Puppy Love x 2

This week marked an exciting event for me.  I received my very first Etsy commission request and I am beyond thrilled.  Etsy is an online marketplace that I really want to be part of for a while now and maybe this will be the start of some regular orders.  Building a reputation with customer satisfaction is critical to your success and I need to get a number of 5 star reviews under my belt.

I was contacted by a potential customer asking if I could change the composition my sketch of my granddaughter and her very large doberman to include her 2 little nieces, ages 4 & 6. Her brother had just purchased a doberman puppy and she thought this would be a perfect gift.   A few messages back and forth and I had several photos of the girls to use and a reference.  We agreed upon a price and I went in a created a special variation button to included customization.  To my joy she paid the price and placed the order right away.

After a super busy weekend, I was able to start working on it Monday evening.  Total drawing time was probably 3 hours I think.  Using several references photos of my 4 year old granddaughter I was able to combine them into what I think is a solid composition.  The challenge came in when I found out their doberman puppy doesn't have his tail docked or his ears cropped.  Finding a photo of the backside of a doberman to see the detail of the tail wasn't easy.  Actually, I never found a true backside view but I think I didn't do too bad of a job here.

The original drawing is much brighter and those pink sweaters just pop off the paper.  I have to figure out how to get a better scan of my drawings so the colors look more true.  Right now when I am working with a print of one of my drawings I usually grab the color pencils and my black pen and quickly go over some of the areas to brighten them.  I like the idea they are hand embellished but I have so much still to learn when it comes to the technical side of producing reproductions.

All that is left to do is to matte the drawing and get it packaged up for shipment.  This actually represents a new first for me too.  This package is being shipped international because the buyer lives in Douro Dummer, Ontario.  I looked that up and that town is sitting right on the border of the US and Canada but it is still international shipping so my usual USPS Standard Rate Shipping boxes won't work.  Yesterday just happened to be "trash" day and I was able to find several boxes that appear to be the right size that I can use to ship.  As I get busier with my shipping, I will have to find a good source of small shipping boxes that fit the dimensions of my artwork.

This image will soon be available as cards and magnets on my Etsy Store.  If you want to check out my artwork you can go to my website gallery at Julie Townsend Studio Gallery.  Let me know what you think because I would love to hear from you.

You can also visit my Etsy Store if you are interested in this image in a small print, magnet or greeting card at: Julie Townsend Studio on Etsy

Excuse Me...But Is That a Dog or a Small Horse?

So I started this little puppy piece yesterday that features a little doberman puppy. This is an 8 x 10 drawing done in pen and ink stippling, enhanced with Prismacolor pencils and Tombow markers

Pretty much all puppies are cute, no matter the breed but dobermans in my opinion really are one of the most beautiful dogs in the aggressive dog breed category.  I'm not fond of pit bulls or rottweilers but dobbies are so athletic, strong and very intimidating.  My oldest son owns 2 of them and the oldest one is absolutely huge.  His name is Odin and I think that is pretty fitting name.

My tiny granddaughter is dwarfed when she stands next to him and that concept of the problems a tiny girl could face owning such large dog just keeps rolling around in my head and I just can't seem to let it go.  I think it has the possibility of being a cute story line.  So I'm revisiting some of my earlier drawings on the subject and I have started writing some verses to go along. I thought I might share both of my works in progress with my blog readers as I work my way through this.


Here are two verses of about seven or so I have written so far.  I will share more of them as I work out more of the illustrations.  I hope you enjoy this and don't mind my anxiousness to share all this fun I'm having.


The smaller the puppy....
The cuter he appears
From his little black nose to his floppy ears
If only he could stay this size for all his years.

The growing puppy....
Don't fall for all this cuteness and be deceived
He will surely grow much bigger than you have believed
I hope you're ready for all the PUPPINESS you have received.

My Drawings are Going to the Dogs!

I am not particularly a dog lover but I know many people who hold their 4 legged furry children in the highest regard.  This week I decided rather than just buying a get well card for a friend who just had surgery that a small painting of her pet.  Now I wouldn't go as far as to say that an English Bulldog is a handsome looking creature but I'm pretty sure that this guy must have a winning personality and is very loved.

An English Bulldog

I have been working on some little sketches for a story I have in mind using my granddaughter and her very large Doberman Pinscher as characters.  I've never illustrated or had anything published yet, but I'm having a lot of fun and would love to add this to my resume.

"Gitty Up"

Oh NO!

Telling a Story with a Paint Brush

As an artist, I'm having a blast with this project that I recently started. It has been something in the back of my mind for some time and this week I took the initial step to actually start putting my idea to paper.   I know that I am just a few sketching into it but I really wanted to share some of the fun I am having.  I'm not sure if the end result will actually be a published children's storybook, but I am having fun illustrating what I hope will be at least a real keepsake for my grandchildren.  I have a lot of work to do since I currently have 6 amazing grandchildren all wanting their stories to be told.  

I'm just using watercolor and pen and ink to make these sketches.  I have no idea if this is the best medium to actually use to illustrate a story, but I feel I just have to get the ideas on paper and they can then be refined as I learn the correct processes.  It is going to be a learning experience for me but I'm feeling up to the challenge.  

With a real dog that is very much as big as a small pony, the inspiration for this story is not hard to come by.  I have all kinds of funny ideas about the problems and benefits that one wee little girl could face with such a large pet.  

When you are just a snip of a girl, taking your giant dog for a walk is more like a fun park thrill adventure than a chore.  

Sleeping can be a challenge when your bed dog is more like a bed HOG!

Tea parties can be very frustrating affair when one of the guests have such bad manners that knock over all the invited guests, break the table, step on your entrees and spill the party beverages.

CONSIDER LEAVING ME A COMMENT....I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU!

I promise to keep updating this blog as I come up with more and more pages to my story.  If you are interested in seeing more of my artwork, please click the gallery tab above or visit my webpage at julietownsendstudios.com