Saturday, February 28, 2009

Softie: Ollie the Owl

Any proper student of Classical Studies would of course have a little obsession with owls. As a symbol of the goddess Athena, owls appreared on ancient greek coins and were a popular representation of wisdom in the Classical world. Those ancients really knew their stuff. These timeless little creatures are once again a huge trend in crafts, fabrics, and home decor.
Becoming more adventurous in my softie making, I set out to design my own full-sized softie and gave him the name "Ollie", named after the owl that visits the backyard of my parents' house and softly hoots me to sleep sometimes. A fabulous 70s-inspired floral fabric in black, cream, grey, and maroon is anchored by black & cream felt, and a cool grey corduroy. Once again, this piece is handsewn (no machine!) but this time uses Fairfield 100% Bamboo Nature-Fil Stuffing. I highly reccommend this low cost earth-friendly alternative to traditional polyester stuffing. It's soft, lush, user-friendly, and naturally anti-bacterial.
Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the results of this little fella. I included the wings as a last minute addition and they turn out to be my favorite element of Ollie. If I ever use this pattern again, I'd like to sew the wings "in to" the owl body instead of "on to" the owl body. I would get much cleaner results...but that's just the perfectionist in me! :)

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