Owl Stuffies Tutorial

Ever since I made my son’s Halloween costume I’ve been having a lot of fun sketching and playing with the idea of making an owl stuffie. So when my mom commissioned me to make a stuffed animal as a present for a friend’s new baby I knew exactly what I wanted to make.
This Pattern is to make a small owl stuffie (like the aqua one above) This pattern is not for commercial use or monetary gain

Supplies

• 3 coordinating fabrics (one of them should be a solid color).
  
• a small amount of orange felt for the beak
  
• Polyfill
  
• Scissors
  
• Fabric paint or felt for the eyes
  
• Sewing machine
  
• Needle and thread
  
• Pattern below

Open this image in a new tab and print at full size. You will want to print 3 copies. Cut out the Face and Wing from the same copy. Cut the piece as seen below.

Back Cut 1 in Main color	Face Cut 1 in Main color	Wing Cut 2 in main color and 2 in Tail color	Belly Cut 1 in Belly color

Once you have all your pieces cut out it you are ready to start sewing with the wings.

The fabric that I choose for my main color came from an old pair of pants and was a heavier weight than the cotton quilting fabrics that I picked for my belly and tail colors. So I wanted to add a little weight to the lower wings. To do this I cut a piece of felt using the wing pattern but did not place along a fold. Then I folded the tail colored wing in half with right sides touching and pinned the felt to the outside (it should be touching a wrong-side).  Fold the top wing (main color) in half right sides together. Sew along the curve with a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Leave the top of the wing open. If you choose heavier weight fabric the felt is unnecessary.
After you sew the wings trim the felt as close as possible to the seam and clip your fabric along the curves. Then turn the wings right sides out and iron them flat.
The next step is to join the belly wings and face pieces to make the front of the owl. To do this you should place the wings on the right side of the belly piece at an angle with the curved part facing inwards. The wing piece that is the main color goes on top. The straight edge of the wing should be about 3/4 inch from the corners of the belly piece. Once you are satisfied with the placement of the wings place the face piece on top with the right side facing the right side of the belly piece. Pin in place and sew the straight edges together with a 1/2 inch seam allowance. 

Afterwards you can trim the excess wing to even up the seam.

Then lift up the face piece and iron it flat 
Finish the front by sewing on the beak putting the seam in the gutter between the wings and then adding eyes. For this tutorial I did freezer paper stencils for the eyes but you could also do appliqué or even buttons if the receive is past the choking hazard stage.

Putting on the tail piece is most challenging part of this project. Start with the front. After pinning the wings so they are out of the way pin the center of the  curve of the tail piece to the center of the bottom of the front. Work from the center out lining up the edges as you pin. Sew this curve with a 1/2 inch seam allowance.

Pinning the backside is also a challenge. Again start at the center and pin so that the edges line up. You are pinning a concave curve to a convex one so take your time and be patient. The carefully sew around with a 1/2 inch seam allowance. DON’T FORGET to leave an opening to turn it right side out.

I take the pins out of the wings thru the opening to save myself some pinpricks then turn it right side out. Stuff it and then sew up the opening and enjoy your super cute owl stuffie or make a whole adorable parliament.

If you make an owl stuffie we would love to see it. Please add it to our flickr group so we can all enjoy it.