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victorian inspired
A Little Mermaid in the 1830s
Download Black and White PDF | Download Color PDF | More Jewels & Gemstones 2.0
Download Black and White PDF | Download Color PDF | More Jewels & Gemstones 2.0
To end the month of Mer-May, I wanted to share this Little Mermaid paper doll. As you probably know, the Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen is the classic tale of a mermaid who becomes obsessed with a prince, gives up everything for him, ends up in agonizing pain until he marries someone else, nearly kills him, kills herself, and gets to spend 300 years doing good deeds for humans, so that she might someday win a soul to go to heaven.
Most illustrated versions of the tale I’ve seen place the story in a orientalist fantasy setting, but I wanted to draw on fashions from around 1837 when the story was written. So, the paper doll’s dress is based on this dress from 1837, this dress from 1833-1837, plus this dress from 1837-1839. Her hair is from the early 1830s and I love those silly hair styles. I used this fashion plate. Despite appearances, it’s actually simplified.
The men’s outfit references a line in the story where the Prince has a page outfit made for the Little Mermaid, so she could ride with him. My paper dolls’ riding costume is based on this coat from 1830 to 1840 and this suit from the 1830s. Though the cut is a bit more regency than it is 1830s and the boots are very regency, I confess.
The knife with the paper doll is the one that the Little Mermaid’s sisters trade their hair for to try to save the Little Mermaid’s life by having her stab the Prince to death. By the way, if you’ve never read the original, I think you should. It is not the Disney tale most people think of.
If you’d like, I do have a lot more mermaid paper dolls. Check out my Mermaid tag and another Jewels and Gemstones Mermaid, if you’d like more mix and match mermaid options.
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1860s Fashion Paper Doll & Her Dresses to Print
Download Black and White PDF | Download Color PDF | More Jewels & Gemstones 2.0
Download Black and White PDF | Download Color PDF | More Jewels & Gemstones 2.0
My patrons on Patreon voted for the 1860s to be my next historical paper doll foray. (Join here if you’d like to vote next time.) I hadn’t drawn anything from this era in years, so I had some fun breaking out my costume history books, doing more research on 1860s fashion, and then crafting is 1860s fashion paper doll and her dresses. There’s another 1860s paper doll who will be the March exclusive for my Patrons.
My Newsletter this week will be a special issue all about 1860s fashion with sources!
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Steampunk Paper Doll Costume For The B Pose Dames
At least I’m honest, right?
Meanwhile, I really wanted to design a steampunk paper doll costume that wasn’t “fancy” and felt a little more like what a working person in a steampunk world might wear. I decided to do a similar color scheme for today’s outfit as I did for steampunk Changrui which was a big inspiration, I confess.
Sometimes when I am drawing one paper doll set quickly brings me to another paper doll set in a sort of paper doll cascade.
What do you think? Do you prefer your steampunk more “street” or more “fancy” with ruffles and top hats? I’d love to hear your thoughts in a comment.
Need a doll for today’s clothing? All the B Pose Dolls & Clothing
Happy Halloween!
I have been trying to do a paper doll for most holidays with the Dames and Dandies series, because I have such fond memories of my Grandmother sending me paper doll holiday cards when I was a child.
I have a Thanksgiving version planned and I want to do something for Veteran’s Day. I’ve never done a paper doll for that holiday before, but I think a World War 2 ladies uniform would be super fun to draw. (Or a World War I ambulance uniform, those intrigue me too.)
I digress.
So, anyway, the A pose paper dolls here are are getting corsets and long skirts for their Halloween attire.
What are people dressing up as? I confess I’ve never been a big Halloween person. I do like handing out candy, but ever since I moved into an apartment I don’t seem to ever get tricker-treaters.
It makes me kinda sad.
Anyway, it’s probably best I don’t have a big bag of candy in my house anyway. I would end up eating more of it than the kids, I suspect.
If you need a way to pass the time waiting for young ghouls or goblins, why not color or cut out Halloween paper dolls? It keeps up manual dexterity and is a lot of fun. You can see all the blog’s Halloween paper dolls in that tag.
Need a doll to wear today’s paper doll clothing? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing
A Steampunk Version of Changrui
So, when I was rounding up all the paper dolls for my C Pose paper doll post with all the sets I’d done in the last few months, I realized how few versions of the guys I had created. The girls all have several versions and the poor guys were just hanging out in their modern hair without much to turn too. I felt bad for them.
So, I set to work designing some new versions of the guys. I still need to design a second Cyrus, but have done elf Cameron, fantasy Carlos and now we have steampunk Changrui. I might have just really wanted an excuse to draw a Victorian mustache. Maybe.
I need a theme for Cyrus, any suggestions? I’m leaning towards cyberpunk or post-apocalyptic.
Also, if you like the blog and want to get behind the scenes, help pay for the server space and support my sketchbook buying habits, consider becoming a patron. Any amount helps.
Need a clothing for today’s paper doll? All the C Pose Dolls & Clothing
A Week of Coloring Pages: Steampunk Paper Doll Clothing
This is the first steampunk inspired set I’ve drawn for the B Pose dolls. I was kinda thinking of a like a street urchin dressed up. So, there’s tools, boots and a top hat.
Everything is better with top hats.
When I design sets in black and white, I often add patterns, because I think they are maybe more fun to color? I confess I’m not much of a colorer. I think I mentioned that yesterday. So, I am kinda guessing what people like to color.
I did have way more fun dawing those tools than I should admit. There was going to be hammer, but hammers are surprisingly hard to draw, y’all. So are screw drivers, but I digress.
Friday, there will be a cyberpunk set for the A Pose ladies. And who doesn’t need that?
Meanwhile, let me know what you think of today’s set in a comment and, if you love the blog, think about donating to help it out over on Patreon.
Need a Doll to wear today’s outfit? All the B Pose Dolls & Clothing
Gothic Fashions (And a Little Momento Mori and a Little Rockabilly)
I’ve always had a place in my heart for gothic fashion. Perhaps, because I grew up in the late 1990s gothic fashion revival. Or just because I really like all things Momento Mori and always have.
When I am working on coloring gothic fashions, I do worry all the shades of dark grey I used to make things look black can end up obscuring some of the details. That’s why I’ve put the black and white version in front of the colored version this time, so you can really see the ruffles and a pleats.
I chose black, because black is the most common gothic color. I accented it in lavender, because in Victorian mourning traditions, lavender (or mauve) was considered half-mourning. In case you’re wondering, the complexity of mourning dress half myth and half real. There’s tons of references to it in fashion magazines and etiquette manuals, but how closely it was actually observed is hard to say.
Anyway, the purse is a bit of a reference to Momento Mori art (which I love) and also a bit retro. I suppose it’s a nod to retro rockabilly sensibilities. The shoes, blouse and skirt all owe a lot to the Victorians, though no Victorian would wear such a low cut garment during the day.
In case you are wondering- “Hey, where is your collab paper doll?” Well, life got busy and I lost track of time, so my contribution will be up Monday. But you can check out Julie’s and Missy’s contributions in the meantime.
I promise I didn’t forget. Things just got crazy.
Need a doll for today’s clothing? All the B Pose Dolls & Clothing
A Set of Steampunk Style Paper Doll Clothing Designs
So, for me steampunk style paper doll clothing is a natural evolution of my love of all things Victorian. I’d happily draw steampunk quasi-Victorian outfits every day. I just adore them. When I started the Dames and Dandies paper doll series back in January, I knew I’d be drawing some fashions that embraced my love of all things Victorian.
Today’s steampunk style foray consists of a pair of boots with vertical striped stockings, a skirt trimmed in pleats and a vest over a blouse. There’s also a tiny top hat and a purse to flesh out the outfit. One thing I love about steampunk style paper doll fashions is the little details- the buckles, the studs and the little pleats. Sometimes I don’t want to draw detail, but usually I enjoy the tiny things that make a paper doll outfit unique.
Don’t worry. There is a floating tab designed to help keep that tiny hat on the paper doll’s head. Everything is better with tiny top hats.
Anyway, I always love to hear from y’all, so let me know what you think of today’s paper doll set in a comment. Should I do more steampunk? Less steampunk?
Need a doll to wear today’s paper doll clothing? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing
Regency Inspired Steampunk Suit With Boots and a Top Hat
Okay, so to start with I guess you could call this a steampunk suit. I mean, it’s definitely in that genre, but the silhouette is very much Regency, not Victorian. Here’s a few source images to show what I mean. There’s this famous drawing of “Beau” Brummel and this lovely men’s fashion plate as examples.
So, as you can see, the shorter double breasted jacket and the vest and such are all very Regency, as are the fitted trousers tucked into boots. But I made my jacket shorter than would have been common and my vest longer to really show off the style. And, of course, thigh high boots were probably not that common in the period.
Here’s an 1860’s suit in case you’re curious what an actual Victorian suit looks like.
I had some trouble coming up with a color scheme. I really wanted to use a lot of brown, but I didn’t want to just use browns. That seemed boring. So, I accented my browns with orange and teal.
To go with my suit, I drew a top hat and a cane, because it seems to me that any well dressed steampunk gent should have those accessories.
After I’d drawn this outfit and colored it, I decided to try out a second color scheme in blacks and reds. You can head over to the Patreon page and see that version. It’s very Gothic feeling. Sometimes, I think most steampunk outfits would look gothic if you just made them black, not brown.
But the steampunk entranced friends seem to always get irritated when I point that out.
Anyway, check it out if you like and let me know which color scheme you like better.
Need a a Doll to wear today’s clothing? All the C Pose Dolls & Clothing
The First Steampunk Paper Doll Look for the Dames & Dandies
There are themes I tend to return to over and over again. One of those themes is steampunk clothing. I have for as long as I can remember loved Victorian fashion. I was drawing modern styles influenced by the Victorians long before I ever heard the term “steampunk.” For years, oppositional as I am, I refused to use the term “steampunk” as a matter of principal.
Today, I don’t mind so much. I’ve adopted the philosophy that it is better to use a more universally recognized term “steampunk fashion” than my own personal preference for “neo-Victorian fashion”. This is probably the metadata writing librarian in me.
Anyway, today’s steampunk paper doll outfit was influenced by this lovely photo, particularly the women’s jacket. I also really wanted to experiment with drape while designing this coat and I had a lot of fun drawing the hem line.
The leggings and the boots are fairly “standard” styles for me. I’ve drawn a lot of lace up boots with straps over the years. I was thinking long term a bit though with these pieces. As the first steampunk designs for the A Pose Dames, I wanted to make sure they would be mix and matchable easily with future steampunk designs.
And fear not my steampunk loving readers (I know there are a few of you out there), there will be more steampunk designs. In fact, tune in on Friday for a Regency steampunk suit for the C pose gents.
Meanwhile, if you are a Patron, hop over there and there’s this whole outfit in a totally different color scheme for download. If you’re not a Patron, consider joining! There’s behind the scenes posts, a whole different paper doll series, and alternative color schemes.
Also, let me know what you think of today’s paper doll outfit in a comment. Do you love steampunk? Not so sure about it? Let me know.
Need a Doll to wear today’s outfit? All the A Pose Dolls & Clothing
The Mini-Maidens Get Some Bloomers & a Top Hat in Today’s Paper Doll Steampunk Coloring Page
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Today’s Printable Paper Doll Inspirations: This Steampunk Outfit
While I was never a big colorer as a kid, I do love creating black and white paper dolls, like today’s steampunk coloring page. I never liked coloring big expanses when I did color. So, the paper doll designs with more detail would be, I think, more fun to color.
(I maybe wrong of course. I don’t work in non-computer media much anymore. Someone who does should feel free to correct me in the comments about my coloring assumptions.)
So, I was very much feeling that I didn’t want to draw another steampunk fashion paper doll set when I saw this wonderful steampunk outfit on Pinterest and changed my mind. At first, I confess, it was the hair that got me, but I also adore the bodice.
So, I set to work on the paper doll’s bodice and the bloomers. Then I did the tights and invented some shoes. Striped stockings might be cliche, but I still really like them.
The hat was a last minute edition, because I thought the outfit needed something else. The set just didn’t feel complete without it.
Personally, the garters at the top of her stockings make me smile the most. I think they are just so fun! Though potentially impractical, because if you must lock on your garters that would just be a pain in the butt.
Still, as I have often said, paper dolls are not a place for practicality. If they did, I don’t know if I could draw them anymore. Half the fun is creating things I think look cool but would never wear.
So, love today’s paper doll steampunk coloring page? Hate it? Let me know in a comment! I always love to hear from you guys.
Need a Mini-Maiden paper doll to wear today’s outfit? Pick a Mini-Maiden Paper Doll Here.