Super Simple Dog Feeder

February 20, 2012 in Building and Repurposing, Do it your Dog-Gone Self, Gettin' Crafty, Pups, Uncategorized

If you follow this blog, then you’ve probably seen a couple Roxy-focused projects (Bed 1 and Bed 2)…. I love that sweet ol’ gal. She’s 15 this year. Still going strong, but starting to show her age. (Admitting our pets are getting older is never easy. Frown town.)  She’s always been a little pistol, so it’s tough to see her slowing down. I try to do things to make life easier for her when I can.

(Sidenote – No…. I wouldn’t call getting a Boxer puppy 3 years ago making Roxy’s life easier…. but getting a lab puppy a year ago DID! Quinn became the perfect play partner for Emma and finally Roxy was able to nap in peace.)

Last weekend I was aimlessly wandering Michaels completely overwhelmed by sensory overload. It’s a good thing I don’t buy the supplies for every project I think of while I’m in that store… I swear sometimes I walk around just looking at things, playing a “What could I make with that?” game in my head!  Anywho… I found my way back to the wood/woodworking section and stumbled on a GREAT deal!  Ready-to-paint wooden stools on clearance for $2. Yup…. TWO. DOLLARS. Hmmmmmm I don’t have kids… and I’m already tall…. so what could I use a little wooden stool for?  How about a RAISED DOG FEEDER!  Roxy would love that!  (Yes, I was very excited at this point in Michaels!)  …and just in case you thought that deal was too good to be true, I snapped a picture of the price tag on the shelf:

Do you see that?  They had 2.  Yup…. totally bought both. I couldn’t help it. It’s the craft hoarder in me. It’s a sickness I’m not ready to address. Baby steps, people, baby steps.

So after I squealed ridiculously maturely composed myself, I checked out and scooted on over to Walmart to pick up a dog bowl. I thought these stainless steel bowls had the perfect (forgivingly-wide) rim and at $2.50, I couldn’t go wrong! Dollar store might have had something too, but Walmart was my first thought.

Gettin’ Handy -

  • I found a food container lid that seemed the right size for the hole and traced a circle on the top of the shelf.
  • Using a spade bit, I drilled a “starter hole” in the top of my bench. Don’t quote me on these terms guys… I have no idea what I’m talking about!
  • No photos of this part… my hands were busy! I used a jigsaw to cut a circle in the top of the stool. Go ahead and laugh… I’m not exactly proud of the ummmm exactness of the shape. It was my first time using a jigsaw though… learn as you go!

Like I said…. it wasn’t pretty!  …but that’s where the wide rim on the dog bowl comes in handy. Wiggle room!

I gave it a quick sand with my random orbital sander and then slapped on a coat of grey egg-shell paint. I already had the paint on hand… it’s the same color I used on her dog bed.

I let it dry overnight and by the next morning, Roxy was happily munching out of her bowl.

Fast forward a week…

Plain grey dog feeder with a stainless steel bowl.  Functional? Yes. Fun? Not so much.

On Saturday I made another trip to Michaels in search of inspiration. My first thought was to stencil the top. All of the stencils I liked were $8, and that was WITH a 50% off coupon. I couldn’t justify spending more on the stencil than I did on everything else. Hmmm what else?  Ding ding!  Scrapbook paper! Couldn’t I just mod-podge some scrapbook paper on the top and then add several layers of mod-podge to help seal it?  I don’t use it for a water dish… dry dog food only… so there wouldn’t be any moisture. Oh this just might work.

I picked out a scrapbook paper I liked. It was a splurge. $1.  Yep… I spent an entire dollar on a single piece of paper. Seemed crazy when the stool was only $2, but I’ll let it slide. It was the perfect shade of grey and added some fun pops of color.

  • I flipped the stool upside down and traced the outer edge and inner circle onto the paper.
  • Cutting carefully, I trimmed the excess paper and then plopped it on top to check my fit. Good enough!
  • Following the instructions on the bottle, I mod-podged the heck outta that paper. Layer, upon layer, upon layer.

Forgive the night time pictures please.

By Sunday morning, the feeder was ready for it’s big debut!  This paper doesn’t match anything else in my kitchen, but that’s ok. It’s not for me… it’s for Roxy! I like the bold colors and the fun print. Oh wait… I mean Roxy likes it. :-)

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She likes it! She really likes it!

 

What is it about simple projects for my pups that make me smile so big? Seeing her eat her breakfast and dinner out of that dish every day will make me a happy girl… and hopefully make her a happy girl too. It’s the little things, right?

 

 

Be sure to stop by and visit all of the great Link Parties that I like to frequent.

 

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…and here’s a Pinterest-friendly pic for anyone that wants to mark this project to make later:

 

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