The Owl Trend: "I like it."

("I like it" is what my two year old says when he sees something he wants like the bulldozers at work on the highways.)


For the past couple of years or so, owls have been popping up all over the place. (fabric above found on southlandtopology.com) Maybe it's Harry Potter bringing on the resurgence of an old 60s trend, or maybe it's just the usual trend cycles at work, but whatever it is, "I like it" & I have a soft spot for them. My family's always had this vintage owl stapler (below) and I remember playing "office" with it as a little girl:

As most of us know, owls symboize wisdom & knowledge. So it really is interesting (and odd) to me that they pop up everywhere in such "cute" contexts. Don't get me wrong, there is definitely something special about owls. They're beautiful & a bit mysterious... But we've taken this night-hunting bird and plastered it all over fabric, household items, pillows, toys, and anything else we can think of and portrayed it in a very "adorable" way. (Collage by Helen Musselwhite below from here )

I'm starting to think about Baby #2's nursery (2.5 months away from arriving) and so of course, I'm drawn to all the adorable owls everywhere!!! I love these sheets from pottery Barn Kids:



And even better are these adorable stuffed owls they're selling:



I'm also crazy for this PERFECT little owl pillow:


The thing is, we don't know if we're having a boy or a girl and these are definitely on the girlie side. (Although let's be honest here, after already having 1 child, I know that the nurseries are for the parents, not the babies. Babies straight up don't care. Give them something fun to look at and they're happy.) BUT still, it's more the principle I guess... So, loving the little owls and wanting some more options I've started looking around online and have found some great ones! I love this little guy found on sewmamasew.com below. But it's a pattern & you have to make him... ehhhhh and I haven't been feeling too crafty lately:





I also love these (found at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5199545) by Retro Mama. Totally could be ina baby boy's room!


And there are so many great prints out there too! How cute is this mam & baby owl print below? (found SOLD --argg- on etsy by popartcafe):

Loving this collage by Linda Solovic found here:
And this one has such a great vintage feel to me:
Getting a little more sophisticated (and girlie again) but I LOVE this fabric designer, Tula Pink found on Trueup.net:



And I can't even handle this little vintage guy found here:



I bought a weekly planner last night with owls on it. That's when my husband said to me "You're really into owls lately" and made me think to write this post. Check out these pretty journals found here:





How cool is this painting "Vintagse Owls" by Kendra Baird?:




Here's a beautiful owl pillow found on House Beautiful:




A great brass owl:

A little stone owl (found on Kaboodle) who'd be perfect tucked on a shelf somewhere:
And now onto the owls I WANT. I've been lusting after this owl drawing by Albrecht Durer for a year or so now... (He's the Medieval artist whose drawing I had blown up on canvas in our dining room.)




I really really want this pillow for my living room (from penhollows.com) but just can't spend that much on a pillow:


And this letter opener is just SO BEAUTIFUL:
And finally, I'd love one of these rings from Kris Nations:

I love it in both white & black & there are other gorgeous colors too. ONly $28!!! I think they'd make great Christmas gifts..


Anyway, I think it's pretty clear that I'm hooked on owls so I'll be joining Julia at Hooked on Houses for her VERY LAST HOOKED ON FRIDAYS BLOG PARTY!! Have an awesome weekend and thank you so much to everyone for all the touching comments yesterday!! Congratulations to a few of you who are celebrating anniversaries right around now too!!!

xoxo,

lauren

31 comments:

Michelle Hughes said...

I adore owls... I must have got it from my aunt Dee... she loves owls too and now they are all over the place. Owls would be perfect for a nursery... we have a couple in ours. We even have an owl in the middle of our address stamp... thanks for doing this post, now I can check out all the owls I may have missed!

SMiles!
Michelle

lindsey said...

Love the owls too!!
saw an owl ring that i HAVE To have!!!

Eileen said...

I am owl-crazed so I am LOVING this post!
I have a collection of owls, and it has become such an obsession. I was trying to curb myself a little, but now I see a few more that I just HAVE TO HAVE!!
Cute post!
Thanks!
All the best,
Eileen

LindsB said...

I have seen owl everything lately- you are right. Owl earrings, owl rings, owl umbrella holders...they are all so cute!

Passementerie said...

What faboulous owls you have found! I adore the first fabric and the Potter Barn Kids sheets. My baby has an owl toy that makes a very gentle bongly noise when she shakes it. Sometimes it's how we know she is awake in the mornings...

Tammy@InStitches said...

There is something very retro about owls. I am loving the owl nursery theme.

MFAMB said...

i love owls too, in fact i snagged that adorable little blue owl image for my blog..:)

Windlost said...

I have always had a soft spot for owls. We had a lot of them around our house in the country when I was little. I always loved the symbol and had an owl stuffed animal too. Love all these owl things. I think it is their huge eyes that make them look so cute.

In real life, they can be not cute - they were known to take the kittens of farm cats around our home...

I am buying that owl print by Albrect Durer soon - along with the hare - but waiting til Christmas since I am all "spent out" after our trip.

Good luck with the nursery decor - have you posted anything yet? Owls would be a pretty addition!
xo Terri

DesignTies said...

Lauren I love your e-colection of owls!! And yes, I think you should design your new nursery around the owl sheet set and owl stuffies. Love them!! I think my favourite of all the things you've shared would have to be - hands down - the owl tree textile-collage. FAB! It would be like a "family tree" hanging in your babies room... each owl could represent a member of your family. So sweet!!

Speaking of nurseries... my sister just had a baby and in celebration, I put together a post about nurseries for today's Hooked on Friday's blogparty. I hope you'll drop by and see what there is to see... maybe there's something that could work with owls?!

Victoria @ DesignTies

Apryl said...

Owls are everywhere. Last year, I bought a white owl that a lot of people think is kind of creepy but I LOVE it! He's been on our mantle and now he currently resides on the ground by our fireplace. Eeeek, Owls.

Donna said...

Those owl rings are so precious...love it all!

Pat said...

Used to find owls for my late BIL. He was an ag prof and they were the agriculture fraternity symbol.

Unknown said...

Oh! So many gorgeous owl pics, I am in love with that collage, and those pretty sheets, Have a wonderful weekend!

Abbey @ Practically Perfect said...

Love the owls! Check out these http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=32351684

She has others where you can pick your fabric, too. I ordered a bag from her and she does great work!

Happy belated anniversary!

Debra said...

You are a hoot...sorry, I couldn't resist! When I was in my late teens I collected owls-I so wish I had them so I could pass them on to you.

Meg said...

My high school mascot was an owl and NOW they have cool owl stuff! Rewind ten years, please!

DesignTies said...

There was an owl in a tree in front of my office building last week. I didn't see it, but a couple of people took some pictures. I'll e-mail a couple to you if you're interested in seeing them.

You should contact the Etsy seller and see if he/she can make you a mom & baby owl print.

Kelly

Pauline Wiles said...

How funny, I was only noticing yesterday that owls are popping up all over!
I liked these sheets at Garnet Hill and I also noticed some (rather pricey) Owl Giclee Prints at Ballard Designs.

From my childhood, I also remember a wonderful book called Ernest Owl starts a school. I don't know if it's still available...

Brooke @ Blueprint Bliss said...

I'm loving owls lately. I esp like the 'kid' ones that you posted. So cute.

Maria Killam said...

*sigh* I love your blog Lauren. I never know what I'm going to find when I get here. Since I have a soft spot for cute faces, I was so happy to see all those adorable stuffed owls!
Have a great weekend!
xo
Maria

Tracy Watier said...

What a lot of great owls you found! I especially like the Linda Solovic collage snd the art under it was originally from Anthropologie I think--love it! And as cute as that first fabric is, don't the owls look like you're about to play foosball with their little heads?

Tracy Watier said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Tiina of livingConcept said...

lovely products!

Fargerike Dagny said...

Lol, you really are into owls! I've only noticed the necklaces that have been everywhere for the last few years, and I have a vintage one from my grandmother. :) Those little stuffed owls are just SUPER CUTE! Love them! The fabric is also fabulous! Hope you had a great weekend! :D

Catherine said...

I just framed that owl piece by Albrecht Durer. http://acountryfarmhouse.blogspot.com/2009/08/sweet-little-owl.html
Owls are so sweet and evoke such warm fuzzy feelings. I saw the sweetest owl soap in a store window recently- I would have taken her right home if the store had been open! It was beautifully carved and stood about four inches tall...so sweet. ; ) Trina

Michelle said...

I just bought owl euro shams at West Elm, and love them...ya, definately a trend :) Your house looks wonderful Lauren! You must be having so much fun!

Best,
Michelle

trendoffice said...

What a collection! And all of them well-designed and funny!

Amy R. said...

Just got a Garnet Hill catalog in the mail and they have lots of cute owl wares!

I "heart" your blog.

Karah said...

i love owls too. baby owls are ADORABLE to use in a nursery! love all the cute owl stuff you posted!
i <# your blog too!:)

No.35style said...

love the etsy owl!

The Shiny Pebble said...

Hi Lauren,
I really enjoyed this post and linked it back from a piece I wrote today. If you want to check it out go to: http://theshinypebble.blogspot.com/2010/02/thads.html