CREATING My Owls

For the last few years, I've been attempting to use up my scrapbook stash by making seasonal "nametags" for my coworkers.  This season, I decided to make owls. Lots and LOTS of owls. When I started I said, "I'll make 40, and that's it." But then I started having fun...way too much fun...and I made 52. I gave away 43 of them and said "no more". 

But by that point, I had owl fever, and so did my coworkers. The more I made, the more people wanted them. By this point, I've made 74, and have about 30 more that I plan to make. They are very time consuming, and actually involve quite a bit of work, but I am having a blast. I decided to create this post so that people would understand just how much work goes into each of these little fellas.

The Creation Process 

For starters, yes I have a Cricut, and no, I have not used it on this project. I couldn't find an owl shape that I liked, so I decided to make my own. I found a style that I liked at Feeling Crafty. She actually used a punch to make her owls, but I didn't have access to one that was large enough. So I copied the picture, re-sized and printed it, and made a template.

Step 1: Pick out and cut paper.

This project really does begin with a stack of scrap book paper and an Exacto knife. After the first few owls, I broke down and bought some circle punches for the eyes. I don't care how talented you are, circles are a pain to cut out!!!!!

You'll notice in the very first picture in this post that the owl is sitting on a branch with leaves. Yes, I cut out every single branch and leaf  also. 

Step 2: Ink all the pieces

When I first got my Cricut, I watched a how-to-video on "inking". This technique has absolutely changed my life (at least as far as paper crafting is concerned). I've used it on almost every project I've done for the past year. It adds depth and interest to whatever you have created. I really like Color Box cat-eye ink pads.  For the following photo, I only inked half of the leaf. You can really see what a difference it makes.

Step 3: Assembly

I use scrapbook Mounting Squares to assemble almost all of my paper craft projects. It's temporarily removable, but holds very well on a permanent basis. 

I like to add a little bling to the eyes using buttons or rhinestones. Depending on the side of the accessory, I will using either mounting squares or Zots Clear Adhesion Dots. The dots are easy to work with, but do not do well holding heavy items or anything that has constant pressure applied to it For instance, the seam in folded card stock can be a strong enough force to make the dot lose it's holding power.

This photo also shows the branch once it's been inked. No, the two branches there not out of the same paper. I didn't do THAT much inking...

Step 4: Final Assembly and Embellishment

Once the branch, leaves, and owl are assembled, I add the person's name to the branch. I have 3 pens that I switch between for writing on papercrafts. I love, love, love Pilot Extra-Fine Silver and Gold Markers. In fact, I almost live in fear that Pilot will discontinue these markers one day. They are wonderful. For the black accent ink, I use either 0.05 Sakura Microperm Ultra-Fine or 0.3mm Helix Fine Line Marker. 

Sometimes, I also add something in the heart. For instance, this owl was made for someone who is a member of Chi Omega. 

There ya have it, that's how I make my owls. When I first started, it took about an hour to make each one. Today I cranked one out in 40 minutes. Once I get an assembly line going, I probably average about 30 minutes on each. It's time consuming, but totally worth it.  I hope everyone else enjoys them too!