A Drawer Full of Possibilities

Our cat Tic Tac really has nine lives, although he's cashed in on some of them already!

Life #1: Tic was born behind a wall! Yep, you heard me right, a wall. His mother, who was crazy by the way, snuck behind our basement wall, under the stairs and decided to give birth there. We had put up paneling to create a finished basement but apparently there was a little space near the edge where she had snuck in. I remember coming home one day and hearing these faint little cries. I knew that Em (mom) was pregnant, so I immediately went on a frantic search for the kittens, but couldn't find them any place and began to panic. I could hear the cries closest to the first floor hallway, and as I watched my dog sniff around the steps, I realized their cries were coming up through the floor. I ran downstairs with a flashlight and discovered the kittens all curled up with their mother under the bottom step, behind the paneling! They were up high on a ledge and I didn't want them to fall into the dark damp crawl space below, but how would I get them? I knew I couldn't fit back there, so I had to go and get the smallest person I could think of capable of squeezing behind the wall, that person, my daughter Kate. I grabbed her out of school, told them it was a family emergency, or something like that, and off we went. Without hesitation she squeezed in and rescued the kittens!

Life #2: When tic was about 3 months old he was attacked by a dog. The dog had chomped down on his back end and shook him violently. We didn't think he would make it. I remember Maggie standing in the driveway, tears in her eyes, as I took him to the vet, to have him put down. (Tic is Maggie's cat) But believe it or not, the vet said he'd be okay. The dog broke a disk in his spine, but he would heal. He didn't do damage to the bladder or any other organs, so there was no reason Tic would grow up to live a full and happy life. Only problem, he would never have full motion/range of his tail. To this day his fluffy orange tail drags behind him like a limp piece of sausage! But he's still a bad ass!

Life#3: Around 2 years old Tic became really pale, his once bright orange fur started to look more like a creamsicle then a juicy tangerine. We took him into the vet. $600 dollars later (UGH!!!!) we had our friend back. He wasn't processing his food right and crystals were forming in his bladder. Now he has to have special food and all is good!

My point in telling you all these stories, is the way I look at it, Tic is a bit of a good luck charm. I like when he curls up in my studio, I often find him sprawled out amongst my pieces. One day I found him curled up in an old drawer under my table. The drawer was full of puzzle pieces. I had been working on a collage piece and was using puzzle pieces for fillers. I had dumped them in the drawer for storage, never even thinking they would be great for bedding! But Tic sparked an idea…

Drawers are great! The possibilities are endless. There are countless times that I will see a dresser on the side of the road and perhaps not like "it" but salvage the drawers for other projects. Thanks to Tic one of those projects is now pet beds! Although, I have swapped out the puzzle pieces for a comfy pillow, the idea is still the same.

You can remove the hardware or keep it on; you can add decorative legs or wheels. If you're adding wheels make sure you add wood blocks on the inside for the wheels to screw into. We used a traveling pillow and hand sewed a pillow case to cover. Needless to say my sewing skills are not as good as my painting skills! That's when I knew I needed DEBBIE! My friend from Deb, http://www.sweetlemonadedesigns.com/ is an amazing seamstress. Recently, I started painting purses for her to sell with her fantastic and funky dresses, so I thought instead of paying me why not trade her! No, not trade “her” literally, but trade skills. So, know Deb sews for me, and I paint for her! It’s a match made in heaven! The pillow cases that she creates are so much more wonderful and sophisticated. The flap peels back for easy removal and washing. It's awesome!

I sold one at the last craft show, and am so excited to do more! Tic had a great idea didn't he! We use larger drawers for bigger pets, but remember to reinforce the bottom for extra support, if you’re trying this at home.

Please, look for more exciting ideas with drawers! I'm curious...what would you use them for?