When an artist, an engineer and a cat need a new couch…

How to get a cat proof, rheumatic friendly couch with a seat height suitable for long legged people? A couch, which does not turn saggy and worn after just a few years of use, ending far too quickly as bulky waste? –  There is nowhere to find something like this in furniture stores, so we decided to build it on our own.

The ottoman is build from four wood palettes, which served as guest bed body by friends in their former life. For the other couch partition we took wood planks, formerly used as packing wood for machinery parts and discarded on a construction side. Custom made traditional Emirati majlis cushions ensure a highly comfortable upholstery.

For us humans the most important requirements for our new couch were comfort, sturdiness, long-legged-people suitable seat height and a design as per our liking. But we are not the only beings in this house with special couch preferences. There is also Mischief, the cat.

It was quite some fun, to transform the couch body into a cats playground. There are some gaps between the planks, offering a small labyrinth to explore and hide, one plank is wrapped in sisal rope. Hidden in the body is hammock stitched from an old tea towel and another pad made from old face towels, both serving as additional resting places. Using BBQ skewers as knitting needles, I turned more than 2km jute rope into scratch&rub proof pads. Ten jute pads cover the compressed-wood blocks of the palettes, one big scratch pad serves as front end cover of the couch.

This couch will definitely serve us well for many years. The body is sturdy enough to last for ages without turning saggy. In case the wood looks a bit used after a while, it can be easy fixed with some sanding and oil treatment. When the fabric looks too worn, we simply can order new cushion/mattress covers. But we definitely will not end up again with plenty bulky waste every few years and a need of a new couch.

Next project: a suitable couch table. Already work in progress.