DIY houseplant for your cat

Lately Arrietty has really been enjoying rubbing her face in my houseplants. They're cat safe, so I don't have to worry for her sake, but my plants on the other hand! They're already looking a little the worse for wear because of the lack of sunshine this time of year, and those cat nuzzles are not helping matters any. So I decided to make Arrietty her own plant that she can rub her face in as much as she wants! She's already taken a liking to it so I'd say this DIY was a success!



Materials needed:

A ceramic pot
Plastic grass
Two feather stick cat toys
River rocks
Spray catnip
Styrofoam plant base
Brown kraft paper
Non-toxic glue



When you're shopping for the greenery, make sure you pick something with very substantial leaves that your cat won't be able to ingest. Mine had some small, thin pieces sticking out of it so I plucked them out beforehand.

Add some river rocks to the bottom of your pot for weight, and then put the styrofoam on top of it. Insert your plastic greenery. Using a sharp utility knife, cut off the bulk of the stick on the feather toys and then insert the shorter sticks into the styrofoam.

I forgot to take pictures of the next step, but to cover up the styrofoam just attach small crumpled pieces of brown kraft paper to the foam with non-toxic glue. Once the foam is entirely covered in the brown paper (I did two layers of paper to make sure the foam was totally inaccessible) spritz the ends of the leaves with catnip spray to entice your kitty away from your pretty parlor palms and into their own feline garden!

I can't say how happy I am with this project! Arrietty is content with her plant and has been staying away from the real plants. I just spray the leaves whenever I think it needs a little catnip refresh.

DIY salt dough cat ornaments

If you're looking for a last minute Christmas gift that you can whip up at home, look no further! Salt dough ornaments are so easy to make and you probably have all the ingredients in your kitchen right now, so you don't even have to leave the house! I decided to make custom cat ornaments for all of my family members based on their own cats (and then a hot air balloon for my cat-less grandmother!) They came out SO cute and I even made a little Arrietty one for myself!



Materials needed:

2 c. flour
1c. salt
1c. cold water
acrylic paint
mod podge (optional)
paintbrushes
ribbon
template (download here)

Mix the flour and salt together, and then add the water until the dough is smooth. Knead the dough for ten minutes (mine didn't actually get very smooth until I had already been kneading it for a few minutes, so make sure to be patient with the dough!) and then let it rest for 20 minutes.



You can definitely try to use cookie cutters for your dough, but I prefer the more homemade look of hand-molding them myself. I placed some plastic wrap over my template so that it wouldn't stick, and then I rolled up little balls of dough and used the template to shape them into a cat head. Then I used a large plastic needle to poke a hole at the top for ribbon and placed the cats onto a greased cookie sheet that I lined with aluminum foil.

Bake at 250' for 2 hours and then let cool completely before you paint them.



I painted my cat heads to look like all of the cats in my family, but very loosely. I just wanted them to look simple, not like photographs. When they're all finished, give them a coat of Mod Podge (or honestly clear nail polish would work too!) and then add a ribbon in the hole. And voila! A very thoughtful homemade present :)