Download Black and White PDF | More Paper Dolls from the Cut & Color Couture Series
Today’s printable 17th century paper doll coloring page is showing off styles from the 1630s and 1640s, a celebration of Baroque fashion. She’s the first of two I drew. I confess that this is not my favorite period of historical fashion, but that’s part of why I drew it. I’d drawn a few other historical paper dolls for the Cut & Color Series: 1940s and 1920s. I thought I would continue the trend.
I both wanted to stretch myself and work on something that I wasn’t super comfortable with. Also I needed to practice drawing lace. There’s so much lace in Baroque fashion.
Women typically began dressing with a shift or chemise as the base layer, over which they wore stays to shape the torso. These stays created a pronounced, rounded cleavage, accentuated by the often very low necklines popular at the time. The effect was dramatic. As they say in Monty Python, “huge… tracts of land.”
The overall silhouette for this 1640s paper doll includes broad shoulders and a higher waist, though this would begin to descend in the following decades. Bodices were typically fastened with stomachers, crafted from the same fabric as the gown, making them less visually distinct. While the long, pointed bodice would become more common in the 1650s, the historical gowns featured on this doll are a bit less extreme in their styling. Maybe one day, I’ll take on the 1650s as another paper doll project. For now, I’m sticking with my printable 17th century paper doll coloring page and calling it good.
Full, voluminous sleeves, sometimes cinched at the elbow with ribbons or decorative rosettes, are also a big part of the look. I made sure to include them on this historical costume coloring page for one of the paper doll’s gowns. This style of sleeve can be also seen in this 1630s portrait, which was one of my reference images.
Lace collars and cuffs were also super popular. There was often lace trim around the low, square necklines too. Since lace was extremely expensive, wearing it was definitely a way to say, “Look how rich I am!” One reason I chose to create this Baroque fashion paper doll printable was to practice drawing lace. There’s so much of it in this era, like in this portrait.
Hairstyles in the 1630s and 1640s were very distinctive. Hair was usually pulled back with structured curls framing the face. It’s a super distinctive look. Occasionally, women wore soft, wispy bangs at the front. One of the challenges of drawing this Stuart-era dress-up paper doll was getting those hair details. Curls and I have a complicated relationship.
This is the first of two of these I drew. I’ll get into why that happened when I post my next one.
Explore More About 1630s–1640s Fashion
- 1630s Fashion from the FIT Institute’s Fashion Timeline
- 1640s Fashion from the FIT Institute’s Fashion Timeline
- My 17th Century Pinterest Board (where I collect all my images for my personal reference.)
- Ornatus muliebris Anglicanus, or, The severall habits of English women : from the nobilitie to the contry [sic] woman, as they are in these times, 1640 by Wenceslaus Hollar, Bohemus, fecit Londini, ano. 1640
I haven’t done any other 17th century paper dolls, so I can’t add any to this list. It’s not a super popular period for paper doll creations. Brenda Mattox did a Cinderella paper doll in this era and Tom Tierney has a coloring book from the period as well.
If you know of any others, please let me know and I’ll add them.
