O is for Owls

It's O day in the Blogging From A to Z Challenge! I can tell it's getting near the end of a rough week because it's feeling more daunting than exciting at this point. Thank goodness we have Sunday off...it will give me a moment to refresh. Well...actually it will give me a day to get my crap together since U, W, X & Y still need projects.

I've done surprisingly better at preparation this year, but there is definitely still room for improvement.

Today's project is an easy(ish) one and one that I've discovered has been a surprising favorite with the kiddos. I made these little owl stuffies for all of the kids this past Christmas and they seem to be a universal hit. My 2-year-old nephew refuses to go to bed without his. In fact, it's so worn out that I need to make him a new one. That's the kind of thing that makes me feel pretty darned good about doing stuff like this.

These little guys were the result of a hodgepodge of inspiration from several Pinterest pins, most of which were actually rice filled animals designed as heating packs. I opted for softer and squishier (not to mention lighter) versions instead.

To start, I drew myself up a pattern. Then I took a horrible picture to document it for posterity because not all pictures can be winners. Why do I craft so late at night? Why is the lighting in my house so freaking awful for pictures as soon as the sun goes down? Do I live in a cave? Ridiculous.

The photos of sewing them together were equally awful or worse, so I chucked them. Instead, you get to look at decent pictures of finished products while I chat about how I did it.

For each owl, I cut out two of the body pieces, four wings (two right side up, two flipped over so I could create two wings), a belly, and face pieces. Everything but the face pieces were made from random fabric scraps I had laying around. The face pieces were scraps of felt. Owls are apparently a good way to clean out your stash. The body and wing pieces were cut out using pinking scissors with one idea in mind...simple sewing technique.

I sewed all of the face pieces and the bellies on and secured the edges of the belly with Fray Check. Turns out...that didn't matter. A few of the bellies have decided to fray anyway. Product fail.

Next time, I'm sewing two belly pieces together like a pillow and flipping them inside out so I have sewn edges to attach. Lesson learned.

I put the wing pieces together by just laying them one on top of the other (right sides out) and stitching 3/4 of the way around the edge. I stuffed them and sewed them shut. After that, I just laid them in between the two body layers and (once again) stitched 3/4 of the way around. I stuffed them until they were nice and fluffy and then finished stitching across the bottom.

The best part of these? No flipping things inside out and no hand stitching. So nice.

Total start to finish time per owl? About 20 minutes. Complete project win.

Miss any of my A to Z posts so far this year? Find them below...

1. A is for Anna (Easy Anna Cape)
2. B is for Bath (Appliqued Bath Mat)
3. C is for Child (Children's Growth Ruler)
4. D is for Denim (Denim Bib)
5. E is for Etch (Etched Casserole Dishes)
6. F is for Felt (Felt Hopscotch Mat)
7. G is for Good Night ("Good Night" Envelope Pillows)
8. H is for Hood (Easy Hooded Towel)
9. I is for Insulated (Insulated Beverage Cozies)
10. J is for Jumper (Embroidered Spring Jumper)
11. K is for Know (Know When to Hold 'Em/Fold 'Em Laundry Sign)
12. L is for Loveseat (Envelope Loveseat Pillows)
13. M is for Mittens (Fleece Baby Mittens)
14. N is for Ninja Turtle (Felt Ninja Turtle)

Are you visiting from A to Z? 

Be sure to leave me a comment (including your blog link) so I can come over and return the favor!

Tomorrow is one of my favorite projects for the 2015 A to Z. Letter P is awesome...you won't want to miss it!