black hair

A Pair of New Beatrix Dolls and One has Glasses

A pair of brown skinned paper dolls with shoes and different hair styles. They can wear any of the dresses designed for the B Pose paper dolls on the blog- paperthinpersonas.com.

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When I was working on these double doll sets, I realized I hadn’t done any paper dolls for the Dames and Dandies with glasses yet. That seemed like a serious omission given that I wear contacts and can barely see without them. So, I knew I wanted a doll with glasses. The doll on the left has a hairstyle based on how a student who worked for me wore her hair and the doll on the right has blond highlights. That’s actually her second hair style. I really didn’t like the first one I designed, once I saw it on the doll.

That happens sometimes, because I draw all the hair separately and sometimes once I get it fitted to the dolls head, I’m not sure that I like it as much as I did in theory. Fortunately, it’s not hard to draw another one and through the “Power of Photoshop” there’s a lot of options.

Coloring wise, these versions of Beatrix have, of course, the same skin-tone as the other versions of Beatrix. I did however choose to match the paper doll’s glasses to her toenails, like you do.

Meanwhile, I posted a few progress images over on Patreon if you’d like to see some work in progress and my #100dressesproject continues on Instagram. Almost done! I’m in the 90s. 

And, as always, I’d love to hear what you think about today’s paper dolls. 

Need a clothing for today’s paper doll? All the B Pose Dolls & Clothing.

Abigail Take 2: A Contemporary Black Girl With Shoes

A black paper doll with three pairs of shoes, Abigail can wear any of the A Pose paper doll clothing for the Dames and Dandies paper dolls. Free to print in color or black and white.

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This is the second Abigail paper doll. I tend to draw my new dolls in sets of two, so that there’s at least two of them to start with. I want there to be lots of variety on the blog, but also mix and match options. It’s a constant balancing act between my urge for “all the skin-tones” and the reality that there’s literally millions of them out there and I can’t possibly achieve that.

So, I drew Abigail, because I didn’t already have a black paper doll for the A Pose girls. Her skintone was chosen, because both Cameron and Beatrix (my other two black paper dolls) had the same skintone and I wanted some variety.

As always, I try to give my contemporary dolls three shoes and those shoes are ideally versatile enough to go with evening gowns or fantasy dresses, depending. 

As always, a big thank you to my Patrons and if you’d like to help out the blog by making a donation, you can do that over on the Patreon page. 

Need a clothing for today’s paper doll? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing

Akiko’s 1920s Underwear and Shoes

A set of 1920s underwear and shoes for an Asian paper doll named Akiko. She's free from print in color or black and white for coloring.

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I love 1920s fashion. I love the shapes of the dresses, the hats and the shoes. Seriously, I would wear most late 1920s shoes today if I thought I could get away with it. I love the the hair, the art and the literature. I also realize that I would look awful in 1920s dresses. I have curves and this was the era of no curves.

But that’s what paper dolls are for though, isn’t it?

So, for every Monday for the rest of July there will be a 1920s era paper doll or dress (okay, so one paper doll- this one and then dresses).

Akiko is the model for the 1920s underwear. Her hair is based on the hair cut often sported by Anna May Wong, a Chinese American film actress in the 1920s. She was also considered a major style icon, so borrowing her hair style seemed only fitting.

Her undergarments are not entirely accurate. I based her slip on this brassier from The Met without realizing that the cut of the top was not very accurate for a slip. Slips of the era were mostly straight across like this one from the V&A. Anyway, her girdle is based on designs from the early 1920s from my various reference books on the subject.

Her black shoes are based on this pair of evening shoes from 1924. The originals are brocade, but I made mine simple so they’d match more things. The other shoes are based on these shoes from 1920-1925, these shoes and these shoes.

That’s a lot of shoes, but we all know how much I love shoes. If you want to see more 1920s shoes, underwear and dresses than I would recommend hopping over to my 1920s Pinterest board where those things live. If you think you’d like some more 1920s paper dolls than I’ve got quite a few in my 1920s category.

So, tune in next Monday for the first dress for the A Pose Dames from the 1920s. And if you would like to support the blog, then donate through Patreon. It’s always appreciated.

Need a doll to wear today’s paper doll clothing? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing

And This is Abigail! A New Black Paper Doll To Print With Her Toga Inspired Gown

A black fantasy paper doll to print with a toga inspired dress and two pairs of sandals. She can wear any of the A Pose printable paper doll clothing.

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I am super happy to be back! I was traveling and wrapped up in work. I got to go to New Orleans which was so much fun. It was a work trip, but I ate plenty of beinets, gumbo and red beans over rice. I do love a good bowl of gumbo.

As fun as it was to be in the city, it is also so very nice to have returned home to Alabama. 

Anyway, today’s paper doll is a new face for the A Pose dames. I think this will be the last new A Pose face for a while. I had a mental goal of getting four faces for each pose (A, B and C) done before I let myself work more on versions and less on faces. There is another version of Abigail already done. It’s a contemporary version with sandals. 

I chose the name Abigail for today’s paper doll, because I’ve always liked the name. It’s a Biblical name, for those who aren’t aware, and was the name of King David’s third wife. I’ve known several Abigails in my life and liked them all, so I figured the name was a winner.

Her fantasy dress was inspired by togas and Ancient Greece. Not actual historical Ancient Greece, more like Xena: Warrior Princess. I loved the idea of a loose, graceful, draped garment. Originally, I imagined it would be white (there is a white version over on my Patreon page you can go print), but I thought the white wasn’t as interesting as a color.

Yes, I colored the paper dolls lips to match the dress. Don’t judge me. 

Her micro braids were fun. I always feel like they get a bit lost when I color them black (black on black being a thing), I made them purple in the Patreon page version. So, if you think you’d rather have a purple haired version, pop over there and you can download and print that version. 

Need some clothing for today’s paper doll? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing

Meet Aisha: A New A Pose Paper Doll

A printable paper doll named is Aisha and she's free to print in color or black and white from paperthinpersonas.com

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Somehow, I’ve managed to finish up all my homework for the semester (yay!) and now I have a few weeks off before summer classes rear their ugly head. I am not looking forward to another batch of classes, but the end is in sight and I can only hope I’ll get there soon. As much work as grad school was when I was working part-time, it is so much more work when I was working full-time.

But none of that has anything to do with today’s paper doll. Today’s paper doll is an A Pose girl named Aisha. Aisha is an Arabic name meaning alive, according to Behind the Name.

All right, so as I often do, this is first version of Aisha as all contemporary shoes. Eventually, I’ll add some more specialized versions of Aisha. I actually already have a cyberpunk version in the works.

Years ago, I collected a bunch of photographs of people from around the internet to try to create a skin-tone palette. I ended up with seven colors and you can see that palette here. I recently discovered the work of Angélica Dass. She’s been photographing people against the Pantone color background that matches their skin. You can see her work on the National Geographic Website. It’s really amazing.

I don’t think I’ll be creating 4,000 skintones to use on the blog. It wouldn’t be very mix and match shoe friendly, but I do find her project super neat and work checking out whenever you have a moment.

Meanwhile, go grab some clothing for this poor naked paper doll. She needs something to wear. After you do that, leave me a comment and let me know what you think of today’s paper doll. 

Need a clothing for today’s paper doll? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing

And Here is Cameron: A Black Guy Paper Doll With Shoes (Many Shoes)

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This is Cameron the new member of the C pose Dandies family. He’s a black guy paper doll, as you can see, and I had a lot of fun researching black men’s hairstyles for him. I noticed this very square hairline seems to be the trending thing (as much as I know anything about men’s trends in hair) and I based the look that Cameron is sporting on this picture and this picture. Drawing men’s hair is something I am still working on getting better at, but I won’t get better if I don’t practice.

Along with his hair, Cameron has three pairs of shoes and can wear any of the C Pose outfits.I wanted to have more skin-tones and ethnicities represented in the Dandies, so along with Cameron here, I have a white paper doll named Cyrus who’ll be shared next Monday. Stay tuned for that.

I always feel bad for my paper dolls who end up with only shoes. I mean, I get it. It’s done so they have shoes, but really… give this poor guy some clothing, stat. Personally, I think he’d look great in the sci-fi set or in this warrior outfit.

Meanwhile, it’s after my bedtime and therefore time to sleep. Let me know what you think of the new paper doll in a comment if you like!

Need a clothing for today’s paper doll? All the C Pose Dolls & Clothing

Benedita On the Red Carpet in Her Green Evening Gown

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Happy Friday!

Today’s version of Benedita, my Latina paper doll, has a formal hair style and an evening gown inspired by a design from Marchesa. Marchesa’s designs are usually elaborate and romantic. I simplified the gown a bit, bit kept the intense lime green color. Some of Marchesa’s stuff is a little too embellished for my taste, but I loved the drape of this gown.

I went back and forth on the shoes, but ended up deciding that one pair of black shoes and one pair of white shoes would be the most versatile for future designs. I try to think about what increases the play-ability of a set. Plus all of the Benedita dolls will have the same skintone, so Benedita 2 here can share shoes with Benedita 1.

Eventually, there will be a Benedita 3 (she’s already in progress and going to be a 1930s historical version).

Really what I wanted with version 2 of Benedita was to have a dramatically different doll than I created in version 1 of Benedita.

I have no idea how convoluted this will get when I’m at like Benedita 12 or something, but I’m up for it. 

Meanwhile, I hope everyone has a super great weekend. This has been a crazy busy week, but I am hoping for a quiet weekend of drawing paper dolls. Frankly, I’m kinda out of content, so I really do need to get some things done. However, the things in progress are pretty cool (I think) and feature a lot of historical content. 

Need a clothing for today’s Doll? All the B Pose Dolls & Clothing

The Bellflower Princess Paper Doll & Her Ball Gown

A beautiful black princess paper doll with braids and a ballgown inspired by the bellflower. She can wear any of the B Pose paper doll clothing from Paperthinpersonas.com.

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The first dress I designed was the lily ball gown, but this dress is what turned that dress from just as “this would be fun to draw” into a “oh, I could make this a series”. So, I really think of today’s Beatrix princess paper doll as the inspiration behind the whole week.

When I was planning the Dames and Dandies series, I new I was going to have a stable set of “faces”, but I wanted those faces to have many versions. So, this is Version 2 of Beatrix– The Bellflower Princess Paper Doll version.

Also, huge shout out to my Mom, who when I was describing the flower I was remembering from the garden as a child, recalled the name of it and spelled it correctly enough for me to goggle it. The formal name for bellflowers is Campanula, by the way, which is what she told me.

I just thought Campanula Princess didn’t roll off the tongue as well as Bellflower Princess, hence the name change.

The original doodles for today's printable paper doll with the dress on the left and the doll's head on the upper right.
The original doodles for today’s printable paper doll from my notebook. The doll’s head is on the right and the dress is on the left.

In the order of this princess paper doll design, the dress came first. Once I had it drawn, I wanted a crown and I came up with the idea of the flowers coming out from a pair of buns.

Once I had that idea in my head, I had to figure out how to actually create in a way that would work for someone cutting out the paper doll. So, I drew the hair style and the crown pieces separately.

Than, I used Photoshop to create one version of Beatrix with out the crown and second version with the crown. So, the hair with the crown can be cut out and placed over the hair without the crown.

This also assures that this version of Beatrix can wear a hat without floral crown pieces getting in the way.

I don’t often share my process photos here, because I try to save them for my Patrons. So, if you want to see more images of the raw beginnings of paper doll sets, than donate and join Patreon. I try to post a few “behind the scenes” images every month. I also put them up on Instagram erratically. 

In case you missed any of this week’s floral ball. The first dress was Monday’s lily ball gown, the second was Wednesday’s fiddlehead fern suit and then today, we have the bellflower princess.

Let me know what you think of today’s paper doll in a comment or which paper doll from the floral ball was your favorite? I confess I don’t have one this time and usually I do.

Need a clothing for today’s Doll? All the B Pose Dolls & Clothing

Meet Carlos: A Latino C Pose Gentleman

A male Latino paper doll named Carlos with three pairs of shoes. Free to print in color or black and white.

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When I first started this whole new Dames and Dandies series, I knew I wanted to create at least two paper dolls for each of the poses. The C Pose gents were the hardest to work with, because I struggle with drawing men. Men and I… well, I’m getting better, but they remain not my strong suit.

Today’s guy paper doll is Carlos. Like all the “dandies” Carlos is in the C Pose and can wear any of the clothing drawn for that pose.

The name Carlos is, of course, the Spanish version of the name Charles. It’s pretty common, just as the name Charles is pretty common in English. I’ve known several different people named Carlos over the years and I’ve always liked the name.

Did I mention that I have more C Pose content than any of the other poses at the moment? I think having more guy stuff done than girl stuff might be a first for me. I literally can’t ever remember it happening except now. It’s a very strange feeling.

So, as a result there will be another C Pose post this Friday. It’s a super cool Regency/Steampunk suit that I am totally in love with and if it was real, I would wear it.

If, you know, I was male.

Until then, enjoy Carlos and his friend Changrui. 

Need a Clothing for today’s doll to wear? All the C Pose Dolls & Clothing

Meet Akiko: A New “A Pose” Paper doll

A super cute Asian paper doll with three pairs of shoes in color or black and white. Free to print from paperthinpersonas.com.

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Today’s new A pose paper doll is Akiko.

Like all Japanese names, the meaning of Akiko changes depending on the kanji characters selected to combine to make the name. The “Aki” part of the name can come from kanji meaning “clear, crystal”, “bright” or “autumn” while the “ko” comes from the kanji meaning “child” according to Behind the Name. Someone with more knowledge of Japanese will have to update me if I misunderstand how this works. It’s also the name of one of the princesses of the Imperial House of Japan.

Akiko has three pairs of shoes and can wear, of course, any of the clothing for the A Pose paper dolls. I think my favorite of her shoes are her pink sandals.

I hope everyone is having a good week. I’m still in recovering from illness mode, so I’ll keep today’s post short. Enjoy the paper doll!

Need a clothing for today’s paper doll? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing