DIY Dog Bed
Have you been shopping for a dog bed recently? They are pretty damn expensive, especially for a creature that regularly sprawls out on her back on the concrete back patio and sleeps like she's between the sheets of a five star hotel bed. So this weekend, I decided to make one myself, using the memory foam topper that we no longer use, and a stripey duvet cover I got at the thrift store. All in all, this project cost me less than five bucks, and if you don't have an extra mattress topper sitting in your garage, you can probably find one for free on Craigslist. Here's what you'll need:
1. A foam mattress topper (try Craigslist Free)
2. A sheet, duvet cover, or around 4 yards of fabric (check out the linens section at your local thrift shop for something fun and bright!)
3. Scissors
4. A marker
5. A measuring tape
6. A sewing machine
7. Some tea (optional)
8. Crafting tunes (also option, but c'mon, it makes it so much more fun!)
Okay, so my topper is a full, so it's 50" x 72" so I decided to quarter it and make two 25" x 36" beds with two layers each. This is a bit smaller than the dimensions of Koa's crate but when I folded the foam into quarters she strolled over and plopped down on it, and she fit quite comfortably. So my first order of business was measuring the foam into quarters and drawing guides for myself.
Then I just cut the foam with some regular scissors. It didn't turn out perfectly smooth, but it won't really matter what the edges look like when everything is said and done!
The next step is to measure out your fabric. You have to take the height of the foam into account, and give yourself some wiggle room (literally) so you can get it in and out of the fabric. My foam was about 4" tall when I stacked two of the quarters, so I gave myself about 8" extra on the sides so I cut it around 34" wide. Like I said, I'm more tactile, so it helped me figure it out by laying everything out how I wanted it and seeing how much fabric it would need. For the length, I left some extra room for hemming, along with extra fabric for the flap that will tuck over the opening and keep the foam from showing - so about 48" long on one side. (To summarize: approximately 34" x 48").
We're basically making a big ass pillow case here, so the first order of business is to make sure your fabric is inside out and fold back all the edges of one of the short sides (what will eventually be the bottom), and pin them together, along with both of the long sides, up to about 42" or so. At the 42" mark, take one of the long pieces, trim it to around 42" and fold and pin it. This will be the lip of the opening of the case.
Now go ahead and sew the lip seam, along with the bottom and sides up to this point. If you flip everything right side out and stick your foam back in it, it'll look like kind of like an open envelope:
Okay, so flip it inside out again, and this time place the side with finished hem down, so that the longer, un-hemmed fabric is facing up. You want this piece to be something like 6-8" longer than the rest of the cover, so trim/fold and pin appropriately and then sew it.
When you've finished that hem, lay the fabric back down as before. This time, lay the flap down on top of the rest of the bed. The good side will be facing up, and the edges of the flap will run parallel with the side seams. It should look like this:
Almost done! Now, neatly fold the edges of the flap, and pin them along the side of the case. Go ahead and sew them together, trim any dangling threads and waa-laa! Once you flip everything right side out, the flap will be tucked neatly into the case, so when you wiggle your foam in there, it will fold over the top and leave no ugly exposed sides!
Now, if you are making two, like me, the only thing left to do is learn from any booboos in your first run, and run through it all again! My first attempt was a little bit more loose than I liked, but I was too lazy to do much more to it, so I stuck that one in the crate, and kept my second attempt for the bedroom.
3. Scissors
4. A marker
5. A measuring tape
6. A sewing machine
7. Some tea (optional)
8. Crafting tunes (also option, but c'mon, it makes it so much more fun!)
Then I just cut the foam with some regular scissors. It didn't turn out perfectly smooth, but it won't really matter what the edges look like when everything is said and done! The next step is to measure out your fabric. You have to take the height of the foam into account, and give yourself some wiggle room (literally) so you can get it in and out of the fabric. My foam was about 4" tall when I stacked two of the quarters, so I gave myself about 8" extra on the sides so I cut it around 34" wide. Like I said, I'm more tactile, so it helped me figure it out by laying everything out how I wanted it and seeing how much fabric it would need. For the length, I left some extra room for hemming, along with extra fabric for the flap that will tuck over the opening and keep the foam from showing - so about 48" long on one side. (To summarize: approximately 34" x 48").
We're basically making a big ass pillow case here, so the first order of business is to make sure your fabric is inside out and fold back all the edges of one of the short sides (what will eventually be the bottom), and pin them together, along with both of the long sides, up to about 42" or so. At the 42" mark, take one of the long pieces, trim it to around 42" and fold and pin it. This will be the lip of the opening of the case. Now go ahead and sew the lip seam, along with the bottom and sides up to this point. If you flip everything right side out and stick your foam back in it, it'll look like kind of like an open envelope:
Okay, so flip it inside out again, and this time place the side with finished hem down, so that the longer, un-hemmed fabric is facing up. You want this piece to be something like 6-8" longer than the rest of the cover, so trim/fold and pin appropriately and then sew it.
When you've finished that hem, lay the fabric back down as before. This time, lay the flap down on top of the rest of the bed. The good side will be facing up, and the edges of the flap will run parallel with the side seams. It should look like this:
Almost done! Now, neatly fold the edges of the flap, and pin them along the side of the case. Go ahead and sew them together, trim any dangling threads and waa-laa! Once you flip everything right side out, the flap will be tucked neatly into the case, so when you wiggle your foam in there, it will fold over the top and leave no ugly exposed sides!
Now, if you are making two, like me, the only thing left to do is learn from any booboos in your first run, and run through it all again! My first attempt was a little bit more loose than I liked, but I was too lazy to do much more to it, so I stuck that one in the crate, and kept my second attempt for the bedroom.
The kitty seemed pretty interested, so the next project may be a mini version for her!
