I Built a Japanese-Style Bench... for My Cats to Bird Watch

To replace some mismatched chairs in our window nook, I built a Japanese-inspired bench — functional as a bird-watching perch for the cats, and doubles as overflow seating when we have guests. The oak came from a tree on our property, so there's something nice about wood that once shaded the house now giving us (and the cats) a place to sit and look outside. Design-wise, I pulled from Japanese joinery and architecture with a bit of Craftsman/Mission influence — I wanted something simple and sturdy that would still stand out under the window. In this video: Joinery and design choices (Japanese/Craftsman inspired) Building a bench sturdy enough for humans, low enough for cats Final fit under the window #woodworking #catfurniture #diybench #craftsmanstyle #oakwood #handmadefurniture