all you need is love....

doesn't matter what shape, size and/or color.

this piece was a commission from a friend of mine whose daughter i taught a few years back. a bot more about their story here.

it's always a cherished moment when someone calls upon me for a custom painting. it's an even bigger treasure when it's a friend. this piece was truly a pleasure to create. 

i am offering a LIMITED amount of prints which can be found here.

onto another commission...:)

bad blogger lately....

but for a good reason. :)

have been super busy working on a special commission for the family of a little girl i once taught almost ten moons ago. (yikes, feeling old!)

the mom came to me asking for a custom painting based on the gorgeously illustrated book entitled, "motherbridge of love". in a nut shell, it's a sweet book about adoption...east meets west (u.s.a. and china).  well, i couldn't have been happier to put my spin on parts of that beautiful book.

just about wrapping up this painting this week and i'm so looking forward to presenting it to them. such a lovely mother and adorable daughter, they are....:)

anytime is a good time for a pumpkin smoothie!!!

big thanks to nate and salli over at TDAC for featuring my kid-friendly, fall theme recipe on their home page jumbotron for this week! hard to believe it's been two years since this was created. and, pippa has evolved quite a bit since then....

truly a privilege to be amongst such great talent over there! take a minute and have a peek at their wonderful site...and maybe pick up a few family friendly recipes to try with your kids! :)

http://www.theydrawandcook.com/

BRING ON FALL!!!

illustration friday~lush

an older illustration done for stories for children magazine, but i thought it was fitting for this week's IF prompt, *lush*.

the oranges looked so juicy and lush that tanner just couldn't resist giving one a grab. oops...;)

PRINTS AVAILABLE HERE:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/80471321/a-little-helper-reproduction

illustration friday~water

never let a little rain water keep you from shoe shopping....;)

a piece i did for the story entitled 'the most boring birthday in the universe' for the june/july 2011 issue of stories for children magazine (page 24).

http://www.lulu.com/shop/stories-for-children-publishing-llc/stories-for-children-magazine-junejuly-2011/ebook/product-15983898.html

illustration friday~yield

so, i'm thinking grandma may have *yielded* and bought little noah his much coveted green geiko galoshes....;)

this is a piece i did last year for a story called "the most boring birthday in the universe" for stories for children magazine. i thought it was a good example of *yielding*....in a cute way of course;)

a little helper

here is the finished illustration for the november 2011 issue of SFC magazine http://www.storiesforchildrenmagazine.com. AND it's 5 days BEFORE deadline! yay me!
to sum up the story entitled " a little helper", it's about a little boy named tanner who wants so desperately to help out his mama. he figures he might not be tall enough to reach that rye bread or those bananas, but boy is he ever going to take a shot at those yummy oranges...since they are on her shopping list. oops...;)
i'll post the link for the issue as soon as it is available!
next up....an awesome contest i discovered on a wonderful website entitled they draw and cook http://www.theydrawandcook.com/. i can't tell you how long i have been aching to pump out a recipe/illustration for these guys. super excited. have my idea all ready to go...just need to sketch it out!:)

oops...;)

here is my latest illustration for stories for children magazine. it is to be featured in the november 2011 issue. the story is entitled "a little helper" and as you can see little tanner is trying his best to helpful to his mom in the grocery store...but..oops;) guess it didn't go quite as he planned....
stay tuned for the finished illustration/painting and be sure to check out the november 2011 issue www.storiesforchildrenmagazine.com (when it is available) to see if tanner turned out to be the "little helper" he so desperately wanted to be...:)

tobias family portrait

okay...here is the finished piece!:) let me start by saying that if there appears to be a line going down the painting, it's because i suck at stitiching scans together in photoshop. it didn't fit on my scanner in one piece. hence the fact that i had to do some "stitching". definitely not one of my many talents;)
i am so happy to have beeen given the opportunity by my friend laura to paint her sweet little family in my illustration style. right down to the 2 dogs;) i anxiously await seeing a photo of this hung on their wall!

next up...LOTS of sketching for some new ideas and some more custom nursery art is on the way. looking at doing some hand-painted wooden growth charts...as soon as i can get some decent wood from home depot and/or lowes...

tobias family~custom portrait

here is one of the things i am currently working on for a christmas gift. it is a family portrait of my dear friend laura, her husband adam and their GORGEOUS littel girl mia. AND, can't forget the other members of their family...murphy and oliver, the cocker spaniels:) this will be an 11x14 and will be done by the week after christmas...due to the custom orders ahead of laura's. i can't wait to get this done for them. they are such a lovely little family and i am so happy to count laura as one of my friends:)