Making cage liner... Brain ache !

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Smoo

Smoo

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Ok so I've been doing sooooooo much research and starting to wonder why I made a 5x2 c&c. Would of been much easier with a 4x2. :{

I've worked out, to buy enough to do two pieces for one cage it's going to cost me...

£62.50 for vet bed (only need 4m but can't get it so that's for 5m

£58 for patterned fleece and mattress topper liner

£54 for patterned fleece with plain fleece sides and topper.

Soooo I'm going to have to bite the bullet and try to make one with sides, it works out about £27 per liner, unless anyone can make a couple for around that price but I've already seen some lovely fleece on eBay x)

Does that sound about right price wise? The things we slaves do for our babies! rolleyes
 
And this is why i just stick to fleece and towels ! haha,
I don't really see the point in spending £50 plus on two liners when i can get two fleeces for about £6 and just use some old towels from the cupboard haha.
Prices sound about right from when i did my research, although vet bed is more expensive apparently it lasts alot longer !
 
Haha yeah you're right, I think if I hadn't already tried and failed to get on with towels and fleece then I'd probably be using them already.

Hmm, would you go for the vet bed which would last longer (but more expensive) or try sewing a liner for a little bit less. I'm tempted to go for the vet bed now. So much money though! :{
The brain ache is back!
 
How come you didn't get on with the fleece and towels ?
And could you not just sew a towel to the fleece ?
 
I just found it messy and smelly. Plus the girls would burrow under the fleece and I'd have a heart attack until I spotted two lumps!

I also would like it to be all together ie just pick up one thing to chuck in the washing machine as opposed to a few towels plus fleece etc. The comfort as well. I found that just a couple of towels with fleece was still quite a bit hard for them to sit on. Sorry that was quite a long list!
 
Smoo said:
I just found it messy and smelly. Plus the girls would burrow under the fleece and I'd have a heart attack until I spotted two lumps!

I also would like it to be all together ie just pick up one thing to chuck in the washing machine as opposed to a few towels plus fleece etc. The comfort as well. I found that just a couple of towels with fleece was still quite a bit hard for them to sit on. Sorry that was quite a long list!
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I should get money for my birthday next week. Would you be able to make a 2x3 one with sides or wouldn't you have extra materials to do so?
28"x42" + 5" high

Just an idea to make some money back x
 
AnimaniacAmy said:
I should get money for my birthday next week. Would you be able to make a 2x3 one with sides or wouldn't you have extra materials to do so?
28"x42" + 5" high

Just an idea to make some money back x
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I don't actually make them, in fact I've probably only used a sewing machine once, at school :red
I'd love to give it a go but I'd be really nervous about making one for myself let alone anyone else! I'd feel terrible if it all went horribly wrong!

It's a case of saving money for me but I'm really not sure I have the skill to pull it off :(
 
Smoo said:
I don't actually make them, in fact I've probably only used a sewing machine once, at school :red
I'd love to give it a go but I'd be really nervous about making one for myself let alone anyone else! I'd feel terrible if it all went horribly wrong!

It's a case of saving money for me but I'm really not sure I have the skill to pull it off :(
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I hadn't used a sewing machine for years either but I practiced by making small projects for the pigs like hidey huts, lap pads etc ... try that and you'll get the nack of it!

I'm just finding it hard getting fleece that's a) big enough b) pretty enough and c) cheap enough! D :
 
AnimaniacAmy said:
I hadn't used a sewing machine for years either but I practiced by making small projects for the pigs like hidey huts, lap pads etc ... try that and you'll get the nack of it!

I'm just finding it hard getting fleece that's a) big enough b) pretty enough and c) cheap enough! D :
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You're so right. I've seen some fairly cheap 200x200cm fleece but I need 200x250 to get it over the sides! It's going to cost me £70 to get two bits of vet bed. It's really hard thinking about spending that amount but then I spend that on hay in 7 weeks as that's what they're on at the moment.

Argh. Its beginning to stress me out grrrr
 
Smoo said:
You're so right. I've seen some fairly cheap 200x200cm fleece but I need 200x250 to get it over the sides! It's going to cost me £70 to get two bits of vet bed. It's really hard thinking about spending that amount but then I spend that on hay in 7 weeks as that's what they're on at the moment.

Argh. Its beginning to stress me out grrrr
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It is an expensive start up cost no doubt but it pays for itself in a way. You could get a smaller fleeece blanket and make a smaller liner for practice :) I currently have two small blankets in their cage with towels and newspaper but my girls burrow! Leaves the cage in a state so I need one huge pretty blanket! : )
 
Pollie who runs www.cavycozies.com makes cage liners which I'm sure cost no where near as much as that. I've just had a look at her website and the 'shop' part doesn't seem to be there (or I'm being blind!) so she may be catching up on orders at the moment. It's worth emailing her for a price. I've had cozies from her before which are lovely quality.

I've re-read your post, I thought you'd said £70 for a 5 by 2 liner! lol I think it's around the price you're looking at £27 ish possibly a little more, I'm trying hard to remember. I'd looked myself thinking for when I get my new house. I make a lot myself but the price looked very good.
 
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I think with a little shopping around (and still using patterned fleece) it would be possible to make two cage liners with sides for about £40. As I said on your other thread I could make you a couple for the cost of materials (plus P&P) if you wanted but if you have a sewing machine available to you I'd reccommend having a go yourself, you just need to manage straight lines. :)
 
Hermes said:
I think with a little shopping around (and still using patterned fleece) it would be possible to make two cage liners with sides for about £40. As I said on your other thread I could make you a couple for the cost of materials (plus P&P) if you wanted but if you have a sewing machine available to you I'd reccommend having a go yourself, you just need to manage straight lines. :)
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Thanks :) I've looked around for fleece online, the cheapest patterned I can find is about £4.99 per metre but obviously with postage its knocking £7. I had a quick scan today for fleece in dunelm and homebase but to no avail, very limited choice and too small grrrr

I bought a kingsize mattress topper today from Argos on offer for a tenner just incase I decide to go for it, I think for now I'll just have to invest in the vet bed just so I can get the girls in their new cage, I can attempt a liner later on hopefully!
 
And this is why i just stick to fleece and towels ! haha,
I don't really see the point in spending £50 plus on two liners when i can get two fleeces for about £6 and just use some old towels from the cupboard haha.
Prices sound about right from when i did my research, although vet bed is more expensive apparently it lasts alot longer !
Click to expand...
DITTO this!
 
I recently had to re-do all my cages with fleece (i do still use vetbed from time to time) and i bought this mattress topper from argos:

Mattress Topper

and bought my fleece material from this ebay seller:

Fleece Material

I had to kit out two 5ft x 2.5ft cages and two double 140 cages - a wash and wear for each cage - it cost me £44 in total for 20meters of fabric and i have plenty left over should i require any spares or if i want to make some beds for them.

It is by far the cheapest fleece ive come across - handy when you need a continuous roll of it for larger cages - plus they have a nice range of patterns to choose from.

Vetbed is good, but the intial outlay can be pricey - i paid around £40 from an ebay seller for 3 pieces of 160cm x 90cm rubber backed vetbed (it was burgundy with white paw prints on). My only issue with vetbed was my washing machine (which ive since had to buy a new one) and the fact it was quite a struggle to fit the pieces in.
 
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