owl plushie

this is my first attempt at making something plushie - felt & stuffed with batting. i love him because he's my first, but i learned a couple lessons along the way & am looking forward to making another.

here is a rough tutorial:

1. i cut out each felt shape based on the vector work that i had previously done (2 of each). i decided to use a blanket stitch & found this great tutorial.
2. the wings were the first pieces i did; originally i thought that it would be cute to have a contrasting color thread (ie white), but decided heavily against it once both were done. i redid them with a matching thread.
3. i moved on to the feet & eyebrows. in an attempt to make the owl stand i used bent earring hoops (the cheap kind found in craft stores) & slid them between two stitches so that the feet had a platform & there would be some wire in the body as well (exposed wire coming upright from the foot).
4. i then did a blanket stitch around the eyes (just for looks, it was only one layer of felt) & attached the googley eyes. that whole piece & the eyebrows got attached to the front half of the body piece.
5. i lightly stuff the wings & sewed them onto the back half of the body piece.
6. now that the amenities were attached (besides the feet), i began the blanket stitched around the body. i did a stitch through the wings that looked similar to the blanket stitch but would let that section be more secure.
7. once there was only an inch or so open, i filled the body with batting & closed it up.
8. last, i inserted the wire from the feet to the base of the owl & stitched the back of the feet one the base of the owl.

i'll do a more detailed pattern later, but for now i'm just happy to have him. thanks to bart for indulging my nerdiness & being part of the owl/birch photoshoot.

UPDATE - click on image for 8.5" x 11" pattern