Christmas Presents

Three new works I did for Christmas presents.
Two of them I scanned after they were framed so the quality is not good.
Skittles is my niece Katie's Christmas puppy, a little Yorkie.
Then there is Isabelle, my sister Tina's teacup Chihuahua, she is a doll.
Then is "Nestled" a fawn I painted for Tina's lake house/future cabin.

Commisioned Watercolor

Today I took my first commissioned watercolor to the young lady that commissioned me to paint it. The dog has passed away and the painting is for her mother, who the cocker spaniel belonged to.

I did not scan it.....I painted a blue back ground with a touch of yellow and crimson. The dog was on a "cloud" left mostly white with a touch of blue/gray and crimson. I thought it turned out well and so did the young lady!!!!! What a relief......Now I just hope mom likes it.

Three new ones

I have been drawing some, but not like I want to.

I have not painted at all lately. I have done what I am constantly telling myself and others I am not going to do........TAKE IN MORE DOGIES AND PUPS. Basically when I do this all my "free time" is gone.

By the time I sit in down in the evening I do not want to get started on a new project.

First is a famous horse I drew for fun, I have a friend that is fascinated by him, let's see if he knows who he is????

Next is a draft horse colt, this was on a calendar and I just loved it, so I drew it, the fur was fun. I would love to have a draft horse one day.

Then there is a Yorkie named Murphy.....He is my friend Ann's dog. He is a real beauty and I plan to do him in watercolor to show off his colors of honey and gray.

I have been commissioned to do a watercolor for a Christmas gift...

my first... so I need to get busy on it......A LITTLE scary I must say....

Maegan in the morning

This is a new watercolor I have been working on the past couple of days.
"Maegan in the morning" is my Mastiff, Maegan.
She is such a pretty girl. She seems to change in appearance from day to day at times and from week to week at other times.
Just last week Chris asked if Maegan was getting fat, I said, "no, she is just maturing". This week she is looking very lean.......
I have not experienced this type of growth in a dog before.
My Great Dane, Harley continued to grow and mature until about 18 to 20 months of age, but it was not as noticeable as Maegan's changes.
This picture was taken about a month ago. Maegan always has sad eyes.
Doing a drawing or painting of anything "straight on" is difficult, but I felt the picture really captured her personality........
bright, loving and SMART!

Morrigan In Color

If you scan all the way to the end of my blog you will see
Morrigan THE Mastiff which I did for my friend Jim.
I took that drawing and enlarged it,
outlined it on watercolor paper and here it is, Morrigan in Color.

Autumn Curves

This is a watercolor I finished this morning.
It is of a very old Japanese Maple.
The photo I used came from a magazine, so no this is
not my yard.
I think all my work looks better in person.
So, soon I will be sending out information of the Fall Festival in Bremen where I will be having my work on display.
I am going to be busy, busy, busy.

Update on Waterlilly

I posted this watercolor of a waterlilly a while

back. Since then I have worked on it a little.

My instructor showed my how to give it more depth.

What do you think???

Bubba in Color

This is Bubba is watercolor.
I have been working on getting my courage up to do this.
So I took the drawing that I did, held it up to a window and traced the outline of Bubba to my watercolor paper. Then I painted it.
I am pleased with the way it turned out. The waves in the page is due to the back ground not being completely dry when I scanned it.

BUBBA

My Bubba is a seven year old Dachshund.
He is my baby and he is so spoiled.
I did this pencil drawing of him and it is my favorite!
He is such a handsome guy, even with his mulitple scars.
Bubba has a bad habit of sticking his nose where it does not belong.
He knows he is top dog here (to me) but all my other dogs do not seem to understand that.
Poor Bubba!

My Big Teddy "BEAR"

I am reserving this spot in hopes that my friend Jim Andrews will be sending me a picture of his best friend, now gone, Bear.
Bear was a Rottweiler that Jim got out of the "pound".
I met Bear when Jim called me for "pet sitting". I was a little uneasy when I first met Bear, after all he was a BIG SCARY ROTTWEILER!
But, it didn't take long for me to fall in love with this big teddy "Bear".
He always made me feel safe when I would go to feed the dogs. Bear knew he would get extra attention from me and loved "back rubs"!!
I know Jim really misses his friend. I hope he will find the strength to send me a picture soon. I would love to be able to share Bear with eyevryone!

Water Lilly

I did this watercolor last night while watching Law and Order : Criminal Intent......I am a Law and Order junky, the original being my favorite.......
I wanted to save it in the original form, before my instructor gets a hold of it. I think I am improving and enjoying it more...
I want to start doing my dogs in w/c but I am chicken!!!!!!

Jake's Baby Blue Harley

We got Harley for our son Jake when he was 16.
She is a Harlequin/Merle Great Dane.
When Jake went off to Harding, Harley had to stay behind.
She is a sweetheart, 130 pounds with ice blue eyes.
She is now 7 years old which is "getting old" for a Dane.
She has arthritis in her knees and does not get around as well now, but she is happy! We love her!
She was really fun to draw, so I will be doing other drawings of her as time goes by.......

Life is Golden

For many families the Golden Retriever is the dog for them.
Golden's have a good temperament, they are smart and beautiful.
They are also, dogs so they also love to chew, dig and they shed, so even though the Golden Retriever is a great dog they still need the time and attention that all dogs require to help make them the best they
can be!

"Clover" My first work, for Diana

Clover was a tiny little thing.

She was picked up stray by Animal Control and rescued by a friend that could not let them "put her down". Karen called me in a panic from the shelter one morning, " Tammie" she said, " there is this little dog at the shelter, could you please take her.......They are about to put her down because they do not know what to do with her, and I can't keep her at my house".

Site unseen I took her in. I thought she was adorable, but not everyone agreed with me. I had her for months then came Diana.

Diana fell for Clover right away. She lives in Virginia Highlands and drove down one day to meet little Clover. I was so happy because at that time I was keeping 20-30 dogs here and Clover really needed more attention than I could give her. It was love at first sight for Diana and Clover, (well at least for Diana). Clover did not show very much emotion just an occasional lick.

Diana was so good for Clover and I think Clover was good for Diana.

Clover is gone now, but Diana and I are friends to this day.

This "tiny little thing" we called Clover, will always have a place in my heart.

Yukon Gold

Yukon Gold is one of my former foster dogs.
He now lives with Serena and Jeremy Gold.
He was one of those that I had to think twice about........"HMMMMM do I want to keep him all to myself"????? At that time I had recently added Maegan, my mastiff pup, to the family so I came to myself and found Yukon, then "Bandit" a wonderful home. He is gorgeous.

Noel.....Noel

Noel is one of my dogs. This image I scanned in from a scan (not very good). It is one of my larger works.
She came to live with me when she was seven
years old. She is now ten. She was found in the middle of the road as a tiny puppy on Christmas Eve. Her family did a great job with her, Noel is very well behaved, but very GRUMPY!
She loves going with Chris to take off the trash and she really loves to guard the truck when they go to Home Depot.

Savannah

This is little Savannah, my neighbors miniature Doxie.
She has had surgery on her back and recently had an anal gland removed (poor little thing).
She is the Queen of the house! She is one of the cutest dogs I know, because she has personality plus!
She makes her family very happy!!!

This is dedicated to all "my" dogs

Taking care of Rescue dogs is something I do best.I know because I've done it, and I've surely passed the test.
The dogs I've bathed, the food I've fed, the vacuuming I've done,and all to watch a frightened soul sit dreaming in the sun.
My own dogs I've neglected, but I tell them every day,that I love and cherish each of them though a new dog's come to stay.
I know they understand this, for in their eyes I seethe love that I have given them come shining back to me.
Some people think I'm crazy, some others think I'm greatbut very few can understand what really is at stake.
If I can love and help a dog to find a better way,my own life is much richer, I look forward to each day.
So now you know my secret, it's there for all to seethe love I give, the life I save, I do it all for Me.
Rescued Hearts

by Kathleen Parsons

Baby Hank

This image is taken from a "baby" picture of my "grand-dog" Hank.
Julie, my daughter-in-law saved it from the "shelter picture" that made her fall for this little guy. He was a scruffy little guy, full of ticks and mats.
Now he is her little "cuddle-bug". Hank is one lucky little guy!

Sachi in the Keys

This image is taken from a photo I received from my father-in-law, Jerry, last Christmas. It is his shih-tzu Sachi. Sachi and Jerry were working in Key West, FL when the photo was taken.
Sachi does not know he is a D-O-G. He and Jerry are best friends!

Snow Dog

This is the image of a Siberian Husky some call "Snow Dogs".

They are beautiful animals and remind us of their ancestors the wolf.

So many people choose this breed for its beauty and unique look.

But it should be taken into consideration that this is a working breed. They have high energy levels and need lots of exercise. They also "blow their coat" in warm months and shed!!!! Always do your homework before adopting a lifelong friend.

Lila May Rose

Lila was my friend Diana's dog and friend.
She had a massive tumor in her nose and throat and left this world on 9-7-2006. She had a soft honey colored coat. She was a sweet, loving and loyal friend to Diana, she will be missed.

Watercolors

Yesterday I took my first watercolor class.
The artist teaching the class does mostly florals and beautiful work I might add.
We became familiar with our pigments and watched her do a watercolor of a magnolia blossom. She really made it look easy.
So, I tried out a sunflower today, not being satisfied with that I tried a "Border Terrier" (thinking this would be easy) HAH!
Needless to say I will be practicing a lot!

Border Terriers a cute little dogs, they have a very rough coat. They are more popular in Europe than the U.S.

I have more drawings ready to scan........."baby hank", Sachi in the Keys, and "Homeless too" a pup on our web page named, Zoe, but we call her Honey?????

I'll try to scan them tomorrow some time......

"Homeless"

This little homeless kitten is worried that he may never find a home.
Even though this is not a "real kitten" his image of homelessness is very real.
There are millions of homeless cats and kittens, some feral, abandoned, some in shelters and in the care of rescue groups.
Be responsible for you pets. Be part of the solution not the problem.
Please spay and neuter your pet.

This original drawing is available for purchase.

The money made with the purchase of this piece will go directly to the spay or neuter of a "homeless" cat or kitten.

If you are interested in this please e-mail

me at tsteph4@myway.com for more information.

$75.00

"Hank"

Here is one of my other "grand-dogs" Hank.
Jake and Julie adopted him from the "pound" in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Julie was searching for a dog for their friend and found Hank.
He was a doll, and still is.
His official name is Hankerton Panky Stephenson.
He and Pippy are best friends.

Pippy Timmerman

This is my latest work, Pippy Timmerman.
She is my grand-dog and a very sweet girl.
She is a minature pincher.
This one is for my daughter-in-law Julia.

Dixie

Dixie the dog in the drawing below had to be put down last week due to bone cancer.
She was a great friend and will be greatly missed by her family,
Dave, Ann and Little Bit.

Olivia and Dixie

Here are a couple more of my drawings.....
Dixie, one of my foster dogs when I was with CCHS.
She lives with Dave now, but she will always be apart of the family.
She is a great girl! I also posted the image that I used to draw her.
And, my little poodle Olivia. She is a real mommy's girl.
I have just received the book I ordered about using the "right" side of my brain. My drawing is really suppose to improve after I read it.
So, we'll see.
I will be posting more soon.

My pencil drawings

These are just two of my latest pencil drawings.
I have more, but they are too large to scan on my average sized scanner.
If you would like to see more of my work please contact me at
tsteph4@myway.com.
I hope to be posting more work soon.
Thank you for looking!
Tammie