What goes into painting a pet portrait? I thought it would be fun to show you a bit of the process. I painted this sweet pup for my dear cousin the day before the St. Louis Blues won the Stanley cup. I like to think it’s a piece full of a lot of luck! I started out with a biege background to give Canon a good basecoat. Then I sketched her outline from a photograph. I love how Canon is sticking out her tongue…such a happy pup. After sketching, I started layering paint onto the canvas. I didn’t quite have a plan, but I intentionally worked all over the canvas in one sitting. Acrylic paint dries quickly, and since the canvas was smaller I was able to manage this. After the painting felt done, I added the white background which helped Canon stand out more. I hope you enjoy these start-to-finish photos. I have similar photos of my pen and ink homes too. Hoping to post them soon!

I just recently started painting. Drawing is my jam, but I am falling in love with how it feels to spread paint over canvas. The colors are vibrant, and the painting taking on a life of its own as more and more layers are added. More paintings are in the works for Kate Elise Art! Is there anything you recently started learning? It’s never too late to learn a knew skill. You can do it too!