Expert: Jamie Yocono - 4/4/2005

Question
Hi there. Typical girl here with a typical girl roommate...but we still want to build! We really want to build a cat tree. We have two pretty big cats and we built them a scratching post so apparently we think that means we can undertake a project like a cat tree. We don't want to have to pay $600 for one if we can make one ourselves for under $100. Do you know where we can learn how to do this though. It seems that all the websites we found will sell you plans but we don't want to buy plans we've never seen and get ripped off. the few we've seen that were free were not relly trees but little posts with a platform lol. Any help you could give us would be greatly appreciateed! thanks!

Answer
Hi Amber,

I'm all for girls learning to build stuff! I used to teach adult ed classes at my local college and my classes were often 75% women. I think it's because women often didn't get the chance to putz around the home workshop when they were kids.

I think it's wise to start with a relatively simple project, so a cat tree is a perfect first project. And although I know it's not what most wood suppliers would want me to say, but I never recommend buying plans for anything. Most of them have mistakes in them, anyway, so don't waste your money. But if they were free....

That said- a plan might be helpful to you for (at the least) getting started. So I found a free plan on the web -- cut and paste this link and you'll find it.

http://feline-furniture.tripod.com/

My first advice would be to make a sketch of what YOU want to build. The drawing really doesn't have to be fancy, but it should show the various features you want in your project. I would try to choose the spot in your home where you want it to go, and then measure and decide what would fit there nicely. I found another site with some outrageous designs, and I think you should take a look at it for a little feline inspiration. Check out http://www.catsplay.com

Next- and I think this is particularly helpful to beginners- is to build each component separately, instead of cutting all the parts at once in the beginning. For example, if you're going to have a ladder in your project, build that separately, first. That way, if you make some small mistake, you can adapt the next stage of your project to make it work. When I was teaching, some students would cut all their wood at once, and then if they made a mistake and had to make a change, everything else was off. Don't make that mistake!

You're going to need some basic tools, like a drill and a staple gun, if you're going to attach the carpeting that way. You could glue it, though. Whatever you do-don't use nails for attaching the various parts together. Nails work their way out over time, so they don't hold up as well as screws do. Use Phillips head screws, if you can, so the heads won't strip out on you. Try to find screws that have threads all the way up the screw, not just halfway. Those screws grip better. If you buy a Phillips bit for your drill, you can put the screws in much easier than screwing them by hand.

If you don't know much about how wood goes together (i.e.... wood joints), you might want to check out this site-http://www.womeninwoodworking.com.  It's quite helpful, and there's even a section on their current page that talks about designing your own projects.

OK, I hope this helps. Feel free to write back with any other questions you might have after reading this. Good luck,

Jamie Yocono
Wood It Is! Custom Cabinetry
www.wooditis.com
Las Vegas, NV