Mom Said I Can't Have a Cat

The title of this Instructable came about because cats are my sons favorite anything in the entire world, but we cannot have a cat right now. Not because I'm a big meany, but because one of our dogs loves hunting. Mice, squirrels, marmots, I've even seen him "battle" an already dead and frozen rodent, very dramatically, like he was saving us from a hostile enemy. I certainly cannot bring a cat into this potential carnage. It is true though, that if he had that much trouble taking down a dead field mouse, a cat could probably whoop his butt. Still, it's not worth the risk.

My son decided to make himself a cat.

Step 1: Supplies

Other than the obvious paper mache and newspaper, you will need a few more supplies to make yourself a cat.

One balloon

Two pipe cleaners

Two toilet paper roles

One role of masking tape

Note cards

Step 2: Build the Cat

The first thing you'll want to do is inflate a balloon for the cat's body.

Second, cut each toilet paper role in half and attach them to one side of the balloon with masking tape. Make sure they are relatively evenly spaced so your cat will stand up on it's own.

Cut out two equally sized triangles from the note card and attach them to the other side of the balloon, close to the top, with masking tape. These will be its ears.

To make the tail, twist two pieces of pipe cleaner together, and hook them around the balloon tie. Place masking tape on the hook and tie to secure the tail.

Step 3: Kitty Flesh

This kitty has paper mache flesh.

To make the mache, mix white flour with water and stir. Add water or flour as needed to get a heavy glue-like consistency with little to no lumps.

Tear or cut strips of old paper. We used newspaper, but any paper you have in your recycle bin will work.

Step 4: Mache the Cat

Personally, I find the best technique to paper mache anything is to apply the mache without paper, to the piece, then place paper strips over top, then add a second layer of mache over the paper. Continue with this process until the entire piece is covered, including the legs, ears, and tail.

We found the tail was too heavy to stay up on it's own while it dried so we put a box on the cat's back to help prop up the pipe cleaners.

It takes forever for paper mache to dry. You can use a blow dryer to help speed it up, but even that takes a while. I recommend letting it dry overnight before adding another layer.

You will need more than one layer for durability. I'd do a few thin layers instead of one heavy layer. One heavy layer won't dry evenly and will crack a lot as it hardens.

Step 5: Acrylic Fur

Our cat has acrylic fur. It doesn't shed and is incredibly low maintenance.

To paint the cat, you pretty much just paint the cat.

I seen a brown cat a few years back and was super excited because I, for some reason, didn't know cats came in brown.

My son remembered that, and being the sweetheart he is, he painted his cat brown.

Paint pink triangles in the ear, a matching pink upside down triangle for the nose, and a crooked, mischievous smile. The hardest part is painting the eyes. He did manage to get some pretty great eyes painted directly onto the face. If it were me, I would draw and color them on a piece of note card, then attach them to the face using modge podge. He is braver than I am though, and it turned out great :)