Category: Custom Portraits

Francis, Francis, and Nose

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2010. I love this: The two rabbits, each named Francis, function as a unit known as the “Franci.” The flat blanket animal of ambiguous species (giraffe?) has always been referred to simple as “Nose.” Megan, who will give this painting to her nephew Carter, says that there was originally only one Francis. Carter’s mother bought the second bunny as backup, and Carter found it by mistake. From that point on the Franci have been equally loved.

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Puppy

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2010. As Tanzi was covertly planning to take photos of her daughter’s beloved “Puppy” for me to use for this portrait, Something pretty great occured to her. The toy was constantly in transition between her daughter’s parents’ separate houses, which not only complicated the photo shoot but often caused Puppy to be left at one place or the other. Tanzi suggested to me that a portrait of a toy might be a comfort to children of single parents in these situations, evoking its presence even when a child is without her favorite for the night. Great idea!

Order a print of this painting:









Print Sizes

















More info about prints here.

Day and Night Dolly

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2010. This incarnation of the ubiquitous blanket-with-a-head stuffed toy is extra fabulous: It’s reversible, having both a sunny, wide-eyed “day” side as well as this blue side, sprinkled with crecent moons. Dylan, 2 1/2, lately prefers the “night” side. He can nearly always be found with “Dolly” tucked under his arm — on the soccer field, on a playground slide, in a grocery cart, and, of course, in bed. Dylan’s mother Joy tells me that Dolly was originally a gift for her first child, but Dylan, her fourth, was the one who truly came to love it. For this portrait, I was sure to include Dolly’s satin skirt, which is Dylan’s favorite part.

Blue Bear and Yellow Bunny

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2010. These are the battered and beloved childhood toys of Donna’s husband Andrew. She commissioned this portrait for his upcoming birthday. Donna notes that in most photos of Andrew as a child, these two are close by. She says that whenever he sees them even today, he remembers the warmth and safety of his childhood. I hope that this painting will have the same effect!

Poohie

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2010. Here’s a bear who has achieved a profound family legacy in record time! Poohie belongs to the daughter of one of my very favorite funny bloggers, Bossy. He was originally given to Bossy’s Son, now in college, by Bossy’s Parents when he was small. When Bossy’s fourteen-year-old daughter was born, Bossy’s Son gave Poohie to his baby sister. Poohie is still an active participant in the family’s adventures, traveling to several countries and serving as a kind of meditative muse. “What would Poohie do?” is a question sometimes pondered during times of strife in the Bossy household. His floppy, relaxed posture and placid expression just might point a person toward the right path…

Floppy Bunny

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2010. This is definitely the season of the floppy white bunny around here — I seem to always be working on several at a time! Cindy will give this portrait of Bunny to her almost-six-year-old son on his upcoming birthday, but she covertly showed it to his two-year-old brother when it arrived. I was thrilled to hear that upon seeing it he immediately cried, “BUNNY!!!”

Clare’s Dolly

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

5″x7″ acrylic, 2010. This Precious Moments doll/blanket combo was once much pinker and puffier, and it is perhaps now a bit grayer and more frayed than you see here in this tiny painting. I was sent “before and after” photos, and after some discussion of strategy, it was decided that the portrait would be of the Dolly in her current loved state but with a bit of the blush restored. This portrait was commissioned by Tina as a gift for her daughter Clare for Christmas!

Bo-Bo

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2010. The Boston Red Sox patch on Bo-Bo’s face hides a scar, but also differentiates him from his “twin,” an identical bear also called Bo-Bo. Both bears are loved equally by Ben, who accidentally burned this Bo-Bo’s face on a lightbulb! The second Bo-Bo was purchased in case of his getting lost, and soon enough the first Bo-Bo did go missing. He was found six months later hidden amongst other stuffed animals at the local Marshall’s! You can read much more about these bears at Ben’s mother Jill’s fabulous blog, where she is also currently hosting a Custom Toy Portrait giveaway!

My Bratty Pony

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

bratponyctp8″x10″, acrylic on canvas, 2009.
Whoa, Nelly! What is going on with THIS? This strangely flirty plastic pony was accurately described as “disturbing” by the mother of the child who loves it. The horse, which five-year-old Oona has named “Beautiful,” was a Goodwill purchase by Oona’s grandmother. Yes, you can just go ahead and put those artsy-craftsy Etsy toys that look so awesome on your baby’s dresser right into a box up in the attic. The heart wants what the heart wants.

Bunny Sur L’herbe

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2010. The portrait of this bunny, called “Bunny,” will be Donna’s gift to her niece on her upcoming first birthday. Donna’s own children already have portraits of their favorite toys which were painted by (ahem) someone else, but that’s okay… I was delighted to paint this fabulous floppy bunny and I hope that he really does spend lots of time lounging on the grass just as we see him here.