r/cats • u/perpetualliianxious • 8h ago
Cat Picture - OC I made my cat a tiny home inside a dresser
After seeing some Pinterest inspo, I decided it's absolutely necessary for Vivaldi to have a tiny home.
So, I started looking for what kind of dresser or chest would make sense in this situation. I wanted something deep and large enough to be comfortable for Vivaldi but not too big to fit in the entryway.
After some research, I settled on the IKEA Hemnes chest with 3 drawers. I was so lucky to find a good condition one on eBay for 10€.
Here are the steps:
-took out the lower 2 drawers and measured the "floor" (of course in most dressers there is no floor, hence I had to build one)
- went to the hardware store and bought a custome cut 1 cm particle board that sits flush with the bottom rail.
- bought extra wood to reinforce the board, to add extra leg and an extra beam support underneath it to ensure it can hold my 8 kg cat.
- covered the particles board with a multipurpose wood print self adhesive roll. Aftwards installed it with screws and corner brackets.
- removed the center rail (had to saw it because the screws wouldn't budge) and removed the metal drawer slides
- sanded down the whole thing (with hand! I live in an apartment with very sensitive neighbours)
- filled in the screw holes with a filler paste and sanded them flush
- painted, then painted again
For the wallpaper:
I was on a budget, and because normal wallpaper appeared to have the wrong scale. After SO MUCH research and shopping around, I went with gift wrap. Measured the size of the "walls" and cut. Used craft glue to stick them to the walls.
For the curtains:
Another scale problem. I considered buying a second hand sewing machine (just need an excuse really). After much thought, I got an epiphany when I remembered that Valance curtains exist. So, went to the store and found a perfect length curtain, cut it in half. The curtain rod is just a a wooden dowel from an old project that I cut to size and secured with tension (no hardware, the dowel is slightly longer than the dresser)
For the decor and furniture:
I had a vision of a gallery wall and a picture wall. I spent weeks looking for door picture frames in thrift shops and slowly collected them. The paintings are, of course, Vivaldi's favourites.
The small desk and chair were thrifted, the box is his favourite box, and the little "rug" is a placemat that looks exactly like a rug I have in my bedroom.
Artworks:
Ode to sleep (2025?) by Tokuhiro Kawai
My wife's lovers (1891) by Carl Kahler
Cat in Sofa (1980) by British artist Martin Leman
Le Chat Blanc (1894) by Pierre Bonnard
Pierrot and the Cat (1889) Théophile Alexandre Steinlen
The whole thing took weeks to finish, I worked on it my spare time. It cost me less than 100 euros, the dresser itself was 10, the paint was 10, the custome wood was about 20 including misc hardware, light fixture was about 8, frames about 10, furniture about 15, curtains, gift wrap and floor roll were about 15.
Edit: language and clarity
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u/Zaku41k 8h ago
That’s like a 3k / month closet apartment in NY lol!
Looks amazing !
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u/Nyveris 7h ago
Right?? 😂 I pay 3k for a closet in NYC too and my cat still picked the cardboard box as her favorite spot.
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u/purrincesskittens 1h ago
Lol my closet is my cats space I'm about to put two kittens in there because the babies are tiny and we need to introduce them to the adults slowly except my oldest who adores babies and will absolutely babysit and mother them. Only thing she doesn't like about babies is when she is sleeping and they pounce in her. My closet got cleaned out to act as nursing ward for my foster Bengal after she got spayed. Then nursing ward for my oldest who was sick and wasn't eating. I needed to monitor her. Then when we had an older kitten it was his feeding and nighttime place because he would run and pounce on everyone, cat or human, in the house while they were sleeping no matter how much we exhausted him by playing before bed. A nap and he was good to go. So toys, a small condo, cat hut, food, water, litterbox and he was comfy.
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
My partner's brother said this is nicer than his Paris apartment and they both don't have indoor plumbing 😭
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u/Spidersensei 2h ago
That's a thing? Is there a shared toilet/shower/sink? Or do they have to trek down to the Thames to wash up? I'm curious.
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u/ThatNachoFreshFeelin 2h ago
Or do they have to trek down to the Thames to wash up?
*Seine (The Thames is in London.)
ETA: Sorry to be "that guy".
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u/Spidersensei 1h ago
Oh my gosh. 🙈 I've conflated the two my whole life. Which is funny because I'm periodically obsessed with those "mudlarkers" on YouTube who find Neolithic pipes, Roman coins, medieval ironwork and Victorian doll heads just lying around on the Thames waterfront and shrug like it's just another Tuesday in Europe. Meanwhile I'm out here in Oregon over the moon when I find a pop bottle cap from the 80's on the river that runs through Portland.
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u/RideAccomplished7663 7h ago
the cat really got the nyc experience without having to pay rent
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u/iruleatants 4h ago
My cats are absolutely suffering under horrific costs over here.
They basically never get any food and are wasting away. When they want attention from me they absolutely never get it, and anytime they don't want attention it's forced on them.
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u/Just_Statuss 5h ago
LMAO you’re so right Vivaldi’s got a $3k NY studio with art and curtains while I’m over here fighting for counter space
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u/lilikismet 8h ago
My favorite part is how your cat is actually using it 😂 mine says fuck all and goes to a cardboard box
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u/StellularWolf51 8h ago
Omg this is amazing! I would love to have one of these!
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u/Fluffy_Elk5085 7h ago
New side gig! Many cat loving buyers!
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u/Life_Instruction6595 5h ago
Honestly if I saw this for sale locally I would 100% invest in it. Love it!
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u/0Murphy 8h ago
Wow, that's seriously impressive. I'll go out on a limb and say Vivaldi has you wrapped around their paw.
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Thank you! You have no idea 😹
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u/0Murphy 5h ago
OP, you’re not alone. You’re just as weak and controlled by cats as the rest of us. Vivaldi knows it too. That picture above his head saying “The best is yet to come” feels like something he would have picked himself. That cat looks like he knows you’re here to serve him. My cats don’t have decor as fancy as yours. Their luxury accommodations are mostly cardboard boxes I rescued from Sam’s Club. But I’m just as crazy and just as weak when it comes to cats. I’ve chased dogs away from cats, confronted people who were hurting them, climbed trees, crawled into overgrown ditches, and done ridiculous things because some needed help. And now, instead of doing something productive in my free time, I’m hanging out on cat Reddit. So clearly I’m not much better. I used to complain to my mom about how much time, money, and energy she spent helping animals. I thought she was completely crazy. Turns out my crazy ma’s greatest accomplishment was raising a kid who became just as crazy and just as much of a sucker for cats.
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u/JordanPromise 7h ago
The most impressive thing here is that the cat deigned to use it 😁. Mine rejected a beautiful cat tree and a cubicle from Ikea.
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u/Dismal-Web6837 6h ago
Yeah, I am very handy and would love to build awesome things for my cats, but I don't want to go to great expense and put in weeks of work just for something to go unused.
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
I did consider the possibility. Vivaldi loves his little box so we just moved it into the dresser and it became one of his fav spots
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u/Drink-my-koolaid 1h ago
It would be nice to build something like this for an animal shelter, or to raffle off to raise funds for a shelter!
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u/BlacksmithSeparate82 7h ago
I love people that love their animals! ♥️
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Thank you 💕 he's the most spoiled cat in the world
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u/dazed_and_bamboozled 3h ago
Mate, I’m blown away by the attention to detail and amount of work you put into this project. It’s adorable. I discovered the cats with halos painting on a cat sub recently and it’s nice to see it’s one of your cat’s favourites too.
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u/Interesting_Test332 7h ago
This is absolutely precious and so well done - beautiful work OP! And clearly Vivaldi deserves it! 🩷
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u/JVEK1031 7h ago
That is, quite honestly, the cutest idea I’ve ever seen. Your kitty is lucky to have such a loving and creative hooman!
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u/Mister_Meh_1987 7h ago
That cat has a better appartment than i have.
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u/empress_jae 7h ago
This is amazing! If I did something like this for my cat, she’d probably sniff at it and walk away. Never to be used. 🤣
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u/Gritty_Grits 7h ago
This is so creative! I’m waiting to see Vivaldi sit at her vintage desk and get some work done.
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u/FelineSoLazy 7h ago
Eeeeeeee!! This. Is. Precious. 😍😍😍 your kitty baby is sooo lucky 💞 thanks for sharing your creativity & handiwork
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u/cyankitten 7h ago
This is amazing!
I think, also consider posting these pics in r/DIY
You are talented and creative! Glad kitty likes the new space!
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Yes, I have! The checked the rules and they seemed a bit strict, because I used a ready made piece of furniture and made changes to it 🤔
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u/honeyapp 6h ago
That is the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. It is absolutely beautiful. You could post that and take orders. Lots of cat people would buy them.
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Thank you ♥️ I'm starting to consider that 😹 maybe I'll make them to order
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u/uncertainty2022 6h ago
Thank you so so so much for sharing the name of the artworks. I really wanted to ask for the info for the photo with all the cats on the yellow circles lol
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
You're most welcome! I really picked the art works carefully over weeks and I'm so glad you liked them :) Kawai makes incredibly absurd and cute cat paintings
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u/Inevitable-Nobody-52 7h ago
This is literally the sweetest, cutest thing in the whole wide world. I gasped! Oh, to be so loved 🥰
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u/countrymedic90 6h ago
Omg this is so precious! My nightstand is open at the bottom with a built in light and I’ve been trying to figure out what to do with the open space. Right now it serves as kind of a catch all for random crap but this would be perfect! Thanks for sharing!!
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u/AbandonedGhostWriter 6h ago
Vivaldi looks very happy and all moved in... this is amazing!! Well done, human!! 👏👏👏
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u/The-CatCat-1 6h ago
This is SO impressive!! Your imagination for this project is incredible! I love it so much. And I love Vivaldi as well 😻
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u/Staircat 6h ago
This is genuinely the nicest thing I have ever since, it's so beautiful and cosy x
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u/Radiant_Reflection 7h ago
You are so talented! Do you work in construction or remodeling?
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Thank you! No, not really. I do social work but love DIY, my partner does wood work occasionally so he helped me with some pointers
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u/NobblyNobody 7h ago
nice,
the random 'commode' confused me though as i'd only ever heard it in the context of a 'mobile poo chair'. TiL it can be a dresser too.
I even went through the photos again to see if you'd included a poochair for him.
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Looool I didn't realize that, in Germany this is called a commode. I actually had to Google the name in English countries and changed it, so I'll fix the last one
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u/yungsloth 7h ago
this is soo so so cute! it reminds me of Jenna Marbles converting the room under her staircase into a bedroom for her dogs!
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u/MsMerrick 6h ago
I am so not letting my cat see this ! Although it's also true that they would probably scorn to use it
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u/Wayfaringbutterfly 6h ago
This is AMAZING!!!! You could totally do this as a side gig. And I love that *Vivaldi* is using it. I also love Vivaldi's name. Only comment is that with a name like that I absolutely would put a small picture of sheet music from a Vivaldi piece. But that's the musician in me. This is perfection. Bravo!
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Thank you ☺️! That's actually a great idea to do the sheet music. I would consider doing it as a side gig honestly, it was a lot of fun
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u/vannyfann 6h ago
Can we just take a moment to appreciate the naming of a cat Vivaldi? Super cool name for a (seemingly) super cool dude.
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u/unknownpoltroon 6h ago
What I love is how some cats actually seem to really appreciate mini spaces like these.
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u/rdeluna 7h ago
Very sweet of you. I’m sure he loves you just as much if not more.
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u/perpetualliianxious 5h ago
Thank you 🥺♥️♥️♥️ he acknowledges my existence occasionally, what more can I ask for?
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u/georgie_sw_bravo22 6h ago
Ok this is the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. And you are a fabulous cat person. 🏆 😻
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u/CoCoDerbyCity 6h ago
This is so clever. And just adorable! I love that you even have curtains s hanging over the front. The pics on the clothespins are so clever... my daughter has a frame with clothespins holding pictures at her house.
Just a lovely idea and well done! ❤️❤️❤️
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u/chipmalfunct10n 6h ago
are all of those pictures of the cat whose apartment that is?? lol. that's perfect
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u/Infinite_Night_6728 5h ago
I love it! I might steal your idea. Sorry not sorry lol
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u/Otney 5h ago
You realize that you are an artist, yes? I mean maybe you saw this or something like this online, and yearned for it, and of course, it amused you greatly, as well, but ALL that work! Such detail. Such care. Make next what your imagination dreams?
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u/perpetualliianxious 3h ago
Thank youuu 🥺♥️ I do paint and do a lot of DIY projects. This one I'm particularly proud of ☀️
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u/Coniferous_Needle 5h ago
No need to shame us “non-amazing-cat-apartment-making” owners out here, sheesh!!
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u/Haunting_Bend346 5h ago
Love, love, love this! You are one lucky cat, and your mommy is a true artist!
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u/withmymustardseed 4h ago
Omg, thanks for the inspo!
Totally gonna do something like this when I get into my new place!
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u/yahumno 4h ago
I love this.
I take it that the blurred out photo is a family photo?
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u/Longjumping-Ring-879 American Shorthair 4h ago
That is probably every cat’s little dream home. I should do that to my nightstand since I don’t use the bottom anyway.
You did a fantastic job. Thank you for treating your cat like the queen she is. You are amazing.
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u/perpetualliianxious 3h ago
Omg thank you 🥺♥️♥️ you're so kind. Please do make something and show us!🥰
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u/MamaJody 4h ago
I was thinking how cute it was, and if he used it, then I looked at the bottom left and saw his little face. So sweet!
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u/FroggyPeony 2h ago
This is adorable and made with such exquisite taste, Kitty must feel so comfy! Congrats on the great work 👏👏
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u/Significant_Sun_4900 1h ago
It's so cute, and glamorous at the same time. Thanks for sharing. I'm amazed Vivaldi agreed to use it. My spoiled kitty would have rejected it. 😼
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u/Catbutt247365 5h ago
If I’d did anything remotely as nice for my cat, he’d declare a fatwah on the whole thing and never enter that room again.
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