Book Signing Party - Emmitt & Olive

Emmitt was the life of the party!

Thank you Art Mart for letting us bring him to the event.

It is so much fun sharing Emmitt with everyone.

Emmitt was so excited to see his friends Linda and James and to meet some new friends too!

It was only a matter of time...

before I made a Black Pug Finger Puppet! He is now available in my Etsy Shop.

Emmitt asks for you to adopt him quickly as he feels he should be the only pug allowed in my studio.

Collagraph Prints

I love print making!

It is always so fun to see the results when the paper is pulled off of the plate. Over the last two years, I have experimented with woodcut block printing, lino blocks, hand carved stamps in PZ-Kut, drypoint etching and now collagraph print making.

I thought it would be fun to introduce my sister, Melanie, to the art of creating printing plates and then pulling them through a press. Collagraph plates are the perfect way to do that. They are much less intimidating if you do not want to "draw" a design. We made our plates on matboard with glue, cut paper and fine sand as the resists.

I created some pug doodles that I love to make and Melanie created an image of Moe and a winter collage.

I made a new plate today to try and print next week. I collaged different textured papers over a flip of one on my pug paintings.

We will see how he turns out. I think he looks pretty cool even before I print him.

A Beautiful Fall Day!

We had a great day enjoying the sun and 70 degree weather. I made another pug finger puppet today in the backyard while listening to the Lions squish the Broncos. I think the puppet had as much fun as I did today. It is his birthday afterall.

Pugs and Kiva.org - A Great Pair!

The pugs are piling up here in the studio. Aren't they cute? They are so fun to make.

For every 4 pug finger puppets that sell in my etsy store, I will be able to make another Kiva.org loan. I am so excited that my art business will be able to support so many businesses around the world.

Dog and Cat of the Year 2007

Happy Friday! This is a great story to end the week.

I love that both of these animals were saved themselves as babies.

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NEW YORK (AP) - When the Keesling family of Indiana was about to be overcome by carbon monoxide, their cat clawed at wife Cathy's hair until she woke up and called for help.

When Debbie Parkhurst choked on a piece of apple at her Maryland home, her dog jumped in, landing hard on her chest and forcing the morsel to pop out of her throat.

For their nick-of-time acts, Toby, a 2 1/2-year-old golden retriever, and Winnie, a gray-eyed American shorthair, were named Dog and Cat of the Year by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

In addition, five humans were honored Thursday for their actions toward animals in the past year, including a Bronx firefighter who saved a dog and cat from a burning building. Neither Parkhurst nor Keesling could explain their pets' timely heroics, though Parkhurst suggested her pooch's Heimlich maneuver might have been guided by divine intervention."That's what our veterinarian said," she said. "He wasn't making a joke; he's very spiritual, and now I have to agree with him."

Both pets were themselves rescued in infancy - Toby as a 4-week-old puppy tossed into a garbage bin to die, and Winnie as a week-old orphan hiding under a barn, so helpless that Keesling's husband, Eric, had to feed her milk with an eyedropper.

As the Keeslings recalled it, a gas-driven pump being used to remove flood waters from their basement in New Castle, Ind., last March malfunctioned, spreading carbon monoxide through the house. By the time Winnie moved into rescue mode, the couple's 14-year-old son, Michael, was already unconscious."Winnie jumped on the bed and was clawing at me, with a kind of angry meow," Cathy Keesling said. "When I woke up I felt like a T-bar had hit me across the head."State police and sheriff's officers responding to her 911 call said the family was only minutes from death, judging by the amount of poisonous gas in the house.

Debbie Parkhurst's husband, Kevin, was at his job at a Wilmington, Del., chemical firm when she took a midday break from making jewelry and bit into an apple."Normally I peel them, but I read in Good Housekeeping magazine that the skin has all the nutrients, so I ate the skin, and that's what caused me to choke," she recalled."I couldn't breathe and I was in panic when Toby jumped on me. He never does that, but he did, and saved my life."

Both Toby and Winnie accompanied their owners to the awards luncheon at Manhattan's posh Rainbow Room atop Rockefeller Center.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.

Fiber Art - Pug Finger Puppet

Meet Emmitt... my newly designed pug finger puppet.

He is crocheted from acrylic yarn and stands about 4.5" high from head to toe. I just put him up for sale in my etsy shop, and he is already on his way to his new home. I documented how to make him in my new think.jot.draw. journal, so I will be making more today.

Happy Halloween!

Here is a picture of my Emmitt in his lobster costume. As tradition demands, he will be all dressed up tonight passing out little cans of playdough to our neighborhood kids. They come every year to the door asking what Emmitt is this year, even before they say trick or treat! Here is a collage of some of Emmitt costumes over the years...

Kiva.org - Make a small loan, make a big difference.

About 5 months ago, I found out about an organization, Kiva.org, that allows you to make small loans to small businesses around the globe that make HUGE differences in these people's lives. When is the last time $25 that you loaned (and will receive back) did that? It is an amazing thing!

I thought it would be fun to introduce you to the two people I support. One woman owns a crafts business in Cambodia and supports herself by weaving silk on a loom. The other woman is from the Ukraine and has a decorations shop, or what we would think of as a souvenier shop.

You can meet them here...

http://www.kiva.org/lender/melissa1560

It has been a wonderful experience helping to empower people just like me, following their dreams while building a business to support their families.

and here is a little bit more about Kiva.org...

Overview:

Kiva.org is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to an entrepreneur in the developing world. By combining microfinance with the internet, Kiva.org is creating a global community of people connected through lending.Kiva.org's mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.Kiva.org was born of the following beliefs:
People are by nature generous, and will help others if given the opportunity to do so in a transparent, accountable way.
The poor are highly motivated and can be very successful when given an opportunity.
By connecting people we can create relationships which exceed beyond financial transactions, and build a global community expressing support and encouragement of one another. Kiva.org promotes:
Dignity: Person-to person lending encourages partnership relationships as opposed to benefactor relationships. Partnership relationships are characterized by mutual dignity and respect.
Accountability: Loans encourage more accountability than donations where repayment is not expected.
Transparency: The Kiva.org website is an open platform where communication can flow freely between the developing and developed worlds. Kiva.org democratizes philanthropy, allowing the average individual to feel like a mini-Bill Gates by building a portfolio of investments in developing world businesses.Kiva.org expects to have facilitated a total of $100 million in loans by end 2008.

9 of my Favorite Things

I love this time of year! Change and excitement is in the air with the crisp cool air and beautiful Fall color everywhere you look.

I also love the season of giving and searching for the perfect gifts that will bring people I love a smile.

One of my favorite shows that Oprah creates is a list of her Favorite Things. I always go and click on all the products to see what they are about.

I have always wanted to make a similar list of the things I have found during the year that bring me joy and I want to share.

Here is my list in no particular order:

Abby Creek Art Calendar 2008 - I am so excited that my good friend Linda O'Neil created a desk calendar of her inspiring dog art for 2008. They are available in her Etsy Shop and please also visit her website to see all of her wonderful art.

Peng Peng Bears - Peng Peng makes the most wonderful handmade, collectible mohair bears I have ever seen. Here is a picture of "Mr. Blix" that I got for my sister, Melanie for our birthday. (We are identical twins and turned 39 yesterday. :))

Dog Park Dolls - Speaking of birthday presents... Melanie got me the pomeranian from this collection and I absolutely LOVE it. He is pure joy and makes me smile!

Scary Stories Dolls - I love all of Wendy Gardner's characters! Dig Ivan Dig is my favorite, as he is a pug! I have her dolls all over my office for inspiration.

Sarah Apple Dolls - Sarah is amazing. She combines three of my favorite things, carving, printmaking and sewing. I have purchased her pug dolls and wood/lino carved creations. I love them all.

PZ KUT - Speaking of carving. My favorite stuff in the world is called PZ Kut. I use it to make my hand carved stamps. I created a demo for you to see how I make them.

Yards of Art Paper - I just bought this from Lillian Vernon, and I just love it. For me, it feels like the the never ending possibilities of art and the opportunity to create it.

Think.Jot.Draw Journals - I just found this incredible journal created by Leeza Hernandez. It is the perfect place to write, draw, doodle and express all of your ideas and thoughts and projects. There is nothing else out there like it!

Buddha Boards - Have you ever needed to just create something that brings you joy and keeps you flowing through your day without feeling like it has to "be" something? Well, this is the perfect thing to do it. It is called a buddha board and is my little board of Zen. You paint with water and enjoy your art until it drys and disappears. No commitment, no expectations, just art for the sake of art. It always makes me feel good to paint on my buddha board.

Examples of Life is Art...Art is life

New USA First Class Postage stamp and Penelope!

A huge crocodile made of a variety of gourds sits on display on a farm in Hartheim-Feldkirch, Germany, Oct. 24.

Yang Yang, 4, swims with Xiao Qiang the beluga whale at an aquarium in Qingdao, China, Oct. 14. The child, who has been swimming since the age of 1, will perform with the whale in 2008 at the Olympic Games in Beijing.

Precious, a 6-week-old kitten, gets a meal from Honey, a 7-year-old golden retriever, Oct. 2 in Stephens City, Va. The dog, which had puppies 18 months ago, began producing milk when she heard the kitten's cries.

An acrobat breathes fire at the opening ceremony of an animal games event in a safari park in Chongqing, China, Oct. 1. About 240 animals from 20 zoos across China compete in 20 events during the four-day games.

Bears, Pigs and Pugs...Oh My!

I just picked up the last creations from our Pottery 101 class. I have banks and jars to show you. I am very happy with how they turned out. The really exciting thing for me about ceramics and the glazing process is that I have absolutely no idea what they are going to look like until they come out of the kiln. The bears are Melanie's creations and the pig and pug are well... mine. I made them each a dog biscuit too in case they get hungry.

Book Signing and Posters!

Good Morning!

I am so excited to announce my first book signing of my children's book, Emmitt & Olive. Please join me on Sat. November 10th at Art Mart, on Pearl St. in Boulder, CO from 12 - 2. Emmitt will be there too!

I am also excited to introduce beautiful posters of all of my pug and pal paintings, available in 3 sizes, 16 x 20, 18 x 24 and 24 x 36.

Bulldog - Pal 9 - Poster 24 x 36

An Amazing Story...

I read this amazing story this morning and wanted to share it. I love when people are connected enough to themselves and the world around them to hear and then listen to their intuition. This painting was speaking to her. A very powerful story.

First Snowy Day...

Sunday was my favorite kind of day... cold, crisp and snowy... a perfect day to just stay in and make stuff. I pulled out the fabric and made 2 more note book covers on the sewing machine and 2 more pincushions sewn by hand. It was a great day!