In honor of my newest paper doll book, Big Eyed Girlies, now available from Paper Doll Review, I thought it’d be fun to take you behind the scenes over the next few weeks. I’ll be sharing a closer look at the creative process, from initial sketches to coloring. All the little choices in between that helped bring this quirky and colorful project to life.
In today’s post, I’m talking about: planning & doodling.
If you know me, you know I’m a planner by nature. So naturally, before I ever picked up a pencil, I did… math!
Yep, so glamorous, I know.
I wanted to figure out how many individual paper doll pieces I would need for the book. I counted the pieces in a few books in my collection per page. Most books had somewhere between six and eleven pieces per page. So, a little math later, anywhere from 48 to 88 individual pieces.
Since I tend to be a “more is more” kind of creator, and because I think most people want more outfit options for their dolls, I set my target at around 80 pieces. I wanted plenty of material for the fantastic Julie to work with when it came time to layout the book, even if a few paper doll designs got trimmed during editing.
And to be honest, part of publishing with people you trust is allowing them space to make editorial decisions about what will make the very best paper doll book.
After planning, I started thinking up ideas. As I sketched, four distinct style collections began to emerge. In my mind, I gave them working titles like:
- Pretty-Pretty Princess Dresses (Bows, Ruffles, Puffy Sleeves)
- Vintage Circus (Diamond Patterns, Braid, Top Hats)
- Dapper Gangster Suits (Pin Stripes, Ties, Fedoras)
- Groovy Mod 1960s Graphic Minis (Tights, A-Line Dresses, Boots)
I knew I would need more than this, but this was where I started. I ended up with six themes in total, which is what you’ll see in the final book.
I never think of thumbnails as final designs. It’s just idea generation. Maybe some will make it past this stage, but most won’t. It’s a space for me to play and explore different ideas before moving on to finished art. I try to keep these sorts of things very loose. I add notes, so I remember what I was thinking or what I thought was important. The most crucial thing about these thumbnails is that I don’t edit myself.
That’s just a peek at the early stages of the process. Next time, I’ll show some of the penciled designs and their inked counter-parts. You might be able to pair a few from these doodles to those designs.
If you’re excited about Big Eyed Girlies and want to be one of the first to get your hands on a copy, it’s available now for pre-order at Paper Doll Review.
Fun Fact: I did not title the book. Titles are not my forte. The fun title was all Jenny of Paper Doll Review.
Thank you so much for following along and being part of this paper doll-loving community. I can’t wait to share more soon!