For almost 20 years, toy designer Jo Carter has been creating adorable soft toys that combine whimsy, detail, and texture. Her company Two Owls Design, located in the UK, designs kits for sewing delightful animals like foxes, sloths, and pugs, which include detailed instructions and full-size patterns. In addition to her work in toy design, Jo also shares photos of her beautiful quilting projects on the blog portion of her site, showcasing her talent for mixing vibrant colors and playful design. Jo designed the incredibly cute lamb toy featured in this issue of We Like Sewing, which we’ve also included in our holiday sewing gift guide. Keep reading to learn about Jo’s journey with sewing and quilting, as well as the story behind her company’s name!
Q: What age did you start sewing? Do you remember what your first project was?
A: I began sewing as a child as my mum was and still is a keen sewist (she makes a lot of my toys!) and her sewing machine was practically part of the furniture at home and was always set up and ready to go. The first big project I remember making with the help of my mum was a dressing gown when I was about 11 or 12 years old. It was made from mint green toweling fabric [terrycloth] and all of the edges were bound with a ditsy floral fabric. I remember hand-sewing all of the binding down and thinking, I’m never going to make anything with binding ever again – which makes me laugh now considering I make quilts!
Q: What inspired the name of your company, Two Owls Design?
A: My company name doesn’t actually stem from my love of owls (although I do love them) but from a teenage nickname. There was a comedy show my friends and I used to watch and there was one particular sketch about two owls that we would quote all the time. Then, when one of my friends got her first mobile phone, she saved me in the contacts as ‘Two Owls’ and so when I needed a name, it just seemed like the right choice!
Q: You’ve designed some beautiful quilts on your blog! What is your favorite aspect of quilting?
A: My favorite aspect of quilting is piecing the fabric together and seeing the patterns and shapes develop and emerge. There is something so soothing about the steady rhythmic sewing of joining pieces together, and the sense of achievement when it finally all comes together can’t be beaten. After the piecing, my second favorite part is sewing the binding on. I love putting on a film and sitting under the quilt as I sew.
Q: What do you love most about toy design?
A: The thing I love most about toy design is how fast projects come together – and come to life. Over the space of a couple of hours, a little smiling face can appear from out of a pile of fabric pieces!
You can follow Jo’s sewing and quilting adventures and order her toy kits and other products at Two Owls Design’s website.
