Okay, so I’ve been seeing these braided rope toys for dogs all over the place, and my golden retriever, Max, goes through toys like there’s no tomorrow. I figured, why not try making one myself? It looked pretty straightforward, and I had a bunch of old t-shirts lying around that I was planning to donate anyway.
Getting Started
First things first, I gathered my materials. Like I said, old t-shirts were the main thing. I picked out three shirts in different colors – blue, red, and yellow – just to make it a little more interesting for Max. I also grabbed a pair of scissors. That’s literally all I needed!
Making the Strips
Next, I laid out the t-shirts flat on the floor. I started by cutting off the sleeves and the bottom hem of each shirt. Then, I cut each shirt into long strips, about 2-3 inches wide. They definitely weren’t perfectly even, but hey, Max wouldn’t care.
Braiding Time!
- I took one strip of each color and lined them up together.
- Then at the top I tied them in one big knot.
- I pinned the knot to the carpet with my foot to hold everything in place, and then it was just like braiding hair.
- I took the right strip over the middle, then the left strip over the new middle, and so on, all the way down.
It actually went pretty quickly! Once I got to the end, I tied another big knot to secure the braid.
The Final Touches
I trimmed off any really uneven bits at the ends, just to make it look a little neater. And that was it! Seriously, it was so easy. The whole thing probably took me less than 30 minutes.
The last thing I did was test it.
Max’s Verdict
I gave the finished toy to Max, and he absolutely loved it! He grabbed it and started shaking it around immediately. He’s been chewing on it and playing tug-of-war with it ever since. I’m pretty sure this DIY project was a win-win. Max got a new toy, and I got to upcycle some old t-shirts. I’ll definitely be making more of these!
