Pet portraits in time for Christmas

These two were a little challenging because sadly the pets were no longer with us so I had limited subject matter to work with. The dog, Moppet (such a lovely name), was worked from a computer print out that had been sent as a Christmas Card. 

This sweet little Gemma is the spitting image of our cat, Topsy. We still have Topsy, when she cares to come home and we are so proud that she’s reached 7 years! 

Open for Art 19

So today was day one of open studios this year, and Mattys rat fell asleep in her display. So we had a real rat on show at The Raggy Rat 

I’m planning to blog everyday so you can have a little taste of the event ...

A fine pack ...

Just before I went in for jaw surgery, I drew two of the dogs on this portrait. Then about a week after, I tied on a bandana to help with the post surgery drool, and sat down to draw the remaining two over a couple of days so a dear friend could collect this! 

I am thankful that I found the brain cells and my muse to complete this work after such an ordeal. But I did and I’m sure it was therapy. It was something that made me feel more like ‘me’ and that’s important. 

I hope you like it. I love drawing. 

Three faces of the season.

How cute is this little girl? She's carefully cleaning her paw. Or is she? Caption competition?

 

Sometimes I have to wait to after Christmas to share what I have been up to with some furry friends. Such is the case with these three lovelies. 

So good to be asked to do a rat again. I will always love rats and value them as pets as well as subjects!

 

A girl Yorkie and a boy with the best nose ever are this years delightful dogs. 

 

I can't wait for the new year to begin. It's going to be a good one. I think 2016 held a lot of challenges. How was it for you? 

Cathy, aged 11

What a beautiful gentle old girl is Cathy the retired racing greyhound. She belongs to a friend of mine, and I was asked to draw her out of all the special dogs my friend has loved!

When I began to sketch her out, it was really important to me to capture the soul that shows in her big brown eyes. 

After mapping everything out in dark sepia, I build up colours in layers, my favourite part of making a portrait. I'm really pleased with how Cathy turned out. 

A Handsome Black Dog ....

I A friend recently commented on the challenges of drawing black dogs! I've done a few, and a glossy black cat, and here is one I tackled fairly recently. 

This boy is done in coloured pencils, in a painterly sort of way. Have you been successful painting black pets?

A little more drawing ...

One lovely Labrador ...

Two sweet cavies ...

How I love to draw!

Bobby the Dog ...

Working on this portrait involved tilting the head of the dog, removing his lead, back and shoulder, and adding in some of his neck and chest ...

There were lots of colours in this white dog! And as you can see, I left his head at a slight angle for the cute factor!

And his dear owner loves it :-) 

A dog called Billy

This big beautiful boy recently passed away and I was asked to produce a portrait from this photograph ...

But as you can see, Billy's left eye is very much in shadow so I had to work a bit of Raggy Rat magic!

I always show my clients WIP images especially when I'm adding or changing details ...

And the family were very happy with Billy even saying its like bringing him back a little. And this is why I draw, to spread some smiles ....

And some happy tears!

Trixie - another dog portrait!

Trixie has been photographed indoors using a 'flash'. It makes her fur shine, but her eyes have become very reflective!

So while sketching her out in sepia, I filled in her pupils and added highlights to make them shine! 

Here she is in full colour, and ready for a birthday surprise!

A Better Distraction ...

One of the better kinds of distractions arrived at our house at the end of October ....

Meet Topsy, a splodgy little kitten with a curious nature! She play hard and sleeps hard too ... 

So nice to have a little companion on a school morning, or a cold winters evening ...

And she is growing like a weed! May prove useful to promote my work. On the other hand, might just eat it!

A sweet lass called Geordie...