Make Your Own Mini Catnip Fish Out of Old Blue Jeans - DIY Cat Toys for Very Cheap or Free! Perfect for Your Own Cat or a Gift to Someone With a Cat!

Make your own catnip fish shaped cat toys for your cat for cheap or free out of old denim pants. Very little sewing is required and you can make as many toys as you want for your cat following these easy steps! Perfect for your own cat or as a gift to someone with a cat!

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The list of supplies is very minimal and cheap or free and you probably have most of them anyway! If not I linked to the same supplies I used or an option that should work instead.

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The Supplies You Will Need Are:

• Old Blue Jeans (Denim Fabric) or Your Own Fabric - (I made mine out of old blue jean denim pants. You could use old shirts, old pants, old sheets, old pillow cases, old blankets, felt, etc.)
• Scissors - (Needed to cut out the pattern and fabric. Same brand I used.)
• Needle - (Needed to sew the fabric together. Same brand I used. Variety Pack.)
• Black Thread - (Needed to sew the fabric together. You could do any color but black blends in well enough with the blue jeans and is very versatile. 3000 Yards.)
• Denim Thread - (If you really wan't the thread to blend in this is the best choice. 250 yards.)
• Cotton Balls - (Used as the stuffing for the catnip fish. You could use scrap fabric, paper towels, toilet paper, etc. 100 pack.)
• Catnip 1oz - (Used to make the cat more interested in the toy. Optional depending on your cat. Mine came for free with some scratching cardboard.)
• Catnip 0.5oz - (Cheaper then above and would be more then enough for this.)
• Cardboard Scratching Cardboard - (These are the scratching cardboard that came with the catnip I used for this. 3 Pack comes with free catnip with each scratching cardboard.)
• Popsicle Stick - (Optional, this just helps in turning it inside out. You could use a stick, the back of a pencil, a pen, your fingers, etc. This comes with 200 sticks. Better yet use the back of the permanent marker.)
• Permanent Marker - (I used this to trace out the pattern onto the material. You could use anything that will leave a mark on the fabric you can see. This is a 12 pack. I used a Sharpie but Amazon Basics looks like a better deal.)

These are fairly simple to make and you could improvise with any of the supplies depending on what you have available.

I made these simple mini fish patterns doubled at the tail so you don't have to sew the tail together and can just fold it. You can use these for personal non commercial use. These are designed to be printed out on a standard 8.5" x 11" piece of paper. There are 5 to a page if instead of tracing around the pattern you just want to pin it to the material. Don't cut out between the tail that is a fold line.

Cut out at least one catnip fish pattern. Don't cut out between the tails that is a fold line not a cut line. It is easier to cut off the bulk parts first then come back over the finer lines after.

Cut out a rectangle of fabric just big enough to fit the catnip fish pattern on.

I used a permanent marker for the lines to be thicker and easier to see for the camera. You could use anything that will leave a mark you can see on the fabric.

Now cut along the traced pattern on the material. Don't cut between the tails of the fish! It is easier to cut off the bulk parts first then come back over the finer lines after.

Fold the now cut out catnip fish material inside out so we can sew it together. We will flip it when we finish the sewing later.

Prepare the needle and thread for sewing. Tie 2 knots in one end of the thread and have them land on each other so its one bigger knot or it will pull right out of the denim.

After we go through the material lets tie a knot like you would at the end of sewing so it will stay and not pull out later. Remember a cat is going to attack this catnip fish, so any reinforcing you wan't to do is a good idea.

Now we stitch the bottom of the catnip fish stopping around the curve of the head so we can still turn it inside out and stuff it later. I am doing a simple overcast stitch to hold the two pieces together. You simply put the needle through the top or bottom then wrap it around the edge and back through the same side again. It is easy to do and holds it together pretty well. You could also do a running stitch but it would make the catnip fish smaller in the end though it would also have cleaner edges.

Just like before we will now stitch the top of the catnip fish and stop around the curve of the head. I am once again doing the simple overcast stitch.

We now have to pull the catnip fish through to turn it right-side out since it was already inside out. The popsicle stick helps with this but a normal stick would work just as well. You could also use the eraser end of a pencil, a chop stick, etc. Even better use the other end of the permanent marker you used to draw the pattern! The tail is the hardest part but with a bit of pushing it gets through easy enough.

Now pull apart a cotton ball and pour some catnip in the center, then fold the cotton ball back around it so the catnip is held in the center and insert it into the fish. Push it with the stick into the tail first then proceed with the rest of the body. At the end do a test fit with half a cotton ball first, you don't want too much stuffing where we will have to sew or it won't go together properly.

Prepare the needle and put just enough cotton and catnip to fit the last little but but not so much you won't be able to sew it together. I think I did a third or a fourth of a cotton ball for the end. Then sew the head the rest the way pinching it as you go and pushing the cotton as needed.

Cleaning up the bits of frayed edges, careful not to cut your thread or it will fall back apart quicker. Comparing the size in my hand, it fits in the palm of my hand easily. This size is just big enough the cat won't choke on it and just small enough to be an easy toy to play with.

The catnip fish made out of old blue jeans is now finished. You are ready for the fun step of playing with your cat or gifting it to someone you know with a cat!

The most important step, giving it to the cat... The cat approves!

If you would like to support me in making these projects you can do so here.