Dog Drawings Redux!

I was going through some older computer files the other day and came across these mixed media dog drawings I did a few years ago. I don't do many of them now but every once in awhile... someone will ask me if I can create something a little less expensive than the cost of an acrylic on canvas dog painting. The answer is, you betcha! Since I recently did a couple of cat drawing commissions, I've gotten the bug to do some dog drawings again. A 5" x 7" drawing is $100.00 so if you're interested...give me a shout.

By the way...some fun news is that my painting of Miss Pandora, the Potbelly Piggy won the Patron's Choice Award over at EBSQ. The show's theme was Barnyard Animals. Pandora doesn't think she's a barnyard animal...but I entered her anyway!

Hope you enjoy these three drawings of some pretty sweet dogs!

"Faithful Service Dogs"

"Two Shaggy Ones"

"Otis"

Painting - Poetry Friday!

"Night Bloom"
13" x 16" acrylic and collage on canvas
available for sale in my Etsy shop here

Just finished this new abstract painting yesterday. I absolutely love using red lately...this color happens to be Liquitex heavy body cadmium red medium hue. It really packs an emotional punch for me.

By the way...since we're heading well into 2010 now...I just reduced my Abby Creek Dog Calendars 25% in my Etsy Shop...in time for Valentine's Day! I only have a few left so head on over there now if you would like one for a special someone in your life.

And lastly...this poem came to me the other day so thought I would share it with you. Hope you like it. Have a great weekend!

A creamy dusting of snow
covers already shivering ground.
Soon, tiny birdtracks
leave silver indents.
My dog's paw prints
are everywhere.

What I like about winter
is that you can witness
where dear ones travel.

~Linda O'Neill

Artist Spotlight

Best Friend New York Artist Spotlight

Hey there! I'm back from the Bay Area. James and I had a great time seeing our families AND managed to avoid the rain deluge while we were there. Maisie had a wonderful time here with her best friend, Auntie and dog sitter extraordinaire, Mary. I don't think Mary got a lot of sleep while we were gone though. We've had two coyotes taking up residence on the other side of the irrigation ditch by my studio. They make Maisie crazy and when they howl...SHE howls...usually in the early morning hours. Oh great.

I wanted to share some news about the above "Artist Spotlight" with you. I am featured on Best Friend New York's Featured Artists page right now. Best Friend NYC donates a portion of all proceeds from work generated by the Artist Spotlight to the ASPCA. Take a look at some of the other Dog Artists as well...there's some fantastic work there.

Hope you're having a good week out there! Back soon with some new art...

Cutie Pie Oscar

"Oscar"
11" x 14" acrylic and collage on canvas

Here he is...one of Maisie's best dog park friends, Oscar! Oscar knows how to play with the big dogs and doesn't take any sass. He's a St. Bernard in a tiny Boston Terrier body! The photo of Oscar that I worked from is below.

And congrats to Christine from I Heart Dogs ...she guessed that I was painting a Boston Terrier from the hint I gave in my last post. I'll be sending you some greeting cards of Oscar soon, Christine!

The real Oscar!

James and I are heading to California tomorrow morning to visit family for a few days. Take care of your sweet selves and I'll be back next week!

Snippets

"Snippet #1"

Happy Monday! So hey...do you create "Snippets"? I call older pieces of art that you tear up into smaller works of art...Snippets.

While I was working on my BFA degree many years ago...I focused on printmaking. I made hundreds of monotypes...many that were ready for the garbage can after printing! I found though that if I tore up the monotypes instead...I could create little monotypes, often with much better compositions. I framed lots of these because I liked them so much.

If you haven't already...try making a Snippet and let me know what you come up with!

Back very soon with my new dog painting...

"Snippet #2"

Balance #2

"Balance #2"
acrylic and collage on canvas
available in my Etsy Shop here

Here is my second "Balance" painting. Thought I would get a little more textural with this one.

Coming next...a new dog painting! The first one who can guess which breed will get some free greeting cards of the little guy. The only hint is..."he's a gentleman". Good luck!

"I always try to balance the light with the heavy...a few tears
of human spirit in with the sequins and the fringes." ~ Bette Midler

Maisie is mad...

...at me for working on another cat! She's avoiding eye contact with me this morning...but I have a feeling she'll get over it pretty quickly. Roasted turkey bribes work every time.

Anyway...I'm posting it without her knowing it. Here is Kahla...a mixed media drawing on watercolor paper.

Have a good weekend everyone!

"Kahla"
5" x 7" mixed media on paper

Balance

"Balance"
12" x 13" acrylic and collage on canvas
available in my Etsy Shop here

Balance, steadiness, harmony, determination, endurance...all good words to think about as this year begins.

This new abstract symbolizes balance in particular. Balance is sometimes precarious but if you remain steady and strong...you can sustain yourself without falling.

Hope you're having a good day out there!

"Balance is the perfect state of still water. Let that be our model.

It remains quiet within and is not disturbed on the surface."

~Confucius

Hello 2010!

Hi everyone...hope your New Year is starting off great! Thanks to all who sent me those wonderful New Year wishes...I hope the very same for you. I'm banking on 2010 being a winner!

The first week of January turned out to be doozy cold here. I took the picture above last week from just outside my studio. This is my favorite view from our yard...I love that sweet white barn. Below is my little snow bunny...on patrol...keeper of the peace.

By the way...have you all seen the movie, Herb and Dorothy? I watched it last week...it's about a married couple of very modest means that, over the years, built one of the largest collections of Contemporary Art in history. It's a fascinating and uplifting film...and a story about this couple's love for art that is extraordinary. It's available on DVD.

Looking forward to catching up on your blogs. I'll be back soon with some new work!

Merry Christmas!

Hi everyone...Maisie and I would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Thanks for all of your support and friendship this year. You guys are the best!

I'll be taking a little break until the beginning of January...so I'll see you then. In the meantime...wishing you joy and peace...and lots of Christmas goodies! xox!

Happy Friday!

"Two Pears en Rouge"

24" x 24" acrylic and collage on canvas
available for sale in my Etsy shop

Hey there! Just finished this new still life...let me know what you think!

I was going to post it earlier this week but I got a little sidelined by a sore throat and a hurt back. As you've probably heard, it's been FREEZING here in Colorado the past few days. Thanks to the icy roads, Miss Graceful here slipped walking Maisie and threw my back out. Anyway...doing much better now which is a good thing since I've hardly done any Christmas shopping at all. Every year I promise myself I will get things done earlier...but does that ever happen? Looks like James and I will juuuuuust make that shipping deadline again. Yikes!

Hope you're all doing well and that you have a very fun and festive holiday weekend! xox

A Thank You from Dexter

Dexter and Dexter

I was thrilled when I received this photo from Diane...of her handsome Dexter next to his painting. I love it when people send these to me! She also wrote a very nice blog post about it...so thank you Diane. That made my day!

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year. Maisie and James enjoyed their turkey...and I stuffed my face with everything else. Just put some vegetarian stuffing and Uncle Fred's cranberry dish in front of me...and I'm a happy camper!

Hey, have you seen this adorable coaster set from Aunt Sadie's? I love 'em!

Have a good Monday and happy almost December!

Maisie Eats the Winner!

Maisie picked a winner this morning! Email me your address, Miss Donna from Mourning Dove Cottage...and your Abby Creek Calendar will be on it's way to you!

The lottery process was to spread out pieces of paper on the floor with everyone's names and wherever Maisie's nose landed was to be the winner. In the above photo...she had nosed it and put her teeth marks on it carrying it to a safe place. In the photo below...you can see where the piece of paper ended up. I'm sorry, Donna...but you have been eaten and probably digested by now. :)


My brother left last night...we had such a wonderful time together. I HAVE to share one of our shopping finds with you. We were passing by a bookstore yesterday...and we saw one of the best books ever! We both burst out laughing. I think this is a "must have" for any male dog lover who knits...and I know there are lots of you out there!

Have a great Tuesday! xox

Friday Giveaway!

Happy Friday everyone! Per Maisie's request...I am giving away one of my 2010 Abby Creek Calendars. Just leave a comment and Maisie will pick the lucky winner next Tuesday. The calendars are still available for sale in my Etsy Shop as well. They make great stocking stuffers!

My brother is coming to visit for a few days so I'm very excited about that. Just wait until Maisie nudges his door open in the morning and jumps up on his bed to snuggle. Surprise!

Hope you all have a great weekend. See you Tuesday!

The Dogs of 2010 (with a bunny and a pig)

Juicy Fruit

"An Apple a Day"
12" x 12" acrylic and fabric on canvas
available in my Etsy Shop here

Here's a new Still Life...apples and pears are my favorites to paint. I think I'm feeling a fruit painting frenzy coming on!

Below is a picture of my little snow baby from yesterday. This is a rare shot when her face isn't buried in the white stuff. Sweet girl!

Miss Maisie

Here Kitty Kitty...

"Dexter"
12" x 13" acrylic on canvas

Hi everyone...just finished this commission yesterday of Dexter the Cat. He's a handsome fellow with those big green eyes, isn't he? Dexter belongs to Diane Silveria of Diane's Mixed Art. Go check out her blog, her beautiful cats and birds and her wonderful art. Thanks for having me paint your sweet boy, Diane!

Back soon with another new painting. Have a good Thursday!

Last Holiday Card

Holiday cards available in my Etsy Shop here.

Here's my last Holiday card for the year. This is a reproduction from a painting I did last year of a little cozy house on a cold winter night. You can purchase 8 of these with 8 envelopes in my Etsy Shop for $12.00 with free shipping until November 15th. Remember also to buy your Abby Creek Dog Calendar before the free shipping ends!

I'm in the process of finishing a Cat Commission and a new Still Life so stay tuned for those. In the meantime...check out this article by Rita Mae Brown titled, "Animals Make the Perfect Humans". She's also written a new book that's getting good reviews. Might be a good holiday gift for an animal lover in your life!

More Holiday Cards!

Holiday Cards available in my Etsy Shop here.

Hope that you all had a fun Halloween! Seems amazing to me that it's November already...so I'm adding a couple more Holiday Cards to my Etsy Shop this week. It seems like the Holidays come at warp speed after Halloween so I usually get caught in the blur and end up sending out MY cards around December 24th!! I'm hoping that by adding these to my shop early this year...it will help me with my own "card slackerdom".

Of course, I HAD to post this embarrassing photo of Morticia Maisie in her Halloween attire. You can tell by the look how thrilled she was and you can probably guess just how long the wig stayed on. I'm surprised the wig survived at all!

Happy Halloween!!

BOO!!!

I'm a Guest Blogger on Craft for Health!

I'm so honored to be a guest blogger on Craft for Health today. If you don't know about this blog yet...go visit it because it's so motivating! Design expert Kathy Peterson and Nurse Practitioner & RN Barb Dehn collaborate to share empowering and inspiring stories about the therapeutic benefits of art. Thanks Kathy and Barb for letting me share my story!

We're having quite the snowstorm here! I think we've had at least 15 inches so far. Here's a pic from yesterday of our gate that leads to the backyard. It's cold here but it's beautiful. Hope you're warm and cozy wherever you are.

One more Christmas card!

Cards available here in my Etsy Dog Shop

Here's one more new Christmas card for 2009! Rosie, the Black Lab just screamed to be a Santa this year...so here she is. You can purchase cards of this sweetie pie in my Etsy Dog Shop. Shipping on holiday cards and my new calendar are still free until November 15th.

It's snowing like buckets here in Boulder today! Time for some hot soup!

New 2010 Calendar!

Abby Creek 2010 Dog Calendars available HERE!

My new 2010 Abby Creek Calendars are now available for purchase! You can head to my Etsy Dog Shop to see the whole calendar including each month. The design is just like last year...but all the images are different. There is also a December pig and an April bunny added to the line-up. Shipping is free until November 15th.

What are YOU doing this weekend? James and I will be painting our guest room and guest bathroom. We've been doing some home improvement projects the last few weeks...Maisie has been supervising of course.

See ya next week! xox

New Christmas Card!

You can purchase these cards here.

Here's a new Abby Creek Christmas card...for all you Puggie lovers out there! You can purchase these in my Etsy Dog Shop...with free shipping until November 15th.

Hey...have you seen this great new book, "To the Rescue"? Check out some of the photos here. I think this would make a wonderful gift for someone this holiday season.

It's a beautiful, soggy Fall day here in Colorado. Winter is coming early this year though because the leaves are dropping fast. :(
Why can't it be Fall all year long?!

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."
~ Albert Camus

Party Animals Auction is Live!

Hi everyone...happy Friday! Hey, remember the Party Animals zine for sale that I blogged about last July? Well, the auction is now live on EBAY with 22 of the original works of art from the book for sale. Just click here and you can bid on one or many of the fabulous pieces up for auction. All proceeds will go to Bernie Berlin's, A Place to Bark to help animals in need. There are so many dogs and cats that need your help out there...so please bid bid BID!

The painting of my very own Mardi Gras Maisie (below) that I created for the book is for sale as well so click here and you can bid on my party girl Shepherd! Hurry though...the auction ends on October 19th.

Bid on this painting here!

Have a beautiful Fall weekend...I'll be getting back to work next week so see you then!

Crackers the Cat

Mom and Crackers

Hi everyone...thanks for all of your wishes for a good trip to see my Mom. We had a wonderful time together.

I have a very sweet story to tell you about her cat, Crackers. Over a month ago my Mom was driving Crackers to the Vet for a check-up...but when she stopped for gas he somehow got out of his box, jumped out the window of the car and ran away. My Mom was heartbroken. She posted "lost cat" signs all over town and hoped someone would call...but he was miles from home and after three weeks, she had lost hope of finding him again.

I returned from a walk one morning while I was there, came in the house...and my mom had an astonished look on her face. She asked me if I believed in miracles because there on the back porch...sat Crackers. Poor baby was tired and thin but he had found his way home. The sweetest part is that he came home on my Mom's birthday. What a wonderful gift he gave her that day!

So hope you're all doing well out there. I'm taking a little more time before I delve back into work...but I'll be back soon. Looking forward to catching up on your blogs and what you've been up to! xox