DIY Fish Toy for Cats

I think I neglect to mention Aubrey a lot. She's kind of the best cat ever and so low-key. She was our first "baby" and I will always love her more than words can ever express. She hates really dislikes Quinn which breaks my heart but she keeps herself content. I feel like every once in awhile, she needs some super spoiling which is why I decided to make her a new toy. 

Kibble Container with Mason Jar Scoop

Ever since Quinn came into our lives two months ago, I've been scouring HomeGoods for a rustic dog food container with no luck. Is it just me or do they only make dog products in either bone or paw print patterns?  I finally came across a huge glass apothecary jar at A.C. Moore and with a 40% off coupon, I decided to give it a chance.


The only problem was that a plain cookie jar was not exactly what I had in mind. I really wanted something with more character so I grabbed my Krylon Looking Glass spray paint and went crazy. You can see my Mercury Glass Tutorial here.

After that part of the project was finished, I spelled out "KIBBLE" with distressed rub-on letters. Since rubons usually only contain one version of each letter, having two cloned Bs next to each other looked a bit silly.

To eliminate this, I went in and scratched away random spots on each of the Bs. They went from identical twins to close cousins and I'm completely on board with that. 

I absolutely love how it turned out. The mason jar is no prop either, it's the new measuring scoop! Ingenious, I know. I left the metal rim on so I wouldn't have to worry about the glass chipping if I accidentally smacked the jar against the wall of the container. 

After all was said and done, I realized that the container was too big for the counter but sat too low for the floor. I remembered a great wooden plant stand that I found on clearance at Jo-Ann Fabrics and I knew it was exactly what I needed. To marry the two pieces together in one style, I stained the stand with Behr Premium in Slate. Doesn't it look like the most perfect weathered wood ever?!

I'm really loving this project, but what do YOU think? It's a simple way to make ugly clutter transform into fabulous decor and who doesn't love that?


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The Quinn-tessential Family of Four!

This has been a whirlwind week for the Mr and I. I mentioned it a few weeks ago, but we had been tossing around the idea of getting a dog (well, mostly it was me doing the tossing and him doing the ignoring, haha). Finally the Mr came around because for as much as I love animals, he has an even softer spot in his heart for them than I do. Once the decision was made, there was never a doubt in my mind that we would turn to a rescue for our newest baby and that we did.

We ran across this listing on PetFinder.com for a dog named Quail and her story just broke our heart.

After going through with the entire process (thankfully they don't hand out dogs to just anyone) and having her meet with Aubrey, she finally came to live with us on Friday night! This is our little dog-ter, Quinn:

While a lot of her life to this point has been a mystery, what we do know is that she is a little spit fire but the biggest cuddle bug. Quinn is such a doll and we are so excited to make the rest of her doggy-days better than she could have ever dreamed.

Aubrey and Quinn being civil to one another (this didn't last long, unfortunately)

If you are considering being a pet-parent, resolve to contact a rescue or shelter. Refrain from buying and resolve to adopt. After all, pets are not an item, they are part of your family.

No-Sew, Waterproof Placemats

If you hold even a five-minute conversation with me, you are bound to hear about my little munchkin, Aubergine. Aubs/Aubrey/Aubbie loves to play with makeup brushes, eat her mama's ice cream, and chase her papa around the house. She is such a little piggy when she eats though... water dribbles and food crumbles everywhere. Even so, she is just the sweetest little cuddlebug on four-legs you would ever meet. Oh wait, you thought Aubbie was our kid? Close! She's our itty-bitty kitty baby.

She is super duper cute though... I mean, just look at this face!

I'm not kidding about the messiness while she eats though. Aubs has some serious confusion between whether she is a sloppy toddler or a rambunctious puppy because she's always getting food all over her little area. It got so bad, we put a little rug down just to collect her scraps, but the spills went right through and her wet food would cling to the fibers when they dried. We definitely needed something new but I was having a problem finding one that coordinated with the rest of our decor (and didn't look too pet-themed) and was also durable enough for Aubs to dirty up.

So one day, after doing a quick one-through at the dollar store (you know you can't resist looking around either) I found some clear vinyl shelf paper and knew right away that it was a steal. In my previous life I taught preschool and clear vinyl was a mainstay in our crafts cabinet, so there was no doubt that I would find something to do with it. Turns out, my something was this adorable placemat for Aubrey.

This was so simple and took less than 30 minutes. Now we have a pretty mat for Aubs that not only looks nice but is also waterproof and cleans up in a jiffy.

Materials:

• 1 Piece of scrap fabric, 11" x 17"
• Coordinating trim or ribbon
• 2 Pieces of clear vinyl shelf paper, 12" x 18" (generally comes in an 18" width which makes it even easier)
• Tacky glue

Directions: Sorry -- the pictures just aren't uploading correctly, so I'll try to explain this tutorial as clearly as possible 

1. Carefully peel the paper backing off of one piece of the vinyl and place it sticky side up
2. Center the fabric, right side up, and apply it carefully to the vinyl
3. Starting from the center, rub any air bubbles out with your fingers
4. With the ribbons, create a framed inset inside the perimeter of the fabric and using a small dot of tacky glue, affix the ribbons together at each corner
5. Gently peel back the paper on the second piece of vinyl and while centering it, apply it over the fabric and ribbon layers (sticky side down), being sure to overlap the edges of vinyl so that they stick to one another
6. As before, start in the center and smooth out any air bubbles. At the edges, apply extra pressure to ensure that the pieces of vinyl have adhered to one another
7. Trim the edges to form an equal border of between 1/4 and 1/2 of an inch and you're all set to lay it down for Fido.

 

What I like most about this is that while it's great for a pet because it's stain-resistant, washable, and CHEAP, you could easily create a number of them to use at your next barbecue or even some for the kids to use. Speaking of some for the kids... how cute would it be to use their artwork in place of the fabric? I'll have to save that idea for a few more years :)