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!

Senior Dogs are the sweetest!

"Arcea"
10" x 12" acrylic on canvas

I was inspired by Melissa's post today on Pugnotes about senior dogs. Go check it out because she writes very eloquently about how older dogs can teach us wonderful things about life and about aging. Dogs don't care about a few gray hairs and some crinkles around their eyes...they just care about enjoying every day as it comes and embracing things that smell good! The painting above is of a very special senior dog I painted a couple of years ago. What a beautiful old soul he was.

One of my favorite rescue organizations that helps aging animals is SAINTS. They take in and care for seniors that have nowhere else to go. SAINTS provides a warm home and three beautiful acres in Mission, BC so that they can live out their days in a nurturing, loving environment. They have an auction coming up very soon so if you'd like to donate something to help raise funds for them...go here.

Back soon with a new dog portrait!

New mini prints!

"Blue Bowl with Strawberries" print

"Oranges on Blue Plate" print

Good Monday mornin' to ya!

I've just launched some new "mini prints" of my original paintings in my Etsy shop. Being that our economy is NOT real spanky right now...I thought making some smaller, more affordable prints for $10.00 would be a nice idea. These are all 5" x 7" Open Editions, printed on archival watercolor paper with archival pigment inks. I'll be adding more this week. If there are any of my other originals you would like to have a small print of...just let me know.

Wine Label by Cyrus Mejia

By the way...if you like wine, you might think about buying your Valentine a good bottle of "Vicktory Dog" red at DogLoversWineClub.com. This California-based winery is honoring each of the 22 Pit Bulls that were rescued from Michael Vick's home. The wine labels were created by Artist, Cyrus Mejia who was one of the founders of Best Friends Animal Society. "A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Best Friends Animal Society for campaigns to help strengthen laws against and penalties for dog fighting, and for campaigns against legislation to ban specific breeds of dogs."

Thanks for all your well wishes on developing the new website! xox

New Pug Painting

"Emmitt"
11" x 12" acrylic on canvas

Here is another painting I finished during the holidays of Emmitt the Pug. This little man belongs to Melissa Langer...a wonderful Artist I had the pleasure of meeting last year. The best part is that Melissa lives only ten mintues from me...so we have become fast friends. Melissa and Emmitt have brightened my life in so many ways...so I wanted to thank them with a painting of "Mr. Handsome" himself. Who could not paint this face anyway??

On another subject...many of you have heard about Bernie Berlin over at "A Place to Bark"...and her efforts right now to raise enough money by January 31st to get a matching $50,000 donation for her animal rescue organization. You can find out more about it on her blog here. Just click on the badge on the right sidebar of her blog to donate or click on the one below.
Bernie does so much to help animals in need...so let's help her!

Light a Candle Today

"Sugar"
Painting by Rebecca Collins

The Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is asking that you light a candle today, May 9th at 7:00pm MST in honor of the lost lives of innocent Pit Bulls that have been killed due to the reinstatement of the Denver Pit Bull Ban.

From their email...

"Since reinstatement of the ban, Denver has killed at least 1,100 dogs believed to be pit bulls or dogs possessing the majority of physical traits of those breeds. Some estimates place the death toll much higher, at least 2000 or more.

The pit bull ban was first passed in 1989 but a state law was passed in 2004 that made breed bans like Denver’s illegal. Denver suspended enforcement of its pit bull ordinance at that time. Denver officials went to court to challenge the new state law. Enforcement of the pit bull ban resumed on May 9, 2005 when a court ruled Denver could enforce its pit bull ban."

Many dogs have been forcefully taken from their families and euthanized because they "look" like Pit Bulls. The media has portrayed Pit Bulls as vicious animals for years when in fact, it is just not true. The problem lies with irresponsible pet owners who don't spay or neuter their dogs, who tether or chain them, train them to fight and abuse or neglect them.

I chose the beautiful portrait above by Rebecca Collins of Art Paw to represent all Pit Bulls today. Her name is Sugar. Sugar is no longer with us...but her spirit reminds us of the beauty, majesty and innocence of the breed.

Please write your local representatives and protest all Breed Specific Bans. This is happening in many communities...not just Denver. Please speak up for and protect dogs like Sugar who can't speak for themselves.

My little Valentine

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

Miss Valentine is my latest commission. What a sweet Chihuahua...it was a pleasure painting this sassy little diva!

Three things I thought you might be interested in. First, there is a great dog ecard site I found through Modern Dog Magazine. It's called Sloppy Kiss Cards. Really fun dog and cat ecards for every occasion. They have some fabulous Mother's Day cards!

Next...is something new for your dog library (don't we all have one?!). It's a book I recently read called "Just Gus" and it's a beautiful gem of a story about how a rescued dog brought joy and healing to the life of a cancer patient.

And last but not least...there is an amazing end-of-life sanctuary called SAINTS that takes in senior and special needs pets that have nowhere else to go. It breaks my heart to think of a senior animal in need without a loving family or home...so these people are doing very important work. It's getting late...but there is still time to donate something to their "Wishes for Whiskers" silent auction coming up on May 12th. If you can donate any service or artwork to them...please think about it as they are in need of funding. You can reach them through their website here.
Abby Louise thanks you!

Enjoy this first weekend of May!

Abby Creek Featured!

A big thank you to Jan Dicintio from "Scoutie Girl" who featured some
of my still lifes on her blog today. Jan also makes beautiful handmade handbags in custom-designed fabrics which you can purchase on her website, Daisy Janie. Jan is a fellow dog lover and names her handbags after rescued pooches from the Catahoula Dog Rescue which she supports. Definitely check out Jan's work!