2019 Wrap Up and Review

Happy 2020! I hope everyone rang in a happy new year.  We spend New Year's with good friends every year.  This year, the four adults played board games while the three boys (10, 8, and 7) played video games & an epic game of hide and seek. Needless to say, it was fun!


Today I'm wrapping up unfinished projects and putting together a little year-in-review.  First up, I finished the last two pages of the 2019 collaboration project.

The first sheet is for November. The theme was "My Heritage".  Well, I can't say I have much of a heritage!  My family has been in New England for so long that any heritage disappeared ages ago.  On top of that, I'm English, Irish, and Scottish (mostly) and none of that was terribly exciting to me.  So I made two colonial style outfits to represent my old New England roots. The first is based on the reproductions worn at Plimouth Plantation. If you're in Massachusetts, I highly recommend going! It's great! The second outfit is more of an upper class English lady of about the same time. Remember, the colonists thought of themselves as English so this would have been totally appropriate.

This second sheet is for the theme "Snow Queen".  I tried really hard to avoid Elsa/Disney tropes.  They're fine, just not for me. So this is a vaguely Russian inspired snow queen. My goal for this was finished-not-perfect.  That's a tough concept: how do you complete something without making it perfect?! The way I understand it, "perfection" is constant nit-picking and really, that doesn't do anyone any good.  Sure, there are things I'd change but overall, it's ok. And it's done.

That's all of the old business.  If you only look at my blog, it looks like 2019 was a pretty dull year. I only managed 34 posts - my smallest number of posts ever. All of them black and white, oddly enough.  And I felt it in my visitor statistics! Fewer people visited the blog BUT I gained followers on both Instagram and Pinterest so that lower stat here is a little dubious.  Blogs in general are less popular than they once were. I enjoy mine and I'll keep at it til I don't.  The projects I did complete were big ones: the 100 Days of Paper Dolls (split into two sets of 50) and the 2019 Collaboration project.

And that's all the virtual stuff.  The reason why there were fewer posts here is because I did A LOT more real-world paper doll stuff. Here's the list of all that I can remember:

• Attended my local paper doll party, spring & fall. Always a blast! Really fantastic people. If there's a paper doll group near you, join. It's wonderful. And if there isn't, start one! You might be surprised at what happens!
• Attended Morgantown for the first time. I plan on going again this year and probably every year that I can. You can read about it here.
• Because of Morgantown, I met the delightful, wonderful, amazing Jenny Taliadoros. I've been working on LOADS of fun stuff with her including issues 123, 124, and 125 of Paper Studio Magazine as well as issues 73, 74, and the upcoming issue 75 of Paperdoll Review Magazine.  Sometimes it's cleaning up art, sometimes it's creating title headers & graphics.  I'm a bit of a digital Jill-of-all-trades.  And, sometimes I help with editing and layout for other books, too. I could not be happier. It's a thrill to make already lovely art really shine.  
• I also helped Jenny with two reproduction projects: Sugar N Spice and Mother Goose. Both are really adorable and I highly recommend them! 
• On top of all of that, I released three books with Paper Studio Press!  

 

Jospehine's Wardrobe is a labor of love that was entirely reworked for this edition.  It's the absolute best version of this project and I'm so happy to have it available! 

 

Victorian Mix & Match is another rework.  And I'm glad I did! This needed a bit of work to get it into ideal shape. These two books are just so beautiful! Having a great editor can really make all of the difference and my art has improved immensely working with Jenny!

Finally, the best project of the year (in my opinion!) is Stripes! It's such a terrific concept and being able to work with David Wolfe is just beyond words. We both loved the project and we're hoping to work together again soon.

I guess I was busy in 2019! 

Moving forward, I have a few vague goals.  First, I want to revisit my Etsy shop. I haven't given it as much attention as I should.  I want to expand the download offerings as well as sell physical items including my books, prints, and anything else I can think of.  Secondly, I want to choose another project for the ol' blog. I'm kicking around some ideas so we'll see what happens.  Also, I plan on editing & coloring the 100 days set. AND if that isn't enough, I'm planning on going to Morgantown in May and the national Paper Doll Convention in July. I need to send that check over ASAP! There's also a book with Paper Studio Press in the works.

Wow! Is that it?! I think it is for today! Time to go percolate some blog ideas...

Paper Doll Collaboration - Witches

I'm pretty sure it's no secret that I live in Massachusetts. I've lived in New England for just about my whole life (there were a couple of fantastic years in Pittsburgh and I would gladly go back).  As such, I've been to Salem numerous times. If you go, the Peabody Essex is an amazing museum and I highly recommend it! There's a rule in my house though - no Salem in October.  If you can stand the chaos & the crowds, Salem is a wonderful place in October. There are events and costumes and all kinds of fun to be had.  If, like me, you can't stand chaos and crowds, then stay away.  Salem becomes the Halloween capitol of the world in October. Though it's like that most of the year anyway...

So this month's Witches theme hit pretty close to home for me! Instead of going with cute witches or neo-Victorian witches, I went with a sort of lighthearted Goth theme.

It was tough fitting everything on one page but I managed it! I'm pretty sure the hat will fit over both hairstyles but I'm not totally certain.

For more outfits in the series, check out Paper Thin Personas and Miss Missy's Paper Dolls!!

Paper Doll Collaboration 2019 - Patterns

Here's another installment of the collaboration paper doll series! I'm not sure where everyone else is in the process - I know my schedule has been full lately - but I wrapped mine so I figured I'd post it.

This month the theme is patterns.  If you've spent any time on this little ol' blog at all, you'll see just how much I LOVE patterns! So this was a blast to put together! The challenge was black & white.  Most of the patterns I use are color but I had some cool monochrome ones and that's what I used here.

I went with a fall feel to this set even though fall hasn't completely set in here in New England. There's a chunky sweater, patterned skirt, jean leggings, plaid jacket, blouse, and patterned pants to mix and match.

Check out Paper Thin Personas and Miss Missy for more of this project!

Paper Doll Collaboration 2019 - Royalty

Another summer has come & gone! This summer felt both excessively long and exceedingly short, somehow.  There were days that I thought my boys would NEVER get along....and there were days that were far too much fun to be so short. My grandmother was sick at both the start and finish of the summer so that also presented some challenges....

Now that everyone is back in school (and, surprisingly happy about it!!), I should be able to get back into creating more. Today is the next installment of the 2019 Paper Doll Collaboration. You can see Miss Missy and Paper Thin Personas for more.

The theme this month is royalty. I'm not much of a royal watcher. Just never appealed to me. Princess Di was a big deal when I was a kid and I'm about the same age as her sons.  Aside from that, I don't have any real feelings on the matter. I do, however, love historical dramas.  Somehow I convinced my husband to watch The Crown, Poldark, and Victoria. And he loves all of those as much as I do! So for the royalty page, I chose a couple of costumes from Victoria.  One is a military outfit and the other a gown from an episode where she's holding court.  Both feature a sash and royal insignia.  I don't remember which episode either of these were from.... Definitely watch it, though. It's great! 

I'm off to see what Miss Missy and Paper Thin Personas drew for this month! You should too!

Paper Doll Collaboration 2019 - Beachwear and Dance

I missed the June collaboration post.... I felt awful about it and thought about rushing to post something, but then decided to wait.  Summer is tough for me.  The boys are home and I want to spend time with them AND work on my projects but sometimes there aren't enough hours in the day for everything.

So today I'm posting the June and July pages! Rachel & Melissa got there June posts up so you should absolutely check those out.

First up is beachwear for June.  I LOVE patterns but I found the black & white format of this dolls a bit tough for patterns.  Instead of going super elaborate, I went simple with a little strip accent on all the sets.  I'm a big fan of rash guard/shorts as a bathing suit. I spend my summers chasing two boys so practicality is high on my list of needs for a bathing suit!

The theme for July is "dance/ballet".  I love belly dancer costumes (I might make an entire book of them!!) so I wanted to have that.  I figured I'd add ballet in, too. I don't feel strongly about ballet.  In fact, I'm not much of a theater person in general. And most classical music is just not for me. But I took a crack at it anyway.  The tutus are meant to be worn over the bodysuit and the little top layers over it, too.

I will endeavor to (1) write here more and (2) post August on time! As I said, summer is just not a good time for me to work.  The boys are only little once and I want to enjoy it.  Anyway....Check out the other paper dolls in the series!!

Paper Doll Collaboration - MerMAY

The end of May sure did sneak up on me!! I've had the worst cold - it came with a fever and 12 hours of sleep a night for the past few days. Pretty sure I've been pushing myself to hard.  It's the end of the school year and I'm in the thick of field trips, fun days, soccer, and end-of-the-year shows. Honestly, I love it but it does get a bit chaotic. And I love having the boys home for the summer....at least in June. Ask me again in August!!

Today's doll came together quickly.  Like, an hour and a half! I'm fairly quick but not generally THAT quick...

The swimsuit can be worn alone or under the tail.  The dress is meant to be seaweed and can be worn alone or with a tail.  It's not the finest sheet I've ever made.  There's a phrase I see occasionally that I sort of love/hate: finished not perfect.  I love the idea of taking something to completion and then letting it go - it's easy to fuss over something forever.  But I don't like the implication that you can complete something without giving it your best effort and calling it done just to be done. If I didn't feel this wasn't good enough, I wouldn't post it. I try to push myself to do more and try more. I encourage everyone to do the same!!

For more in the series, see Paper Thin Personas, Miss Missy's Paper Dolls, and Pop Culture and Paper Dolls!

Paper Doll Collaboration - Cosplay/Fandom

Here we are, another month over! I can't even handle how quickly this year is going.  It's nuts!! For April, I have another installment of the 2019 Collaboration paper doll.  The theme is cosplay or fandom.  I'm not a cosplay kind of person.  In fact, I'm trying to dress like it's the 1940s at the Morgantown paper doll party this coming weekend and I fell...overwhelmed. So I bought pants and a blouse.  I'm really a jeans & t-shirt kind of person. We'll see how it goes....

Anyway, cosplay is outside my comfort zone. 

I decided to create a set of costumes based on Adventure Time.  It's such a fabulous cartoon an my kids LOVE it.  I still don't think I've seen every episode.  The kids probably have, though.  What I love about Adventure Time is it's very complex for a "simple" kid's cartoon.  There are lots of strong women and most (if not all) characters manage to shatter or subvert stereotypes.  It's pretty great.

For my fandom paper doll, I went with Princess Bubblegum.  She rules over her own kingdom, is a genius scientist, and also manages to be a good friend/mentor to the main characters Finn and Jake.  LOVE her!!! Also, she has a huge variety of outfits over the course of the series, which I also love!

The outfit on the left is her "typical" everyday outfit - a dress and crown.  The middle outfit is one of her many lab coat outfits.  And the last one is a dress/hoodie/leggings/boots combo that shows up in "What Was Missing", one of my favorite episodes.

For more fandom inspired outfits, check out Paper Thin Personas, Miss Missy, and Pop Culture and Paper Dolls!

Paper Doll Collaboration - Sweet Treats Costumes

I swear - I haven't dropped off the planet!! Honestly, if you want to see the most current projects, follow me on Instagram (@julieamatthews).  Even that has been sporadic lately.  I just wrapped up two submissions to the souvenir packs for the 2019 Paper Doll Convention so that's been fun! A lot of the stuff I'm working on right now simply isn't ready to share.

I'm also heading to Morgantown! There's still time to register and join in on the fun.  This will be my first time to Morgantown and I'm really excited.  I haven't been anywhere alone in TEN YEARS so that'll be an experience....!

Ok, ok....here's a fun wardrobe sheet to print....

The theme for this month was sweet style.  I decided to go crazy with candy stripes and a bit of Rococo flair.  The dress on the left is supposed to be a bit of an ice cream sundae.  It may not entirely work but it's still pretty cool.

For more in the series, check out Paper Thin Personas, Miss Missy's Paper Doll, and Pop Culture and Paper Dolls.

Paper Doll Collaboration 2019 - Awards Season

Let me start by saying I did not expect this to be the ONLY thing I posted in February!! I draw every day, but not all of it makes it on here.  And I haven't settled on a project for the ol' blog yet.  I'm still percolating...

So today is the next installment of the collaboration project. I'll admit, I have very little interest in awards season. Some people love it. I don't.  The dresses are always interesting, naturally.  If I have any interest in ANY awards show, it's probably the Grammys.  This year one of my absolute favorite musicians WON for the first time - Brandi Carlile.  I swear, she's been a big part of the soundtrack of my life since I saw her in Boston in 2007.  Love her SO much!

I feel like the older I get, the fewer people I know at these award things! For this sheet, I have Brandi Carlile in a fantastic suit.  Next, is Jennifer Lopez partly because I knew who she was and partly because I loved her dress.  Last is Meghan Trainor for much the same reason! I also have a love of women's suits!

You can check out the remainder of the collaboration project at Paper Thin Personas, Miss Missy, and Pop Culture and Paper Dolls.

Paper Doll Collaboration 2019

It's been a while since I posted. I had a list of administrative stuff I wanted to get done in January, so I've been focusing on that instead of drawing.  Most of that is done (including a little update to the appearance of the ol' blog here....!) and I plan on getting back to drawing & posting.

Today is the first installment of the 2019 paper doll collaboration project! The base doll was designed by Rachel Cohen of Paper Thin Personas.  I'm really excited about working from her base!!

My doll is a very slightly modified version of Rachel's.  The idea behind the collaboration paper doll is flexibility - in theory, every outfit will fit every doll across the project.  There may be exceptions, of course (like hairstyles), but we really aim for consistency.

The theme for this first installment is "trendy".  I will tell you that as a late 30-something mother of two sons "trendy" isn't really in my vocabulary! It's jeans & t-shirts most days. I'm also not much of a haute couture fan.  There was a time when I really enjoyed runway shows but it's become so much artifice and so little actual clothing that I just can't be bothered anymore.

All that said, many people who know better than I do defined a few trendy things for 2019. Statement sleeves, pleats, and jumpsuits are all considered trendy right now.  The blouse in this set is designed to wear with either the skirt or over the jumpsuit.

There are a few people participating this year and I'll update the links as they go live: Paper Thin Personas, Miss Missy's Paper Dolls, boots over at Pop Culture and Paper Dolls, and Cory Jensen over on Facebook!