Ollie the Owl

Say hello to our new owl. I think his name may be Ollie.

A few notes:

• Super-fast to make; started it one evening, finished it the next morning, while chatting with Alex. 2-3 hours total. Conclusion: animals with fewer limbs are much faster to make. :-)
• I made Ollie notably bigger than Edward, Sir Heffalump (using an I hook instead of a G, and thicker yarn), because I thought he would be more cuddly for Kavi. I think that's the right choice, given the intended function, but the animal does seem a little less cute when it's bigger. Do you agree? I want to be consistent in size with the toys I make from this point going forward, so they can be a little woodland family, which means I do need to decide whether they're hand-sized, arm-sized, etc.
• I used the Red Heart acrylic this time (TLC essentials in brown and linen), because of the notes on how it's good to make amigurumi in tough, machine-washable yarn, to stand up to toddler play. I think that was a big mistake, for two reasons:
  
  
  
  1. I find this yarn unpleasant to work with, having sort of rubbery feel as it slides through my fingers, and
     
  2. Kavi looks at the owl, says with great excitement 'owl!', grabs it, holds it to her face for a second, and then drops it, instead of snuggling it the way she will her other stuffed toys. 
  We're pretty sure she likes her toys to be softer; this owl is somewhat rough and very artificial in texture. Sad. No more Red Heart for me! (Lori/Simone, I have most of two balls left, please feel free to claim it next time you're over if you want to experiment.)

Pattern from Amigurumi World