Catnip Sachets

Even older cats appear young and spry when there is catnip in the air! You can create catnip toys completely at home – growing the plant, drying it out, and handmaking playthings for your kitty.

Catnip is easily air-dried. Just harvest a few leaves and spread them out in a dry place for about a week. When the leaves feel crispy to the touch, they are ready to be used.

What You’ll Need

• Dried catnip
• Fabric scraps
• Thin ribbon
• Cotton/stuffing
• Needle and thread colored to match ribbon

Instructions

Cut a circle of fabric 5 inches in diameter. It doesn’t have to be a perfect circle, just something in a general circular shape. Lay a few dried catnip leaves in the center of the circle, then place a cotton ball on the leaves. (These can also be made without the cotton, but will require a lot more catnip to fill up the sachet. Also, the sachets tend to lose some of their bounce without the cotton, and the cats love the bounce so I always add cotton.)
Pull the sides of the fabric up around the catnip leaves and the cotton, forming a little sack. Tie the sack together with a 7-inch piece of ribbon. Leave the ends of the ribbon long, as cats love to play with these.
With the needle and thread, run two stitches all the way through the ribbon and sachet to secure it all. Tie off the thread ends at the back of the sachet.
Throw the toy into a room with a cat and watch it go wild!