5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. Continuing the recent twin toy trend around here is this pair of adorable floppy frogs! Barbara’s two children each have a pair of beloved toys, one of which was intended to be the back-up for the other. Despite their initial rank, Barbara’s daughter Brooke loves each of these frogs equally. They were once known as “Boggy” and “Baby Boggy,” but Barbara wrote me with an update while the portrait was in progress to let me know that they had graduated to being “Right Boggy” and “Left Boggy.” Duplicate toys seem to be a tradition in Barbara’s family, judging from the portraits of her nieces’ two giraffes and twin monkeys!
Tag: duplicates and back-ups
BlaBla Bunnies
8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. Melinda’s six-year-old son’s white Blabla bunny eventually became so tattered that it was no longer repairable. When it became evident that she wouldn’t be able to find a bunny with the exact same coloration to replace it (not sure that would have worked, Melinda!), a story was concocted about bunny having a cousin who was coming to live with them. In this way, some of the affection (and wear and tear) was diverted onto the stripey new addition to the family!
Tito and Tito The Other One
5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. When five-year-old Elsie was born, she was given an Angel Dear giraffe blanket-head by her grandmother. At least it started as only one giraffe, and he was named “Milton” by Elsie’s father. Elsie is now five, and of course she has discovered and claimed Milton’s “back-up.” Also, Elsie has rejected the “Milton” moniker in favor of the fantastic “Tito” and “Tito The Other One.” Check out Elsie’s little sister Kit’s monkey blankets called “Fritters” and “Fritters The Other One” here, and another portrait of an Angel Dear giraffe here.
Fritters and Fritters The Other One
5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. Kit, who is almost three, started with just one monkey. It was given to her at birth by her grandmother, and naturally the “back-up” monkey was discovered and absorbed into everyday use. The monkey blanket-heads are known as “Fritters” and “Fritters The Other One,” a fantastic variation on the “Lovey” and “Other Lovey” template for naming twin toys that I often see! The spotted green blanket behind the monkeys is also a beloved favorite. This portrait is one of two commissioned by Kit’s mother Beth for her daughters, so check back soon to see five-year-old Elsie’s giraffes “Tito” and “Tito The Other One!”
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Linnie Lamb
8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. When fifteen-year-old Sophia was a baby, these lambs were named after Linda, the woman who assisted the family with Sophia’s adoption from China. After years of travel and affection, they are now devoid of their polka-dots, stripes, and, well, their faces! The two toys, which currently look like this: 
were initially intended to be rotated to slow wear-and-tear. In my “research” I have found that, in most cases, a child’s “back-up” lovey eventually becomes absorbed into daily use along with the primary toy. Such is the case with Linnie the Lamb and her twin, ultimately known as “Magic Marker Linnie” and “Other Linnie.” In this portrait, Linnie rests upon Sophia’s red fleece blanket, which was also a childhood favorite.
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Double Snuffles
8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. The worn pink noses on these two Gund Snuffles bears denote an incredible tale of destiny! These bears are the childhood toys of Katie’s sister and her husband, who are expecting a baby in September. Katie tells me that an uncanny thing that the couple has in common is that they both carried their bears around by the nose in their mouths! I wonder at what point in their relationship this was discovered, and did they immediately decide to marry at that moment? This portrait will be a gift to the couple from Katie in celebration of the new baby. Here is another Snuffles portrait I did a couple of years ago… apparently worn noses are par for the course with these bears!
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Two Henries
8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. Stephanie’s husband grew up toting his stuffed dog Henry everywhere he went. When he found that the vintage ’70’s “Henry” design had gone back into production, he bought a new Henry for his 18-month-old daughter for Christmas. Strephanie commissioned this portrait of the two Henries as a Father’s Day gift for her husband. I must admit that my favorite thing about this project is that researching these toys led me to discover the origins of my own childhood favorite lion! I was struck by the familiar yellow fur and distinctive black belly-button, which the Henries share with my “Hubert.” Sure enough, like the classic Henry, my lion was made in the ’70’s by Animal Fair. Animal Fair became Princess Soft Toys, which is evidently in the process of being absorbed by Melissa and Doug. The lions were given away with new accounts at Chicago-area Harris Bank in the earlly ’70’s, which is where my parents got mine. Portraits of Hubert are here and here, and a painting of an identical Harris bank lion can be seen here. This was my first opportunity to paint old and new versions of a classic toy together, and I think it’s wonderfully symbolic of the parent and child who love them!
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Sleepy Lamby
5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. In this second of two portraits for Jennifer’s daughters, we see a prime example of a situation I often encounter: The “real,” slightly battered, well-loved toy vs. the “back-up” toy, which is pristine. Originally identical, they now are barely recognizable as related objects! In this case, the “real” Sleepy Lamby had just recently been accidentally burned and subsequently patched on its head. Jennifer sent me photos of the untouched “back-up” lamb as well in order to help me spiff up Sleepy Lamby in his portrait. So here is the lamb with his scalp intact but all the evidence of Jennifer’s daughter’s affection honestly represented in the folds and wrinkles of his face.
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Puppy, Other Puppy
8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. Here is the second of two portraits given as Mother’s Day gifts by Dale to his wife Julie. These blue Carter’s stuffed dogs, known simply as Puppy and Other Puppy, belong to their 3-and-a-half-year-old son Henry. One puppy has been Henry’s “best friend” since birth, but when he found out that his parents had purchased a back-up puppy, he insisted on carrying and sleeping with them both. So ensconced in the family are these dogs that the night Julie gave birth to their younger son Evan, she kept one of the puppies with her throughout her C-section so that she would have a bit of Henry present with her. Dale wrote me about his wife in such adoring terms and it’s clear that so much thought and love went into this gift… this couple is very fortunate to have each other!
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Twin Hippos and a Quilt
8″x10″ acrylic, 2010. You might think that these hippos are identical, but four-year-old Charlotte can tell them apart — it’s “something about their smiles,” she says. Charlotte also has twin two-year-old sisters, and so having two alike-but-distinct hippos seemed important to her, Charlotte’s grandmother Pat tells me. The quilt was handmade by Charlotte’s other grandmother. I’ve painted several portraits of late that include multiples (or one representative of multiples) of the same toy which are all in circulation at once — very interesting! Pat will give this portrait to Charlotte for Christmas.
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