Before & After: Craigslist Cabinet Turned Cat Box
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(Image credit: Tina)
After too many dinner parties in view of the litter box, Tina decided to DIY a solution. Here’s how a $10 Craigslist find became a cat box:
(Image credit: Tina)
From Tina:
I live in a small apartment in Chicago that has no room for a litter box, so the idea for this project came from one too many dinner parties where my guests had to look at the catbox while eating at the dining room table. I wanted a furniture unit that would cover the catbox and also fit in with the decor of my dining room. I searched the internet and eventually found pre-made “midcentury” litterbox covers. Those were prohibitively expensive, so I set out to make one myself.
I found the piece on Craigslist for $10, it is all laminate, which I am happy with, I feel like it will last longer as a catbox than real wood would. I already owned the paint, stain, and lacquer, so all I had to pay for was the wood veneer, laminate primer, and hinges. This project taught me that peel and stick real wood veneer is a thing and it is SO EASY to use! I just removed the handles from the doors and laid the doors on the veneer, then cut it to fit with an olfa knife after it was adhered. After that you just stain and seal like normal!
I also had to put new hinges on. Whoever worked with this piece before me went WAY overkill with the hinges. The doors had top to bottom silver piano hinges. You probably could have sat on the open door without them coming off. I also learned that hanging doors is a pain in the butt. The wood veneer was easier.
For the body of the piece I cut some ventilation holes in the back, and one large entry circle on the side. Spray primed the whole thing, and then painted it gloss black. My old plastic catbox easily fits inside and my cat loves it almost as much as I do!
Thank you Tina!