Hey, I can make that!

Alright, today I was determine to knock out a project I have been wanting to do since we arrived in Japan. With our furniture, we packed two new dog beds for our dogs so they would have fresh new beds when they got here. The beds are a durable Kong brand and looks like they will last a while. The problem is, they dont look very warm. They look great for summer, which is when we bought them but not so much for the cold winter and my cold Japanese house. So I set off to make my own covers for these beds. I wanted something that was inexpensive and would be warm.

Here in japan we have stores called Daiso. They are a 100¥ stores or like in the US, it's a dollar store. They have a ton of really neat things and you can buy just about anything from them. Some items cost a bit more than a hundred yen, but when it does it is stated so on the tag. Well in this store they sell fleece blankets for 200¥ . I bought four of these blankets the other day as well as a packet of snaps and brought them home.

The blankets are not your normal size for the fleece blankets we may get at Walmart during Christmas. They are a bit smaller and I had to lay them out on top of the dog bed to see the size and how many I may need to make this bed. Now, I am not a seamstress or have any sewing training what's so ever. I just stitch things together on my sewing machine from time to time and make Bandanna's for the dogs to wear. So this is totally an "Anyone can do this" project.  There were no measuring tapes or fancy stitching. There was no cutting involved either. I simply laid them out and pinned them where I needed to stitch and went to stitching. Let's take a look:

Okay, so one of these blankets fits halfway across this bed and gives me room on all ends for stitching. So I then laid the next one down to see if two on each side would do the trick.

Ok two on this side looks great to I went to stitching. Now, if I was a skilled seamstress like my cousin Nadine, I would have probably laid things out, pinned measured etc. But I grabbed two pieces and ran to the sewing room and started attaching one side. I got one side put together before I realized I should have at least laid it out on the floor to make sure I have everything right. Yup, I had it wrong and had to take out the stitches for a whole side. THEN I laid it out and made sure to attach the right sides. Leave it to me. but I managed it. I stitched each side together, then the two different sides I joined. Mind you, be sure to have it turned inside out as you stitch so that you dont show off your horrible sewing skills. I left one side open and it was time for the snaps. I want to be able to take this off and wash it. Plus when summer does come, these beds will feel good without the warm fleece on them. So removable was a must.

Have you ever sewed snaps on something. Well I haven't. and that was interesting as well. Velcro will work great as well if you can get some. If you do, you can either sew a strip on the end or several spaced out pieces and there you have it done. For me, I found snaps so I figured I would sew them on and it would serve the purpose. Well, as long as you sew them on correctly. That took a couple tries to figure out and I finally got the snaps on and slid this sucker onto the dog bed. Ta Da. For a grand total of $7.66 I have a warm, fuzzy dog bed cover for my dog and I can take it off and wash it as needed. To replace it will be easy and I can even change it to match decor or the seasons.

Ok, down in the living room in the corner and all ready for some doggie cuddles, this dog bed took me less than an hour to put together and was a very cheap alternative to buying a new bed or even a new bed cover. I believe this will help the dogs beds last a lot longer this year and I am excited to be able to change them out for seasons. Halloween ones or even Christmas ones next year. Next time your thinking "Hey, I can make that" Do it! There are so many things that are easier than we think.

For tomorrows agenda, I am going to rewind a month and talk about something new I tried this holiday season, Jam, and share great recipe that I used to make this sweet treat. Until next time. Don't be afraid to try something new! And always make it so good they are going back for seconds!