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Wednesday, September 14, 2016

SIDE TABLE TO HIDDEN LITTER BOX (HOW TO HIDE THE LITTER BOX)


The litter box has been the thorn in my decorating side for years, and I can't believe I didn't come up with this idea to hide it sooner!  I told you about it a few weeks ago when I shared our freshly organized laundry room, but I today I wanted to share just how simple this little design challenge solution was.  

litter box cover, cat, hidden litter box, cat cave,


For this project, you only need a few supplies.  A small table that will fit over the litter box while still allowing room for the cat to move around, some fabric, hot glue, and depending on the finish you want, possibly paint.  

I have always admired this Moroccan style table that I found at At Home, and when this idea dawned on me I knew it would be the perfect piece for this project.  However, the colors available in the size I needed weren't right for the room, so I spray painted the table.  

Here's a quick run down of that process.  I always start by wiping down the piece I want to paint.  Believe it or not, baby wipes work well for this task!  Just let the piece dry for about 5 minutes after you've wiped it.  The original finish was very smooth and slick, so I used a primer this time to help the spray paint adhere well.  A couple of light coats are best, then when it's completely dry sand lightly with a fine grit (220 or higher) sand paper or sanding sponge, just to remove any grit the primer might have left.  Then, spray several light coats of your color.  It won't look good after your first coat... keep them light to avoid runs and drips.  I propped by table up a little so I could spray the top straight on rather than angling the paint down.  I feel like that gave a little more even coverage since sometimes it can be tricky for spray paint not to look blotchy.
  
 Primer  ||  Sanding Sponge  ||  Spray Paint  (affiliate links)

While that dried, I worked on the skirting for the table.  I only skirted 3 sides since the back would be against the wall, but on the front side I left an opening down the middle, so I cut 4 pieces to size.  I allowed a little extra on the top, bottom, and sides to hem the fabric, and I added some extra width because I wanted to put a few pleats in.


After hemming all four sides of each piece (you could use fusible hem tape if you don't sew), I added a couple of pleats and stitched those in across the top, which will be hidden by the apron on the table.


Then, I just hot glued each piece to the back side of the apron.  I wasn't quite sure how I wanted to attach the fabric because I thought I might need to wash is at some point, but I went ahead and glued for now.  If I find that I might need to wash it regularly, I thought about just hot gluing a few pieces of Velcro so the pieces can be removed easily.  So far so good, though, it's staying clean.


So, the sides are covered and there's a split down this front piece for the cats to come in and out of.  As I mentioned in the other post, they are in and out from under our bed through the bedskirt all the time, so I wasn't worried about them navigating their way through the fabric or it being "dark" inside... they have night vision!  I did clip the side panel back for the first few days we used it just so they could see how they were supposed to get in there, and they caught on like champs!


Side note- found this photo in the middle of the ones I was editing for this post and thought I'd share!  Visitors on our patio one night chowing down on bird seed... eek!



Have you ever tried to get a cat to pose in a certain spot?  You should have seen both kids and me behind the camera trying to get a decent shot... now THAT would have been a funny instagram story!




I know a litter box isn't the most glamorous topic and project to be blogging about, but this one sure has made me happy!





 photo jennifersignaturetwo_zps56f3de87.png

Would you like to comment?

  1. cute idea! is this where your litter and food has always been, right next to each other? does your cat give you any problems with eating there?
    b

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    1. No, the food and water actually goes across the room. It landed there just when I was taking photos, so it's not normally in that corner.

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  2. Very clever! You always do things so well and always beautifully done. I took your tip on finding down pillows at a great price and yesterday I found two pillows at Marshalls, $6.00 each. Thank you, Jennifer. Now to make new covers!

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  3. Jennifer I have two cats that are strictly house cats so we have two separate boxes for the big fat princesses. This will help disguise their boxes. We also have two pit bulls so I vacuum up enough hair each week to make another pet. Can you do anything about that?

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    1. I'm sure you could stuff a pillow with it, but ewww!! Ha ha!!

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  4. This is a great idea, your cat looks a lot like mine, her name is KitKat! I've had problems with this huge raccoon coming on the deck and eating leftover cat food, I now just bring the food in around 10 at night, thanks for sharing!😊

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    1. Oh yes, the food will disappear outside overnight for sure! We also just leave food out during the day. KitKat sounds cute! We actually have 2- brothers- and they both look alike!

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  5. Great idea and pretty as well. Does this keep your cat from tracking the litter on the floor? I have a very small laundry room. I keep the litter box on a washable rug but she still tracks litter on the tile floor into the mud room that has hardwood floors. Your box looks pretty deep - maybe that's the solution? Thanks!

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    1. HI Patti! Honestly, litter on the floor is still a problem. However, I'm not sure if it's because of the cats or the kids who aren't too careful when they scoop it out. ;) I think the deeper box definitely helps, though. One of ours likes to really sling the litter around while he's in there!

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    2. Nothing I have tried had ever worked for keeping control of that stray litter. If someone invents a product to truly fix it they will be rich!

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    3. Yes! I think we'd all happily pay good money for that! :)

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  6. You had me at letterbox ;) This is so stylish. I'm hiding one too with a basket that I wanted to share but now I probably won't because it's crap compared to this ;) And I do have to say I love your nightly visitors.

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  7. warning...this is from experience. The bird seed will attract mice, too. If that's not bad enough, the mice then attract snakes. Just a word of caution . My neighbor actually was bitten by a snake due to bird seed, which led to mice, which led to snakes. My neighbor and I both eliminated our bird seed. Hated to because I absolutely love birds.

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    1. Thank you! I know for a fact we have both, but we have a creek behind our house so they're present bird seed or no bird seed. The cats help with that, though! Hope your neighbor is ok!

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  8. Was it actually that bright when the raccoon and skunk came for a snack?

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    1. No, we had turned the patio lights on to get the cat to come in. We didn't bother them at all, though!

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  9. i was just proud of myself for i am true reader of your posts. I get a useful idea from your post. Thanks Jennifer!!

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