Whoo, whoo, whoo...

decides that something like owls are going to be hip this season?

Do you ever wonder such things? I do.

Last night, as I was quickly thumbing through the Crate and Barrel gift catalogue, a trio of owl ornaments caught my eye.

They're kinda cute, no? The mix of fabrics, the prominent stitching, the bulgy eyes and wooden buttons. And they have that retro feel, that Mad Med, mid 60s, to oh say, mid 70s feel? They made me feel as though they would have been something we might have had in our house when I was small.

I moved on to the Company Kids catalogue. On page four I spied these big-eyed birdies

An owl purse and an owl wallet. Again with the retro feel, especially that wallet.

A few pages later I entered owl central -- three consecutive pages with owl products. This time book ends (2 types!), pillows, and an entire bedding set.

That's a lot of owls. This overabundance jogged my memory to the fact that I've seen yet additional Strigiformes of late. I picked up my laptop and sure enough, look at this from the Pottery Barn:

 And these from the Land of Nod

Again with the total retro feel.

How does this work? Do the kids accessories designers get together each summer and decide which animals will win the coming year's popularity contest? And if so, how do they do it? A few simple rounds of roshambo? Pick them out of a hat? Keep them on a few-decades rotation?

Here's what I think. I think these savvy sellers look back to the designs of old. The designs that sold well when their target population, that's right, the parents, were kids.

Cause honesty? I might just buy those ornaments, the brown bookends, or this "Owl Stitch It Kit."

I could use the bookends on the book case next to the papasan chair I don't yet have.