Waiting For Summer

11x14 unframed watercolor (16x20 matted) $300

Hey, thanks for stopping by. I'm trying something new with this post. I hope it works. Seeing as how I'm a total technical genius, I'm sure it'll be great.

Wanna know what it is?

There is a soundtrack to this painting! Isn't that cool? I didn't start out with Chris Ledoux in mind, but every time I worked on this painting I'd find this song running through my head. Click here to start the music, then head on back. I think you'll find the song and the painting complement each other very nicely.

Feel free to comment on how I'm probably the most tech-savvy person you know.

(Okay, just discovered you have to right click on that link and then hit "Open a new tab" to play the music and still stay on this blog. I'm sure there's a way to fix this but if you think I know what that way might be, you've clearly never met me. Hope to figure this out for future posts. In the meantime, yep, tech genius. That's me.)

Thinning the herd

So here's a fun problem to have.

People are actually starting to ask to see my paintings.

Well, that's not the problem. I have a photo file entitled "Finished Work" synched to my iphone for just such occasions. Push a button and images of all my paintings are available at a moment's notice. But last night as I was showing my work to someone who might be interested in having a painting done, it occurred to me that a large number of paintings in that file were early works that I no longer feel represent what I am capable of. I found myself cringing and thinking, "Um, don't look at that one. Or that one. Or that one."

So my task for today was to ruthlessly edit that file and keep only paintings that I am truly proud to show off.

To tell you the truth, I was a little worried that there might not be much left when I got through. But know what?

There is.

Now if (when!) someone says, "Oh, you paint? Can I see?" I won't have to cringe.

Wanna see?

Gunther and Holly

Look at these sweetie pies! I didn't get a chance to meet them until after the painting was done, but they both had just the personalities I imagined them to have. Gunther practically vibrates with the "Let's have an adventure!" vibe. Try and keep up, would ya?

Holly, on the other hand, might as well be speaking english, her eyes are so easy to read. "I love you. Did I mention that I love you? Well, I'll just be right here if you need me. 'Cause I love you. Did I mention that?"

What a great combination.

Thanks, Debbi and Steve for letting me paint your lovely dogs. So glad that you were happy with the outcome!

Old Faithful

Here's my latest painting of my husband's Chesapeake Bay Retriever, Moose. I'm especially glad to have done it because by closest estimate, Moose is now 750 years old. Because we got him from the shelter we're not actually sure of his age, but the shelter people guessed that he was 4 or 5 then, and we've had him for almost 10 years. Any way you look at it, he's a senior citizen. He's also the most devoted dog you've ever seen. Can't you tell just by looking at him?

If you are interested in commissioning a painting of your pet, please send me an email at glorybeefarm@live.com

Good news and Gizmo

Gizmo



Super G



The Chi



The Gizmobile



Agent Kumquat (Yeah, dont' ask. We don't know, either)



The Salty Sea Dog







This is but a short list of the weird names we call the dog. It doesn't stop there.



There are songs.



Lots of songs.
Any song you know, we have probably changed the words to it, and made it an Ode to the Small Dog. Plus a number of original compositions.



It's pretty weird, but it keeps us entertained.



(My sweet husband asks, at this point, that I clarify "Us" as "the kids and me, and definitely NOT him. Not. Him." Got it?)







There is also a National Gizmo Day. Seriously. It's November 14th. Because a couple of years ago, Gizmo got his picture in a calendar. Really. Wanna see?

My plan, for the last two years, was to blog about this on the actual day. Namely, November 14th.

You see how well that has been working out for me.
So I'm blogging about it now. In August. Because, apparently, it was that or nothing.

Besides, Gizmo is now world famous in a whole new way. His likeness is now hanging in the greatest little shop. It's called Canine Utopia and it's located on Main St. in Vancouver. Evan, the wonderful owner, has allowed me to display my paintings there in an effort to get the word out about my custom watercolor pet portraits.

If you have a dog, have had a dog, have ever thought about getting a dog or have walked by a dog in a public place and thought, "That's a really cute dog!" you should check out Canine Utopia. They've got super-premium dog food, as well as all manner of cute dog stuff. Say hi to Evan. Check out the art.

Tell them Gizmo sent you.

Okay, I know some of you have seen some of these paintings before. I'm reposting them because: A.... I'm not totally sure which ones I've posted. B.... Even if I've posted them before it's been a while. And C...I'm really trying to get the word out about what I'm doing and focus on painting.

By the way, I'm gonna use "C" as the reason I'm so behind on posting on this blog. It's not laziness. It's NOT.

Anyway, if you've landed here, first of all, thanks. Second of all, um... thanks. And third of all, leave me a comment so that I can get the sound of crickets out of my head.

So, here's my plan. While I'm enjoying painting a wide variety of subjects, I've decided to narrow my focus. If you're laughing at the idea of me even having focus, well then, that just shows how well you know me.

Wait! Focus!

Custom pet portraits. That's where I'm going with this. So if you really love your dog or cat or hedgehog or iguana or horse and would like to have a custom watercolor portrait of your fuzzy or scaly or prickly friend, let's talk.

I work on 140lb watercolor paper, using fantastic artist grade paints by Graham's, Daniel Smith and Windsor and Newton.

I work from your photographs. Obviously, the better the photo, the better the painting. I prefer to see several photos of the same subject. You know your pet, and I probably don't, so I can't paint what I don't see.

An 11x14 custom portrait, unframed, is $300 and my turn-around time is currently 4-6 weeks. If you absolutely need another size, let's talk about it. For you super-organized types, it's not too early to start thinking about Christmas. You wouldn't believe what a great gift a custom painting makes.

Okay, that's it. That's what I'm doing. Tell your friends. Tell your enemies. Tell the guy who makes your coffee down at Starbucks. Then shoot me an email at glorybeefarm@live.com and let's get started!