Never Been Stitched Owl Plushie

by Designer Audrey Pettit:

Supplies:

Therm O Web Heat n’ Bond® Lite Sewable Iron-On Adhesive
Therm O Web PeelnStick™ Fabric Fuse Tape

Template from Never Been Stitched book by Amanda Carestio
1/2 yard fabric
Lace trim or extra fabric for ruffles
Scraps of felt in white and yellow
Vintage millinery flowers
Maya Road stick pins
Sewing machine
Buttons
Scissors
Straight pins and needle
Thread to match the fabric
Polyester fiberfill

I am an absolute sucker for owls, and could not wait to give Amanda’s sweet owl pillow a try from her Never Been Stitched book. This fabulous book is filled with 45 no-sew to low-sew projects, and although this owl does require a bit of machine sewing, this project is easy enough for even the most beginner sewers. I did add a few extra details to my owl than the original project, but that is the fun with handmade. Don’t be afraid to customize your project to perfectly suit your style. Clean and simple, or all dressed up….you’re going to love this little guy.

Here are a few quick tips for creating this adorable owl.

Print the owl template, increasing the pattern size to suit your needs. The book suggests increasing the pattern 400%, for a nice large owl pillow. I wanted more of a plushie size, so I only increased my pattern by 200%. Cut out the template shapes for the owl body, the background eyes, and the beak.

Fold the body fabric in half with the wrong sides together. Pin the body pattern on the folded fabric, and cut the body out.

Cut a piece of scrap white felt large enough for the background eye template, and a piece of scrap yellow felt that fits the beak template. Cut pieces of Heat n’ Bond® Lite adhesive the same size as the felt pieces. Place the bumpy side of the Heat n’ Bond® against the felt and press with a hot iron to adhere the adhesive to the felt.

Pin the background eye template and the beak template to the felt scraps and cut the pieces out. Remove the paper liner and place the felt pieces onto the front of the owl body where you would like them to go.

Then follow the manufacturer directions, press and iron the pieces to fuse them to the fabric.

Add machine stitching around the outline of the background eyepiece, if desired. Stitch buttons on for the eyes.

If you would like to add feather ruffles, you can do so easily by placing Fabric Fuse Tape onto the background of your chosen trim or fabric. Lightly burnish the tape with a bone folder or edge of a spoon, then peel off the liner and adhere the trim to the owl body.

NOTE: You DO NOT want to stitch through the PeelnStick™ Fabric Fuse Tape, so be sure to only place the tape in the center of the body, away from any possible seam allowance at the edge of the body.

Continue to add rows of trim, overlapping the top edges slightly. Trim excess lace from the edges.

At this point, you can stitch your owl body, or you can add a pair of wings on the side, like mine. I simply layered two pieces of the yellow felt together, then free-hand cut a half-circle shape. Pin the wings to the body, with the side edges matching the edge of the owl body.

Pin the front and back of the owl together, with right sides facing and matching all edges. Machine stitch all the way around the edge of the owl, leaving a 3-inch opening at the bottom.

Turn the owl right side out and punch out the ear corners with a pen or a knitting needle. Stuff the owl with the polyester fiberfill, then whip stitch the bottom opening closed.

Pin on millinery flowers, if you wish, and now your owl plushie is ready for some hugs.

Enjoy!