Jayne from Like Kittysville designed this fabulous climbable Christmas tree for her kitties. Here’s what Jayne had to say:
For years I’ve missed using my vintage aluminum Christmas tree, but don’t miss the kitty havoc that was decimating the tree and its vintage ornaments. I wanted a tree that’s not just cat-proof but cat-inviting. This tree has a Jetsons space-age look but is quite practical. It can be climbed but not knocked over. It can hold gifts, which saves floor space. The ornaments are cheap and easily replaced.
The tree is made of a single sheet of MDF (medium-density fiberboard). Its pieces slide together without any hardware, yet the assembled tree is as sturdy as a bookshelf. Its flat back can be placed against a window or wall.
The five shelves feature staggered semicircular cutouts which allow kitties to jump from one shelf to another. The shelves could also hold cushions for kitty naps. Styrofoam balls are the ornaments shown, but any kitty toys could be hung from strings threaded through holes in the MDF. After Christmas the tree can be taken apart and stored flat.
Finished size: 6 feet tall x 4 feet wide x 2 feet deep. Stored size: 6 feet x 2 feet x 3 inches.
For do-it-yourselfers, Jayne has made the pattern and instructions for making the tree available online. Thanks, Jayne!
December 10th, 2010 at 7:23 am
THAT is AWESOME!
December 10th, 2010 at 7:32 am
What a great solution to the cat/tree problem. I’d put bells around the base of our tree, then backed it up with the water-gun, but when the cat count got higher I just gave up having a tree.
December 10th, 2010 at 8:06 am
What a great idea! Our cats love to climb in the traditional xmas tree, which generally results in broken ornaments and the ever dangerous gnawed on tree lights!
With something like this you are adapting your holiday to include your beloved cats and not having a war with them over the tree!
December 10th, 2010 at 9:09 am
I would love to see this with ornaments that are still non-breakable and affordable, but with a little more crafty and holiday flair! Small felt toys, those sparkly crinkle ball cat toys, etc. It seems a shame to go through all the effort to make this wonderful tree, and then stop at decorating with plain white string and white styrofoam. I’m seeing a blank canvas here!
December 10th, 2010 at 9:20 am
I love it! So fun and practical. Great job!
December 10th, 2010 at 9:20 am
Oh my, that’s perfect, but I don’t have room in my NYC apartment to be a do-it-yourselfer. Does anyone know where I can find someone to make me one or a way to buy one like it??
December 10th, 2010 at 9:21 am
Oh that’s wonderful! We should think about that for the kitties here at Alley Cat Allies. We have a tiny little tree, but Oliver (at his first Christmas) has decided that it shouldn’t have any ornaments on it.
December 10th, 2010 at 9:32 am
one of the best cat trees i’ve seen! very cool and modern…. and easy to clean. would love to have one!!!! also, the cats in one of the humane society’s free roaming cat rooms would love it, too.
heschatt.com
December 10th, 2010 at 9:42 am
Looks great, my cats would love it! I’m sure that
Cat welfare, at http://catwelfareohio.com/ would enjoy it too.
December 10th, 2010 at 9:46 am
How cool is that!!! Excellent idea, where did you say we can get the pattern?
December 10th, 2010 at 9:57 am
For some reason I cannot open the link for the instructions to make the DIY Climable Christmas tree. Am I the only one?
December 10th, 2010 at 10:04 am
What a great idea! My cats can’t resist climbing Christmas trees so this is an excellent solution!
December 10th, 2010 at 10:20 am
My cats would love this! It is so cute.
December 10th, 2010 at 10:29 am
this is absolutely brilliant. i love it!
December 10th, 2010 at 10:53 am
So cute! And practical, too!
Awesome design, and thank you for the pattern, Jayne! You rock! *gives you four paws up!*
December 10th, 2010 at 11:08 am
What a great idea!! I love it
December 10th, 2010 at 11:21 am
That is SO COOL!
December 10th, 2010 at 11:34 am
The best-looking tree since those vintage aluminum jobs, IMO — and cat-friendly besides? Almost makes me wish I celebrated that holiday!
December 10th, 2010 at 12:04 pm
This is really cool!!! Thanks for sharing the directions!
December 10th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
This is so clever, thanks for sharing!
December 10th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
That is such a great idea!!! I want one immediately. But I think I might have a hard time taking it down after the holidays!
December 10th, 2010 at 12:49 pm
That is the most clever thing I have seen in a long time. Congratulations to the woman that came up with it. My cats would love to have their own tree so maybe they could stay off the people tree. The fact that it can be broken down and stored makes it even better. It would really make me smile to present one of these to Helping Paws Animal Shelter in Woodstock, Illinois. The adult cat room could have their own tree for the holidays.
December 10th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
what a novel idea! and with that many spaces, all 8 of my boys could look outside at the same time. I’m sure the kitties over at the Hervey Foundation would have fun sharing one as well
http://www.herveycats.com
December 10th, 2010 at 2:20 pm
This is a great idea, and I know our kitties will love it too.
December 10th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Wow, that is the coolest thing ever!! Thank you for sharing the instructions.
December 10th, 2010 at 3:43 pm
What a great idea you had! This is the best of both worlds. You get a Christmas tree and the Cats can enjoy it. Love it! WoW! We want one!
December 10th, 2010 at 3:44 pm
Thanks moderncat readers for your kind comments! If you can’t open the link to the instructions, it’s here:
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B0HeWF-NHpkxM2JkNGRkNzAtNDFiOC00N2E1LWEwMDQtZmYwYTRmMzg3ZDhk&hl=en
If you still can’t see the instructions, I’ll send you the pdf. Just email me at likekittysville@gmail.com
Your comments made me decide to donate this tree to a local rescue sanctuary. I’d love to ship it to one of the shelters/groups mentioned, like Alley Cat Allies, but this baby is awfully heavy and bulky — it would be a monster to ship!
December 10th, 2010 at 4:20 pm
Oh, one more thing… I’m thinking about making a different climbable tree next year — something scratchable involving deconstructed Christmas sweaters!
December 10th, 2010 at 9:13 pm
This is just AWESOME!!!….Big thanx to you for sharing this!
December 10th, 2010 at 10:57 pm
Terrific idea!! Thanks for sharing. Your cats are very lucky. Happy Holidays.
December 10th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
Love this and perfect for out of the window viewing!
December 11th, 2010 at 3:57 pm
Really nice! Now if only I can convince the hubby to choose this instead of a traditional tree!
December 12th, 2010 at 6:42 am
What a great idea!
December 12th, 2010 at 11:33 am
Oh…want want want! Plus the kitties at the Hazleton Animal Shelter would love one too!
December 12th, 2010 at 4:36 pm
A totally ingenious idea. A Christmas tree made just for the kitties to enjoy. I love it!
December 12th, 2010 at 4:47 pm
This is what I really call a CAT TREE!
December 13th, 2010 at 3:22 pm
Talking about life styles of the pampered kitties!
December 13th, 2010 at 10:47 pm
HOW COOL IS THIS. MY FOUR CATS WOULD LOVE TO PLAY, NAP, AND JUST CHECK THINGS OUT IN THIS TREE. I WOULD LOVE IT ALSO, SINCE ONCE AGAIN, I DID NOT PUT UP MY TREE, SO AT LEAST I WOULD FEEL MORE IN THE CHRISTMAS MOOD.
I KNOW THE CATS AT ANIMAL ADOPTION FOUNDATION (A “NO KILL” SHELTER) WOULD LOVE TO PLAY ON ONE OF THESE. http://www.aafpets.com
December 18th, 2010 at 3:29 pm
Wow, that is a very cool tree, Jayne!
Thanks for sharing your pattern and instructions with the world so we can build our own!
December 18th, 2010 at 10:18 pm
You mean that I could put up a tree! Cool! One would look nice at the Helen Woodward Animal Center too,
December 20th, 2010 at 10:46 am
This is awesome! I would love to win this and donate a second to http://flbengalcatrescue.com/default.aspx ! Thanks for having this cool contest!
December 22nd, 2010 at 8:43 pm
Makes me want to start a DIY project! But I’m lousy with precise cuts. Might see if a friend could cut one out for me. This would be really awesome (WAAAAAY more expensive, but awesome) in acrylic, say, in a translucent green.
December 23rd, 2010 at 3:55 am
Thank you so much for sharing this idea, and thanks to Jayne for sharing the plans. We’re planning on making one for year-round in the living window for the cats. We might omit the cut out from the top shelf, to give more lounging space. Thanks again!
December 23rd, 2010 at 4:11 pm
WOW what a fabulos idea I would also like to see the cats at North Superior Paws enjoy one also
February 17th, 2011 at 7:11 pm
The tree is made of fiberboard so the styrofoam ornaments are the perfect touch. Anything expensive put on the tree wouldn’t look right. This is my most favorite DIY item of all time! I guarantee someone will steal this idea and we will see it in the stores next year.
December 10th, 2011 at 6:17 am
This is great – I miss having a tree over the years of having my cats – now I will have to find someone who could make it for me.
December 14th, 2011 at 10:58 am
Jayne, this is amazing! I am able to get the detailed instructions, and think it’s awfully nice of you to post them. Unfortunately for me, the handyman we use is intimidated by the project so I have to try and find someone else (and my husband and I have no handy skills or tools to work with — and I want to surprise my husband with it anyway so want to pay someone to make it). The handyman did say that he could not tell where to place the inner circle cuts since they’re not centered. For instance, if the person cannot project the pattern onto the MDF and has to measure, how would he/she know how far in to go from the edge corner of the MDF (which is also the edge corner of Semicircle 1) before starting to draw and cut semi-circle 4. He seemed to think that one mistake and the whole thing would not fit together. I don’t know enough to know if that’s the case. Since this is drawn to scale, could I just calculate those measurements as applied to the 4 x 8 ft sheet of MDF?
Thanks again!
December 18th, 2011 at 5:08 pm
We had to do some conversions on the measurements and found an issue with shelf 5 measurements given. My husband and son did it as their first project of the is type ever. Turned out beautiful. We added carpet to the shelves though since the cats would have issues with slipping while climbing quickly. We also used cat toys as ornaments (including the balls with bells inside).
December 23rd, 2011 at 2:28 pm
Fabulous! I wished I’d known about this sooner. We’re not having a tree this year because one of our cats is a real tree climber.
November 27th, 2012 at 3:36 pm
i’ve been sharing this idea every year since it was first posted. this is absolutely brilliant in its beauty and simplicity.