These are two residents at my local non-profit parrot sanctuary.
I only started using PastelMat paper less than a year ago, but I really enjoy it!
Polychromos & Prismacolor
Pastel Pencils on PastelMat.
I just wanted to share this bc I will be gifting it to someone.
Athena was a beautiful soul who I had the privilege of caring for during her last few years of life.
Very long story short, her original family loved her for twenty years & she had to be re-homed after a devastating loss. About ten years later, she eventually ended up with me. I was given her original family’s contact info & began to send them updates/pics whenever possible... they would send her care packages with food/treats/toys.
She was doing very well until one morning she wasn’t. I rushed her to an emergency vet only to find out she was in acute renal failure. I was able to spend a few more hours with her while they ran tests & during that time I felt it necessary to let her family know what was happening.
Losing her suddenly was extremely painful, but her family was so appreciative of the love that she was surrounded with.
I’ve kept in touch with them over the past year, they’re wonderful people.
Even though I put off drawing her portrait for a while bc it still hurts to look at her photos, I knew I wanted to gift her family with something special since they still cared so much for her after all these years.
Cleaned up as best as I could & put on a butterfly bush. Not sure how long they’d been stuck but I hope it wasn’t too late💛
[Virginia, US]
She used to redecorate the bathroom with the tp, but it’s been quite a while since her last artistic endeavor.
Mom & son. Just a couple cats that came with the rural property I’m renting.
Stabilo Carbothello & FC Pitt pastel pencils on PastelMat. This bird is a resident at a local non-profit parrot sanctuary.
Really not sure why the mods of r/parrots deleted my post. I’m not trying to sell anything, I have a genuine question for parrot people.
I’m considering drawing a larger series of different parrots that live at this particular sanctuary. They are non-profit & rely entirely on public donations. I’d love to gift the drawings to them as a surprise with the hope that they may be able to auction them off to raise money for the birds. Is this a good idea or should I just keep them for myself?
Stabilo Carbothello & FC Pitt pastel pencils on PastelMat
Polychromos & Prismacolor drawn on back/smooth side of Hapikalor watercolor paper
Faber-Castell Pitt pastel pencils & Stabilo Carbothello drawn on PastelMat
Bday boy
My little dude turns 18 today 🥹 I got him just a few months after my mom passed away in 2008. He’s been by my side through hell & back and I can’t imagine life without him 💚💙❤️ I wanted to draw a couple portraits of him to celebrate. Every year I make him a special birthday cake out of his favorite fruits/veggies.
My little man is 18 years old today 🥹
Pastel pencils on PastelMat. Pre-bday portrait practice. I still can’t believe he’ll be 18 next weekend!
Pastel pencils on PastelMat.
A friend of mine is getting married later this year.
My bf will be the DJ at their wedding so she told me the song she wants playing when she walks down the aisle. I don’t remember who sings it but it’s a country song called “Little Spouse”.
Right away I knew I wanted to draw something for a wedding gift. I tried a few variations of a single piece but I wasn’t happy with it & there was so much I wanted to fit on one paper. Eventually I decided a small series of specific visuals from the song would be a pretty fun thing to challenge myself with.
We live in a relatively small town near the Appalachian mountains, she’s marrying a cattle farmer, the dress she has chosen is black, the song mentions blackberries, apples, & daisies so I think I did a decent job covering most of the things I wanted to include. I really wanted to do a rooster as well, but I need to work on feathers a bit more.
I like it but I’d like to know what others think before I give it to her. Should I have them framed in this format or in a horizontal line?
Carbothello & Pitt pastel pencils in PastelMat
Faber-Castell Polychromos on Strathmore ArtAgain paper. Panpastels for background. I struggled to choose the right background colors, but I really like the warmth.