Ribbon Works: Cat Toy / Ribbon Streamer Tutorial

Welcome to our second crafting tutorial! Today's how-to is especially for cat lovers and companions. Creating this cat toy took less than an hour and was really simple to put together. For those of you with a cat (or those who have a friend that does) and want to finally put all that scrap ribbon to use, this is the tutorial for you. If you don't have a cat or know one, this can also double as a ribbon streamer! Great for keeping kids busy.

Cat Toy / Ribbon Streamer

What You'll Need:

- Glue

- Scissors

- Stick or dowel

- Wide (1" or wider) ribbon

- Thin (3/4" or thinner) assortment of ribbon

Step 1.

Start by wrapping your stick with ribbon from top to bottom. I happened to have adhesive ribbon on hand, which makes this process much easier. If you don't have this, you can coat your stick with glue and achieve the same results. I recommend coating half with glue, wrapping, then coating the other half with glue and repeating. This way it lets you have something to hold onto while you wrap the ribbon around instead of ending up with glue all over your hand. While you wrap the ribbon around, make sure you go in a slanted direction. This will make it easier for you to get it all the way around. If you are using the glue method, set this aside to dry.

Step 2.

Grab your thinner ribbon and tie a knot at the end. There's no rule as to how many or few ribbons you should use for this, but make sure it's not too thick so you're able to tie a knot! Once this is done, you can cut the ribbons to different lengths.

Step 3.

First, make sure the stick is done drying! When you've made sure it is, coat the top of the stick with a thick later of glue. Though we used crazy glue, Elmer's works just as good-- if not better. Press the knot of ribbons to the glue and hold it in place until it's dry. I recommend holding it with a good deal of pressure for 5 - 10 minutes, just to make sure it stays in place.

That's it! Feel free to adorn your toy with rhinestones or other decorations. Just make sure they're stuck on there tight. Wouldn't want them to fall off and have the cat eat them!