AlliePets.com | Pet Portraits, Illustration & Design

Bouncing Cats

March 19, 2013 design, junebug No comments

It’s not often that the non-Finnegan creatures in the household get some attention drawn to them on my site.

When my friend and former Global Pet Foods co-worker AJ contacted me about a product design opportunity, I was excited! AJ has been nurturing and cultivating the wild catnip on her property in the west end, where she runs a successful dog boarding business and non-profit cat sanctuary. Imagine how much more excited I was when AJ produced a whole bag of the different varieties for June Bug to try!

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(click to enlarge.)

The bag was incredibly potent. Super strong scent. This stuff is fresh and amazing. And June Bug… well, try them she did. Rubbing them, sniffing them, eating them. Playing, meowing, sleeping. June Bug loves her catnip, and especially Bouncing Cats. She especially loves the catnip stalks – chewing and carrying them around the house. I found one under my pillow last night.

Today marks the completion of the label design project I did for AJ. Bouncing Cats WILD Catnip will be available soon at select local retailers and events. I will pass on the information when it’s available.
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June Bug gives it four paws up. Because she’s currently upside down. In a euphoric catnip coma.

Yeah baby.

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Art For A Cause – Wolfhound Cù Sìth

February 14, 2013 artwork, fantasy, zazzle One comment

Been a tough time in the personal life of the Allie, but in the interim we’ve made some pretty awesome art!

I’d like to introduce the second addition to the Art For A Cause project: The Wolfhound Cù Sìth. (Click to enlarge)

I knew that I wanted to include an Irish Wolfhound in the project. When researching mythology and folklore, the Cù Sìth seemed to be a good fit.

From the Wikipedia entry:

According to Scottish folklore, the Cù Sìth is said to be the size of a young bull. Its fur is shaggy, and usually cited as being dark green though sometimes white. Its tail is described as being long and either coiled up or plaited (braided). Its paws are described as being the width of a man’s hand.
The Cù Sìth was feared as a harbinger of death and would appear to bear away the soul of a person to the afterlife, similar to the manner of the Grim Reaper.
According to legend, the creature was capable of hunting silently, but would occasionally let out three terrifying bays, and only three, that could be heard for miles by those listening for it, even far out at sea. Those who hear the baying of the Cù Sìth must reach safety by the third bark or be overcome with terror to the point of death.

In researching folklore and mythology related to dogs, one of the biggest challenges has been steering away from “evil” beasts and tales. In much folklore, dogs and canines are synonymous with death, hell, darkness and bad harbingers. It’s hard to avoid it in my research, and frankly, the Cù Sìth is no different.

That said, when I read the description of a Cù Sìth, my mind imagined the image above. Instead of a dark, green, wolflike figure like most art I’ve found, I pictured a giant green wolfhound, with calm eyes and a steady demeanour. A creature that appears with wisdom and guides you to your afterlife.

And that’s how this image was born.

The Wolfhound Cù Sìth will be joining the Shisa Pit Bulls in my Zazzle store later today. Like the Shisa, the Wolfhound Cù Sìth will support a great cause: 10% of my proceeds from any Zazzle purchase of the Cù Sìth products will benefit Birch Haven Rescue & Rehabilitation, a wonderful Ottawa-based dog rescue focusing on giant breeds, especially those with special needs.

This print was particularly inspired by Bunker the Irish Wolfhound, who is a palliative Irish Wolfhound puppy with very special needs in their care. I had the pleasure of meeting him a number of times and his enthusiasm and happiness melts your heart.

I hope you enjoy this instalment of Art For A Cause!

Show Us Your Heart and WIN!

January 29, 2013 dayjob, events, global pet foods No comments

Love is in the air.

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The past two weeks have been busy at dayjob as we prepare for our huge annual fundraising campaign, Show Us Your Heart! I, of course, have been busy designing posters. (Click them to embiggen.)

This year our Hintonburg and Kanata stores are raising money for Genesis Dog Rescue and Sit With Me Dog Rescue, respectfully. Both stores are having a raffle as part of the fun, where you can win a ton of cool prizes including collars, training sessions, photography sessions, and even a pet portrait by yours truly. If you’re local to Ottawa, you should stop by our Kanata or Hintonburg stores and help out!

We’re also doing amazing events on February 10th. Different stuff at each store. Microchip clinic, nail trims, bake sales, doggy kissing booth, photo booth, cupcake decorating… it’s gonna be a party. Bring your furry friend. (Once again, click to make big.)

If you live far away and want to help out…

Donate $5 or more using the handy button below. Every donation will net an entry into a THIRD contest for my faraway customers. The winner will receive a $40 gift certificate to AlliePets! By February 16th, all donations will be split between both rescues and added to their final totals and I will draw the winner at random!

Back to work on portraits! There should be a Livestream happening tomorrow evening, so stay tuned!

Art For A Cause – Shisa Pit Bulls

January 7, 2013 artwork, fantasy, zazzle 2 comments

It’s a new year, and new plans are afoot. The first thing I’ve unveiled is the first in an upcoming series. This first one is based on one of my favourite, most misunderstood dogs: the pit bull.

I was researching fantastical and mythological creatures from around the world for an unrelated project last year, and was surprised how many times I thought, “wow, this one reminds me of <dog breed>”. Even some creatures that had nothing to do with dogs would spark an idea, sometimes ideas for rabbits, cats, ferrets, reptiles, etc. I knew then that I wanted to draw them. Lots of them. My two favorite things to draw are fantasy creatures and pets; why the heck am I not combining the two more often?

During my Christmas vacation from AlliePets, I wrote down a lot of notes, ideas, and motivation. I sketched numerous ideas in my sketchbook. I doodled even more. Some weren’t as good as I expected them to be, and that’s okay. That’s art. Others were just perfect. Just as I thought.

One of them was completed a few days ago, and here it is – Shisa Pit Bulls. (Click the image to enlarge.)

Shisa Pit Bulls Backstory

I had learned quite a bit about Chinese and Korean Fu Dogs (I’ve even drawn a friend’s pug Izzie as one) but I hadn’t heard about the related Okinawan Shisa until I researched. Similar to Fu Dogs in appearance and purpose, Shisa resemble a lion/dog cross and are referred to as “guardian dogs”. They are placed on either the rooftop or gate to a home as wards, protecting the home from various evils.

Bowing shisa in the traditional placement.

They are commonly placed in pairs, and when they are, the closed-mouth dog is to the left, and the open-mouthed dog is to the right. There are mixed beliefs as to which dog does what, but the belief is that one dog keeps in the goodness, and one dog keeps out the evil.

Quite possibly my favourite shisa sculptures that I’ve found. SO HAPPY.

I knew I wanted to do a pit bull piece as one of my first pieces, but choosing a pairing myth was tricky. I knew I wanted to stay away from the more “evil” beasts for obvious reasons; otherwise it was a difficult choice. I kept returning to the Shisa. Something about them reminded be of pit bulls. Loyal to their home and their family. Protective, but filled with goodness.

Plus, they look really cute with lion manes.

Prints and other products featuring this artwork are for sale in my brand-new Zazzle store. 10% of my proceeds from each sale will go to Hello Bully, an incredible rescue in PA that I have worked with a number of times in the past. They work tirelessly on saving and protecting pit bulls and their reputation.

I will be creating more artwork as time goes on that will be added to the store, benefiting various animal rescues and nonprofits. As always, any questions, suggestions or comments are always welcome! Don’t hesitate to contact me.

More change and goodness.

January 1, 2013 business, dayjob, global pet foods, travel One comment

It’s a new year. Hello, 2013!

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A lot has been happening in the past few months. I did a full renovation of my office space, featuring artwork found in the sale bin at Michael’s (left, by my art table) and prints by my good friend Lindsay Campbell (right, by my computer desk). Click either image to enlarge!

I was lucky enough this year to get out to Calgary for a few days and spend Christmas morning with my beloved family. Below are my niece and nephew (and sis-in-law!) with some of their presents. It was a joy to be there with them and really refreshed and rejuvenated me for the coming year.
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Some big changes on the AlliePets front, as well. Some are happening right now, and some are coming soon.

What’s New

Prices + Ordering page and FAQ page have been completely overhauled. Old and new customers should check them out to know what’s up!
Price changes. The new prices better reflect the time I spend on each type of portrait.
From January 1st onward, I will be donating 10% of every portrait sale to pet rescue! I’ll be doing the donation biannually and will announce the total amount and the chosen rescue when that time comes.
Prints and canvases available for pet portraits. This has been an on and off thing for the past few years, but now I can offer prints and canvases as an option permanently! More details coming in the next week or two. The information will be on my Prices + Ordering page.

What’s Coming Soon

Did you notice my currently-placeholding Shop page? Here’s what’s coming soon…
Product sales! In the past I’ve made items like catnip toys, painted pet bowls, dog tugs and more for friends and family, and I intend to start making items to sell on Etsy. Stay tuned!
Art prints and posters for sale! What kind of art? That’s a surprise… but I think you’re all going to love it. The prints will also benefit rescues in a big way, I can’t wait to reveal!
A few more things… spoilers!

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It’s been a successful few months on the dayjob front. We had pet photos with Santa for Hopeful Hearts Dog Rescue, as well as a huge Giving Tree fundraiser for 10+ rescues in the Ottawa Area. Plus, I designed a neat infographic to show everything our stores did for rescues this past year. Pretty awesome. I’m proud to be a part of it.

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Overall, we had a pretty great 2012, but 2013 is shaping up to be 200% more awesome. I wish for the same for all of you!

Howl-O-Ween Event and Sit With Me Dog Rescue.

September 19, 2012 artwork, dayjob, design, global pet foods, holiday No comments

Halloween fun is ramping up all around us. I recently received a new position at my dayjob, (which as most of you know is Global Pet Foods in Hintonburg) Special Events & Marketing. Essentially that consists of coordinating the events, marketing and social media for both our stores. I’m super excited about the new position, and with it will come more frequent blog posts on my AlliePets blog as I talk about my own personal business as well as the happenings at the store. They are often intertwtined anyway, and this is a bit of a personal blog as well as a blog about my work! The things I learn with the new position will also benefit both businesses, so I’m eager to see what I can learn and do.

The first Big Thing I’m planning for both stores is a Howl-O-Ween fundraiser!

If you’re local, mark your calendars! (If you’re closer to the Kanata area, our 700 Eagleson Rd. store is having an identical fundraiser the very next day, same time!)

This year, our Howl-O-Ween event at the stores is raising funds for a brand new Ottawa rescue, Sit With Me Shelter Dog Rescue!

A bit about Sit With Me and the things we’re doing to help:

(Their website is in progress, but they have a Facebook and a Twitter, please add them!)

This rescue was founded by several friends of mine who are veterans of the dog rescue world, and are hitting the ground running. Notably, they’ve rescued a very pregnant bully mix named Amelia who has since had nine healthy puppies, and a starved, emaciated little brindle boy named Jeremiah who is currently staving off dehydration and depression in a fight to save his life. Both situations are proving very costly and time consuming for the rescue, and we wanted to help offset those costs in any way possible and help give Sit With Me a good running start.

The Howl-O-Ween events at our store are just a start; my friend Lindsay Campbell, who also used to work with us, has been selling prints of her work from her recent “Canis Flora” gallery show to fundraise for vet checks/altering of the nine puppies. The pieces feature various breeds of dogs meshed with various flowers, producing unique, fun, whimsical pieces of art that would look amazing on any wall. The prints are available to purchase through her website.

Lindsay and another past co-worker, Stephanie, will be co-hosting a nail trim, bake sale & rescue meet-n-greet fundraiser on Sunday, October 14th, 2012 at our Hintonburg store (1200 Wellington Street, Ottawa) to help raise more for Amelia. Watch this space for more info on that!

The logo I designed for them turned out to be the winning logo in their FB contest, so my logo will be the public brand of the rescue. I am very honoured and give my thanks to all who votes for me! Please keep an eye out for some great apparel for sale featuring the new logo, which is an easy, fun way to support rescue. I’m pleased as punch to be a part of an amazing grassroots dog rescue.

Also of note, because folks have been asking about them: Pumpkins!

Cooper, my co-worker’s dog:

And Dance, a Toller from my dog forum:

There’s been a few more as well, who have asked to remain a surprise until the actual pumpkin unveils. Designing these patterns have been a TON of fun. I hope lots more folks get one! There will be a BIG Facebook contest on October 30th with an awesome prize to be won!

Stay tuned!

Change Is Good.

September 12, 2012 beauty, business, finnegan, sale 2 comments

First, on the home front:

Roomie Chris has moved out, and though that made us very sad (easiest roomie EVER), he’s moved in with his girlfriend and they’re starting their life together, and that’s super cool. We’ve since acquired another super-cool roomie.

Wanna know one of the cool things about this roomie?

HE COOKS.

Oh and also:

^ that’s Beauty. She’ a Siberian Husky and she’s our other new roomie. Finnegan doesn’t even know what to do with himself now that his girlfriend is a permanent staple of our household. They’re both extremely happy. Beauty is also… pudgey. A little husky, if you will. (har.) A switch from Beneful to a healthier food, portioning instead of free-feeding, and living with a border collie will make short work of that extra weight.

They’re pals. I like that Finnegan has a pal. Finnegan is the kind of dog that needs a pal.

As a reminder, many of you know that I’ve started a pretty awesome fun thing:

(Clicking the photo takes you to the cool thing’s page!)

So far it’s been SO MUCH fun. Halloween is one of my absolute favourite holidays. For real. And I never really celebrate it with the pomp it deserves in my mind. This year, I wanted to do something superfun for AlliePets in honour of the holiday. A few folks have suggested custom pumpkin patterns in the past, after seeing my past Yuffie and Finnegan pumpkins, so I thought, hey, why not? Pumpkin patterns are a challenging piece of art in themselves – it starts simple enough, contrasting the everloving heck out of a photograph, but then the challenge begins – making sure the pattern can be carved with relative efficiency and ease onto a pumpkin, all the while retaining the subject’s appearance enough that people can go “OMG that’s FIDO on your pumpkin!”.

It’s a fun challenge. I’m loving it so far. Will you be turning your pet into a Pumpkin? There’s a really fun contest happening post-Halloween for those who do…

Stay tuned.

Halloween comes early this year.

September 1, 2012 finnegan, holiday, sale, yuffie No comments

For the past year, I’ve mulled on the idea of doing more holiday and seasonal related fun promotions, and otherwise doing things that other pet portrait artists don’t really offer.

I wrote out a whole game plan for it, and decided to start with my favourite holiday, Halloween. Because really, what’s not to love about Halloween? Dress up as whoever you please, eat lots of candy and scare yourselves silly.

The best part to me is pumpkin carving. I love flexing my creativity with it, and two years ago I decided to make a pet pumpkin. Yuffie was my first target.

Friends saw this and got very excited. I designed a few for them of their pets as well (and a few human ones… oh, I wish I had photos. Too funny.) Designing custom pumpkin carving patterns was a LOT of fun, and a very simple way to customize a really fun holiday.

It was that which inspired this, launched today. (Click the image to check it out!)

Feel free to crosspost and share the link, and get the word out about awesome custom pet pumpkin carving patterns. If I have an army of custom pet pumpkins at the end of this, it may just be the Best Halloween Ever.

Happy Autumn!

Basol.

August 24, 2012 geckos, health No comments

I’m finally writing this post. Months after the fact. It’s so hard to write, even now.

I lost Basol on Canada Day. July 1st. Found her in her hide, she appeared to have passed peacefully.

After such a long fight with her eyes. After fighting infection in every shed she dealt with, and dealing with her not eating because she couldn’t see. We both kept fighting as long as we could, and that was that.

Losing her was hard. I can’t say it was unexpected, as she had steadily gone downhill… but it hit be hard, especially after losing Ysera in late 2011. It makes you question yourself. What am I doing wrong? What could possibly have happened that I lost both so soon, and so closely? And worst of all, I look at the rest of my beloved pets and think, am I doing right by them?

The answer is: yes, I am. And bad things happen anyway sometimes, and that’s okay. I did what I could for Basol. I did far more than most leopard gecko owners would have done. She was as happy as I could make her.

RIP girly. All the waxworms for you.

Pets, health, vacation, stress, and SALE!

May 21, 2012 business, finnegan, geckos, sale No comments

It’s been quite a few weeks around here.

I just came back from spending a week with my brother and his family in Pemberton, BC, which is just north of Whistler. I got to hang out with my 4-year-old nephew, who is crazy energetic but also super cuddly, and otherwise enjoy some tranquility in the mountains with my family. Just what I needed.

I came back to some problems.

Finn had gotten into something and was not only having explosive poops, but had a poo-matted rear end that had to be shaved off. When it was shaved, we found a few nasty little hotspots that he’s being treated for. Poor sod. The hotspots are clearing up though, and his biggest embarrassment is his newly-shaved rear end. He keeps pausing to plant his butt firmly on the ground and give me a shameful look. It’s amusing and sad.

But he has his pal Sherman, so it’s okay, I guess.

The second problem was Basol. The poor girl’s eyes are still on the fritz. Her right eye is open and healed, her left eye is still sealed shut despite prying it open once a day for antibiotic eyedrops. When I came home, she hadn’t eaten anything and was far too skinny for my comfort. However, once I stuck some crickets (ewwww) in her viv, she gobbled them up. Thankfully. So she’s on crickets for the foreseeable future, at least until her strength and eyes improve.

Please keep my furkids in your thoughts! I’m not overly worried at this point, but neither are out of the woods.

In better news… we celebrated out third birthday on May 1st. It’s surreal. To say I’ve been lucky is an understatement. To be able to do something I love and enjoy, to meet this many awesome people, to have a fun side job that ties into my day job, and to make so many people happy… I’m very blessed. As a big thank you to all of my clients, past present and future, how’s about a spring sale?

Only until June 15th! Please spread the word and share it around. Thanks so much to everyone, and here’s to an awesome year three! I have some FUN stuff in the plans, just you wait!

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If you live far away and want to help out…

Shisa Pit Bulls Backstory

What’s New

What’s Coming Soon

A bit about Sit With Me and the things we’re doing to help:

Recent Work