long floor runner for cheap from The Range (pic used on the website is wrong)

Velcro

Glue gun

No more nails

Drill, Raw Plugs & Screws

Fabric storage box - Optional (again we got ours from The Range)

Step 1 - Scratching post

I got a large plank of wood that was long enough to reach from my roof to the floor and started by painting it black then leaving it over night to dry. I then took the no more nails and used a paint brush to cover a 20cm section of the wood, then wrapped the twine round the wood, on top of the no more nails. Repeat this step until you run out of twine.

I also had a section at the bottom of the wood where I had ran out of twine so I cut a small strip of my rug and used my glue gun to attach it to the remaining piece of wood. You could choose to do this all the way down if you don't want to use twine.

Step 2 - The Shelves

I took the mat I bought and cut it so it was the same shapes as the tops of my shelves.

I then glued Velcro in each corner of the shelves and left to dry (which doesn't take long if you use a glue gun). I stuck the other side of the Velcro on top and put a bit of glue on top of each, then quickly placing the mat on top of the shelf and press down. Once dry you can remove the mat from the shelf and re-attach any time you need to clean it.

Tip: don't use too much glue otherwise it will go over the sides of your Velcro and you won't be able to un-stick it later

Step 3 - Assemble the Cat Tree

We took the scratching post and placed it at an angle on the corner of the room then using a couple of drawing pins, we pinned it in place so it didn't fall down for the time being

We then measured where each of the shelves needed to go so that our cat could step in between them and we also made sure the were right up against the scratching post so that when drilled in place then post can't move and you can remove the pins.

The only shelf we didn't do next to the post as the small one second from the top - we did this one out a bit more so it was easier for him to position himself onto the top shelf.

Step 4 - Hiding Space

Lemmy loves hiding in cardboard boxes so we always feel bad about throwing them out. I wanted to incorporate this into his Cat Tree but thought just sticking a cardboard box on it would look messy so we bought this small fabric box and glued Velcro on the bottom, then filled it with cardboard and packaging paper. you can then use the Velcro to attach it to any shelf you want and can easily take it off if you cat doesn't like it or you want to clean the mats. When we had finished he jumped straight in this box and didn't come out until I cooked Chicken later on that night!

Hope your cat loves it as much as ours does!

I'll be back,

Hidden Storage Solutions

My woodwork skills are really coming along and although my month of woodwork is nearly over, I think this is something that I will continue improving on because my flat is going to look so much better for the new storage solutions I'm creating.

But if you have had your fair share of book cases and storage boxes then check out these extremely cleaver storage solutions. Your friends and family will never know what you've hidden away!

This shelf has a secret compartment to hide those small items that clutter up your room

Floating Shelf - Instructables

I love this picture frame storage for jewellery. I have lots of lovely pieces that sit in a drawer but this would keep them neat and stop them getting broken

Hidden Jewellery Box - Design Sponge

Bored of having shampoos and cleaners all over your bathroom - well why not try this out for size?

There is no tutorial for this one but you could do something similar with wooden panels, some hinges and a locking mechanism to stop the panels opening.

Hidden Bath Storage - Born Rich

This bar is is AMAZING and all it took was a couple of Ikea bookcases hinged together on one side , then cover the outer in leather type material and stud round the edges. To finish it off put wheels on the bottom for easy movement and a lock on the front to hold it together!

Trunk Bar - Ikea Hackers

This last tutorial however is the piece de resistance! Everyone has seen one of those bookcases that leads to a secret passageway...well now you can build your own and shock all your friends with your awesome skills

Bookcase with hidden storage - This is Carpentry

Be careful you don't end up going overboard like these folks though!!! 

For more fun hidden storage - check out my Pinterest

I'll be back xx

I'm on cloud nine with my woodwork skills!!

My sister is due a baby in just a couple of weeks now and my boyfriend and I are helping to decorate their nursery. she wanted a jungle theme so we are covering the walls in jungle animals and trees so to help the shelves blend into the picture, we decided to make some that look like clouds!

There were actually really simple to do - either that or my woodwork skills are improving!

What You Need:

Thick wood - I used a pine shelf I got from Homebase

2 corner plates

screws

hot glue / wood glue

2 picture hooks

drill

sander

jigsaw

Step 1

Cut out a length of wood for the main part of your shelf (mine was 40cm long). You will also need 2 cloud shapes - one large cloud which is slightly bigger than the length of your shelf and one thats about half the length of your shelf.

Then cut the large cloud so that the bottom is the same length as the shelf but keep those end parts as you will need them later.

Sand your piece down and then you will be ready to assemble your shelf.

Step 2

Then using your corner plates, screw the large cloud to the base of your shelf on both sides. This will make your shelf sturdy

Step 3

Take your two left over bits of the cloud and cut a smaller gap in each and this will left them sit flush against your cloud with the screws inside

Step 4

Glue the ends back onto the large cloud and fill in the gaps with glue so they create a smooth surface

Step 5

Glue your small cloud to the other side of your base, picking either the left or right hand side of your shelf

Step 6

Give your shelf a couple coats of white paint to finish it off

Step 7

Screw some picture hooks into the top of your large cloud and then you can use these to nail your shelf into the wall

Step 8

Fill with your favourite toys and books but test it out before putting anything too heavy on it

Make me look beautiful darling

Ask any of my friends an family, went I was younger I was a proper tomboy. Until a few years ago, I had black eye shadow and lots of eyeliner but that was about it in the make up department.

So what changed you may ask...well I moved to London and met the fabulous Tatum who showed me the wonders of red lipstick

After that there was no going back and my wardrobe, make up and accessory collections have just kept growing. I badly need some good storage solution for it all but i want something that is easy to access and looks pretty too. 

Here are some of the idea's I've found while searching the web this week:

           

Magnetic Makeup Board - Laura Thoughts            Nail Polish Shelf - Flutter & Sparkle

I love this magnetic board by Laura. It's so pretty and just makes it so easy to find what you are looking for, rather than raking around that makeup bag. I also have a crazy amount of nail polish in my drawers so it would be great to make it into art on my wall instead.

                           

Hair Bow Storage Board - Remodalaholics           Hair Band Holder - Couturier Mommy

I have quite a collection of fascinators and hair bands but at the moment I'm using my guitar strings as my storage board for them (much to my boyfriend's despair). The ribbon idea is super simple and I'm definitely going to give it a go but the framed canvas is really cool as well - I'm starting to think about all the cool storage frames I can have up in my bedroom instead of art!!!

Jewelry Box - Sincerely, Kinsey

I LOVE THIS JEWELLERY BOX!!! What an amazing idea and a great use of upcycling. It would also be a great gift for the Harry Potter fan in your life - can you imagine how much jewellery you  could fit in one of those!

I just can't wait to get started on transforming my bedroom this year. I hope these tutorials have inspired you as much as they have me.

I'll be back xx