Pet Commission

How to commission your pet sculpture (please send me the following details)

1. Check if I sculpt your breed in the list below
2. Decide on the scale of your sculpture: small or large
3. Decide if you’d like your dog’s mouth open or shut
4. Please provide the name of your dog for personalisation
5. Please check you are happy with the finish and time scale
6. Please specify if your commission is a gift
7. Follow instructions regarding taking photos of your pet
8. Send all the above information to me!

1.Check if I sculpt your breed

I do not sculpt all breeds – please look at the list below before enquiring.

Accepted breeds for sculpting:

• Poodles
• Poodle crosses
• Shih Tzus (and other fluffy small breeds)
• Pointers
• Labradors
• Retrievers
• Spins
• Boxers
• Bloodhounds
• Pugs
• French Bulldogs
• English Bulldogs
• Chihuahua
• Fox terrier
• Kerry blue
• Airedale
• Welsh terrier
• Lakelands
• Greyhounds
• Lurchers
• Whippets
• Borzoi
• Saluki
• Most hounds

I do not sculpt:

• Jack Russells or similar types
• Collies of any type
• Border terriers
• German Shepherds

If you have a mixed breed, please send me a photo to find out if I’m able to sculpt your dog.

2. Commission Options

• Option 1

Dog laying down – small £295

Overall length of the sculpture around 20cm

• Option 2

Dog laying down – large £495

Overall length of the sculpture around 35-40cm

3. Mouth

If you’d like your dog’s mouth to be open, there is an extra charge of £10 on small commissions, and £20 on large commissions.

4. Personalisation

Your dog’s name will be stamped into the clay.

5. Finish

All pet commissions are finished with my stain and are not painted to true colours. The clay fires white and I use my stain to represent markings and coloured areas. The darkness of the stain will vary depending on the colour of your dog.

Time Scale

The length of time needed to create your commission can vary. Please enquire for more information, or to find out the best time to order.

6. Ordering a commission as a gift

If you order a commission as a gift, we’ll send you a gift pack to present to your loved one on their special day. The gift pack enables the recipient to take part in the exciting experience of having a sculpture of their pet commissioned. I find that when customers are invited into this making process through photographs and correspondence with myself, it makes the commission a much more memorable experience and results in a greater appreciation for the sculpture itself.

They’ll be asked how they see their dog and what they love about them, and I’ll do my best to capture this in the sculpture. They will then receive photos of the sculpture in clay form and will be talked through the firing process.

7. Photos

This step is not easy and may take a week to complete. The better the photos, the better I can make your sculpture. Photos taken outside in natural light are best, and if you have a black dog this is essential.

Please make sure you like the length of your dog’s coat before you start the photo shoot. I prefer mine a little shaggier, so I would personally wait four weeks after a grooming appointment to take their pictures. This is very much a personal choice, but an important factor, so please make sure your pet’s coat length is at the desired length before pictures are taken.

I don’t advise getting a hair brush out just before the photo shoot. We all know it only lasts 5 minutes before they look like their normal selves again. This is how we are used to seeing them and love them. So, if they are normally a shaggy unkempt mess, let them be.

All photos must be taken at the dog’s eye level, unless stated otherwise. Please do NOT take photos whilst you are standing over the dog. If the photos are taken from above I cannot judge proportions properly. It’s best to get down on the floor to meet their eye level, or if it’s easier, pop the dog on a table.

Please remember to stand back from your dog. I need to see their whole body in every picture, unless stated otherwise. This is especially important for leg and tail proportion sizes.

Please use the guide below for taking and naming your pictures:

Group A: The dog standing looking forward

Photos A1 and A2: One of each side

Please make sure the dog is looking forwards so I can see the length of the head in comparison to the length of the body. Please also ensure that in one of these photos, the tail is out and stretched. Please ensure this is at your dog’s eye level.

Photo A3: Front on

I need to see the width of the chest, the length of the leg and the width of the head in this picture, so I can compare them against each other. Please ensure this is at your dog’s eye level.

Group B: The dog laying down in desired position for sculpture

This is what I’m going to use when sculpting the pose – so try to do this when your dog is relaxed and enjoying time in the garden.

Photo B1: The side of the dog

You can be standing for this – it does not need to be taken at eye level like the other photos.

Photo B2: Front on

Please ensure this is at your dog’s eye level.

Group C: Close up of the dog’s head

The dog can be in any position for these photos. This section is about expression and capturing the character of your dog. Please focus only on the head and neck. Your dog should be happy and relaxed while taking these photos. Please make sure your dog’s mouth is either open or closed, depending on what you have chosen.

Photos C1 and C2: Close ups of both sides of the dog’s head

Please make sure this is the perfect profile. I need to see the length of the muzzle in comparison to the length of the head.

Photo C3: Close up of the dog’s head looking at you.

‘Child Within’ Commission

My ‘Child Within’ commissions are designed to capture a moment in time, depicting the love and joy that exists between our four-legged friends and ourselves, as well as the emotional bonds that form between us when two different species learn how to communicate with each other.

The sculptures can capture your son, daughter, grandchildren or even the child within an adult. I believe animals draw out the inner child in all of us grown-ups.

How to commission a personalised ‘Child Within’ sculpture (please send me the following details)

1. Check that you’re happy with all the details below re: time scale, finish etc.
2. Describe the mood of your sculpture (e.g., restful, relaxed, tender, soulful, loving, excited, high-energy). We can discuss this if you need to.
3. Choose the characters:
   
   260. One small animal and child: £260.00
   261. One large animal and child: £395.00
   262. One large animal, one small animal and child: £450.00
   263. One large animal and two children: £495.00
4. Photograph the characters
5. Please specify if your commission is a gift
6. Send all the above details to me!

Time Scale

The length of time needed to create your commission can vary. Please enquire for more information, or to find out the best time to order.

Finish

I do bring colour into the clothing but otherwise I apply my stain so show markings. Please see pictures.

Ordering a commission as a gift

If you order a commission as a gift, we’ll send you a gift pack to present to your loved one on their special day. The gift pack enables the recipient to take part in the exciting experience of having a sculpture of their pet commissioned. I find that when customers are invited into this making process through photographs and correspondence with myself, it makes the commission a much more memorable experience and results in a greater appreciation for the sculpture itself.

A ‘Child Within’ commission has an even greater emotional subject matter than a regular pet commission and needs to be carefully crafted to the receiver. By giving the gift pack instead of the sculpture it allows me to communicate with them and see the subjects though their eyes.

They will receive photos at different points though the making process and see the final piece in the clay form before it gets fired. They will then be talked through the firing process.

Certificate

The piece will come with a personalised certificate.

Clock Commission

My personalised clock commissions are designed to bring a bit of humour to your daily timekeeping. Make a feature of your clock and create a talking point in your house!

Theme

Firstly, I need a starting point. It can be based around your pets, your children, your hobbies, your house, your favourite story – anything that is personal to you. Give me a little background about the matter and why you have chosen it. Silly little things you may not think to mention maybe valuable. The aim is to have fun and work it around yourselves.

Finish

I do bring in little bits of colour.  Please see pictures.

Rough Pricings of Clock Commissions

Keeping It Simple

My ‘Keeping It Simple’ range is inspired by cuckoo clocks and have all the design features but without the moving parts. They all have a simple, reliable quartz mechanism.

Small Clock: £295.00-£395.00

Small – 10cm – 15cm approximate

Basic structure with simple detail

Character ideas – one medium sized animal with little bird or three larger birds.

Medium Clock: £695.00 upwards

Medium – 17cm – 25cm approximate

A lot of detail can be added to this clock

Bottom shelf with a 2D facade beneath it

Stonework, plant growth, decorative fascia boards, side windows

Character ideas – 2 medium characters, 1 small character, three little birds.

Large Clock: £1800.00 upwards

Large – 25cm 40cm approximately,

Bottom shelf with 3D drop

It can feature some of the following:  towers, side doors, dormers, steps, porch, finials, decorative fascia boards, stonework, established winding creepers, etc….

Character ideas – 3 medium characters, 4 small characters, 6 little birds

(If you would a slightly more simplistic building and more characters this is possible too).

Character Size Classing

Small animals: big birds, squirrels, hedgehogs, cuckoo wings-out

Medium animals: dogs, cats, badgers, foxes, horses, cattle overlooking the stable door, sheep, pigs

Little birds: swallows, house martins, robins, bluetits

Please note: sizes do not include the length of the pendulum, the pendulum will increase the length dramatically.

Moving pendulums can be added to medium clocks for an extra £20.00.

Time Scale

The length of time needed to create your commission can vary, with the longest wait being 12 months. Please enquire for more information, or to find out the best time to order.