Malcolm

"Malcolm"
16" x 20" acrylic on canvas

Here's Malcolm...my latest dog commission. I decided to keep the background simple on this one...because I wanted Malcolm's beautiful markings and vibrant collar to be the showcase. It was fun to see him come alive on canvas!

So yes, I have now finally joined the ranks of additional social media (warning: can be exhausting) by becoming a Tweeter. I have heard so many good things about how great a tool it is to promote art. I would love it if you would follow me! and I would love it even more to have you as a fan on my Facebook page!

Hope your weekend is fabuloso!

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!

I love Jack Russells!

"Bogey"

13" x 16" acrylic on canvas

Here's Bogey, the Jack Russell...my latest commission. The purple blanket with green dots was his favorite thing to sit on. Bogey isn't here with us any longer ...but his spirit was surely with me in my studio. I could tell he was a very sweet boy with a sassy attitude and a heart as big as they come.

James and I will start packing up the rest of the house this weekend...our moving date is set for August 21st! All the commotion and change is making Maisie a little crazy...but she's going to be very happy once she see's her new bunny town.

What are YOU doing this weekend? Have a good one whatever it is! xox

A Dog and A Digital

"Fluffernutter"
12" x 13" acrylic and collage on canvas

Here he is...Mr. Fluffernutter. Don'tcha just love that name?...and what a cutie pie dog to match! Fluffer was a challenge but a real joy to paint. I think I changed the background five times on this one before I was happy.

And since I posted that painting by Inez Storer recently...I thought I would post this older digital piece of mine. Seems to have some eerie similarities. Any thoughts? Oooh...and we both painted these in 2002. (thanks for pointing that out Sandy!)

"Guise"
5.25" x 6" Digital Painting - 2002

And last but not least...two of my favorite Artists are having special discounts on some of their work until the end of this month. You should check them out here...

Sarah Regan Snavely's Etsy store for her beautiful Greyhound Tiles.

Jamie Johnson's "Really Big Sale" for originals, tiles and reproductions of her fabulous house paintings. (check the side bar for additional works)

A House and a Dog

"Little Winter House"
6" x 7" acrylic and collage on canvas
available on Etsy here

This is my newest painting (between Maisie patrol)...of a little winter house. Gotta say though...as beautiful as winter is here...I am ready for spring and some warm weather!

I had a wonderful surprise yesterday. My multi-talented friend, Melissa came over for a visit and brought me this beautiful painting of Maisie Rose! James and I just love it...and think it really captures Maisie and her "look". This is sort of the "I'm sorry I ate your sock, mom...but I'm too adorable to be mad at" look. Thank you so much, Melissa...you are the best!

"Maisie Rose"
11" x 14" acrylic on wood
by Melissa Langer - PugNotes.com

And speaking of Miss Maise...she gets an x-ray this Friday to see how her toe is healing. Keep your fingers crossed!

My Two Dog Babies

"Maisie doll sitting on the mantle"

Is it Monday already? Well, I guess I didn't post on Friday like I said I would. Maisie is keeping things pretty interesting around here so everything else is taking a back seat. She's doing ok although is VERY frustrated. We're having to resort to some sedatives at times to keep her calm and unable to hurt her little paw boo boo even more. I think her Mama needs some sedatives!!

Anyway, before I let any more time go by...I wanted to share with you two very special gifts I received for Christmas. The first one is from my friend, Shennon (Hi Shens!)...who made this adorable doll of Maisie. It was inspired by the work of Claudine Hellmuth. The little sign Maisie is holding is a quote by Will Rogers and it says, "Go out on a limb; that's where the fruit is". I love it!

The digital painting below...I had commissioned for James this Christmas of our beloved girl dog, Abby who passed away last March. I have always admired the very talented work of Rebecca Collins at Art Paw so I commissioned her to paint Abby. What can I say but we were thrilled with it...it is just an absolutely gorgeous painting. Both James and I consider it to be a very special gift from a most wonderful Artist friend. You can read about it a little more here on Rebecca's blog.

"Abby Louise"
16" x 20" Giclee on Canvas

Hoping to get some work done between "Maisie time" here this week. Wish me luck!...and think good thoughts for Maisie, ok?...her little puppy heart is kinda sad right now.

Birds on the Brain

click image to enlarge

I'm busy painting a beautiful Parrot named, Jefe this week so I am birdy nerdy and thinking about all things winged. I thought the above article was pretty amazing...from this month's Time Magazine. Just plain made me tear up.

And on a non-bird subject, have you seen Cowbelly Pet Photography's new website? Jamie has some of the very best Dog Portraits around. Check out her work!

New Doggie Painting!

"Emmett"
10" x 11" acrylic and collage on canvas

Just finished Emmett last night. Most of you remember Emmett if you've been following my blog...he's the big beautiful boy that stayed with us awhile back. I painted him for his person, Greg...who had a birthday a couple of weeks ago. Happy b-day again, Greg!

Emmett took quite a long time to paint. I just couldn't nail his coloring...but my super Art Critic husband, James helped me with that. I wasn't getting the beautiful red/brown hues I wanted and was ending up with too much grey/greenish in his highlights. We were looking at it the other night and James said, "Why don't you look at that Bensdorp Cocoa we bought...I think that's his exact coloring.". Well, I took his advice...sprinkled some cocoa on a white napkin, took it down to the studio and mixed the paint to match that color. I went back in...added more color to his coat, then added a little white to make it pop his highlights. Whamo...it worked!

And for all of you who haven't tried Bensdorp Cocoa as the actual food product it is...you can get it here. It's pretty much the best cocoa I've ever had and makes THE best brownies in the world.

Go here for a really sweet video I found on CNN yesterday. And might I add...there are NO ugly dogs in MY book!!

I miss my girl dog

"Abby"
painting by Vicky Knowles

I'm really missing my girl today. It's five months today that we lost Abby Louise. I thought sharing this painting by artist, Vicky Knowles would be a good thing to do today in Abby's honor. Vicky and I participated in a Pet Portrait Swap for EBSQ three years ago. She painted Abby and I painted her dog, Lisa (below) who had already passed away. It's interesting...both Lisa and Abby died of kidney failure at about the same age of 12. I look at Vicky's painting now and it makes me laugh and think of how funny and precious Abby was. She had THE biggest brown eyes that would melt your heart...and she definitely WAS a princess. Thanks, Vicky...this painting is even more special now that Abby is gone. I love you, Abby...hope you're having a blast running in the green grass.

"Lisa"
painting by Linda O'Neill