Fleur: A Fairy Paper Doll

I think fairies should be a little strange and a little other worldly and even a little scary. The Victorian conception of the sweet flower fairy stands in stark contrast to the traditional stories filled with figures like Banshees and the Washer Women and Jenny Greenteeth, or even Baba Yaga.

A flower fairy paper doll with a ten piece wardrobe. From paperthinpersonas.com.

{Click Here for a PDF to Print} {Click Here for a 150 dpi PNG to Print} {Click Here for The Rest of this Series}

So, today I went to a Greek food festival with some people and ate much tasty Greek food. It was fun and edible. There was music and children dancing dances which reminded me of nothing so much as Jewish Camp, which I went to in the summers and where we’d learn to dance traditional folk dances. I had a good time and it was nice to get out of my apartment for a while and be social with people. I don’t do that often enough.

By the way, if you decide Fleur needs friends, she can hang out Belladonna and Flora , my other two fairy Pixie paper dolls. My favorite fairy paper doll of them all is Flora Fauna of the retired Curves series, I think she’s more creepy than cute.

24 Paper Dolls from Deviant Art…

paper_doll_around_the_webSo, I was pawing around Deviant Art again and came across some really neat paper dolls from a variety of artists. I try to only link one paper doll from each artist (usually my favorite), but you should check out their galleries. There are some really cool paper dolls on Deviant Art. I’ve done this twice before and the same disclaimer applies: Not everything here is totally safe for the kiddies. You’ve been warned.

Now, on to 24 neat paper dolls:

1. Tina paper-doll by ~Johse is a neat use of digital artwork.
2. JOHN LENNON PAPER DOLL 4 by ~89000007ANL is what every Beatles fan needs… maybe…
3. Base Dolls with lots of outfits by~razzysri and I think I should get some reference here, but I don’t. Still, I like the paper dolls.
4. Taylor and Raine – Colour by ~idareu2bme with some clothes in black and white.
5. Paper Doll Kristen Stewart High Fashion Bella by ~NovellineArt has one some sexy undies, lemme tell ya…
6. Snowwhite by ~Mauau has furry friends and some sassy outfits, plus she’s done a Merida one too.
7. Lucy Pevensie Paper Doll by ~gianjos reminds me why I like CS Lewis so much.
10. Baby Paper Dollby ~Adoratia is proof I should get over my anti-baby paper dolls thing, because its really cute.
11. Elizabeth paper Doll by ~hdub7 is another one whose reference I feel like I should be getting, but don’t. Still, beautiful old-school style comic paper doll.
12. A Little Gibson Girl Paper Doll by ~LeslieMarieDawson was done in oil pastel, I think…
13. Garden Fairy Paper Doll by ~juliematthews happens to be quite pretty and green.
14. Poker Face Paper Doll by ~wunderbunny0602 is so… Gaga.
15. paper crafts paper doll by ~foodcoloring is on a great layout.
16. Red Ridinghood Paperdoll by ~pairtiger walks the line between cute and creepy, I think.
17. Paper Doll by ~dariauk is of a ballerina.
18. MLP-Lyra and bonbon paper dolls by ~dmsal1818 are a cute vintage couple.
19. Octavia by ~BeautyBeneath has other outfits too, but this is my favorite.
20. Paperdoll by ~lamenthia would be perfect for kids to color.
21. princess by ~alexpedreira has a prince and a wedding dress, so what else could she need? (Okay, so personally, I would also give her a sword and a bad attitude, but that’s just me…)
22. Paper dolls by ~kiti83 seem very cheerful for being so undressed…
23. adrian arlington paper doll by ~beriquito has got a great pirate outfit.
24. dollface- mr. crowfeathers by ~kungpowkitten is evidence that I do like male paper dolls, I just don’t draw them often.

Warrior Printable Paper Doll

shadow_light_20_9-27-12

{Click Here for a PDF to Print} {Click Here for a 150 dpi PNG to Print} {Click Here for The Rest of this Series}

So, I was pawing around the internet, as I do, and I stumbled across this wonderful German website that contained some beautiful vintage German paper dolls. The word for paper doll in German is “ankleidepuppen” which literally translates to something like “dress up doll” according to my good friend from Germany, but, she told me, its usually used for paper dolls rather than normal dolls. Paper dolls and paper models are still pretty popular in Germany, though not in the United States.

Right after college, I got a fairly dead-end job working at a local bookstore and toy store. One of the catalogs we received, though never ordered from, was a German catalog that sold beautiful paper models. The prices were far above what we could have possibly sold them for, so we didn’t stock them normally, though I seem to recall a customer who would come in and special order them.

I love beautiful paper toys of all kinds, though paper dolls are, understandably, my first love.

Silk and Steel: Printable Paper Doll with Armor

Color schemes are always challenging. I wanted to keep the colors simple, since so much of it was going to be “silver grey”. As I see it, the “leather” can either be brown or black, but I think it looks off when there is a mix. After some debate, I settled on black and then decided to use white as a contrast color, rather than the more traditional dark shade. The rich red color has a lot of blue into it which keeps it from feeling too “blood red” and softens it against the black and the white.

marisole-fantasy-warrior-paper-doll-9-24-12

{Click Here for a PDF to Print} {Click Here for a PNG to Print} {Click Here for the rest of this series}

Okay, so a question…

Dreamed asked: If you could travel to any time era, in any part of the world, when and where would you go? Why?

Wow… hard question. I have no idea… not very helpful is it?

I guess if I had to go somewhere and visit a period of history, I would want to visit Mainz in Germany when Gutenberg was printing his bible in the mid-1400’s, just so that I could see the press. A little odd, but as a rare books person, I just really want to see it.

I would not want to have to wear the clothing of the early 1400s… that just does nothing for me.

On an utterly unrelated note, I found this beautiful Valentine paper doll on Flickr. I love the way water color looks when it’s well done. Makes me almost want to try traditional media… almost.

So, at the moment, I am rather fascinated by….

1. 1940’s Dresses.

1940s-fashion
There’s something beautiful and strong and simple and interesting about the fashion of the 1940’s… perhaps because of World War II and the change between the style during the war and the New Look that came after…

Or maybe I just love the chick’s hat on this pattern cover.

2. Steampunk Corsets

I’m not into steampunk literature or anything… but I really like these corsets… Not that I would wear them anywhere, but they just look neat.

3. 1950’s Pulp Sci-Fi

sci-fi-1950
Um… Yeah… so there’s something about buxom blonds being stolen by aliens on strange planets that amuses me. This shouldn’t shock anyone.

4. NBC’s GRIMM

GRIMM
I don’t have a TV at the moment, so I’ve been watching a lot of HULU and, well, now I have the biggest crushes on about half the characters in this stupid TV show, GRIMM… It’s like CSI: Portland meets… Twlight Zone meets… I don’t even know what.

Yeah, I love it.

5. The Art of Aubrey Beardsley

So, I’ve been on this Aubrey Beardsley kick for a few weeks, ever since I came across an original copy of Yellow Book with the plates intact.

P.S. Not all of Beardsley’s stuff is safe for work… he had a thing for men with abnormally large… well… this is a family blog, so I won’t get into it… just be a little careful where you image search him.

Anyway, that’s what I’ve been into on the web lately. Some of this stuff might find its way into a paper doll or two.

Noir Punk or Punk Noir…. Magnetic Paper Doll

flock-noir-punk-image

I don’t really know where this started…

I mean, I might have watched “Blade Runner” one to many times or maybe I’ve been collecting to many steampunk reference images in my files, but somehow I just thought that combining 1940’s and 1930’s noir film suits with platform heels and facial peircings seemed like a good idea.

Truth be told, I am rather pleased with the outcome. I figured out a way to do hats that “work” on magnetic paper dolls (who can not have things layered “behind” them very well”) and got to play with some of the diversity that might be possible from the Flock. I chose Starling to show off this style, because there was something about her little smirk/half smile with the hair style that I thought looked good.

So, I am quite pleased with the outcome.

One of the things I wanted to do with the Flock magnetic sets was make sure there was versatility. The pieces which “only” Starling can wear are on her page- the shoes and the hats with the hair attached. The pieces on the other page will fit any of the Flock magnetic dolls.

I think this style should be called “Noir Punk” as in “Steampunk” or I think it should be called “Punk Noir,” but I can’t really decide which one. Either way, you’ll find the downloads below. Let me know what you think in a comment.

Starling: Punk Noir Set PDF Downloads
thumb-flock-noir-punk-starlingthumb-flock-noir-punk
Starling Doll PDF Download Punk Noir Clothing PDF Download

Striped Paper Doll Clothes

Clearly, I thought that the Dictionary Girl’s needed to get a little more rough and tumble…. so here they are… rough and tumbling (Is it just me or does that sound like a sexual innuendo?).

dictionary-stripes-9-19-12

{Click Here for a PDF to Print} {Click Here for a 150 dpi PNG to Print} {Click Here for The Rest of this Series} {Click Here for the Dolls to Dress}

I feel as though I need to say this, since I seem to get a lot of comments or questions that start with an apology- Please ask me question. Please make requests. Please feel free to inquire if I’ve ever done a style or a kind of paper doll. I will respond. I might take a few weeks days but I do try to get back to people.

Not promising that I’ll do a certain style of paper doll, but I try to reply as much as I can to comments and am grateful for everyone I receive.

I just thought I should state that somewhere.

On a fairly unrelated note, it is Speak Like a Pirate Day, so I went in search of a few pirate paper dolls. The pickings were not impressive. Final Fantasy Paper Dolls Made by Animama depict several of the Final Fantasy characters (none of whom I confess I know), but have some stylish pirate wear and fair number of other tongue in cheek outfits.

Lady Pirate Paper Doll depicts a beautiful black and white winged lady pirate. There are other printable paper dolls as well.

Silk and Steel: Paper Doll in Black and White

Marisole has been a lot of things over the years… She’s been a zombie and a pirate and a ninja and a member of Star Fleet, but she’s never just been a warrior chick and I thought she should be, plus I have a friend whose really into Xena and she was remarking that Marisole has been a lot of princesses, but she hadn’t ever really been ready for a fight.

So, here she is, ready for a fight. Though… I confess her armor isn’t really very… practical. Still, she’ll look cute and that’s half the battle.

marisole-fantasy-warrior-paper-doll-BW-9-17-12

{Click Here for a PDF to Print} {Click Here for a PNG to Print} {Click Here for the rest of this series}

Toni Cross

    asked: Did you like playing with dolls as a kid? As in, the non-paper kind? If so, what doll was your favorite? If not, what toy was your favorite and why?

I love dolls as a kid. I still love dolls, though over the years, I have come to realize what I really loved was miniature clothing and things. I loved all the tiny clothing and accessories more than I loved the dolls themselves.

My favorite dolls were Ginny dolls by Vogue. My Ginny’s had all sorts of adventures, but my fondest memories of the Ginny dolls are when my Grandmother came to visit and she would knit and sew them clothing. I still own all the tiny outfits my grandmother made for them and the wooden furniture my grandfather made.

I should mention, Toni has a blog of her own where she has posted a few beautiful paper dolls, I particularly like her baby paper doll named Sammi.

Astrid- Printable Paper Doll

When I was in middle school, I played a character named Astrid in a school play… but that is neither here nor there.

Personally, I really like her axe. That’s probably my favorite part of the paper doll… is that weird?

astrid-pixie-9-13-12

{Click Here for a PDF to Print} {Click Here for a 150 dpi PNG to Print} {Click Here for The Rest of this Series}

So, Boots asked: since you do a lot of coloring, etc. on the computer, what (if anything) do you do with the original art? Also: have you ever considered attending a paper doll convention?

Well, I draw in sketchbooks. So, my paper dolls end up in sketchbooks and the sketchbooks get labeled with the date and the year that they were done and get stuck in a bookcase. I don’t really “do” anything with the original art, except save it, because someday I might need it for something…. I keep a xerox of every common base paper doll (Marisole, Pixie & Puck, Dictionary and Shadow and Light) in a binder, so that I can have something draw off of without damaging the original art. I live in terror of losing the original art, since I tend to beat up my copies.

As for going to a paper doll convention, I totally want too. I’ve wanted to go to one for forever, but they’ve never been in locations or at times that were convenient for me. Living in Alaska was a huge hurdle and then school was a huge hurdle, but I’m hoping next year or something, I might get to go to one.

Mostly, I just think it would be cool to meet people who get as excited as I do about these paper people I love to draw so much. 🙂

Speaking of paper people, I was pawing around the internet and I found this beautiful horoscope paper doll on a dutch (I think…) language website. She’s really lovely and I adore her “theme costumes”.

Gargoyles Paper dolls… No Really!

gargoylepaperdoll

So, I am probably not the only person who watched the show “Gargoyles” as a kid. It was a cartoon and there were Gargoyles and like half the cast of Star Trek Next Generation did the voice acting.

I was meandering around the internet this weekend looking for gothic paper doll links for a post on…well… gothic paper dolls, because I am like that, and I found Gargoyles paper dolls.

I am totally absurdly abnormally pleased by their presence.

Sadly, the site looks pretty dead and my email to the “owner” to ask if I could post a pic as a link was not replied to, so I did it anyway. That probably makes me a bad person…. but dude…. Gargoyles paper dolls

Did anyone else watch this show when they were a kid?