‘Mary,’ I say. My couches are relatively new, and one of my cats has decided that they are the ideal scratching stuff, which is driving me nuts. ‘Mary,’ I say. I’m still concerned about my cats being exposed to chemicals, and this doesn’t have the same odor as poly. I gave it a white wash with acrylic paint and water, sanded it down, and then finished it off with a coat of shellac. It took me well over an hour to complete, and it’s scratch-safe for my cat. “It’s kind of like a wood veneer with a glue backing that’s enabled by fire,” Mary explains. “I tried wrapping it vertically for a while because I figured it would be simpler, but it just made things worse.” “I even tried using a nail gun for a short time, but it didn’t make much of a difference.” “You want the rope to be very tight and pressed up against the previous layer, and I noticed that hitting it with my hand got it flat and close.” “Oh my gosh, this is the closest we’ve ever been. Do you have an itch in your ear as well? If you have the same appearance?” “I’m really trying to persuade this one to put it to use.”