Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway

Disclaimer: This post and giveaway is brought to you by Paint Your Life. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your pets will love.

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As many of you may recall I spend most of my week working at mom’s custom picture frame shop. So over the years I’ve developed a love of the arts. So when my new friends over at Paint Your Life offered to do an oil painting of yours truly I said “why of course the world could use more paintings of me!”

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your Life

Over at Paint Your Life they have a whole variety of different art mediums you can choose, and not only can you commission a painting of your pet, but they can even paint people too.

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your LifeFor me the hardest part was then choosing what photo I wanted them to paint my portrait from. Goodness knows my mom has thousands of pictures of me from over the years.

So the really neat part is you can actually send Paint Your Life several photos and they can recommend which one would make the best paintings (but ultimately the decision will be up to you).

I combed through years worth of pictures and picked out a few that I thought would be fun to hang on my bedroom wall.

 

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your Life

After sending them off to Paint Your Life they recommended I get my portrait painted from the one of me sleeping on my dog bed. Which is great, because that was actually my top pick too!

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your Life

A couple weeks later they sent me an online proof to approve, which I could either accept or even request additional changes to be made. As I suspected though, it came out fantastic from the start so I had them ship it to my door right away!

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your LifeWhile I certainly knew I’d love my painting, it’s great to know that Paint Your Life offers a 100% Money Back Guarantee. So if you aren’t happy they will redo it or refund your money in full.

Shipping is also always free, and you never have to pay for your painting in full up front. (just 20% down).

Regardless you always have plenty of time to request changes and review your painting before it even ships to your door, and the whole process is extra simple through their website!

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your Life

The likeness is uncanny don’t you think? (It’s even more beautiful in person!)

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your Life

When you order your painting from Paint Your Life you can even choose to have it framed or stretched onto stretcher bars, however since I do work in a picture frame shop I decided I could do that part for myself (well at least make mom do it for me). So once my painting arrived I set out to pick out a frame!

Affordable Pet Portraits + A Giveaway from Paint Your Life

I narrowed my frame picks down to two…but I can’t decide! So you’ll just have to help me choose by leaving a comment below on which one you think I should put on my painting – the grey frame or the teal with grey liner?

You can grab your very own pet portrait (or any portrait for that matter) from Paint Your Life, and as a bonus save 40% off your next order with code AMMO40

You can even ENTER TO WIN A CUSTOM PAINTING FROM PAINT YOUR LIFE! (a $299 Value)

To enter simply use the widget below. This contest is open to Worldwide readers too!

Ammo the Dachshund

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Ammo the Dachshund // Blog Signature // Celebrity

 

A Dachshund’s Art Gallery

Since I was just a wee pup I was instilled with a love of the arts. Not only do I paint myself, but I live with some super talented Painting Ponies! And while you might think having animal artists in the family is quite a feat, my mom and dad are no stranger to the arts themselves. My dad is a graphic designer (who spends his free time designing posters that you can purchase HERE) and my mom is a picture framer (check out the shop where I work HERE).

With a love of art spreading across my family, it’s no wonder that my home has turned into an art gallery of sorts. I thought it would be fun to take you for a tour around my home and show you some of the latest and greatest artistic treasures that are currently making my home just a bit more cheerful!

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

When I attended the Spring Doxie Fest this year I picked up a happy little Dachshund print from artist, Debbie Sampson. Of course mom framed him up in a happy yellow frame that makes him extra cheerful!

where to purchase: [middle] Dachshund Print – [right] Black and White Photograph of Pony

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

Back in November mom picked up this cute little dachshund print from Kim at Yellow Brick Home. He kind of has an uncanny resemblance to yours truly.

where to purchase:  Dachshund Print

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

This happy horse head was a Christmas gift to my mom and came from White Faux Taxidermy – and not to worry, he’s completely made of resin (no real taxidermy horses here).

where to purchase:  Resin Horse Head

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

Of course the ceramic dachshund my mom found at Home Goods last year keeps Mr. Fake Pony company in my office, because everything is better with the buddy system.

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

These two pieces arrived around Christmas time. One being a rendering of my home by the talented Rebekkah Seale and the other a very special original painting of cows done by the ever amazing Janis Fitch.

where to purchase:  [left] Custom House Watercolor, [right] Cow Painting

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

Those cows just remind me of how lucky I am to have grown up in farm country, where the smell of cattle and horses are just a few steps out my backdoor. Not to mention those yummy cow pies!

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

And the last little art trinket is one that just makes me giggle – this sweet little screen printed squirrel from the Land of Nod (meant to be an ornament) is happily hanging on my cork board in the living room. He may not nibble on acorns in real life, but he reminds me that there are plenty of critters just out my back door begging to be chased. Happy Hunting!

where to purchase:  Squirrel Ornament

A Dachshund's Art Gallery // Ammo the Dachshund

With all these artists and artistic pieces in my home it’s no wonder that I spend most of my life with a camera in my face. Of course I like to think that I’ll always be mom and dad’s number one muse!

I’m always on the lookout for new artists and art to add to my “gallery”, so I’d love to hear which ones you are admiring currently! Post your links in the comments so we can all check out some amazing art together! Yay for artists!

*all artwork has been custom framed by my mom at Studio 3.Ammo the Dachshund

The Harlem Shake with Ammo the Dachshund

The latest meme floating around right now is The Harlem Shake, a song that has sparked a series of dance videos to an instrumental song produced by the artist Baauer. And since I’m never one to miss out on a meme, I decided to do my own rendition.

I bet you are mad impressed with my dance skills right!? I’ve been practicing if you can’t tell.

The Harlem Shake with Ammo the Dachshund

Anyone else do their own rendition of the Harlem Shake? Let’s see it! Post your favorite ones in the comment section! Ammo the Dachshund

My Crazy Rebels Custom Pet Painting

Right before Christmas my mom entered a giveaway on the Pawsh blog for a spiffy pet painting made by the fine folks at Crazy Rebels. And as luck would have it, she won! The even better part was that the painting was going to be of me!

So I helped mom look through lots of my photos, and we picked out this silly photo from a few years ago of me in my super hero cape. I thought it would look fun turned into a cartoon style painting.

Crazy Rebels Custom Pet Painting // Ammo the Dachshund

The I headed over to Design Seeds and picked out the blue background color seen in the photo below.

Crazy Rebels Custom Pet Painting // Ammo the Dachshund

And a few weeks later this fun painting arrived at my doorstep.

Crazy Rebels Custom Pet Painting // Ammo the Dachshund

Silly and fun, just like me!

Crazy Rebels Custom Pet Painting // Ammo the Dachshund

Crazy Rebels Custom Pet Painting // Ammo the Dachshund

You can check out all the fun products from Crazy Rebels HEREAmmo the Dachshund

Friday Fetch: Halloween Addition

With about 2 weeks before Halloween there is still plenty of time for you to find that perfect costume! So I decided to create a round-up of some of my favorite costumes available this year!

2011 halloween pet costumes

1. Brasil Soccer Star from D’Pelos Pet Apparel. This one is for my dad, who is a big soccer fan!

2. British Soldier from Wish Pony. Can’t you just picture him riding on his white steed to save the day?

3. The Secretary from Spirit Halloween. You have to admit, you’d get a few laughs with this one!

4. Little Red Riding Hood from Charlie Hearts Disel. Because sometimes minimal works.

5. Banana Split from Old Navy. Honestly, this one just makes me really hungry!

So what are you going to be for Halloween?

 

Creative Paws

Me and mom have been busy updating our online Etsy Shop (which I share with the Painting Ponies), so today I thought I’d share with you some of my new additions to the shop.

white dachshund no. 12

This one is White Dachshund No.12, isn’t he special looking?

yellow dachshund no.2

And this one is Yellow Dachshund No. 2, he’s such a happy little fellow!

Now, although I feel I am the most talented artist in the bunch, my Painting Pony friends (mostly Minnow) have also been busy filling the shop with some of their new creations.

painting pony

Ok, I admit it, Minnow is pretty talented. But, he has been painting for much longer than I have (since 2007 to be exact).

ammo the dachshund in beret

But we all still know who looks the best in the beret! Eat your heart out girls!

SHOP with Ammo and save 10% off your order with code AMMOPAL!

Artsy Fartsy

Don’t worry this isn’t a stinky post – although if they invented scratch-n-sniff computer monitors I’d totally be able to share all my favorite stinky smells with all of you! Now wouldn’t that be fun!

No, instead I’m going to share with you my new rubber stamp! (the unscented version at least)

ammo the dachshund stamp

How great is that! My mom helped me make it, and even though she thinks it’s a little rough around the edges still, I think it’s fabulous! You better believe I’ve been stamping all of my toys so Trooper can’t steal them!

Me and mom have been on an artsy fartsy kick lately – so much so that we rearranged my little corner in the shop that I share with the ponies.

ammo the dachshund and painting pony

Isn’t it cool, we now have walls to hang up all of our artwork (nevermind the fact that we had to drive 2 hours to get them!). Mom says we even get to test out our new walls when we set up our booth at the Ludwigs Corner Horse Show (and the Chadds Ford Dog Days of Summer Event) in a couple of weeks.

I can’t wait, because when we travel it means one thing and one thing alone……

…..WAY MORE COOKIES!

 

You can check out all of my artwork here.

Giveaway: Dachshund Scratch Art

***This Contest is no longer accepting entries***

 

Since my mom and minnow up and left me here alone all week while they are living it up on Chincoteague Island, I decided to have my own fun on this fine Friday. And what’s more fun than FREE STUFF?

ammo the dachshund giveaway - free

So I decided to GIVEAWAY one of my very own pieces of scratch art! I made it with my very own paws! This particular piece is called White Dachshund No. 11 and I created it by scratching onto a specially prepared surface that my mom helped me make. It’s on a mauve acid free matboard background – matted in blue to fit an 11×14 frame. Trust me, this thing is a beauty in person! It comes signed by me and includes a certificate of authenticity – so you know it’s not a fake!

ammo scratch art

Below is all the details you’ll need in order to win this super awesome prize!

And be sure to check out all my other super art for sale in the shop!

PRIZE: One original piece of scratch art by Ammo the Dachshund (White Dachshund No. 11)

TO ENTER: Comment on this post (you must comment on the BLOG – not on our facebook page) with the words “SCRATCH ME” and….

BONUS QUESTION: Tell me your favorite summer hideout. Is it the creek or the dog park, or do you prefer building a fort in your basement like me?

GIVEAWAY CLOSES: Wednesday, August 3, 2011 at 5:00pm EST

NUMBER OF WINNERS: One

PRIZE SHIPS: Anywhere in the World! Yeah!

RULES: one entry per e-mail address. Winner will be selected using random.org (meaning the winner is drawn at random) – and will be announced on Friday. Good Luck!

 

P.S. Guess what!? My mom and Minnow come home today! I can’t wait to see what they brought me!

New Art: Stormy Sea

Tada! Over the weekend I finished up a fabulous new watercolor painting! I give you “Stormy Sea” created by yours truly. I’m taking a liberty here and giving myself a gold star for the day. Yeah, it’s that good!

I was so excited to be painting again, that I might have done some yelling. Ok, I definitely did some yelling.

What are you looking at? Never seen a Dachshund in a beret?

Dashing isn’t it? I know you wish you had one too.

You can purchase this beauty, “Stormy Sea” in my online shop!

P.S. Don’t forget I donate 5% of my sales to Charitable Organizations. Yeah!

Friday Fetch: Papercut Pet Portrait

In honor of me being a painter now, I thought I’d share another artist with you today. Check out these super cool custom pet portraits. I think Lemon Drop Land would totally be worthy of making a special portrait of yours truly – complete with super hero cape (P.S. my Birthday is in October!)

To create the papercut, I’ll begin with a sketch of the (fairly high resolution) photo that you email me. Once I’m happy with the likeness and “feel,” I’ll slice the image out of subtly textured, sturdy, acid-free, highly light-resistant, 60% cotton papers, ensuring a long life without deterioration. Each piece is signed and dated.

You can fetch your favorite pet’s portrait for $200 at Lemon Drop Land on Etsy.

And if you just so happen to own a Boxer then you are in luck! Pre-cut Boxer portrait – $80 at Lemon Drop Land. I’m a little jealous that it’s not a Dachshund!

P.S. You can also LIKE LemondropLand over on Facebook.