My first proper bird design was a barn owl. I was working for Jo Lavelle at Manchester Craft and Design Centre, and she asked me to decorate her studio window with a wintery display. I can’t remember if she suggested owls or I did, but I made whole families, perched on bare, painted snowy paper branches, and I’ve been making them ever since. That must have been around fifteen years ago, now. They’ve had several redesigns over the years. I also went through a phase of making ‘dapper owls’, wearing bowties and top hats and monocles, among other things, which I’d like to bring back one day. I’ve made lots of different species now, but I’ve never made a snowy owl. For whatever reason, nobody has ever asked for one. But they are one of my favourites, so we’re amending that gap in my repertoire immediately.

Owl designs start with the face. For barn owls, it’s a proper love heart. Others have a less defined shape, but it’s important to get this right for the species you’re trying to depict. I don’t attempt too much realism. Owl babies can be a little creepy, for example, which is why I keep mine simple, like little beach ball babies.

I always think it’s incredible how small tweaks to a design can completely change its character. It is harder than it might seem to make similar, but different owl species. Designs go wrong sometimes, but it’s always fun to figure them out. The next challenge for me is to create free standing owls. It’s a difficult balancing act making them both in a pose that’s nice and a pose that is weighted correctly. I’m looking forward to the challenge!