Sami's portrait is finished!

"Sami" 8 x 10" acrylic on Ampersand Gessoboard

© 2009 Kathleen Coy

Sami's portrait is finished, and I'm thrilled with how it turned out. I can almost feel her in the room with me. This portrait has a special place in my heart, as I painted Sami's owner's other dog Lyle two years ago. Sadly, Sami and Lyle are no longer with us, but there is a young Rat Terrier named Sprocket filling their shoes. Sami was a Rat Terrier/Australian Cattle Dog cross, and you can see both traits clearly. Here is a video of the progress:



Thank you for all the comments left as this painting progressed. It's such an honor to paint someone's beloved dog, to create with my own hands a tribute to the special bond and unending love we share with our canine friends.

More work on Sami

No, she's not finished yet, but I've finished blocking in the underpainting on Sami's portrait. Since my underpaintings are a lot more detailed then they used to be, it's pretty close to the finished stage right now. Up next - refining the details...my favorite part!

More work on Sami's portrait

Now that I'm blocking in the dark fur, it's really starting to look like Sami.

I love how clearly you can see the mix of Rat Terrier and Australian Cattle Dog in her fur and features.

They never look right until they have a nose...

I get so much joy watching faces appear from the brushstrokes...

This phase is the underpainting. After everything is blocked in, I go back over and refine the details, and add more texture and layers.

To be continued...

Sami's portrait is underway!

I began by laying down some beautiful yellow ochre for Sami's cheeks and "eyebrows." Words cannot express how much I love this color... It plays a major roll in my palette.

Next, I blocked in the pink of her ears and tongue, then added some soft colors to the background that I felt would compliment her fur.

Then on to the ears and eyes. There she is. Hi sweetheart!

The painting as it stands now. I'd say I've got about 6 hours into it at the moment, including the drawing. Once again, it's 8 x 10, acrylic on Ampersand Gessoboard.

More to come...

Wordless Wednesday

New dog portrait underway - Sami

This smiley girl is Sami. She is a Rat Terrier/Australian Cattle Dog mix. I had the pleasure of painting her "brother" Lyle's portrait two years ago. Sadly, Sami is no longer with us, and has gone to be with her brother Lyle at the Rainbow Bridge.

This happy portrait is going to be a wonderful way for her family to remember her.

The drawing is finished, now she's ready for paint. This is going to be such a fun portrait!


This will be an acrylic painting, 8 x 10" on Ampersand Gessoboard.

Wordless Wednesday

Early snow

We had our first snow of the year this morning, and there's a chance of snow this afternoon as well. Last year our first snow was November 30th! I do like snow, but Fall is my favorite time of year and I don't want to skip it, lol. As you can see, there is still plenty of green leaves on the trees:

My plants were NOT ready for this!

It's a shame to say goodbye to my roses this early, but I'm afraid they're toast. We're supposed to have near record lows tonight in the 20's.



Everyone says it's going to be a hard winter this year in the Midwest. And I thought last year was bad! I guess we'll find out.

Stay warm!

Wordless Wednesday - video

The Maiden Voyage of the Firecracker!

Many of you will remember this post last April about the pinup girl I painted on hubby's remote-controlled speedboat that he was building. He didn't have much time to work on it due to job commitments, so it took him until now to get the boat finished. On Saturday we went to a favorite pond not far from our house in the Loess Hills for her maiden voyage. We were so excited to see it in the water!

She is powered by a weed-eater mower. Jason is getting ready to start her up!

And away she goes...

Giving her some gas...

The Loess Hills in Autumn is breathtaking!

Full throttle!

More pics:

Hope you enjoyed the ride! :-)