ABOUT ME:
Hi. Welcome to Portraits By Leila!
I am Leila Shuffler, an artist and entrepreneur living in Panama City and Tallahassee, Florida. I specialize in pencil portraits, pencils with a watercolor wash, oil pastels and fine art oils of people, pets and places...especially the beach. I also sell fine art prints of these works.
All my life I dabbled in art of many media, a need to me almost as important as breathing. Some of my first experiences were sketches of my friends when I was in high school. I wanted to be an artist but life, family and kids got in my way. For a few decades. Though I always dabbled in crafts I was never able to really pursue art.
One day in 2004 picked up a pencil and did a drawing of my deceased husband. Everyone thought it was great and asked for copies. That was the beginning of Portraits By Leila, and I haven’t put down a pencil or brush since. Soon I was creating portraits and painting people, pets, and places. I have developed quite a wonderful following with customers in Europe and Australia as well as around the USA. I was even commissioned by the Art Curator of the Florida Governor’s Mansion to do a portrait of her daughters (see her comments on the ‘Happy Clients’ tab). I was also chosen to be featured in a Tallahassee television program called “People You Should Know”. I've won several art awards and I show in several galleries. I have created two book covers for a Florida writer and both books are in the Florida Governor's Mansion and the Smithsonian Museum of the Cherokee. Quite and honor! I teach portrait drawing workshops and have had successful workshops in Georgia, Michigan, and Florida.
I am also a very happy woman who loves life and tries to live to the fullest every day. I have Austin, a wonderful life partner, one handsome son, Shane and his delightful wife Beth with their twin daughters Chloe & Maggie & son Blake, another granddaughter Shelby and her husband Bobby and my great grandsons Johnathan & Elton, two lovely step daughters and a son in law... Oh yeah. And a cat (the Kittidiot) who regularly tells me what to do…
Hi. Welcome to Portraits By Leila!
I am Leila Shuffler, an artist and entrepreneur living in Panama City and Tallahassee, Florida. I specialize in pencil portraits, pencils with a watercolor wash, oil pastels and fine art oils of people, pets and places...especially the beach. I also sell fine art prints of these works.
All my life I dabbled in art of many media, a need to me almost as important as breathing. Some of my first experiences were sketches of my friends when I was in high school. I wanted to be an artist but life, family and kids got in my way. For a few decades. Though I always dabbled in crafts I was never able to really pursue art.
One day in 2004 picked up a pencil and did a drawing of my deceased husband. Everyone thought it was great and asked for copies. That was the beginning of Portraits By Leila, and I haven’t put down a pencil or brush since. Soon I was creating portraits and painting people, pets, and places. I have developed quite a wonderful following with customers in Europe and Australia as well as around the USA. I was even commissioned by the Art Curator of the Florida Governor’s Mansion to do a portrait of her daughters (see her comments on the ‘Happy Clients’ tab). I was also chosen to be featured in a Tallahassee television program called “People You Should Know”. I've won several art awards and I show in several galleries. I have created two book covers for a Florida writer and both books are in the Florida Governor's Mansion and the Smithsonian Museum of the Cherokee. Quite and honor! I teach portrait drawing workshops and have had successful workshops in Georgia, Michigan, and Florida.
I am also a very happy woman who loves life and tries to live to the fullest every day. I have Austin, a wonderful life partner, one handsome son, Shane and his delightful wife Beth with their twin daughters Chloe & Maggie & son Blake, another granddaughter Shelby and her husband Bobby and my great grandsons Johnathan & Elton, two lovely step daughters and a son in law... Oh yeah. And a cat (the Kittidiot) who regularly tells me what to do…
