From their reference photos to the final pet pillow or wall hanging, a pack of fabric dogs made their way in and out of my studio recently. This group of canine portraits and memorials graced my design wall. I’m pleased to report they all were on their best behavior, even when felines were interspersed between them.
Similar to the blog post Fabric Pet Portraits: A Clowder of Cats, there are certain aspects that are critical to the creation of a dog portrait. These are the reference photograph, background choice, and the interactive part of the creation process. Let’s look at these together.
Mo’s reference photo
Photograph Selection
Sometimes folks know exactly which photograph they want for their art piece. Other times, someone has a number of favorites and needs some guidance seeing what would work better for them, that is, a wall hanging, canvas art, or a pillow. I welcome multiple photos when someone isn’t sure.
I then discuss with my clients the photographs I feel would translate well into fabric pictures and WHY. My distance from the pet allows me a bit more objectivity to see what each photo shares about the beloved animal’s personality.
The pictures below show different possibilities for Sami and Cody. Notice that at the top left, the two photos are enlarged to different sizes. This helped her see the difference between a 16 and 18 inch (41 and 52 cm) pillow since size is another consideration.
Enlargements of different possible reference photos for Sami and Cody
Taking the time to get the photo enlarged and even a second resizing is so worth it. Starting with the best “personality” photo ensures a solid foundational point for all the remaining steps.
The blog post Chosing a Photo for your Pet Portrait talks further about what makes a good photograph.
Backgrounds
When people send me their photos for consideration, I explain that the background of the fabric pet portrait can be (almost) anything.
Some prefer a portrait background for their pet pillow or wall art. At the beginning of the creation process, I lay a cut-out enlarged version of the chosen photo on top of various fabrics of the individual’s chosen colors.
Cody on possible blue fabric, and Sami and Cody auditioning a new blue fabric
In the first photo above you can see one of the blue background choices for Cody. My client initially decided on the green and light blue in the second photo. Upon further consideration, she asked for a dark blue. That fabric is spread out behind the working drafts of Sami and Cody so she could see how it would work with both dogs.
As you can see below, I created each of the dogs with a green and a blue background. I affectionately referred to them as Sami-on-Blue, Sami-on-Green, Cody-on-Blue and Cody-on-Green.
Sami-on-Green and Sami-on-Blue
Does the dog spend its time outdoors walking or hiking with its owner? A scenic background might work best, emphasizing that part of the animal’s personality. These could be a grassy area, mountains with a field in foreground, a lake, or any sort of natural element. Morty (below) is standing in a grassy field by the forest.
This second draft of Morty is all pinned and, having received the client’s stamp of approval, is ready to be sewn. His collar was in the reference photo and its inclusion here adds that pop of color to a predominately tri-toned fabric picture.
Mo (the featured photo at the beginning) started his background with a lake scene. It then changed to a solid piece of spring grass only to evolve into Mo walking through a field with daisies waving in the breeze with mountains in the background. Such a perfect representation of Mo’s Colorado life!
Is there a certain blanket, bed or toy that no one better touch or a playful tug-of-war game might start? Those can easily be incorporated into the pet memorial or portrait picture.
Leslie’s granddog and Winston
The Creation Process
As mentioned in Making a Pet Portrait: Cooper’s Memorial Pillow, the process of creating a pet portrait or memorial involves many progress photos. Each email usually contains a set of “Goldilocks” questions, where I’m checking to see if something is too dark, too light or just right.
I often say the creation of a fabric pet picture can be completed in several days when it’s not a custom portrait. For the most part, somewhere in the multiple fabric bins that line these studio walls, there is a piece that comes close enough to a reference photograph. It is the interactive process that takes a longer time.
An example of tweaking: adding more grass and some daisies
During this interactive process, I’m:
- Finding/cutting each piece of material that’s as close as possible to the pet’s actual fur shape and color.
- Taking photographs at different stages of completion for each body section.
- Emailing those photos to my client with questions about color choices.
- Tweaking the fabric picture based on their responses.
- Sending more photos, tweaking again until first draft is done.
- Emailing first draft photo to client.
- Based on responses to “any more tweaks needed?” making those changes for the second draft.
- When a stamp of approval is given, stiching the portrait together.
- Sending another photo for confirmation that it’s right.
- Selecting backing material with photographs of possible fabric choices.
- Conducting a final photo shoot with studio lights.
Here’s an example of two dogs together
Handled with Extra Care: Dog Memorials
Some thoughts on pet grief…
Whether my client is the individual who has lost their pet or it is a pet loss sympathy gift, there is a somewhat different sense when creating a tribute to honor the life of the beloved pet. The tangible images of a lost pet, whether photograph or art piece, are frozen in time. We can no longer see other new facial expressions or nuanced head tilts. They can’t go to the other room to take a better photograph of their eyes or side view of their face. Capturing the spirit of the pet is so critical.
The loss of a pet is heart wrenching for the owners, neighbors who looked forward to handing out a treat or two, and for the extended family of the owners. There is an emptiness and confusion and even as time passes, there remains a difference within. Instagram user @thepetpsycholoist has a post that says “Our grief doesn’t grow smaller. We grow around our grief.”
Chip was Susan’s niece’s dog, yet Susan spoke about how she missed “my boy” tremendously. The reference photo had an unusual background, so much so that I seriously doubted I would be able to replicate it or even come close. Then I remembered the white and black paw print fabric that I often use for the backing of pillows. PERFECTO!!
Chip’s reference photo and memorial pillow
The memorial pillow included fleece bedding and Chip’s name on his special dog bed. Even though this was a gift for her niece, Susan shared that when she unwrapped the pillow, she gave him a big hug while thinking “He is home.”
Winston, Cody, and Sami (all above) were also memorial pictures. Winston was a sympathy gift for a friend and Cody and Sami were two sets of memorial pillows for her daughters.
There’s another dog in this Pack!
There is another finished dog in this particular pack of pet portraits and memorials. However, he has not been gifted yet so he will have to wait for his turn in the media spotlight.
In fact, since he is an all-black dog, he probably will be one of the featured pets for my future blog about the one color animals.
As I typed this blog post, he sat there so patiently on my design wall that I had to share just this glimpse of him. You can see a bit of the Colorado mountains in the background. How many different blacks do you see in this portion of his neck?
Actually, it seems as though the “woof-woof” line is working well as more dogs walked into my studio this month. Three are already for their final grooming (being sewn up), three are awaiting for their reference photos to arrive so I can begin working on them, and one is wandering around to see what type of sky he wants to rest under.