Your Toy Portrait - Custom Toy Portraits by Jennifer Maher » doll http://customtoyportrait.com Original, Affordable Works of Art Thu, 17 May 2012 13:28:45 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 en hourly 1 Raggedy Ann http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/raggedy-ann/ http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/raggedy-ann/#comments Thu, 01 Mar 2012 18:16:47 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=3278 8″x10″ acrylic, 2012. This vintage 1970’s Knickerbocker Raggedy Ann is identical to the one I had when I was little. Mine is long gone, as her face was irreparably loved right off! I bought this one (along with an Andy) off of Etsy for Sonja’s recent fourth birthday. So far, she is fairly indifferent to it, but I’m hoping that she will eventually discover what an ideal sleeping companion this doll is. I have very strong sense memories of her firm flatness against me and the comforting, yarny smell of her hair. I was thrilled that the fabric of the dress is even the exact same soft, lightweight cotton with a tiny flowered print, and also to find the heart containting the words “I Love You” printed on her chest that I remember so well.
Sonja actually did instigate this painting, saying, “Mommy, I think I want a portrait of Raggedy Ann.”
“Sure, I can paint her for you,” I said.
“No, I’M going to do it,” she insisted. So we sat down together and worked on our respective versions!

]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/raggedy-ann/feed/ 0 Boy Boy http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/boy-boy/ http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/boy-boy/#comments Tue, 21 Feb 2012 17:34:32 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=3234 8″x10″ acrylic, 2012. Oh, the expression on this face! I imagine that there is some sort of insertable pacifier or bottle that goes along with this very cute doll, but in its absence we can see through his mouth a slight sunlit glow within his faintly translucent head. Boy Boy belongs to Henry, the three-year-old son of Kelly who, aside from being a very entertaining blogger, is HANDS-DOWN the funniest twitterer on Twitter these days! Henry recieved Boy Boy as a Christmas gift in 2010 and the doll has rarely left his side since. He also enjoys hiding his baby in the evenings in order to prolong bedtime — clever kid, just like his mama!

]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/boy-boy/feed/ 0 Pinkie http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/pinkie/ http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/pinkie/#comments Sat, 24 Dec 2011 05:03:04 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=2706 5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. Six-year-old Lily has adored this doll, “Pinkie,” since she herself was a small baby. Lily’s aunt, Stacy, describes Lily as having an ever-present smile and as being a family hero as she struggles each day with cerebral palsy. “As she transitions to ‘big girl-hood,” Stacy writes, “I know this portrait will be perfect for her.” For Christmas, Stacy commissioned portraits of each of her two nieces’ favorite toys. Pinkie was a true pleasure to paint as I am seldom asked to paint traditional babydolls!

]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/pinkie/feed/ 0 Ariel http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/ariel/ http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/ariel/#comments Mon, 05 Dec 2011 05:30:13 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=2755 5″x7″ acrylic, 2011. At long last, my first “Barbie” commission! Well, it’s actually a Disney Princess Ariel the Mermaid, presented Barbie-style by Disney and Mattel. This princess is a queen amongst all the Barbies belonging to 4-year-old Annie, whose aunt Stacey will be giving portraits to her two nieces of their favorite toys as Christmas gifts. “Annie lives to dance, sing and spin, just like the princesses she adores,” Stacy tells me. “She is destined to spend some serious time on stage.” Click here to see Annie’s sister Lily’s beloved baby doll!

]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/toyportraits/ariel/feed/ 0 Dolly and Bear http://customtoyportrait.com/sold/dolly-and-bear/ http://customtoyportrait.com/sold/dolly-and-bear/#comments Wed, 09 Nov 2011 14:54:19 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=2560 8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. One of my very favorite toy stories is the one where the parent falls in love with a toy and is subsequently victorious in convincing her child to love it too! The bear in this portrait was purchased by Jennifer when she first became pregnant with her twin daughters Zora and Jane. “Having twin girls has been the greatest blessing in my life,” Jennifer wrote to me, “far more joyous (and exhausting!) than I could ever have imagined, and that Zora loves this bear represents this to me.” Jane’s favorite is Dolly, and is dragged to school each day, smothered in blankets and kisses while playing “mama,” and taken to bed every night. If Dolly is lost in the covers, Jane calls out “Dolllllllllyyyy” and Jennifer must come and find her. Jennifer notes, “They have many toys but these are the most cherished by far.”

]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/sold/dolly-and-bear/feed/ 0 Bitty Baby http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/bitty-baby/ http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/bitty-baby/#comments Mon, 07 Nov 2011 04:37:56 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=2266 8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. Twelve-year-old Emma, an avid ballerina, loves her three American Girl dolls. But ever since age two, Bitty Baby has been Emma’s very favorite. Emma will be dancing in the Nutcracker for the sixth time this year, and then, just before Christmas, she will be having some major surgery. Emma’s grandmother Cathy commissioned this portrait as a gift to brighten Emma’s hospital stay. I wish Emma an easy recovery and hope she’ll quickly be back up on her toes!

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]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/bitty-baby/feed/ 0 Rugrat http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/rugrat/ http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/rugrat/#comments Tue, 11 Oct 2011 03:53:14 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=2073 9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. Mary is giving her two boys, now 21 one and 23, portraits of their favorite childhood toys for Christmas, both of which are stuffed/doll versions of 90’s Nickelodeon characters. This Rugrat Tommy Pickles doll’s sheep costume was taken from another toy by one of the kids and was henceforth his permanent attire. The heart on the front of the wooly outfit is embroidered with the words “I love ewe.” For more Nickelodeon bizarro-cuteness, checkout my other portrait for the guys, which immortalizes their stuffed Catdog.

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]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/rugrat/feed/ 1 Thumkin http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/thumkin/ http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/thumkin/#comments Wed, 20 Jul 2011 05:10:25 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=1786 9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. This floppy little Waldorf doll belongs to Beth’s two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Isabelle. The tag is Isabelle’s favorite part of Thumkin, of course. Several months ago, Beth mused about a portrait of Isabelle’s beloved Thumkin and wrote about my work on her lovely blog. Beth wrote me that since Thumkin “has not left Isabelle’s hand for longer than a wash-dry cycle since she was 7 months old, that scrap of fabric really does become a cherished family member… I realized the other day that at some point, the Velveteen Rabbit syndrom will occur and Thumkin will be forgotten.” Beth decided to have this portrait made because “on one hand is just that little scrap of fabric, but on the other hand is the embodiment of my daughter’s babyhood.” I mentioned to Beth that I often encounter toys which have been loved by a child well into adulthood. As long as Thumkin doesn’t completely disintigrate, he may hang around longer that you expect!

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]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/thumkin/feed/ 6 Trena, Monkey, Firetruck http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/trena-monkey-firetruck/ http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/trena-monkey-firetruck/#comments Wed, 18 May 2011 04:44:25 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=1578 9″x12″ acrylic, 2011. Well, this portrait was by far my most complex assignment! Cam, who is in his thirties, will present the painting to his mother as a belated Mother’s Day gift. The toys depicted are the favorites of her three children. I was provided with enough photographs showing the toys at various stages of wear and tear to paper the walls of my studio! Cam had a very helpful (but challenging) laundry list of requests for the painting. Trena, the baby doll, belonged to Cam’s older sister, and only required a little pinkness restored to her cheeks. Cam’s own unusual, stuffed monkey required more attention: I was to restore his orignal black and yellow body, as it has since been almost entirely replaced with patterned fabric. However, the color of his face was to be shown in it’s current “tan” condition rather than the original pristine white. A banana once held in the monkey’s hand is now entirely worn away, and Cam wanted the banana’s absence to be evident, as it marks the monkey as “his.” Sadly, the firetruck had been the last favorite toy of the eldest son just before he passed away as a very small child. Cam’s mother had recently had it fully restored save for its original lettering on the sides, so I worked from very old photos to add the white design to the new glossy red paint job. We agonized over the composition, and at long last the portrait came together. I hope that Cam’s mother enjoys this celebration of her childrens’ happiest moments! If you’d like to see another portrait I’ve done of a crazy-looking stuffed monkey, click here, and here for another vintage firetruck!

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]]> http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/trena-monkey-firetruck/feed/ 3 Anna’s Doll, Pillow, and Blanket http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/annas-doll-pillow-and-blanket/ http://customtoyportrait.com/customportraits/annas-doll-pillow-and-blanket/#comments Tue, 22 Mar 2011 02:41:57 +0000 Jennifer At Your Toy Portrait http://customtoyportrait.com/?p=1717 8″x10″ acrylic, 2011. Anna is just about to turn sixteen, but these three objects have surrounded and supported her since babyhood. Anna’s Grandma put Dolly in her crib before she was born, and the pillow was made for her from a quilt by Anna’s aunt. The blanket was also a gift and is embroidered with Anna’s name and birthdate. The deep-blue, gold-starred wallpaper which adorns the walls of Ann’s room can be seen in the background. The now-tattered Dolly has been lost and found several times, and the family carefully considered how to preserve her. Anna’s Grandma suggested framing her, but Anna wanted to be able to touch Dolly even though she has (very recently!) stopped sleeping with her. This portrait is certainly a solution which immortalizes Dolly while leaving her available for even more love! It will be a birthday gift for Anna from her mother, Karen.

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