Monday, 29 July 2019

ON THE COUCH AT BBHQ ~ Special Guest Interview with Chelsea White Host of Show Me Your Kitty

Welcome to


Hiya pawesome pals

Welcome to our interview segment at BBHQ, where we get on the couch and interrogate our suspects, ask our amazing guests fun questions about life, cats, the universe and effurything!

And today we've got a fabulous writer/producer/comedian/cat-enthusiast all the way from America, so get comfy and let us introduce our furry Special Guest 

Chelsea White 

host of 



Each episode of Kitty features Chelsea White visiting the apartments of cat owners and learning all about their feline companions, all the while playing games such as “Are You Kittying Me?” (a lightning round of true or false questions about cats) and “Purrr-fect Match” (a kitty-friendly take on the Newlywed Game).


Hi Chelsea and welcome to our blog at BBHQ

What made you decide to do a web series about cats? 
I love meeting kitties and figured this would be the best way to do it! Cats and cat people can never be celebrated enough. 

Who was your funniest guest/cat? 
It’s so hard to choose! All kitties are purrrfect! But I’d say Desus Nice and his kitty Charlie were two faves. Even though Charlie was camera shy.

Tell us a little about your cats, Tanooki and Miranda Hobbes. 
Tanooki is my firstborn and we’ve been through so much together! He had diabetes but is thankfully now in remission after only 3 months of insulin. But as any per parent of diabetic per knows it can be a scary diagnosis! Tanooki is super lovable and licks my face like a dog, but with others he likes to keep a cautious distance. But Miranda Hobbes loves EVERYONE. I have several friends who didn’t consider themselves cat people (I KNOW CAN YOU IMAGINE) who credit Miranda with turning them around to loving kitties. She jumps in everyone’s lap to snuggle, but also has a lot of cattitude!


IMAGE COPYRIGHT CHELSEA WHITE

Who is the most famous cat you’ve ever featured on Show Me Your Kitties
Probably Damien Fahey’s kitties Gazpacho and Dakota! They are heavily featured on his Instagram.

And finally, as we know you're supurr busy, Fudge wants to know if you’ve ever met a cat with a tail fluffier than his? [see pic] And if so, what episode was it in? 
I definitely have not!!! Fudge, you are paws down the fluffiest!! I would love to know your fur care regimen I’m always looking for ways to get more body in my hairdo.
Fudge's Ginormous Tail @BionicBasil®
It's official, and Fudge is offur the moon that Chelsea has not seen a kitty with a fluffier tail than his! MOL

Thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us and if you’re ever in England do come visit The B Team. 
Thanks guys will do!! xoxox



SHOW ME YOUR KITTY HAS JUST LAUNCHED SERIES 3, CLICK HERE TO WATCH NOW

Social Media & Websites:




Many thanks to Chelsea fur joining us today and we'll be back on Wednesday with our regular Pet Parade Blog hop so do stop by to hop around the wurld with us!

Until then

Keep calm and purr on

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team xox











Follow Basil & The B Team @BionicBasil® on InstacatTwitter and Facebook

Graphics created and used under paid licence www.canva.com and www.pizap.com

Friday, 26 July 2019

**NATIONAL CRAFTS FOR YOUR SHELTERS WEEK** Craft-Fest with Cats ~ No Sew Catnip Crackers & Surprise Project ~ Day Five

Welcome to our week long craft-fest

NATIONAL CRAFTS FOR YOUR SHELTERS WEEK 

Here's a quick re-cap just in case you missed Mondays post:

Everyday this week we'll be showing you how to make all kinds of stuff to take to your local shelter to give the kitties and K9's so they get to feel some love, and you get to flex your crafting skills. Any excuse to make something right? MOL

Now we know that some peeps don't sew and/or don't have access to a sewing machine or the like, so we will be incorporating some ideas that are completely NO SEW during the week, and don't think that the items are just for us cats, 3 of our items are for our K9 furriends too, so don't panic we've got you covered - of course we do, we're The B Team we've got everything covered! 

Also we love to upcycle, recycle and re-purpose items here at BBHQ, so most things can be made without having to buy anything in.


Here's what we've got on offer throughout the week

 As modelled by our youngest B Team memfur; Melvyn, and you can see he's absolutely blissed out.

Crafting For Your Shelter Projects July 2019 @BionicBasil®

1. Snuggle Buddy    2. Kicker Toy    3. Snuggle Mat  

4. Mini Cardboard Scratcher    5. Catnip Cracker



SO LET'S CRAFT ON

Today we have another no sew project and our easiest craft project of the week which takes less than 10 minutes to make, so if you can cut a small square of fabric you can make this no problem.
Catnip Crackers and Melvyn - The B Team ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 5
What you will need

Fabric*

Stuffing**

Catnip***  

String

Pins

Scissors

>^.^<

*Fabric ~ we used felt squares that we had in stock, but any cotton fabric including jersey or no fraying fleece will be fine. Use an old cotton shirt, bed sheet, t-shirts - test various types of fabric to see what works for you.

**Stuffing ~ we used regular wadding as we also had that in stock. 

***Catnip is for the kitty side of the shelter only.

*    *    *

Lets Begin

How To make Catnip Cracker Toy - The B Team a ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 5
1.  Cut a small piece of fabric - ours are approx 7" x 6"

2.  Cut into the sides approx 1" to add that frayed effect and add catnip.

3.  Place a small amount of wadding on top of the nip - this helps to keep the catnip in place.

4. Roll up as tightly as you can and pin to hold together.  Next get your string and tie both the sides off, forming a small cracker.

And now you're done, and should have something that looks like the picture below - and yes, it really was that easy! MOL

Here's our finished Catnip Crackers

Catnip Crackers - The B Team ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 5
Obviously these are not suitable at all for our K9 Buddies.  

Our top tip, when they start to come apart which they will after a few play sessions or less depending on how vigorous the kitty is, throw away and make more.  These are the simplest, easiest toy to make and the only cost would be the catnip, and if you grow your own, then they'd cost nothing.  How epic, epically so!


Super Dooper Easy Surprise Project

How To Grow Cat Grass

A high proportion of kitties that end up in shelters have usually come from the streets and are probably used to nibbling on a bit of grass for medicinal purposes as and when they like, so being put into a shelter with no access to any fresh greens is even more depressing, than it was already.  But we can make it a little better for them while they wait to get adopted.

So if you only have a few minutes spare, this could be the project for you.  

Cat Grass at BBHQ ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 5
What you will need

 Cat grass seeds

Organic compost or soil

Small plastic containers*

Cling film 

Sunny windowsill or outside space if its warm enough

>^.^<

*Containers - we used a ready meal container with a lid - the lid doubles as a tray.

plastic butter/margarine containers, small ice cream containers, yoghurt pots etc... will all be perfect for this project, just make sure they have a lid, and plus you get to re-purpose these items which is pawesome. [Obviously wash well before use.]

We've used our containers multiple times, they're still going strong after 6 months and we grow fresh pot or two of cat grass every week.

*    *    *

Lets Begin

How to Grow Cat Grass at BBHQ ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 5
1. Our ready meal container and lid - carefully put some drainage holes on the bottom before you begin.

2.  Put your organic compost about halfway up - top tip - use protective gloves when
 handling soil or compost.

3. Get your grass seeds ready - ours came from amazon, and this is a new variety we're trying.

4. Sprinkle seeds quite thickly over compost surface.

How to Grow Cat Grass at BBHQ b ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 5
5.  Cover the seeds fully with another layer of compost.

6.  Water well, until the soil is saturated.  At this point you can add the cling film to assist with germination if the temperatures are a little cooler.  Although it's been absolutely scorchio here the last few days so ours have been outside.  It takes about 3 to 4 days to sprout and we usually wait a week to ten days before we bring it inside - you'll know when its ready.  Don't forget to keep the compost moist if its warm/hot weather.

If you want more detailed growing instructions, visit our previous Gardening with Cats post.

And after approx 10 days you should have something that looks like this:

How to Grow Cat Grass at BBHQ c ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 5 + Happy Grass Pots
Now you may be wondering what the flashy red and pink pots to the right are..  well dearest friends they're our next Crafting with Cats post coming soon, we call them:- Happy Grass Pots - so do keep an eye out for that.

*    *    *

If you missed our previous Crafting For Your Shelters post, here's the links:

Mini Cardboard Scratcher


And that friends very sadly brings us to the end of our Craft-Fest Week. We do hope you've enjoyed a really crafty week with us here at BBHQ and feel inspired to make something to take to a local shelter/s, and we'd love to see how your projects turned out so feel free to post your pawesome crafty pics on our Facebook page at:


And if there's anything you'd like us to make, leave a comment with your idea/s.  

Thank you all so much for joining us this week on our epic craft-fest, and finally before we go we'd like to say a very special thanks to Ann from the fabulous blog Zoolatry who asked us many weeks ago if we'd like to be involved in a crafting sesh for shelter anipals, which then evolved into this entire week.  So without Ann and Dougie this fantastic crafty week would never have happened, so please go visit her blog and leave a word of thanks.  Ann you're EPICALLY EPIC!  And The B Team thank Dougie the lab for keeping them focused throughout the week, dude you're pawesome!

See you on Sunday for another pawesome selfies post, until then

Bestest crafty purrs

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team xox










If mew missed any of our previous Crafting with Cats posts, here's the links:




Disclaimer:
We at BionicBasil HQ are not responsible or liable fur any injuries to person/s and/or cat/s, crafting addictions, glue on cats, paper cuts, misplaced pins and needles, cats stealing your supplies, broken scissors, cat fur stuck on your projects, or your project not turning out as planned.  By using this information you hereby agree to indemnify and hold harmless BionicBasil and staff from and against any and all claims for personal injuries or damages of any kind arising from use of any Crafting With Cats posts we may share.
Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com and www.pizap.com

Thursday, 25 July 2019

**NATIONAL CRAFTS FOR YOUR SHELTERS WEEK** Craft-Fest with Cats ~ Mini Cardboard Scratcher ~ Day Four

Welcome to our week long craft-fest

NATIONAL CRAFTS FOR YOUR SHELTERS WEEK 

Here's a quick re-cap in case you missed Mondays post.

Everyday this week we'll be showing you how to make all kinds of stuff to take to your local shelter to give the kitties and K9's so they get to feel some love, and you get to flex your crafting skills. Any excuse to make something right? MOL

Now we know that some peeps don't sew and/or don't have access to a sewing machine or the like, so we will be incorporating some ideas that are completely NO SEW during the week, and don't think that the items are just for us cats, 3 of our items are for our K9 furriends too, so don't panic we've got you covered - of course we do, we're The B Team we've got everything covered! 

Also we love to upcycle, recycle and re-purpose items here at BBHQ, so most things can be made without having to buy anything in.


Here's what we've got on offer throughout the week

 As modelled by our youngest B Team memfur; Melvyn, and you can see he's absolutely blissed out.

Crafting For Your Shelter Projects July 2019 @BionicBasil®

1. Snuggle Buddy    2. Kicker Toy    3. Snuggle Mat  

4. Mini Cardboard Scratcher    5. Catnip Cracker



SO LET'S CRAFT ON

This is our first completely NO SEW project of the week, sorry it took so long to get here! MOL 

Our Mini Cardboard Scratcher is purrfect for our kitty comrades in shelters, as its small and will fit easily inside small pens and give the ktties a much needed scratching outlet.  We don't advise to make this for our K9 pals as they'd probably eat it!
The Mini Cardboard Scratcher and Smooch - The B Team ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 4
What you will need

A small cardboard box*

Scissors or craft knife** or cutting wheel**

Extra cardboard boxes***

Ruler

Pen or pencil

Glue non toxic

Optional catnip

Optional ribbon

>^.^<

*we used a small amazon prime box  6.5" x 9"  approx size

**please be super careful if you're using these cutting tools, take your time and always cut away from yourself and we do recommend that you wear some special cut resistant gloves like this: Cut Resistant Gloves for Safety. these are just an example we found on Amazon and this is not an affiliate link. 

***save all those home delivery boxes to recycle 

*    *    *
Lets Begin

How To Make The Mini Cardboard Scratcher a ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 4
1. Get a small box - this is ours.

2.  Measure approx 1.5" up from the bottom.

3.  Draw a line all the way around.

4.  Cut surplus off and you should be left with something like this.

How To Make The Mini Cardboard Scratcher b ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 4
5.  Use part of the surplus cardboard to cut a test strip, it should be a fraction less than 1.5" high.

6.  Try the test strip to make sure it fits snuggly, and its not too long or too high.

7.  Once you've got the correct size cut lots of strips.

8.  Before you begin gluing the strips, stick the flaps down in the bottom of the box.

How To Make The Mini Cardboard Scratcher c ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 4
9.  Begin gluing the strips in place.

10.  Smooch was on paw to offer more boxes when we needed to cut some extra strips.

11. & 12. A short while later, and you should now have something that looks like this.


Here's our finished Mini Cardboard Scratcher
The Mini Cardboard Scratcher The B Team ©BionicBasil® Craft-Fest Day 4
You can leave it as is, or if you'd like to add a little more pizzazz like us; we used a length of hessian ribbon and simply glued that around the outside. 

Also, you can add a little sprinkle of catnip to add to the fun.

*    *    *

If you missed our previous Crafting For Your Shelters post, here's the links:

The Snuggle Buddy    Kicker Toy    The Snuggle Mat



And that furriends furry sadly brings us to the end of Craft-Fest Day Four. We do hope you've enjoyed it and feel inspired to make something, and we'd love to see how your projects turned out so feel free to post your pawesome crafty pics on our Facebook page at:


And if there's anything you'd like us to make, leave a comment with your idea/s.  

We'll be back on the morrow with how to make the no sew Catnip Crackers and we have an extra surprise project to share so do hope you can join us, until then...

Keep calm and craft on

Bestest crafty purrs

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team xox










If mew missed any of our previous Crafting with Cats posts, here's the links:




Disclaimer:
We at BionicBasil HQ are not responsible or liable fur any injuries to person/s and/or cat/s, crafting addictions, glue on cats, paper cuts, misplaced pins and needles, cats stealing your supplies, broken scissors, cat fur stuck on your projects, or your project not turning out as planned. Be super careful if you're using cutting tools, take your time and always cut away from yourself and we do recommend that you wear some special cut resistant gloves like this: Cut Resistant Gloves for Safety. these are just an example we found on Amazon and this is not an affiliate link. This  project is not suitable for younger readers without parental/adult help. By using this information you hereby agree to indemnify and hold harmless BionicBasil and staff from and against any and all claims for personal injuries or damages of any kind arising from use of any Crafting With Cats posts we may share.  
Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com and www.pizap.com