DIY Cat Camper House

Hello,

As a self-proclaimed dog person, I do get the occasional inkling to make something for the cats of the house. I mean, at least one of them is nice. (The other one lurks around corners waiting for the best opportunity to commit homicide.)

I started to look at some small gift to give the cats for Christmas, because, yes, we are one of those families. I found an adorable vintage camper house for cats. If the cats are going to have something, why wouldn't it be a cute vintage camper? But the Amazon one was around $30.00. Um. I love my cats...well strongly care for...but that seemed a wee-bit over priced for a bunch of cardboard.

Speaking of Amazon...you know who gets lots of cardboard? This Amazon Prime addict. Also, I've got all this free time from not running into town for TP, so I could use those skills to make one bomb diggity cat camper, no doubt.

Supplies

X-Acto Knife (New blades really work best)
Cardboard (Keep an old box, or grab a new one or foam board from the store)
Pencil
Paint & Brush (I used acrylic and house paint..whatever I had around the house)
Packing Tape
Ruler (if you want to make sure your lines are straight and measured accurately)

Directions

1. Draw Outline of Front of Camper

You can make your camper whatever shape you want. Of course I had a wonderful example with Myrtle in our front drive.  (Check out Myrtle's Journey here).

2. Cut & Draw Outline of Back of Camper

Using your X-acto knife, follow the line you have drawn. Hint: When using an X-acto knife, it's much easier to pull the knife towards you, not push it away.

Once you have your outline cut out, you will need to make an opposite side. Use the cut out side as a pattern to transfer an outline to another piece of cardboard. Cut out this piece with your X-acto knife.

3. Draw Details

I decided my camper needed windows (the lever ones and jalousie, obviously). I also needed a door  as well. Using a system of scoring (not cutting all the way through the cardboard, but rather just the first layer so the cardboard bends freely), I created a door and windows.

 4. Paint

Before you can tape anything together, you'll need to paint the camper. This is the one step where I thought I might have picked the wrong material. A white foam board would have already been colored. Cardboard also sucks up paint like no other, so you'll have to do multiple coats. I didn't find the paint made the cardboard soggy by any means, just time consuming between coats. I used a Painter's pen for the dots.

5. Create Base

Using the side as a guide, I marked on another piece of cardboard how long the front was. I made the camper about 10 inches wide. Big enough for a cat, but not too big. You will want to add about 2 to 3 inches to the width and length in order to have a side to tape the front and back to. (See the pictures for a better idea of what I'm describing).

Score at the line of the extra "over hang." You are basically creating a box bottom. Tape up the corners to create the box shape.

You may need to trim the bottom box where the door is going to hit if you don't want the base showing. (Doubt the cats mind much)

6. Using the packing tape, tape the front and back to your bottom base. Tape from the inside so it's hidden from view.

7. Add Structure to the top

Cut strips of cardboard as wide as your camper (around 10 inches in my case) and tape them to the top and sides of your camper. This will add some stability and make it easier to attach the top/side piece.

8.  Create Roof and Sides

Using one long piece of cardboard as wide as your camper, you will want to create your roof. This is the longest of all the steps. Each time there is a curve (for example, when you are going from the roof to the side), you will need to score the cardboard to make it curve.

9. Paint the Roof & Attach

This is is pretty self explanatory. You'll need it to be painted before you tape it on. (Paint won't stick to tape well, if at all) Finally, using the packing tape, attach the roof. You probably will need this tape to be on the outside of the camper, so it will show a bit.

10. Enjoy!

Here's the nice kitty enjoying his fancy new camper. The other cat is probably googling "How to Get Away with Murder."

Spring Junk Jam 2017

Happy Sunday!

Hubby is out on a calving call and the kiddos are finally asleep. I figured it was a good time to blog about the super fun Junk Jam that was held in Brookings, South Dakota yesterday.

I did a review of Junk Jam last year (Click here for the post), and this year's event was even better. The event is hosted and organized by Funky Junk in Brookings, South Dakota. There was many (many) more vendors with unique items either handmade or curated. The addition of the food trucks was particularly nice as well. I had to take in the event while my oldest was at a birthday party, while Sweet Cheeks was strapped to me, so it was a rush and crazy but still a blast. Sweet Cheeks pretty much has this look the entire time.

Rather than try to show you all the vendors (there was just too many great ones), I'm going to show off the pieces I picked up from some of my favorite vendors. I didn't get any furniture simply because I have no room in my house. That's part of the reason you haven't seen any furniture upcycling posts lately. There's no room in our house for upcycling. Maybe I should sell everything off so I can start over. If I didn't think my husband would lose his mind, that actually sounds like fun.

The first items I picked up were from Out on a Limb. This home decor boutique is located in Willow Lake, South Dakota. I loved the items she curated for her shop. I saw this shirt and despite my entirely too large graphic tee collection, I just had to add it. As a reader, you will know this shirt is pretty much the Ugly House Renovation. Of course, I can't turn down cute tea towels either. The kids are always ruining the ones I have, so it's good to keep a new supply on hand. (How do they always find the whitest towel when they have the darkest most permanent messes? It's a talent I tell you.)

The second item I picked up is one of my favorites. I think it's a planter (?). It's a hot air balloon that spins with the wind. I'm so freaking excited to find somewhere to hang it. Right now it's just in a tree with like 5 bird feeders waiting for a new home some where else in the yard. The hot air balloon came from Rustic Designs in Mitchell, South Dakota.

The third item are these magnets from a vendor called Honey B Design Co. The star of their booth, however, were these AMAZING screwdriver flowers. I'm so in love with them. They were a bit outside my budget this year, but I'll have to plan on them for next year because they are just so colorful and clever.

The fourth booth I loved was Rock Me Mama from Astoria, South Dakota. Well, it would be obvious for anyone who was there why I was drawn to their booth. They have a traveling boutique in a vintage Shasta camper. Uh, love! Myrtle the Aluminum Turtle would totally be jealous of their aqua paint job. I left with this cute teething necklace. Sweet Cheeks has already put it through a workout, and I love how cute it looks when I wear them...not so obviously teething related. They also have some serious adorable kids clothes.

All in all, it's a great show that is totally worth the cover charge (and probably the early bird one at that...if only I could have made it!) Did you attend? Share your finds on my Facebook page!

Gone Junkin': Brookings Junk Jam 2016

Hello!

It's been quiet on the blog lately, because it's been very not quiet at our house! Our baby girl, Hattie, made her appearance last week, so it's been a beautiful mess around here. Not only do we have a new baby in the house, but two kids were starting school too. In fact, my husband had to leave the hospital to take our daughter to her back to school night. So, forgive the tardiness on this post!

Before Hattie made her appearance, I got to attend Junk Jam here in Brookings, South Dakota. There were a ton of fun booths. If you frequent the blog, you know when I lived in Iowa, I used to frequent these type of sales. I was super excited to see one being held so close to our home in South Dakota. There were some local vendors present that I have previously featured on my "Small Buisness Saturday" feature, but there were also some new vendors I have never seen before. Here are three of my favorites.

The event was organized by Funky Junk. They had a great booth with both finished signs and furniture and some untouched vintage finds. I also picked up a new "blessed mama" shirt that fit my pregnant belly. It was a huge hit at the OB office. You can visit Funky Junk's Facebook page by clicking here.

Another booth I am in love with is Dusty Decor by Tamara. Her furniture painting was on point. I loved the colors, and the finish was super professional. I loved LOVED this bench. It was already snagged by another customer, but I did leave with a super cute Fall sign that I'm looking forward to hanging on my front door once the leaves change color. Check out her Facebook page by clicking here.

 The show had a good vibe with food available for purchase and a band playing while you shopped.

The third booth I just loved was by Renewed out of Orange City, Iowa. Their stuff was really unique to a junk sale. There was a good mix of vintage finds, painted/finished furniture and some truly unique automotive themed projects. I just loved the car fronts. I'm thinking one of these would be super cool in my dad's new shop. The mustang front had real working front headlights. Check out their Facebook page by clicking here.

It was a great event, and I hope they hold it again next year!