“This is the portrait I made of my Mr Waffles – who has many nicknames, but mostly I call him Wiggle Piggle, which is where Wiggle Piggle Pet Portraits got their name.
More than ten years ago, before I was a full-time illustrator and was mainly painting as a hobby, I painted a portrait of my girl, Tipsy Tart. She was my soul dog if there ever is such a thing. She crossed the rainbow bridge in 2021 and it’s so lovely to have her little face on my wall now.
I got my next dog, Waffles, the Wiggle Piggle, in 2019 while Tipsy was still here, and I had been meaning to paint him for a long time! I finally got around to it in 2025 and had the idea of offer portraits for others who cherish their pets as much as I do mine. And so, Wiggle Piggle Pet Portraits was born.
I didn’t want to do realistic portraits because that’s what everyone does and that isn’t my style of painting anymore. So I used what I had learned from illustrating children’s books to add some character and personality to the paintings. I wanted to make them feel fun and less serious because pets can be hilarious and entertaining, and I aim to capture a bit of that while still making sure they resemble the pet.
At the time I was illustrating two books full of pets – one with a dog main character and another with a cat main character… so the timing felt right.
I added an online shop to my illustration website the same day I had the idea, created 3 sample pieces, and launched within 3 days. In the first week I got four orders and I have sold consistently online, through word of mouth and to repeat customers, since then.
I now need to paint Jess, my mini-Scottie, who joined the family in 2024.”
— Elizabeth Sparg, June 2025
