Monday, June 8, 2009

Aw-w-w-w! SO CUTE!!!

Celestria Art Update:

OK, I know I said the next piece was going to be a Beardie, but I ran out of one of the colors of ink that my printer takes so couldn't print my reference photos for it. So, I pulled this one out to finish since it was already about a third of the way done. I had started on this about a year ago, then put it away when I got busy with other projects.

This is Kestra as a puppy (Celestria's Kestra O'Tonalee, CH X-mas Cracker at Clan-Abby x CH Tonalee's Hiland Hope, PT, FDCH). Kestra is out of a litter I bred and she belongs to Jayme Martinez who is a friend of mine. She's turned out to be a terrific agility dog and does herding also. She has so many titles at this point that I can't even begin to remember them all.

This is one of the very few canine drawings I've done for myself and one of the even fewer that I've done of my own dogs or dogs I've bred. I think the grand total is like three. Four if you count a plaque I did that went as a judges gift :)

Enjoy!

Thursday, June 4, 2009

The Studio is Finished - Whoo Hoo!!!

After nearly three years my art studio is finally finished!!! I LOVE my studio! No more working out of my kitchen and dining room areas. No more gigantic drafting table in the dining area and I can actually use my island for kitchen stuff again!

Here's a couple of pics of my little slice of Heaven.












Celestria Art Updates:



I just finished a Border Collie portrait of Margot McKereghan's girl Fanny. Fanny won the portrait as an award at a herding trial last year. Next up will be a Bearded Collie, then two more Border Collies and then an Aussie. After that I'm focusing on some fantasy work for awhile.








Celestria Dogs Updates:


I entered Loki in his first herding trial last Sunday and he got his first qualifying run for his PT (Pre-Trial Tested) title. He didn't get me run over or anything - life is good :) However, one of the three ewes that were set out for us was a big girl and she must have thought Loki was going to eat her because she kept crowding me and stepping on my feet. Loki kept us very entertained during the rest of the trial with his Pepe Le Pew flirting antics every time he saw a girl - the dog has major Boy Dog Brain. He's so funny about his flirting and he doesn't impress the girls in the least. I swear I saw several of them roll their eyes. Haven't we all felt that way at one time or another when dealing with the opposite sex (no offense to the men out there as I'm sure you've felt the same way once or twice :) ?


Nothing much going on with the other dogs - all happy and well. The sheep are all doing well and the lamb is almost as big as her grandma now. Oh, and we named the lamb Sheba-a! LOL!

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Finally Finished!!!

I'll bet you were thinking I was going to report that I didn't have any new art work. Well, wrong!!! I finally finished several things and it's still the first week in May - Whoo Hoo!!!

Celestria Art Updates

I recently finished this piece of a BC doing obedience work with scent articles. It was done as part of a collage for the 2009 Border Collie Society of America (BCSA) Specialty Logo (more on that in a bit). Painted with acrylics on 140 lbs. hot press water color paper.





That was the last piece needed for me to finally finish the 2009 BCSA National Specialty Logo. The show chair wanted it done in grayscale this year. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, but it was A LOT of work. A total of 7 1/2 individual paintings were done for this, although 2 1/2 ended up not being used. For additional info on the 2009 BCSA National Specialty go here http://www.bordercolliesociety.com/2009specialty.htm




Celestria Dogs Update
I started herding with the Loki Monster again after an 18 mos. break and he hasn't given me another concussion........yet. Although my herding buddies keep ribbing me and asking if I've got my helmet with me. Yeah, I'll probably never live that one down - LOL! My herding instructor was very pleased with how Loki was working after such a long time away and asked if I was planning on getting his PT (Pre-Trial Tested title) or just going straight to Started. In an effort not to embarrass myself, I think I'm going to do the PT first. Apparently the time away from the sheepies was a good thing. Loki has grown up and matured mentally. He's working really well, but I do see signs of his mother's (Bunny) sense of humor popping up (i.e. trying to pull a little wool if they think they can get away with it). Not to mention, my timing has apparently improved with lack of use - go figure! Anyway, looking forward to our first trial but I'm only going to be able to do one day at that one due to a previous commitment.
Not much going on with the other furkids. They are all healthy and happy :)
Our lambiekins continues to grow like a weed, but she still doesn't have a name. I just haven't found the right one yet. The rest of the sheep are all fat and sassy.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

April Update

Yes, I know - it's been two and a half months since my last post. I'm not good at updating - I admit it. I just always have so much going on that I have a really hard time keeping up with things like blogging - it's one of the reasons I've resisted blogging for so long in the first place. I really don't know how some people keep up multiple blogs, plus things like myspace, facebook, livejournal, etc. And now twittering seems to be the newest thing. Yeah, it's all a bit much for my taste.

On the Celestria Art Front:

Sorry to report that I have no new pieces done at the moment. April is an extremely busy month for me with birthdays and dog events going on all month, so it doesn't leave a lot of time to work on anything else. Plus, I hurt my right thumb in the beginning of March and it has taken quite a while to get it back to normal so I can draw or paint. You really don't realize how much you rely on your thumbs until you can't use them!!!
However, my art studio is just a few steps away from being finished now. The walls are painted, the ceiling fan w/light is in and working. However, there's some wiring confusion in regards to the two sets of flourescent lights, but it should get worked out shortly. After the lighting is in, then comes the linoleum, baseboards and window/door trim and then I will be able to move my drafting table, bookshelves and art supplies into the studio - YAY!!!

Celestria Dogs update:

Let's see...Loki broke a toenail in March - split it right up the middle with bone exposed. That meant vet visit and antibiotics. At least one of the dogs breaks a toenail badly enough for a vet trip every year. I blame the clay soil we have. After a good long rainy period it gets saturated, then when it starts to dry out it gets really STICKY. The dogs dig in when running, they make a tight turn and the toenail sticks enough to cause torsion and viola - nasty broken toenail. Anyway, the Loki Monster is fine now and being a silly boy as usual.

Laura got her neck and shoulder a bit out of whack playing frisbee with my young niece and cousin. She doesn't realize that she's 8.5 yrs now and not two. Laura will always be a young dog at heart and in her head, but that also means she doesn't know when to quit sometimes which causes her to end up hurting now and again. Anyway, Laura and I both visited the chiropractor about a week ago and got adjusted - it was the first time for both of us. Interstingly, the chiropractor said that he found it amusing that he pretty much did the same adjustments on both of us. He also said I carry a lot of tension in my shoulders. Really....????? No surprise there, but it was the best my neck and shoulders have felt in years! Definitely have to see the chiropractor again! The nice thing was that he was surprised to find out how old Laura was. He said if I hadn't told him, he would have guessed her to be about 2 yrs. old because her lumbar area was in excellent shape with no signs of arthritis. Maybe Laura is proving that being young at heart can also help keep you young physically.

Bunny has developed a new habit which is both funny and just a little annoying at the same time. She has only one toy she likes which is a stuffed octopus with long dangling legs. She's decided that when I go to bed, it's playtime with her "octie". Yes, let's jump up on the bed with Octie, toss him around, throw him off and jump after him repeatedly. Then get mom to play "Kraken Attack" with her. While I'm really happy to see her having a good time playing I just wish she could find a better time than 10:00 p.m. (I get up around 3:45 a.m.) I realize I haven't helped by playing with her, but she seems to really like this alone time with me and after she plays for about 20-30 minutes she's ready to snuggle and sleep. So I guess I'm willing to be a little more tired in the morning if it keeps her happy......The things we do for our dogs!

Kael is just his same good natured self. As long as he gets his treat in the morning and his dinner on time, and his share of attention he's a happy camper.

Oh, yes. We finally got our sheep. We have three purebred Mouflon sheep which are a "hair" breed, meaning that they shed and don't need to be sheared yearly. We have a grandma (12-13 yrs. old) and her two daughters (7 yrs old and sisters from a set of triplets) and this year's lamb from one of the daughters. We are really enjoying them and I don't care what people think - sheep are not stupid and they do have definite personalities. The Mouflon sheep is one of the oldest breeds of sheep and rather rare now. The breed is considered to be one of the two breeds from which all domestic breeds of sheep originated from. Mouflon sheep were originally wild sheep from the Corsica, Sicilia and Sardina. Here's a pic of our sheepie girls:






Saturday, February 7, 2009

The Easiest Way

It seems like blogging is the easiest way to keep friends and family updated. Everyone seems to have a blog, so I decided to finally cave and join the flow.


Since I have no idea when I'll get around to actually getting a regular website created for my art work, a blog seems like the best way to easily share updates on new art work and on the Celestria family of Border Collies with friends and family :)


So on with the first updates!

On the art front: My hubby has finally got the texture on the walls of my art studio and the electric is connected. Now all we need to do is paint, lay down linoleum, put the lighting fixtures in and move in the furniture and art supplies. It's almost done (after nearly 2 1/2 yrs.)!

I just recently finished a 9 x 12 colored pencil piece on Canson Mi-Tientes paper titled Celtic Wings & Ivy. I wanted to do a piece with a moth or butterfly for a REALLY long time. This one features an Atlas Moth sitting on a circle of Celtic knotwork and ivy. You can go to http://www.celestriastars.deviantart.com/ or to www.artwanted.com/celestria to see a larger view. As with all of my work - if you are interested in a print, please contact me directly.



Other than that I'm still busily trying to catch up on commissioned pieces!


Celestria Border Collie News: One of the boys I bred and co-own, CH Celestria Caliente's Concho (call name Concho) has been doing extremely well in the ring lately. He's finally matured & filled out and is looking really nice out there. His most recent wins include two Best of Breeds and a Group 4 placement at the Golden Gate Kennel Club show at the Cow Palace. I'm so excited and happy for his owner, Maryln Fiscus, and his handler, Sandy Bohr, that he is doing so well!

We are getting three ewes for the pasture next door. They are retired foundation breeding ewes from a friend's flock and will just be pets, but we are excited to get them. That pasture takes a LONG time to mow so we are looking forward to their help!