Happy Halloween!

Hi! and BOO! to you too!

No painting today; instead I leave you with a picture of my first dog, Penny, in her costume from the good ol' days when kids made their costumes from scratch...
My friends and I went as the Three Musketeers. She was the Fourth. She had a cardboard hat with tissue paper feather, a cape, tin foil sword taped to her side, a small cape, black paper gauntlets and a black mask....

The costume lasted for about a block before she wanted to rip it all off.

In hindsight, I'm thinking that was pretty good outing for a Fox Terrier/Cocker Spaniel mix!
Please check in with me tomorrow for the next painting-The Other End of the Leash - Don't Move!

The Other End of the Leash IV - One More Treat?

-SOLD-
The Other End of the Leash - One More Treat?
•4"x6" watercolor on paper

Here is my next 'installment' I really like this one, so much so I had second thoughts about putting it up for auction, but I am sure some one will love this little guy as much as me...after all, who can resist that classic bassett face?
Even if it is just hoping for another treat ;-)

The Other End of the Leash III- The Wrinkles Club

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The Other End of the Leash III- The Wrinkles Club
•4"x6" Watercolor on paper

And now there are three! I really like this little piece. A beautiful Shar Pei and friends...all members of the "Wrinkles Club."
I don't personally know a Shar Pei but they seem to be a very dignified dog, and proud of those wrinkles too!

The Other End of the Leash II-Flower Girls

The Other End of the Leash II-Flower Girls
•4" x6" Watercolor on paper

So here is the previous piece but finished!

This is the second in this series. A wonderful little moment between a girl and her corgi pet. The little girl, being a girl , has those great flowered pants while her best friend has a lovely flower charm on her collar: Flower power for both!
Enjoy , and sorry it was a wee bit late :-)
•CLICK TO BID

The Other End of the Leash II

Work in Progress...

Well, today definitely did not go as planned, and today's painting is still waiting for me on the board.
So, all I have to show is a work in progress. Here is a preview of "The Other End of the Leash-Flower Girls", second in this series.
I have a nice, quiet day of painting planned for tomorrow :-) and this painting, completed, will be posted then, followed by my scheduled Wednesday piece.
See you then!

The End of the Leash I

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"The Other End of the Leash I" • 4"x 6" Watercolor on board

I'm trying something a little different this week. This is a series of paintings entitled "The Other End of the Leash"
Each day I will post a painting showing a quiet/funny/loving moment between the dog, it's human and the physical leash that binds the two.
We start out with a wee Chihuahua; a fearless little dog with a huge personality.
Hope you enjoy it!
:-D

An Alabama Cow

"An Alabama Cow" • 4.25"x 7" Watercolor on board

I missed the 'Week 6/7' challenge from Karin Jurick's Different Strokes from Different Folks, so I really wanted to get this week's done.
Being an animal artist, I was very pleased when Karin's image for this week was a cow!! I sat down and started to sketch out a piece, but still feeling a little guilty that I hadn't done the previous challenge (which was super-ubo hard) I came up with something different for this painting.
Karin's subject was an Alabama cow, so I worked in a well known phrase and featured our subject, who's name should be...well....what else but...um...Dixie, ;-) don't you agree?!?
After a long week this was really fun to do, thanks Karin!
:-D
Available- $55.00 (includes shipping) Interested? please contact me directly

Little Eeyore

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"Little Eeyore"
2.5"x3.5" Original ACEO - Watercolor on 300lb Arches paper

It was a busy day today, with a sick child at home, but its amazing what you can do with a make-shift laptop easel! And having my own critic beside me while painting helped immensely too ;-D
I painted this little portrait of my plush beanie baby "Classic Eeyore" who usually keeps me company on my drawing table. This is a lovely, sweet piece.

Wind Wisps

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"WIND WISPS" • 5"x5" Watercolor on rag board

I was recently asked if any of the paintings I have posted are of my pets.
The answer is no, not yet...however....today I painted a lovely blenheim (red and white) King Charles Cavalier Spaniel and my model was our "grand-dog" Katie.
We have 2 cavs in the family who are both absolute dolls and regularly stay with us (Katie is madly in love with our boy Suede) Happy, loving, little bed-hogs--BOTH of them! And tails are always, always going! :-)

Napping Princess

"Napping Princess • 5"x5" Watercolor on Arches W.C.Board

"Napping Princess" is a little painting showing a beautiful black Great Dane (uncropped ears) as she relaxes in the afternoon sun. Danes are beautiful dogs who inevitably think they are lapdogs and no one can convince them otherwise! Truly, the canine world's largest couch potato and bed warmer :-D

This painting is available for $50.00 + 5.00 shipping.
Interested? Please contact me directly.

Calico Callie

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CALICO CALLIE • 5"x5" watercolour on rag board

Here is the finished piece of the work in progress I posted yesterday.
"Calico Callie" and I think she is a sweetie. I really love this color combo...maybe one day my 2 Birmans may get a new friend...

On the Drawing Board

Two items to share today;

First, I'd like to extend my warmest congratulations to Tracy Hall, a wonderful watercolour artist who's work I greatly admire.
Tracy recently entered had a number of her outstanding miniatures into the annual exhibitions of the the Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors & Gravers and the Miniature Painters, Sculptors & Gravers Society of Washington, DC and was honored with well-deserved awards in both shows (multiple ones in the RSMPSG)!
Check out the full write up by Katherine Tyrell on her 'Making a Mark' blog, and don't forget to visit Tracy's site to view her amazing work.

Now for something a little closer to home....


Here's a look at my current painting in progress; a close up of a dilute calico kitty, which I will be calling "Calico Callie"
She's got the sweetest face, and I hope I can due justice to those lovely muted colors. Not just a regular black, orange and white calico, a dilute is a "watered downed" version of that mixture, namely creamy orange, soft grey and white. It is a lovely combination, so please check back tomorrow to view the finished piece!

Young Tom

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"YOUNG TOM" • 5"x5" Watercolor on board

Later than I expected, but here is the next painting; in honour of Canadian Thanksgiving, may I present, "Young Tom."

Hopefully, he will fulfill his life loving the ladies instead of on the table.

And thanks to Margaret for her wonderful reference photo!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This weekend brings with it the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday...I have managed to roll myself to the computer after a fantastic dinner, although a little early (blame it on the joys of orchestrating a large family to be available to sit down on a certain day and time!)

I have a painting on the easel, so it should be up within the next few days. In the meantime, I wanted to announce that Mural Mosaic's "The Gift Horse," of which I am a participating artist, has travelled to Ohio where it will be on display at the Ohio Expo Center from October 9th through to October 26th. Check out the blog of co-creator Phil Alain to view the wonderful set up in Ohio...Even better, if you're in the area, try and drop in to see the 22.5 foot mural in person-amazing!

Pony Hug

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"PONY HUG" • 5"x4.5" Watercolor on 100% rag board

Whew! I feel like I can sure use one of these this week!

I am working on 2 large paintings, (which I will preview here when I get a little further into them) and trying keep up with my small paintings.

Switching from a large format to small in the middle of a piece is really relaxing, and this one was quite fun to do. It is a happy painting, showing a grey welsh pony with a full mane, large, kind eye and cute face. The kind of pony any young horse crazy girl would love!!

All Dressed Up....

~SOLD~"ALL DRESSED UP..."
5"x5" watercolour on 300lb Arches paper

Sorry about the silence on the blog; I've been working on a commission, a poster submission and another small painting done, but I haven't been able to paint as much as I would have liked to this week. Family life has been extra busy!

In between waiting for washes to dry on the larger pieces, I started this little guy. He ended up taking me a lot longer than I anticipated, but I think the time was worth it.
"All Dressed Up..." is one cool cat; a suave take on Halloween's black cat- hope you like it!

This piece is available for $50.00 + $5.00 shipping ; if you are interested, please contact me directly.

Me and My Shadow

"ME AND MY SHADOW" • 9.5" x 14" Coloured pencil on board

I am currently at work on a small commission, so I am posting an older painting today.

This is "Me and My Shadow,"  a 'painting' done completely in coloured pencil. It shows one of those lovely, quiet times at the barn...when all the lesson kids haven't shown up yet ;-)

This piece is available; if you are interested, please contact me directly.