Paper Doll Clothes (really)

[PennyK]

I'm obsessed with "Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries," an Australian TV show that came to both PBS and Netflix. Long story short, it takes place in Australia in the 1920s, and Phryne Fisher is an upper-class woman with brains and savoir faire, who becomes a private detective. The shows cover many social issues that we still struggle over today and it's terrific. And the clothes and the settings are gorgeous!

An artist made a paper doll of the character, but it's not copyright-approved, so she took it down from the Internet. I didn't care -- I bought one from her privately. It came with seven outfits, all clothes she actually wore on the show. I have a bit of a background in fashion illustration, and I decided to make more clothes for the doll. I pulled out my colored pencils and my husband's light box, and I'm having a BALL brushing up on my drawing skills. The show is based on a series of books (by Kerry Greenwood), and right now I'm doing one that is on the cover of one of the books, a steel-gray silk evening gown with pearls and pailettes. Fun!

Just in case this doesn't sound insane enough, I also plan to dress up as Miss Fisher for Halloween!

[samnsara]

1. fun!!!!!

...im in my mid/ late 60s and I remember in the late 50s and early 60s my grandmother had paper dolls in her closet that we were allowed to play with. They had magnets in them and in the clothes so they just attached with none of those pesky tabs. I bet we still have those somewhere and no one in my family ever THROWS ANYTHING AWAY!

[58Sunliner]

2. Remember paper dresses in the sixties? That was short lived.

I've seen the show and the production values are BBC worthy. I was watching for the costumes alone.

[Freedomofspeech]

3. I love her...

You are so right...the fashions on the show are amazing and she is gorgeous!

[CrispyQ]

4. I loved paper dolls as a kid.

I started drawing recently, but never thought to get paper dolls! I will check it out. I also had not heard of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries & see that Netflix actually has it! It's in my queue. Be sure to post pics of you in your costume!

Thanks for the great ideas!

[pamela]

5. I have a small, but great, paper doll collection

My favorites: Gilda Radner, JFK family and Mad Men. Yours sound cool, too.

[cyclonefence]

6. Aging myself

I had Betty Grable and Piper Laurie paperdolls.

And remember in McCall's magazine--there was always a Betsy McCall paper doll with a couple of dresses at the back that you could cut out.

Oh--I just remembered--I had a set of paper dolls from the show Oklahoma!

[PennyK]

7. They were my favorite toy when I was a kid

And I went right from that to making doll clothes, and then into sewing for myself. I love fashion, and I'm in my 60s, in a small Florida town, and have no use whatsoever for anything "zazzy" in my real wardrobe. This is a way to have fun with glamor and style. I'm also trying to come up with a suitable backdrop for my paper doll. In the show she has a gorgeous blue-green parlor, and it would be fun to try and draw something like that.

[angstlessk]

8. How very creative you are...

It actually tickled my tummy remembering my paper doll days.

Here is a page in google about making doll houses out of paper. If you can make a whole house, a room should be a breeze!

how to create a doll house with paper: https://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+create+a+doll+house+with+paper&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiBl4jXkeTWAhVhsFQKHfhLAjcQsAQIdg

[northoftheborder]

9. Most of my paper dolls were....

.....cut out of Sears Roebuck catalogs. I used to have them separated into categories: children, evening dress, suits, dresses, slacks, swim suits, etc.. I wonder where those are???? Haven't seen them in a while. Perhaps thrown away.

[dem in texas]

10. Paper Dolls on Pinterest

I was curious about the paper dolls, so I did a google search on "Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries Paper Dolls" and Pinterest popped up, there are some Miss Fisher paper dolls there, are any of these your work?

I also hate to show my age, but when I was a child, the Betty Grable paper dolls were my favorites too. I have an uncut set of Gilda Radner paper dolls, couldn't resist them.

[PennyK]

11. No --

That paper doll is the one I bought, but it's illegal use of a copyright. I'm just making additional clothes for the doll. The artist did credit the fashion designer.

[dem in texas]

12. Love to see your peper dolls

I love all kinds of art and crafts. Don't think I'd ever go for paper dolls, but they are so neat, wish you'd share some images of work with us.

[eleny]

13. What a cool thread!

I loved paper dolls when I was little and still do. Mostly I collect them on my pc and only print out a couple a year. The western themed ones don't pop up often so I grab the files when I see them.

How neat that you're designing for your Miss Fisher! If you see my response do let me know how you design for your paper dolls using a light box. I have one but never thought to use it for paper doll clothes. Maybe just a hint or two?

[PennyK]

14. Oh, it's easy

Sorry I never saw your post.
I lay my paper doll on the light box and then a piece of paper over it. Then, I can trace the outline for my outfit.

[eleny]

15. It's nice to hear from you!

That sounds like fun. And if I get stuck I bet there are dress etc templates on the web to get some help.

I'm trying to learn to draw. I'm not good at it but I still enjoy it. Luckily I'm happy to just make some cartoon type characters as I learn. I'm also a big fan of colored pencils. When the heck did coloring books make a huge comeback?They're all over the place these days and are so much fun. Watercolor is another passion so I've prepped some coloring pages with glazing liquid and am having a blast.

Jeez, I'm all over the place in this reply. But I can see using pencils and watercolor for paper dolls, too. That's a motivator for practicing drawing when I'm not really in the mood but know that I should do a little each day. Digital was so much easier. Pencil and paper is quite a challenge.