Artwork that immortalises a beloved pet, capturing their personality and charm, is a truly beautiful gift any pet parent will love.
At Print Empower, digital artist Aimee Taylor takes on the challenge of bringing our pets to life on paper with incredible lifelike digital drawings. The 25-year-old, from Newcastle-under-Lyme, launched the business after being furloughed from her 9-5 design job, giving her more time to push her side hustle.
Aimee – who has a Dachshund named Dolly and a Yorkie cross called Dusty – said: “After being in a full time design job for a couple of years I found myself feeling a bit stuck. I started to focus on finding what our what I loved to create again and also was lucky enough of having the support of the Prince’s Trust to build my skills and confidence. Having so much time on my hands while being furloughed meant I had time to finally put Print Empower out there, which is a platform for me to create my own designs such as the pet portraits.
“Creating pet portraits is one of my favourite things because I find so much happiness from my own pets and really believe they bring so much happiness to our lives, so it’s lovely to create something that is going to mean so much to someone. I originally made one as a gift for a friend when I was rebuilding my skills!”
As the name of the brand suggests, Aimee wants Print Empower to be a force of empowerment for people to strive for creative ideas, and use creativity within their daily routine for a happier and healthier lifestyle.
Aimee has created four incredible prints of Phoebe, Frank and myself, and they’re a stunning addition to a shelfie, to hang on the wall, or to gift to family.
The A4 pet portraits cost £40, with free delivery during the Covid-19 pandemic. Aimee will get in touch so you can send over a photo of your pet(s), and there is a box for you to add their name to be printed on the artwork. They are printed on watercolour paper to make the colours pop, which is a really great feature when you have brindle dogs who’s fur is varying shades of brown.
Aimee surprised me with the image of Phoebe and Frank snuggled up together on the sofa, which captures just how sweet The Scamps can be with each other – when they want to be. The artwork shows the dark and light in their fur, and even pays attention to detail with highlights and markings, which are what make your pet unique – like Phoebe’s little white-tipped tail, or Frank’s thin white stripe on his head. The background has been switched out from my sofa, to a soft pink shade which ties in with my bedroom, and fits in perfectly with my dresser decor. From a distance, these could be mistaken for photographs, but on closer inspection, you can really appreciate the detail of the digital art which makes it so realistic.
Aimee also offers A5 prints, which come at a cost of £30 for three prints. You could have the same picture printed three times, saving one for yourself and gifting others, or get different pictures of your pets to display as a set of three. My set of A3 included a picture of Phoebe, Frank and I on a walk at Knypersley Reservoir and lettering saying ‘The Scamps’ underneath. The second print was Phoebe’s portrait on a pink background with her name underneath, and Frank’s on the third, with a light blue background and his name. These could be framed in A5 frames, or displayed on picture holders – either way, they definitely brighten the room.
The Print Empower pet portraits are the perfect pet parent gift, which accurately depicts your pooch and their personality whilst complimenting existing interior decor. Aimee also stocks a range of her own cyanotype prints and home prints that can be found on her Etsy shop, priced between £5 to £15.
