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Cat Window Perch

Your feline knows that her ancestors were worshipped as goddesses in ancient Egypt. No wonder she gives you the side-eye when you expect her to curl up just anywhere, like some run-of-the-mill mammal. Build your domestic deity a place in the sun with a window seat that lets her scale new heights, settle in, and dream of the good old days.

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window ledge cat bed

Photography: Michael Mundy

Source: Martha Stewart Living, September 2018

Introduction

This project calls for three essential to-dos:

 

Make the seat: Using a jigsaw, cut out a plywood ledge, cover the raw edges with leather, and secure it with decorative gold nails. 

Hang it tight: Suspend the seat from a window jamb with gold-finish eye hooks, S-hooks, and plumbers' safety chain. 

Cozy it up: Add a cushion and sheepskin, like the ones Milo, Living home editor Lorna Aragon's cat, is loving here.

 

Before you begin, learn our tips on how to work with leather and sewing leather. This project calls for cutting, hole punching, and gluing leather.

 

For more ideas, scroll through our entire collection of cat crafts.

materials

  • Measuring tape

  • Jigsaw

  • 3⁄4-inch-thick plywood

  • 3⁄4-inch leather strip (Pictured: Tandy Leather lightweight cowhide strips, 3⁄4", $15 for 50", tandyleather.com.)

  • Leather punch

  • Industrial-strength glue, such as Barge

  • Handheld electric drill

  • Hammer

  • Decorative nails (Pictured: Dritz Home decorative nails, in Smooth Gold, $3 for 18, joann.com.)

  • Eye hooks (Pictured: National Hardware #12 screw eyes, in Solid Brass, $5 for 5, amazon.com.)

  • Plumbers' safety chain (Pictured: MSC brass plumbers' safety chain, 0.028", $3.50 per ft., mscdirect.com.)

  • S-hooks (Pictured: National Hardware S-hooks, 1", $5 for 3, amazon.com.)

  • Wood screws

  • Cushion (Pictured: You & Me Durable small dog mat, in Tan, $25, petco.com.)

  • Sheepskin (Pictured: IKEA Rens sheepskin, $30, ikea.com.)

steps

  1. Measure windowsill width inside frame. Using jigsaw, cut plywood to that width and 18 inches deep.

  2. Wrap edges of wood with leather strip; trim to fit. Mark strip 1/2 inch from corners on both sides of one long edge (for nails; see photo, above); punch holes at marks. Apply glue to wood edge and back of strip. Press to adhere; let dry.

  3. Predrill holes for nails into wood at punched holes in leather strip; hammer in nails.

  4. Screw eye hooks in at top corners of plywood on one long edge, and into window jambs midway up. Attach safety chain to eye hooks with S-hooks. (To calculate chain length, think back to when you learned the Pythagorean theorem and a2 + b2 = c2, where a is the distance from the bottom of the window to the plywood eye hooks; b the distance from the bottom of the window to the windowjamb eye hooks; and c the length of chain you'll need.)

  5. Predrill holes down through back corners of remaining long edge of plywood and into sill; secure with wood screws. Top with cushion and sheepskin.

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