Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays!

 If your December has been anything like my December, it's been super busy! Two birthdays, a quick trip to Boston with Jenny Taliadoros to see Ralph Hodgden, a winter concert at the school, multiple visits to the one of the boys' schools (for good things!), several doctor's appointments, and family festivities...It's been a lot! I love being busy with the kids and I know those days are numbered, but I'm looking forward to some downtime, for sure. 

This year's holiday card comes from my ongoing Emma McKay project. I started thinking about what Betsy McCall or Dolly Dingle or other "every girl" kinds of paper dolls might be like today. I took that idea and turned it into a calendar. You can grab the calendar here.

Right-click on the image to save it at full resolution. 

Happy Holidays to you & yours, whatever you celebrate. And here's hoping the blog will be a bit more active next year!

Happy Holidays!

 I had every intention of posting this on Christmas but clearly that didn't happy. December is always a really busy month for me, but it was REALLY hectic this year! Regardless, I wanted to share this with all of you. (Click on the image and right-click to save it full sized)

Whatever you celebrate, I hope it's been terrific! Happy holidays, happy New Year, and most of all Happy Paperdolling!! See you all next year :)

Happy Holidays!

 It's the first day of winter here in the frigid Northern Hemisphere. Seems like the perfect time to share this year's holiday card! 

Right-click to download and print

This year's card was inspired by the Glitter book I worked on with David Wolfe and the 1980s. If the doll looks familiar, it's because I reworked the Halloween Witchtober doll for this one. I really wanted something bold and bright. This has been a better year for a lot of us and I wanted to celebrate that.

I also helped David create his holiday paper doll based on the movie "White Christmas". It's always fun working on David's projects but this one especially. It's one of my favorite Christmas movies, My abilities have grown leaps & bounds in no small part because I the work I do with David. He's been in my thoughts so much recently. 

You can grab the two-page set on the Paperdoll Review Facebook page as a PDF download. 

For more holiday fun, you can grab last year's holiday paper doll here (even though it posted in 2022, I made it in 2021). AND the 2020 holiday paper doll is here (with the Nora and Nellie book I created from it here). 

That's a lot of holiday cheer! Whatever you celebrate, I hope it's excellent!

Happy New Year!

Hello all! I think the very first thing I need to say is that I did not intentionally skip all of 2021 on the ol' blog. It just sort of happened. Like essentially everyone, 2021 was just plain tough for me. I know I've mentioned a few times on the blog that I have kids and that I took care of my aging grandmother. Both of those took almost all of my attention last year.

First, we kept the kids home for fully remote schooling. They left school in March 2020 and didn't step foot inside the school again until September 2021. I'm incredibly grateful that our family was able to choose that route, that I had the time & ability to help the kids, and that, overall, they still learned quite a bit. It was hard on me, for sure, and I'd rather not do it again. Two kids, one in middle school, one in elementary, different start times, different lunch times, different end times.... UGH. 

The boys, hard at work during remote school

 

And then, my grandmother. My grandfather died in June 2016, leaving my grandmother alone in her home. She had pretty serious macular degeneration but seemed in reasonably good health for 85. So I asked her to live with us. Six months after my grandfather died, she had a stroke. It wasn't a big one, but it meant that she could no longer live alone. She came to live with us in October 2017 right after my youngest started kindergarten. From that point on, her health declined. She had one serious fall after another. She was almost entirely blind and very nearly deaf. It was difficult for us and difficult for her. Heart wrenching, to say the least. She had a major fall in February 2020, breaking dozens of bones, and just never fully recovered. She died in November after a short stay in hospice.

I'm sharing all of this because it feels like the right thing to do at this moment. And I wanted to share it here because paper dolls and the amazing community of paper doll artists & collectors had an enormous impact on getting me through 2021. So thank you to all of my paper doll friends. You're all the best! 

Over the next few weeks, I'd like to share some of the things I worked on over the course of 2021, come up with some goals for the ol' blog, and get ready for the 2022 (should have been 2020) Paper Doll Convention! So check in again - I'm getting back into it!

Happy Holidays!

     It's been a weird year.... The ol' blog hasn't gotten a lot of love this year. I've been working on lots of things but that doesn't always translate to blog posts. I've been lucky enough to work on many of the books released by Paperdoll Review this year, including my own Fun with Mom and Rose & Ivy. And I've been able to help out with both Paper Studio Magazine and Paperdoll Review. The two magazines are merging, if you haven't heard, and I think it's a great opportunity to see so much of what the paper doll world has to offer. Of all the projects I've worked on this year, Marilyn Henry's are the most meaningful. I never got to meet her but working on her art has left a powerful impression on me and my art. I hope to be half the artist she was! She will be dearly missed.

    Part of the reason that the blog hasn't been active is art and part of it is life. Like SO many, my whole family has been home since March. My kids have been fully remote the whole year (our choice), my husband switched jobs (for the better!!), and I've been juggling all of my stuff while taking care of my 90 year old grandmother. We've been lucky to stay safe & healthy and that's really all that matters.

    I did manage to make a holiday paper doll. I wanted a 1920s themed doll since this is 2020. It felt appropriate. I was supposed to go to my first convention in 2020, Morgantown again, and our local parties. None of that happened. And that's ok. There's always next year. For now, though, stay safe and healthy. And have the happiest of holidays!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 14

Today is the last day of the Little Ladies paper doll set.  Overall, this set was ok.  Not one of my favorites, admittedly, but I'm happy I completed it.  I may color it at some point - I may like it better then.

My goal with every project (especially the more experimental December projects) is to learn something new.  With this set, I didn't so much learn something new as refine some things I already knew.  I've learned to really love ArtRage - it's a powerful program that is absolutely ideal for drawing.  I love it.  It's totally intuitive and it does many things better than Photoshop.  I highly recommend it (and, as usual, I'm not paid to say that. I really do love it.) and the price can't be beat. I've also been trying to pay attention to layout and backgrounds.  That's something I'm very happy with in this set.

Right-click to download and print

For those of you keeping track, this year's December set came out just shy of 30.  I have 14 outfit sheets and one doll sheet.  So technically it's 28 outfits and two dolls.  Not bad if you ask me!

If you would like to download the whole set, you can find a pdf of it here.

I'm not entirely sure what my plan is for 2018.  I have some projects in the works that I can't talk about just yet.  I also got a computerized cutter (Silhouette Cameo) for Christmas and I'll be experimenting with that. And, as always, I love suggestions! I'm even thinking about next December's project.  Never too soon, right?!

See you all next year!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 13

I hope everyone who celebrates it had a happy Christmas! My family has always had a loooong day on Christmas.  First, it's presents from Santa.  Even when I was a kid, that's what we'd do.  After that, cinnamon rolls for breakfast.  Put on a new outfit & head to Nana's house.  When I was a kid, my Nana and Grandpa lived around the corner.  Now, my parents (the current Nana and Poppy) live 45 minutes away.  Still close in my opinion! We see them all the time and it's great!

My boys and I like to take selfies!! Here's our Christmas morning selfie.  My grandmother (who lives with us now) and my husband are less enthusiastic about it! I read on a parenting blog once about moms who avoid being in pictures or are so busy taking pictures that they're never in them! I refuse to be that mom and I take selfies WAY too much!!

Anyway, we had a great Christmas at home and with family.  Now for today's Little Ladies:

Right-click to download and print

This set is based on fashion plates from 1897 - I think that might be the latest year to date. I might modify the skirt on the right at some point. It's kinda boring, but I tried to be somewhat faithful to my source material.


Friday I'll have the last of this year's collaboration paper doll.  THAT has been a really fun project! So look for that!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 12

Merry Christmas to everyone out there celebrating! And Happy Holidays to everyone, too!

We had a quiet Christmas Eve and I was able to draw some beautiful fur trimmed outfits yesterday. I'm really happy with how they came out. I thought a set with fur would be very appropriate for a white Christmas - which we are having here in Massachusetts for the first time in years!

Right-click to download and print

Also, I solved my ongoing Surface pen problems. I ordered two different third-party pens, and I gotta say, I like them both better than the official Surface pen. One of them has a button that's pre-programmed to the eraser function in ArtRage and Photoshop, so that's handy. Hopefully these pens last for a little while...

Anyway, have a happy holiday! I'll be back with another set on the 27th! 

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 11

There have been some challenges this month - a busy schedule, technical difficulties, and (admittedly) a lack of motivation.  I haven't been happy with every sheet in this series, but overall they've been pretty good.  Today's set is one that I really like and I'm glad I took the time to get it right.  I hate rushing but I hate falling short of my expectations & schedule, too.

Right-click to download and print

The asymmetrical button on the right set is one of my favorite details! I really like both sets today.

One more thing to note today -  happy birthday to my husband! I say it every year, but I wouldn't be able to be an artist without the support of my husband.  He's a constant encouragement & it means the world to me.

There WILL be a set on Christmas morning so check back for that!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 10

Today's outfit sheet almost didn't happen.  As a result, it got a bit rushed.

So we all know about my ongoing love/hate saga with my Surface Pro 3.  When it works, I love it.  Drawing directly on the screen is just the best.  I would LOVE a Surface Studio with the Surface Dial.  However.... when it isn't working, I'm very, very frustrated. 

On Monday night, as I was getting ready to draw this sheet, my Surface pen broke.  My THIRD Surface pen.  Thankfully, my dear engineer husband rigged it up to work for now and I ordered a replacement pen.  I'm trying a third-party pen this time around because 1) dropping a hundred dollars on new pens is starting to annoy me and 2) if it's a cheap pen and it works, great.  If it doesn't, at least I didn't spend a hundred dollars on it.

So that's my rant for today.

Right-click to download and print

I didn't include hats today.  These are evening dresses and I really didn't feel like drawing hair.  If nothing else, I try to be honest! And in that spirit, I want to tell you how much I honestly LOVE ArtRage 5! This whole series has been created primarily in ArtRage, and I couldn't be happier.  I sketch with the pencil tool, ink with the technical pen, and it looks great. One big thing I love is the flip function.  In Photoshop, if I copy and flip something, it flips on a weird axis.  In ArtRage, it flips my image more intuitively.  Pictures would help....maybe I'll write about it in the New Year.

Anyway...barring any more technical difficulties, I'll have another sheet on Saturday!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 9

There comes a time every December when I'm not sure I can finish.  It's tough to pull a month-long project off! This year has been no exception.  I'll give it my best!!

Right-click to download and print

These dresses are from 1874.  Many of this month's sets would be better as one-piece outfits.  I don't make a lot of those for paper dolls in general, and I really didn't want to for this project.  I love mix and match options! I've modified almost every set in this series in some way that's different from my source material.  And that's ok! It's a reference, not a perfect reproduction!

Anyway...come back for more on the 21st! 

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 8

As I expected, I was a bit late posting this today! We had a nice party with many of my son's friends yesterday and I just didn't finish this. So forgive me if the lines are a bit imperfect today - I'll admit, I rushed a bit!!

Right-click to download and print

I should be back on track for the rest of this week. Hopefully! And remember, I keep this going til the end of the month so check back after Christmas, too!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 7

We're halfway through December! It's been a crazy busy month (like every year....) but going well.  Today is my oldest son's birthday.  How he got to be 8 is beyond me - I feel like I was still pregnant with him like a minute ago!

So happy birthday to this cool guy.  He's my mini scientist, rad selfie taker, and overall fantastic little man.  Happy birthday Noah :)

And now....another outfit sheet!

Right-click to download and print

I came across a fashion plate from 1885 that had these great dresses with asymmetrical top skirts.  They were so complimentary and gorgeous!

Remember to come back on Sunday for another sheet. I'm *hoping* to get it up early but we have two birthday parties on Saturday! I'll do what I can :)

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 6

I didn't realize until I was finished with this set that the fashion plate I referenced was from 1898.  The first set of dresses were also from 1898! Maybe I just like that year in fashion....

Right-click to download and print

My next set will not be from 1898! There are so many great fashion plate examples to work from that it can be hard to choose.  I guess that's good, especially for a project like this!

Is there a year in the Victorian era you'd really like to set represented? Let me know and I'll fit it in. Come back Friday for another sheet!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 5

December is as third of the way finished, which I find hard to believe! Also, I'm officially making these as-needed instead of well in advance!! Things got hectic and I fell behind.... I'm still confident that I'll be able to meet my deadlines, so you should definitely expect another set on the 13th!

Right-click to download and print

We've finally had our first snow here in New England.  From what I understand, pretty much everyone on the Eastern seaboard from Mexico to Canada got at least a little snow! Crazy!! We've got a lot ahead of us this month (two birthdays, Christmas, etc....) but this set is still a priority!!

Check back on the 13th and make sure I'm still on-task :)

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 4

Winter is finally on its way to New England! December snow is nice -- just enough to cover the ground, have a white Christmas, etc.  March and April snowstorms are significantly less fun!  But there's something almost amazing about the first snow and it's coming this weekend!

Today's Little Ladies wardrobe sheet features fur-trimmed jackets and skirts from circa 1893. I took a few liberties with my source material.  I'm not always crazy about giant bows.... And the hats for this series have been a challenge....

Right-click to download

I'd like to say that I'm super far ahead in this project and they're all just waiting to be posted.  I'd like to, but it would be a lie! I always manage to pull it off, though!

Let me know what you think so far - there will be another wardrobe sheet on Monday!

Little Ladies: Outfit Sheet 3

For today's installment of the Little Ladies, I wanted to make ballgowns.  I'm not totally happy with the skirt on the left.  I've said many times that "good enough" is sometimes adequate.  I'd like every drawing to be perfect, of course, but that just isn't how these things work!

Right-click to download and print today's Little Ladies sheet

These ballgowns are loosely based on these ballgowns. I may go back and edit the gown on the right.  I'm not sure yet.  In my reference image, the overskirt was all lace, but my wrist simply wasn't up for that challenge!

The next Little Ladies set will go up on the 9th - I'm running on an every/other schedule this year!

Miss Bunny's Spring Wardrobe - Outfit 4

Miss Bunny has been a fun little project this week - I hope you're all enjoying it, too.  Sometimes I need to break the mold and try something a little different.

Today Miss Bunny gets her Easter dress.  Now, we aren't a religious family in the slightest and we really celebrate a secular Easter.  It's a nice day to get all of the kids together & spend time as a family.

Right-click to download and print

I'm not entirely sure if the flower wreath will actually work. I haven't cut this out yet. I'm not entirely sure how to.  Sometimes I make something pretty for the sake of being pretty. Let's just call it that!

You can download the whole mini series in one handy pdf right here! Maybe I'll cut this out with the kiddos this weekend.  I hope all of you who are celebrating Easter have a lovely holiday, and to the rest of you, happy spring!

Miss Bunny's Spring Wardrobe - Outfit 3

My nieces have always had the most adorable wardrobes! One thing I always liked were their little raincoats.  They've gotten older & cooler, so I'm not sure if they still have cute raincoats.  But they did when they were little. Boys raincoats are much less exciting....

Right-click to download and print

I have to admit, I struggled with my color choices here.  It was tough having a background color and I didn't want something predominantly yellow because I did that with the first outfit.  I settled on pink & orange.  It's not perfect but it's not bad either.

Tomorrow is the last day of Miss Bunny's Spring Wardrobe and I'll have the pdf ready to go, too!

Miss Bunny's Spring Wardrobe - Outfit 2

Today's Miss Bunny is a bit different than yesterday's.  Instead of a frilly dress, Miss Bunny is getting her hands (paws?) dirty.

Right-click to download and print

For Christmas, my husband got me some gardening projects.  I've never really tried growing veggies, but I will this year! I started all of my little plants from seed last week....so it won't be too long before I look like Miss Bunny here. Wish me luck!

Check in again tomorrow for another outfit for Miss Bunny and a pdf on Friday!