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Owl Crisis

by | Jul 20, 2012 | Decorating Inspiration

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Owl Crisis

So, I’m not really into owls.

Mostly they kind of scare me.

But, I’m not anti-owl so when I saw an owl at the Seattle Goodwill for $1.99, I thought he’d make a nice pencil cup and bought him. Right after the Goodwill I headed to Anthro and lo and behold saw an owl pencil cup for $16. Score!

I gave my owl a quick coat of white spray paint and he looks pretty much like the Anthro owl, doesn’t he?!

Woo HOOOOOO?

But then, I had a pang of regret and remorse.

Owl Crisis

I couldn’t get over what I had done. I stole his identity. He didn’t know whoooooo ? he was anymore.

So to relieve my guilt and restore his faith in humanity, I might have to repaint him all fancy like this Anthro owl. I think it will give him back his unique personality, his joy and zest for living.

Owl Crisis

I’m sorry, owl.

 

59 Comments

  1. Lori H

    I like the all-white look!

    Reply
  2. Kelly - Talk of the House

    Hilarious!! To ease your guilt I like the plain white one. The other looks like he went crazy doing his eye make up. The bottom one is “okay”, but still too heavy on his eye make up.

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Oh yes, good point! Ha!

      Reply
  3. Julie

    I can see there is another person on the planet who thinks like I do….always ascribing thoughts and feelings and very deep needs to animals and inanimate objects. :) I actually like the Goodwill owl all painted white. I think the original owl was saying “Whoo, whoo, whoo will help me get this 1970s gunk off my beautiful eye feathers? Whoooo?” And lo and behold, it was youuuu who set him free! xxoo

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Haaaa! Yes. You are right!! I think he’s happy now.

      Reply
  4. Nikki

    I’ve got to admit that the owls are starting to grow on me. My daughter’s three-year old nursery school class mascot was an owl and I always thought having a bird of prey as the mascot was kind of creepy. I mean, the children were so tiny an owl could have swooped down and carried them off. But, your white owl sure is pretty sweet.

    Reply
  5. Becky

    For anybody interested….they have owl pencil holders (at least that is what I’m using it for!) at Target in the dollar section right now. They look just like Melissa’s Goodwill owl and they come in 3 different colors. I can’t remember what they are but mine is green.
    For what it’s worth, Owls creep me out a little too. But it never occurred to me with the cute little owl I’ve got:-)

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Good to know! Thanks for the tip!

      Reply
  6. Diane

    I remember getting some owly things for wedding gifts…what were they thinking?!!! Of course I graciously thanked my gifter and stored them away until forever later when some adoring owl fan bought them at my garage sale and gave them a caring home. Okay…not an owl fan…but they are growing on me. Maybe because when they are white they aren’t so creepy. {Seeing a real owl…that gets me excited…but I digress.} Funny thing about your Goodwill owl…I also immediately thought he had lost his identity all white. I have crafters/DIY’ers remorse all the time. I do something, stand back, and my heart drops to my knees. “What have I done?!! I’ve ruined it!!!”
    Oh…I think even white he’s cuter than the Anthro owl.
    Painting his eyes again…have fun! And maybe you just need an hour to play with paint. :D It’s good for the soul.

    Reply
  7. Angela

    I love the white owl. I think yours is better than the anthro owl and anthro is my favorite store!!! My daughter has the Hailey quilt set from pottery barn kids so we have had some fun with owls. I might have to get an owl pencil holder for her room. Anyway, I would not feel guilty, I love your white owl. Looks great and you saved him from the goodwill shelves and gave him new life. Great job!!!

    Reply
  8. Lisa

    Do you have to do anything special if you want to repaint something ceramic with spray paint?

    I really liked this post, especially because of the text conversation :-).

    Lisa

    Reply
  9. Amanda

    I like the owl better in his original state. He does look vacant without his eyes, but that is only because you showed us a photo of him before.

    Reply
  10. Heather

    I like the plain white one too. After all, it’s just a representation of an owl, not the real thing.

    Reply
    • Melissa

      True. It would’ve been very sad had I painted a real owl.

      Reply
  11. Michelle

    I like your owl better!
    I also found a small white owl last week at Goodwill- love that place!

    Reply
  12. Ally

    The white owl looks like a pencil holder. The second owl looks like RuPaul. I vote for the white one – RuPaul holding my pencils would freak me out.

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Bwahhaaaa. I would have to agree with you there.

      Reply
  13. Carolyn

    I love the way you painted it! I will gladly take it off your hands!

    Reply
  14. Lynna

    Poor sad brown-eyed owl, all done up, sitting in the GW with no where to go. Then swoop! You came along! Now he’s a rescue owl, rockin his new white eyes.

    Reply
  15. michelle

    I love the white owl. I would’ve painted him too.

    Reply
  16. Jen

    I think he is super sweet Melissa {and much nicer than the anthro one}. He definitely looks more updated in all white and he’s more versatile this way. He’d be awesome as part of your Christmas decor! Besides, the great thing about paint is you can always change it – right?!

    Reply
  17. Stacy

    lol Too funny! I think he looks great as an all-white owl but I’d love to see what he’d look like painted. After all, you could always go back to all white!

    Reply
  18. Kelly Reber

    I love the owl all white! I like it better than the Anthro Owl! If you paint his soul back in just paint his eyes in those fun colors and leave the rest of him white…. just my two cents :)

    Reply
  19. Lauren

    Aw poor owl… What’s more satisfying than finding an item at the thrift store just like one at the expensive stores? Love it… I think painting your owl friend would be a great project!

    Reply
  20. Deana

    I think the white makes him more classic and a transferable piece of art. Don’t be sad…you saved him from good will – he knows whoooooo loves him! <3

    Reply
  21. Jessi

    They have these owl pencil cups at target in the dollar spot (for $2.50) right now! I almost bought one to plant a succulent in but thought it might look funny with green hair growing out of his head….

    Reply
    • Bernice

      hahahahahahahahahaaaa

      Reply
  22. Maria

    Lol. You are too funny. I like the way your owl looks! But I bet you would do a nice job if you tried to paint it, too. :-)

    Reply
  23. Linda Stoll

    … I think the dude’s just a wee bit scary!

    Reply
  24. Barbara (WA)

    Goodness, you’ve got good taste. A goodwill find that matches Anthro – go with the white, IMHO, lol!

    Reply
    • Melissa

      I think he’s starting to like his new look. :-)

      Reply
  25. Jenny BC

    I needed a good giggle today. y husband would say you and I were sisters in some way…I too ascribe feelings to inanimate objects. I like the white owl myself. If I added a color is might be just one color as a highlight.

    Reply
  26. Kelly

    I give a hoot about that little guy!

    I scored an Anthro owl cookie jar at a rummage sale for $4 (it’s $98 in the store)!

    Your hootie looks hot white but would look even wiser with a little eyeliner to accentuate those piercing eyes!
    Kelly

    Reply
  27. tara

    I’m loving your owl….I’ve been looking at the ones at Anthro for sometime now..the cookie jars, but they’re just so darn expensive. :(

    I might have to drive by our goodwill this afternoon!!!

    Reply
  28. Jenni/Life from the Roof

    Oh my goodness, I went through the exact same thing! I bought a little owl at Goodwill for $1.99 with the intention of spray-painting him white. When I got home, I set him on my desk until I would have time to paint him, and then realized that he looked so sweet just the way that he was and actually went with the room without an upgrade. But he looks a bit different than yours – he was actually a handpainted ceramic figure by some kid named Steve (let’s hope it was a kid :)) and his eyes are much more proportional, so he doesn’t look scary like some of those owls do. I had a pin on Pinterest once of an owl mug where the owl appeared at the bottom of the mug after you finished drinking your beverage. Talk about creepy . . .

    Reply
  29. Jill Flory of Sew a Fine Seam

    I love him both ways! I love the coloring of the anthro colored owl if you decide to give him some color. But just maybe he likes being incognito??!!!

    Reply
  30. KATHYSUE

    Too funny! I love the all white version, but WHO is to say it is right or wrong only the owl will know!!lol

    Reply
  31. Sharon Fumia

    You are so cute. I love the way you write, and I love your blog.

    Reply
  32. Sonya

    Ha! This was very cute, I love that you had an owl crisis, I’m sorry that’s just adorable. Any whoooo (i couldn’t resist), I too did a owl knock off on a thrifted owl. I, however do not regret stealing his identity, poor guy. I hope you’ll check it out. Either way, whether you leave him or give back his personality I love him :)

    Reply
  33. Mimi

    Owls give me the creeps too. I actually prefer your white owl.

    Reply
  34. Nicole

    Personally, I like the all white owl – not having colored eyes isn’t any more of an identity crisis that having pencils sticking out of your noggin…Add a couple plumed pencils for your color. Cool project.

    Reply
  35. Karen Mary

    The all white one looks like white chocolate! Yum.

    Reply
  36. kristina

    Hahaa. Anthro- pomorphizing the owl! (What are the chances I’ll ever get to make that pun again?)

    Reply
  37. Lisa

    <3 the white!

    Reply
  38. Kaye

    I am very sad about his eyes…

    Reply
  39. Mark E Tisdale

    Ha, he has charm before and after! I love the guilt! And I bet he’d love to look like the owl in the last picture, too. Either way, it depends on personal taste. :-)

    Reply
  40. Kindra - Wickfreeforever

    OMG @ Diane I too got some Owl stuff for my wedding! I found it very odd but there must be something I am just not getting lol. I prefer the painted owl to the white one. I usually prefer the “plain” option on decor but for some reason I love the colors!

    Reply
  41. C.A.

    No way! I love the white owl! SOOO cute! I found a white ceramic owl in the gardening section of Target a few months ago, and it was love at first sight! Although I do like owls quite a bit. xoxo

    Reply
  42. Debbie Ciak

    Can you tell me what kind of paint you used?

    Reply
    • Melissa

      Yes, it is Rustoleum painter’s touch spray paint, gloss white. ;-) Worked great! No priming or sanding.

      Reply
  43. Julia

    After seeing this post, I found a similar creamy white owl at HomeGoods for $9.99. He has a crackle finish and is just perfect sitting on my mantle. He brightens up my mostly green and tan family room. Thank you for the inspiration! I always have a terrible time finding accessories I like and this one was an easy decision after I saw your cute GW owl.

    Reply
  44. Lainnie

    You are so funny! I love how you want to restore your owl’s humanity. I’m the same way with inanimate objects in my house. Great find at Goodwill…I love thrift shops myself, especially when I find something similar at a high priced retailer the next day. Regardless of what you do, that owl is so cute!

    Reply
  45. Gina

    I didn’t read through ALL of the comments…did you leave him plain white? What a find! I kinda like him all white, but I love that one with turquoise touches, too.

    Reply

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