Objects of Desire: Woven Pet Huts from Ghana, West Africa
Dogs and cats like a room of their own, too. Here’s an upgrade on the common crate and backyard doghouse: fanciful pet huts woven by women’s craft collectives in the Bolgtanga region of Ghana, West Africa, that combine the artisans’ basket- and hat-making skills.
The huts come in a range of shapes and sizes, all with wide-open mouth-like entries that lend them an anthropomorphic charm. Here are six standouts.
Above: Nickey Kehoe, a favorite Remodelista resource in LA, is where we first came across these Ghanaian Woven Pet Huts, no two exactly alike. A “bungalow” is $300 and a “penthouse” is $400. To fully furnish, add a cushion.
Above: This Cat Basket is made of dried elephant grass, fabric, and natural dyes. Etsy seller Handmade by Akua of Bolgtanga, Ghana, offers it in three sizes and in a range of colors and patterns starting at $135. For kids’ rooms with an overflow of stuffed animals, consider one of these as a teddy cave.
Above: Spotted on Meadow Blu, a Natural Pet Hut made by women weavers; $345. To clean, add water and reshape as needed.
Above: Zaarefolks sells a wide range of elephant grass baskets handwoven in Ghana, including dog baskets, Moses baskets, market baskets, and laundry baskets. This colorful vegetable-dyed Cat Bed is $145 on Etsy.
Above: For your pet or resident elf, the fair-trade Natural Pet Hut from Michele Varian is $345.
Above: Nickey Kehoe’s Pet Penthouse is $400.
Browse the Remodelista Pet Archives for additional recommendations, including our own Meredith Swinehart’s Faunamade line of dog and cat beds.
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