I'd like your advice...

I am currently working on some different designs for my greeting cards, using a printing company to do all the work for me. Since I now have to order the cards in bulk, I'm only going to focus on a few designs rather than making all of my drawings available as cards. Some of my drawings just don't sell as cards because they don't appeal to a large number of people. Not many people will buy a card of a bull terrier, for instance, unless they or someone they know owns one.

So here's where I need your help....I have an album on my facebook business page with all of the drawings and paintings I currently have available as cards. I would appreciate it if you would look through the album and vote (by "liking") for 5 cards that you think would appeal to the most people. Click here to go to the album
You'll have to be a fan of my page before you can click "like" on a drawing.

If you would prefer not to go through FB, you can visit http://www.pagesportraits.com/shop.html and click on each of the albums to view the cards available. You can send me a message letting me know your top 5 choices.

Thank you all and I appreciate your help!

Art Opening - Nov. 26 from 5-7pm

This is your official invitation to my art opening at the Fredericton Public Library, taking place on Nov. 26 from  5 - 7pm! Coffee and sweets will be served and I will be there to answer any questions you may have, or just to chat. I'd love to see you so please stop by if you can!!

As of this evening, my art will be displayed until Jan. 10, so if you don't get a chance to stop by for the opening, you'll have lots of time to pop in and see it. The display includes some of my original pieces and also some reproductions of commissions that I've done. All of the artwork is for sale in one form or another (originals, prints and cards). You can contact me for more information on purchasing.

Thanks in advance for coming!

Art showing at the library

Happy November everyone!! Can you believe that Christmas is next month?! I'm happy to say that I have already started Christmas shopping and am more than half done. But that's mostly because I'll be celebrating two Christmases this year, one in November and one in December. My mother goes to Florida over the winter, so that's why we'll be celebrating this month.

Although life has been keeping me busy lately and I haven't had as much time for my art as I'd like, I do have some things to show you...

Cape Cod Rocks - work in progress

8x10 Coloured Pencil on Paper

Still Life in Purple

27" x 39"

Acrylic on Canvas

Still Life in Purple was actually completed years ago, but I only just now got around to photographing it. The original painting is available for sale and also as note cards and 8x10 prints. Contact me for more info.

In other news, my artwork will be on public display for the first time! From Nov. 22 until sometime in Dec, my work will be displayed at the Fredericton public library. I will hang some of my prints and some original artwork as well. All originals will be for sale. On Nov. 26, there will be a meet and greet from 5-7pm at the library and I invite you all to come if you can. I will be there (of course!) and the library will be serving coffee and cookies. Please come by and say hi!

"Lion" Oil Painting

I know...original title! I'm not one for coming up with creative titles so I don't even try. It'll be tricky if I do a second lion drawing/painting. Perhaps it will be "Lion 2" or "Lion II"!

Anyway, here it is: It's not the greatest photograph of it because I've never photographed an oil painting before. I'm going to try to get a better picture soon though.

"Lion"

16x20

Oil on Canvas

This painting is currently up for bid on Ebay.

Contests!

I have two contests going on at the moment:

The first one ends tomorrow at 6pm. The person who sends the most new fans to my Facebook page, wins a print. Click here to go to my fan page. When you refer your friends, ask them to post a note on my wall saying you sent them to my page.

The next contest started today. Buy a set of 5 gift cards or a print from my Etsy shop and your name will be entered into a draw for 30% off a custom pet portrait. If you win the prize, you'll have a year to place your order for a portrait. Contest ends Nov 2, 2010.

Good luck!

Facebook Contest!

This is just a quick post to let you know that I'm holding a contest on Facebook. The person who refers the most new fans to my page, wins!!

Here's how it works: If you're already a fan of my Facebook page, I ask that you invite all of your friends to "like" Heather Page Studios on Facebook (you can also ask them to follow my blog if you wish!). When they become fans, they should post a note on my wall to let me know who referred them. The contest ends this Sunday and the person who refers the most new people to my page wins a print of their choice from my collection! If you're not already a fan, please join and then send out those referrals!! Good luck!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=lf#!/pages/Heather-Page-Studios/109711225720875?ref=ts

Salsa Dancing Dog

I came across this video on Facebook and just had to share. It's amazing what this dog can do!

Toby - Finished!

I've finished Toby's portrait and it's been sent off to Alberta.
Here is the final scan...

"Toby"

9 x 12

Coloured Pencil and Watercolour Crayon

Toby - Stage 3

"Toby"

9x12

Coloured Pencil

Work in Progress

As always, the colours are a little off when you view the drawing on the computer screen. The original isn't quite so red/orange. I wish I had a scanner that would scan the colours exactly like the original, but I'm sure I would have to pay a lot of money for one!

Toby - Stage 2

"Toby"
9x12

Coloured Pencil

Work in Progress

I think Toby's portrait is coming along well. I was having a bit of difficulty with it at the beginning, but now I'm feeling better about how things are going. Always one to try new things, I've been using solvent to do this drawing and I'm loving the effect. Solvent sort of disolves the coloured pencil, making it much easier (and faster) to blend. I'm using watercolour paper so it can handle the wet solvent, which is almost like working with watercolours. So I go back and forth between blending with solvent and putting in fine details with the pencil. And the thicker paper allows for more layers than regular paper.

This drawing appears to be cropped kind of funny, but that's only because it's 9x12 and my scanner is 8.5x11 (or something like that).

I'm still here!

Yikes! I've neglected my blog again! An aweful lot has happened since I last posted, so I have several good excuses:

1. The new puppy. For those of you who have/had a puppy, you'll know how much work they are! He's just over 6 months old now and I think I can safely say he's house broken and he's already graduated from grade 2 of his clicker training!

2. We moved...again. Yep, we moved out of our place on the water and moved back into town. We loved the location of our old house but we're quite happy to be close to things again. The new house is smaller, and fortunately still has a view of the river, but we bought it because it has an apartment in the basement. We've been here since June 14th and we're mostly unpacked and set up.

3. My sister, brother-in-law and my brand new nephew were home from Shanghai during the months of June and July. They had a house on the beach while they were here, and I was able to spend my vacation there.

Those are my major excuses for not posting lately. I'm sure I could add more to the list but I don't want to bore you!

I'm happy to say that I do actually have something to show you, even though I have been pretty busy. Here is a portrait of Mac that I did a little earlier in the year. Sadly Mac is no longer with us.

"Mac"

8x10

Pencil

And here is what I am currently working on.

"Toby"
9x12

Coloured Pencil and Watercolour Crayon

Here is a shot of my work space, which is a little crowded. The reference photo is at the top and on the right, I've got a book open that shows drawings of noses in detail. From the reference photo, it's really hard to see the detail in the nose and ears, so I've had to look at other books to get a better view.

And I thought I'd add a shot of my art/computer room since I only recently finished setting it up. You can see the river through the window.

Introducing.....

Ronin!! He's our new Australian Shepherd puppy. He's a red merle and is almost 10 weeks old now. He's adorable! As puppies go, he's a pretty good little guy. We're still housebreaking him, and so far it's going mostly well. There have been a couple of accidents, but they're usually my fault! He's such a sweetie!

Mac - Stage 2...and some exciting news!

 Here is another update of Mac's portrait. I'm trying something a little different this time. I always find tabbies a little hard to draw because of all of the flecks of lighter hair throughout the dark. So I've been using an indentation tool for the light coloured hair. My indentation tool is a blunt darning needle, held in a mechanical pencil (I had to break off the eye so it would fit in the holder). If you're unfamiliar with indenting as a drawing technique, I'll explain...

You use an indenting tool pretty much the same as you would a regular pencil. Anywhere that I want the paper to remain white, I go over it with my tool and it indents the paper. Afterward, when you go over it with your pencil, the graphite doesn't go into the indented parts, leaving it white! I've used this technique many times before, but usually just for whiskers and little white hairs around the chin, etc. But this time I've been using it for all of the lighter coloured areas of Mac's fur, and so far I'm really liking the look! The only problem with the indenting tool is you have to get it right the first time. If you make the hairs go in the wrong direction, it's pretty hard to fix later. So it's important to take your time and do it well.

"Mac"

Pencil on Paper

8 x 10

Work in Progress

On another note, I have some exciting news!! I'm finally getting my Australian Shepherd puppy next Friday!!! I am SO EXCITED!!!

I have been waiting for a puppy for almost a year now! I first started with one breeder in NB, but unfortunately the prospective mom had some troubles getting pregnant. So this winter, I decided to contact other breeders around the Maritimes, but none of them will be breeding until this summer and I had my heart set on having a puppy by this spring. So then I decided to look outside of the Maritimes and I found a few different people that have puppies that will be ready later on this spring. Last weekend, it was suggested that I contact a certain breeder in Ontario because she has a litter that is ready to go now. I think all of the puppies were originally spoken for but she ended up not having homes for a couple of them because people either backed out or she wasn't comfortable with the prospective buyers. So I called her up right away and it turned out that one of the puppies that was available was EXACTLY what I've been looking for!!

So long story short, I have sent my money, signed the contract and the puppy will be shipped to NB this coming Friday!! It all happened pretty quickly once I first contacted her, but I've been ready for this for a long time! Since then, I've been shopping!! I thought I had a lot of the supplies already (I've been collecting all year), but man, was I wrong! I spent quite a bit of money on this puppy over the last couple of days: crate, toys, food, treats, collars, etc.

Meet "Ronin", my red merle Aussie...

(these pictures were taken at 8 weeks and he'll be 9 weeks old when I get him)

Love him already!!!

Mac - Stage 1

"Mac"
8x10

Pencil on Paper

Work in Progress

Loki - Stage 1

After working mainly with coloured pencils lately, I decided to pick up 'ole faithfuls...my graphite pencils! I do like working in colour, but I feel so much more at home when I draw with regular pencils. I love the look of black and white and I feel like it's the medium that suits me best.

I started this drawing quite a long time ago actually, but since I've missed working with regular pencils, I thought I'd pick it up again. It felt so good to work with graphite pencils again. I was surprised at how much I missed them!

Loki is my youngest cat. I really don't like to pick favourites with my pets, but if I was to choose, he would be it! He is bursting with personality, he's cuddly, playful and gives you the best "I love you" looks ever! And all those extra toes...so cute! The reference photo for this drawing was taken when he was a kitten. I think he was looking at a string!

Walter - Finished!

Walter

5 x 7

Coloured Pencil on Pastel Paper

Commission - Kingston, NS

Walter - Stage 4

Walter

Work in Progress

5x7 Coloured Pencil

I'm getting really close to being done! I'll leave it for a few days and go back to it with fresh eyes. That way I'll be able to see any problem areas that I don't notice after staring at it for hours!

Walter - Stage 3

Walter

5x7

Coloured Pencil

Work in Progress

2010

 Hello everyone and Happy New Year! I thought I'd start this post off with some pictures!

These are my "kids".

This was the view from our house today.

It's a bit dreary looking but I liked the pattern of ice melting on the river.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! I spent a week with my family in Moncton and it was really great seeing everyone, especially my sister and brother-in-law who live in Shanghai. They have been living there for about 4 years now and oddly enough, I see them more now than when they lived in Toronto!

If you've been following my posts (and it's ok if you haven't!), you'll know that I had back surgery on Dec. 9. The surgery came non-too-soon because the week before, I injured it further and was hospitalized for pain control for two days. Up until that point, I had actually been feeling pretty good, and although I still wanted the surgery, I had some doubts as to whether or not I still needed it. Turns out I did! It's now been almost 4 weeks since the surgery and I'm doing really well! I'm so glad I had it done and I look forward to getting my life back to normal again because I've been out of commission for so long. I am still a little bit sore and my back gets tired easily so I'll be off work for a while longer. I also have some residual leg and foot numbness, which I'm told will eventually go away. But by the spring/summer, I should be as good as new!

Being the new year, I feel like I should make some resolutions. I'm not normally one for doing this, but since everyone else seems to be doing it, maybe I should too! Here is what I would like to accomplish in the new year:

• 
  
  Update my blog more often
  
• 
  
  Sell some original artwork
  
• 
  
  Try oil painting again and actually finish at least one piece!
  
• 
  
  Spend more time on my artwork
  
• 
  
  Get into better shape. I haven't been able to do anything because of my back so once I'm better, I'll have no excuse!
  
• 
  
  Get a dog. I'm on a waiting list for an Australian Shepherd puppy!
  
• 
  
  Read more
  
• 
  
  Become more outdoorsy - given where I live now, I'm sure that shouldn't be a problem!
  
• 
  
  Live life!
  

I'm sure there are lots of other things that I could list here, but I can't think of them at the moment. Good luck to the rest of you in keeping your resolutions!

And lastly, I would like to post my most recent commission. This is Walter and he belongs to my cousin and her husband, commissioned by her parents (my aunt and uncle). Walter is still a puppy and is awefully cute!

 Walter - Reference Photo

Stage 1

Stage 2

"Walter"

Work in Progress

5 x 7

Coloured Pencil

Thank you for reading!