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Custom Pet Portraiture: It’s a Thing.

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home

In what feels like a thousand years ago, I used to paint your pets. It was an evening and weekend side hustle turned full-time job, which ultimately turned into a part-time job with full-time hours, and as life tends to do, our own renovations (and in turn, blog partnerships) and expanding family took over. From the beginning of that journey to the end – and thousands of pets painted! – there’s no question, it was a dream job. I can’t begin to tell you how many of your pets have made my day, snuggled their way into my heart and made me cry both happy and sad tears. To this day, I still receive emails from you asking if I’ll pick up the paintbrush again, and although there are no plans to do so right now, I hate saying ​​​​​​​never to something I once loved. But what I can tell you, the timing is still not right in this season of my life.

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home
Brooklyn, painted in 2016

When we shared our refreshed workshop last week, there was a small glimpse of our DIY corner food station, where portraits I painted of Jack and CC hang above their bowls. The questions slowly trickled in again – will you paint my newest pup? – and although time is not on my side to do so (and I’m incredibly humbled that you’ve asked), I do my best to provide a handful of artists that I respect. Because when you have four-legged family members as sweet as the two buddies below, I understand why you’d fill your phone with photos of them, and naturally you’d wish for custom pet paintings to adorn your walls. It’s what we pet people do. They’re our ride or die!

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home
sconce | floating vanity | stool | fan | grey rug

Once and for all, I’m pulling together a resource for you to get your custom pet portraits! Some of the artists below have been personal favorites of mine for years, and some are recent discoveries. Either way, I spent ​​​​​​​so.much.time (and had so.much.fun) finding the best of the best in a variety of mediums, styles and range of budgets. Some are silly, some soulful. Some colorful, some subdued. I hope you find a new-to-you artist today, and may you go forth and fill those walls with your pets’ beautiful mugs!

Custom Pet Portraiture Artists You’ll Love

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home

1| Renaissance era pet portraits from Crown & Paw, because your pet is an old soul.

2| Jaunita’s Colored Book creates realistic watercolor portraits – with a splash of color for good measure.

3| I’ve been lusting after Emilie Ferris’ ​​​​​​​embroidered pet portraits for years! These are the biggest investment in this list, and there’s almost always a wait list. Worth it? But how to decide which pet will get the floss + needle treatment?

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home

4| Hannah Yoo’s work is done in ‘picture-book-style’ with a mix of watercolor and gouache.

5| Ellie Wilson uses oil paint on wood or canvas, broad strokes and a neutral palette (that I couldn’t love more).

6| These stylized illustrations from Kudzu Monster are colorful and fun! They immediately made me think of tattoo art, which made me wonder if I should start that sleeve now, or?

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home

7| I couldn’t stop grinning as I scrolled through FBT Studio’s work! These quirky portraits would look so regal on any pet parents’ wall. This would’ve been purrrfect for Miss Maddie.

8| I first fell for Doggie Drawings when I found Boogie the Boston Terrier in the early blog days (so, like, 10 years ago? Ha!), and these cartoon style illustrations top my list.

9| Similarly, this custom portrait by Melinda Josie has been saved to my computer for years and years (after first seeing it here). One of these days, I’ll email her and ask for a commission of Jack on Scott’s head. ​​​​​​​Words I never thought I’d type, yet here we are.

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home

10| Happy Moments makes your custom portrait even sweeter by including ​​​​​​​you!

11| I can’t get enough watercolors! Dimdi interprets your pet in that soft, dreamy watercolor way, but the eyes. The eyes!

12| KolanjArt uses colored pencils, achieving the most realistic fur. I can’t get over how detailed the portraits are; every nuance brought to life.

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home

13| LeFlore Studio sends you a high resolution file of the finished piece, giving you the freedom to print your pet in a range of sizes! The floral wreath caught my eye, but the execution is what sold me.

14| I have coveted a painting from Megan Lynn Kott for-e-ver. I first met her at a Renegade craft show (back when I had a booth!), but she rarely takes on commissions anymore. I know, I know. But my hope is that maybe – just maybe! – you can convince her to take on your pet. She uses humor in a fresh way, which is so perfectly illustrated on her Instagram feed (linked here).

15| Movchun Art Studio uses broad brushstrokes on colorful backgrounds with a vintage feel.

A round-up of amazing artists that will create custom portraits of your pet! // custom pet portraits // via Yellow Brick Home

16| Natali will paint your furry little lord, princess or lady, and she has fun with ornate detail and themes! Think: Game of Thrones.

17| Artist Stephanie Carter includes your pets’ favorite things – from carrots to sticks – and packages them up in a tidy white frame. It’s so cute, it’s ridiculous.

18| Watercolor Happy Pet is the most detailed watercolor artist in this bunch! It’s inspiring to see this level of detail brought to life, capturing the goofy personalities of our little loved ones.

https://yellowbrickhome.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/pet-portraits.jpg
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  • mockginger6.6.19 - 6:00 AM

    I have two portraits by #15 and they are AMAZING. I cannot recommend him enough. ReplyCancel

  • Debbie6.6.19 - 7:40 AM

    Can I toss Jen Niles Art into the mix? We have a pet portrait and house portrait from her that we treasure, and her whimsical style is so different from the others you’ve highlighted. We’ve also commissioned several pet portraits as gifts and recipients cherish them! She does pets who have passed with angel wings, and it is just so dear.
    https://www.etsy.com/il-en/shop/JenNilesArt
    http://jennilesart.com/ReplyCancel

    • Kim6.6.19 - 9:06 AM

      Love this recommendation, thank you, Debbie!ReplyCancel

    • Jen6.6.19 - 12:59 PM

       Thanks for mentioning me, Debbie!  To anyone who sees this comment, please note that my Etsy shop contains very few items, and more of my work can be seen on the website itself, so I hope you’ll go there. I also have a Jen Niles Art Facebook page.  I’ve done way more work than you will find on any of these sites, so I hope to hear from anyone interested in a pet portrait. I can send you some samples.  ReplyCancel

  • Sacha6.6.19 - 7:48 AM

    A friend gave me a portrait of our family dog for my birthday painted by Dimdi (Irene) and it’s so great! I liked it so much that I had one made of a friend’s geriatric dog to give her as a remembrance. ReplyCancel

    • Kim6.6.19 - 9:07 AM

      Custom pet portraits are some of the best unique gifts to give.ReplyCancel

      • Nabil9.1.19 - 5:41 AM

        I absolutely agree!

        That’s why I’m going to add a link to my own funny, custom pet portraits.
        I’ve chosen to name my website SketchGrowl: https://sketchgrowl.com
        You’ll be able to buy all kinds of custom pet portraits on my site, although we haven’t really gotten around to creating horse portraits just yet.
        Our style is quite different I believe. I don’t know what you guys think?
        /NabilReplyCancel

  • LuckyDuck6.6.19 - 7:52 AM

    Kim, I am still so thankful for the picture you painted for us of our bearded girl, Cora. Every time it catches my eye I’m so happy that I was introduced to you (thanks ChrisLovesJulia!) and your shop. Completely understand that your time and focus is elsewhere currently, thank you again for sharing that part of yourself with us for so long. For anyone questioning if they should get a custom print of their pet I totally recommend it, these sources look amazing! ReplyCancel

    • Kim6.6.19 - 9:09 AM

      Yay! I loved that you wanted to go hot pink with your girl’s background color. Such a fun touch for her pretty face. :DReplyCancel

  • Kerri6.6.19 - 7:52 AM

    I have another recommendation – Rachael Rossman did our pet portraits and they are beautiful! ReplyCancel

  • Jane6.6.19 - 8:56 AM

    Don’t forget JamieClarkArt- realistic watercolor artist! She also does time lapse videos so you can see your pet come to life as she paints them!ReplyCancel

  • Heather6.6.19 - 10:06 AM

    Thank you for sharing these! We rescued our pup in January and it’s on my list to get a portraiture done of him. ReplyCancel

  • Shauna Mooney6.6.19 - 12:20 PM

    Thank you for always still including your animals on your blog, even though you have a human kiddo now. Sometimes the chaos of the new baby makes the pet stuff slow down, but y’all always remember to include your furry buddies and I appreciate it. I’ve been reading since before I could have dogs of my own and I have adopted two bully breeds since then. <3 ReplyCancel

    • Kim6.6.19 - 1:03 PM

      The pets are still our kids. :D And thank you so much for adopting bullies! They have so much love to give.ReplyCancel

  • Meg6.6.19 - 2:12 PM

    I have another recommendation – Shaunna Russell, a bright and colorful watercolor artist. https://www.shaunnarussell.com/ReplyCancel

  • Zoe P.6.6.19 - 3:19 PM

    Love these options! I too have a little side gig doing custom pet portraits and have a hard time knowing where to refer someone when I’m unable to take new orders (there’s a lot of cheesy ones out there!) I’m gonna be that self-promotional person sharing my own shop :) https://www.etsy.com/shop/ittlebitty You can also see more on my Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ittlebittypetshop/ReplyCancel

    • Kim6.6.19 - 3:51 PM

      Thank you for sharing, Zoe! Yes, if anyone else does custom work, please link up and share away! xxReplyCancel

  • SheLikesToTravel6.6.19 - 3:22 PM

    If you have a horse I strongly recommend Long Face Originals.  She captured the spirit of my two horses perfectly.  https://www.facebook.com/longfaceoriginals/ReplyCancel

  • Crystal6.6.19 - 11:39 PM

    I have two recommendations to add to this list, both places I have personally purchased from. For physical paintings, I LOVE Before the Bridge Fine Art (you can find her on Facebook). Not only are the paintings amazing, but all of the money from the paintings goes toward helping run a dog rescue. I have an oval ornament painted of each one of my pets and love all of them!
    The other one I have used and would recommend is The Prick-Eared Pen (you can find her on Facebook or Etsy). These are more along the lines of digital drawings, but are fabulous in their own ways, and have an added bonus of being able to order stickers or decals of your custom artwork. ReplyCancel

  • […] Fun Pet Portraits […]ReplyCancel

  • Gina7.2.19 - 8:52 AM

    petportraitsbyfiona.com – Fiona Purdy in Scottsdale, AZ is very good also. ReplyCancel

    • Fiona Purdy8.15.19 - 2:14 PM

      Gina – Thank you so much for your kind words and for your referral.  I love, love, love paintings portraits of people’s precious pets! Also Kim – I’ve just found your website and it’s awesome!  I am really looking forward to exploring it. (ps – your portraits are awesome)ReplyCancel

    • Fiona8.15.19 - 2:20 PM

      Thanks for adding my name to this list of wonderful artists Gina!   I love, love, love, painting fine art portraits of peoples treasured pets. I just found your website Kim and I am looking forward to exploring it .  ps – your portraits are beautiful KinReplyCancel

  • Jennifer9.21.19 - 12:45 AM

    This is a happy surprise. I’ve been thinking about your portraits lately. You painted our sweet senior babe Chilly and sassy Chi Lolita after they died. I’ve so wanted to complete our pack and have Guinness and Sally’s pet portraits done. Just today we installed some floating shelves and relocated your sweet portraits and I thought about you hoping one day you will do them again. Then I got on your website and saw this post. Thank you for sharing this list, so many beautiful choices. ReplyCancel

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We’re Kim + Scott, Chicago based content creators behind the Home + Lifestyle brand Yellow Brick Home.

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