Tag: grown folks

Shaggy Dog

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. This old soul of a stuffed dog has weathered many washings and mendings and even puppy attacks over the years. He has been at Tim’s wife Erin’s side ever since it was given to her by her mother when she was six. “Dog” has accompanied Erin on her travels to swim meets throughout the country, and supported her through appenticitis, mono, and bad days at school. To this day, Tim tells me, Erin would not think of going to bed without Dog! This portrait is a gift from Tim for Erin’s upcoming birthday.

And Erin would love if you put a picture on your website. Erin’s mother bought her this stuffed animal (“dog”) when she was six years-old. She has slept with dog every night since then. Dog has provided Erin with support as she dealt with appendictis, bouts with mono and less-than-great days at school. As Erin grew up, dog followed her to swim meets throughout the northeast and then to new cities across the country (Eugene, Oregon; Tucson, Arizona; Boston). Dog has survived repeated washings and re-sewings, as well as attacks by Erin’s puppy, Gary. And even to this day, Erin wouldn’t think of getting into bed without dog.

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Double Snuffles

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

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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Grey Bunny

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. I’m really enjoying that many of the recent toys I’ve painted have been propped against pretty pillows! It could be that I am exceedingly sleepy as I write this, but the sweet embroidery and smooth texture of this pillowcase is just fascinating to me. This much-loved bunny, known simply as “Lovey,” belongs to a new high-school graduate. The portrait was commissioned by Debi, a close friend of her mother, and will be a graduation gift.
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Two Henries

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

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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Trena, Monkey, Firetruck

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. Well, this portrait was by far my most complex assignment! Cam, who is in his thirties, will present the painting to his mother as a belated Mother’s Day gift. The toys depicted are the favorites of her three children. I was provided with enough photographs showing the toys at various stages of wear and tear to paper the walls of my studio! Cam had a very helpful (but challenging) laundry list of requests for the painting. Trena, the baby doll, belonged to Cam’s older sister, and only required a little pinkness restored to her cheeks. Cam’s own unusual, stuffed monkey required more attention: I was to restore his orignal black and yellow body, as it has since been almost entirely replaced with patterned fabric. However, the color of his face was to be shown in it’s current “tan” condition rather than the original pristine white. A banana once held in the monkey’s hand is now entirely worn away, and Cam wanted the banana’s absence to be evident, as it marks the monkey as “his.” Sadly, the firetruck had been the last favorite toy of the eldest son just before he passed away as a very small child. Cam’s mother had recently had it fully restored save for its original lettering on the sides, so I worked from very old photos to add the white design to the new glossy red paint job. We agonized over the composition, and at long last the portrait came together. I hope that Cam’s mother enjoys this celebration of her childrens’ happiest moments! If you’d like to see another portrait I’ve done of a crazy-looking stuffed monkey, click here, and here for another vintage firetruck!

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Pyjama Bear

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. Stephen wrote me that his wife was looking at my website and “complaining that our kids don’t actually have favorite stuffed animals to paint.” His clever, thoughtful solution to this problem was to order a portrait of his wife’s own beloved chilhood bear as a gift for her upcoming birthday! This well-worn bear is missing an eye, which he strategically and stylishly hides with his pyjama cap.

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Big Lion

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. Wow, I jumped right out of my chair when I saw the photos of this lion! He is identical to my own lion Hubert, right down to his missing black spectacles. This toy is the life-long favorite of Corissa’s husband, and she commissioned this portrait as a gift for him. The lion is quite large, about two feet tall and with a formidable head… he has a strong, sage-like presence. Here’s another painting of my Hubert along with Tigger and my much younger self.

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Snoopy Blanket

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. I must say that I’m stunned by this rather “antique” specimen of a blanket-head! I had thought the the blanket-with-a-head phenomenon was fairly recent, but this Snoopy was the childhood companion of a man who is now 30 years old! It’s just barely three-dimensional, its head and hands lying rather flatly against the blanket, so it’s not quite the literal hybrid of fully-formed stuffed animal and blanket that you find today. Susan commissioned this portrait for her son in honor of the upcoming birth of his first child!

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Radar

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. Rychelle was born on an Army base in Colorado, and this bear was given to her by one of her father’s Army mates while she was still in the hospital. This was 1977, and Rychelle reckons he was called “Radar” because he looked so much like the bear belonged to the character Radar on the show M*A*S*H. She says that his eyes are a little scratched, his red mouth has disappeared, and his nose is barely hanging on, but he’s held up pretty well after nearly 34 years of love!

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Tickle Dolly

Posted on by Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait

8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. As a college graduation gift, Cici commissioned this very creative, slightly surreal portrait which LITERALLY melds a few of her daughter Ellie’s favorite things! You might notice that the doll leans against the pillow and also reaches INTO the pillow’s image to wrap her arm around the terrier’s neck! Ellie has had “Tickle Dolly” (named for the tickly lace on her bonnet and dress) since she was a baby, and it still travels with her. Cici also sent photos of their beloved Jack Russell terrier, Maddie, and decided that this terrier pillow should stand in for her in the painting. Cici was brimming with helpful input and ideas — she referred to a specific green chair from another portrait when envisioning the background, and even sent a Photoshopped mock-up of the magically entwined doll and pillow!

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