Easy DIY Cat Toys & Tidy Cats Lightweight

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MyPetMyStar #CollectiveBias

If you follow my blog and my Instagram account, you will quickly become familiar with the Simply Sweet Home cats!  My kitty cats love being the center of attention, and they always welcome the opportunity to star in my latest post, give their opinions on products, and more!  Today we’re going to take a closer look at the cat stars of Simply Sweet Home, and I’ll be sharing how we give our cats the star treatment with great pet products from Kroger, and DIY Cat Toys!

Because I love my cats, I always like to give my cats the best of everything, from food to good litter.  If you don’t have a cat, you may think that a cat “couldn’t give two cat treats” about what kind of litter he has, but trust me, they do!  Cats are actually very clean creatures, and they don’t like a dirty litter box.  (In fact, if I get busy and forget to clean the box, my boy cat Rebel will actually meow at me, letting me know his displeasure with the conditions of the pet room.)

Rebel and Sugar’s “litter of choice” is Tidy Cats®.  It’s TidyLock ™ technology keeps them purring, and makes me a happy scooper! I believe we’ve used just about ever variety of Tidy Cats® litter available.  Most recently, I purchased Tidy Cats® LightWeight 24/7 Performance.  I like the LightWeight formula, because it is easy for “little ole me” to grab up at the store,  and in case your wondering the key feature of the LightWeight line is that it is all the strength of regular Tidy Cats litter but only half the weight.

And the 24/7 Performance formula is great for family’s like us who have multiple cats.  I also LOVE the product because it clumps very well.  This makes scooping very easy.  Also, because it clumps well you don’t get all the bad odors that go along with those other litters where the clumps just fall apart, AND because the clumps stay tight, the litter stays cleaner, so I don’t have to change it out as often.

When you add it all up, Tidy Cats® Lightweight is the perfect product to lock away odors that can lead to Stank Face, and that is a great thing for you and your furry friends!

I purchased Tidy Cats® Lightweight at Kroger.  The store is just a hop, skip, and a jump away from my house, and it is so convenient to stop by the pet aisle, while doing regular grocery shopping, to pick our litter and Purina pet food!

Right now during the Kroger Pet Event, you can take advantage of coupon deals like $2 off Dog Chow Naturals dry dog food and $1 off Tidy Cats Lightweight Litter and Tidy Cats Litter.

Now let’s talk a little bit more about the Simply Sweet Home Cats!  First, there is Sugar.  She is turning 5 this month.  I like to call her my little princess cat, and quite often she does snuggle with me like a sweet princess.  But she’s also the wild cat of the too.  She likes to be the boss and the bully over Rebel…and sometimes even me!  (If only she could convince the dog that she’s the boss, all would be perfect and right in her world!)

Sugar loves posing for blog and Instagram photos.  And like a true model, she loves laying on her side to show off her best features!

Then there’s Rebel.  Rebel is my Gentle Giant.  He’s 8 years old and everyone who visits calls him “the big cat” or “the fat cat.”  (In truth, he’s not fat at all for an inside, fixed cat, and Sugar currently weighs a little more than him, but I digress.)  Despite his size, Rebel is the most gentle cat you’ll ever meet!  He never picks a fight.  And when the other animals challenge him, he rarely fights back.   Rebel is also a great foot warmer at bedtime, and he loves socializing with the family.

Rebel also loves to model.  I’m always able to capture great moments of him with the cell phone camera.  He’s also a great model when I pull out the DLSR, although, he will sometimes only model on HIS terms!  For example,  Rebel was very excited to pose alongside his favorite litter, as long as he could sit in his new favorite shoe box.

And despite the fact that Rebel is no longer a kitten, he still likes to play.  Here he is with some DIY Cat Toys that I made.

I was first inspired to make a few cat toys, because I realized early on that cats gravitate to a lot of non-toy items.  If something is soft or stringy…my cats love it!  For example, Rebel’s sister Dixie Belle (Rest In Peace)  used to love playing with my hair scrunchies and even the occasional sock.  So I thought, why not make cat toys out of socks?  Now let me show you how easy that is!

What You Need:

• Socks
• Craft Stuffing
• Scissors
• Cat Nip (optional)

Start by placing a little bit of the craft stuffing in the bottom of the sock.  (Try to use socks that are fairly thing.  Children’s or baby’s crew socks or leggings would work well, but some ladies’ crew socks work well too.)

Optional: At this time, you can also sprinkle in a tiny bit of cat nip, or before putting the stuffing in the sock, you can simply sprinkle a tiny amount of cat nip on to a surface and rub the stuffing along, so that it becomes infused with the cat nip.

Then pull on the sock, giving it a good stretch, and then tie knot.  Pull a little bit more to make your knot smaller.

Then use your scissors to trim the top, leaving about an inch of fabric above the knot.  Now you have one cat toy.

Now take the rest of the sock to make a second toy.  Place your stuffing (and cat nip, if you choose) inside the top of the sock and let it rest in the middle.  Then stretch out the sock, tying a knot in the bottom of the sock, just as you did with the top of the previous sock toy. You may want to trim the bottom a little before tying you’re knot.  You can also cut off any excess fabric on the bottom if there is any. (I didn’t have enough excess to cut.)

At this time, you can add more stuffing if needed.  Then you’re ready to tie up the top.  Just as with the first toy, you can stretch the sock out and tie a simple knot.  But if the top of the sock is extra thick, I suggest trimming it at the corners, as I did in the picture above.  This will allow you to tie the top in a knot, shoelace style.

Voila!  Two cats toys, made from one sock!

If you like this idea, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.  I’d also love to hear about your own furry stars!   And don’t forget to pick up your Kroger Coupons.  They will help you to save a little money while you give your pet the star treatment!