My Paper Dolls for the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con Art Show

Yes, I am back for my third year at the San Diego International Comic-Con Art Show! I started working on my latest paper dolls about a month ago and thankfully finished the last one just a few days ago. Art set-up is on Wednesday, July 8th, 2015 upstairs at the San Diego Convention Center Sails Pavilion. 

For this year's art show I really wanted to create mostly fan-based paper dolls relevant to Comic-Con's celebration of comics and other pop-culture art forms  I originally made 12 paper dolls specifically for the Art Show and at the last minute decided to nix one of my mermaids that just wasn't cutting it for me. Instead, I will be showcasing my Mermaid Paper Doll #111 "Lupita in Calvin Klein" which I made several months ago for my Etsy shop. She's one of my favorite mermaids that I've created and thought she'd be perfect for the art show especially since I featured another version of Lupita last year.

In addition, instead of showcasing a heavy dose of mermaid paper dolls like the last two years, I decided to make a variety of other paper dolls. This art show is the first time I will be featuring my fairy paper dolls which are all inspired by Disney's Tinkerbell and some of her fairy friends.

Below are my final 12 paper dolls and their inspirations behind their creations for the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con Art Show. Enjoy!

FAIRY PAPER DOLLS

Fairy Paper Doll #17 - Haute Couture Tinkerbell

"Haute Couture Tinkerbell" was highly inspired by Peter Pan's feisty, little fairy friend, Tinkerbell. I wanted to preserve as much of Tinkerbell's iconic look when translating it into my Tinkerbell paper doll. Of course, my Tink comes a bit more fashionably embellished with nature's finest threads!  

Fairy Paper Doll #18 - Haute Couture Iridessa

"Haute Couture Iridessa" fairy paper doll is my vision of Tinkerbell's friend, Iridessa. Iridessa is quick-witted and one of the brightest fairies in Pixie Hollow. She also loves sunflowers. I wanted to make Iridessa a dress to match her glowing personality by creating this look of layers upon layers of sunny, yellow flowers.

Fairy Paper Doll #19 - Haute Couture Silvermist

"Haute Couture Silvermist" fairy paper doll is a re-envisioned look of another friend of Tinkerbell named Silvermist. Silvermist is described as an off-beat, free-spirited water fairy and her favorite flower is the water lily. I envisioned Silvermist as the beautiful muse to Claude Monet's waterlily paintings. Serene, beautiful, and "cool in blue"!

Also, Silvermist was requested to be made by my 6-year old 'Tinkerbell and Friends' fangirl niece, Isa. She gave me her thumbs-up approval when I showed her the final look of my Silvermist paper doll. Thanks, Isa!!!

Fairy Paper Doll #20 - Haute Couture Rosetta

"Haute Couture Rosetta" is inspired by Tinkerbell's fairy friend, Rosetta. Rosetta is a well-mannered yet sassy garden fairy who wears a rose-petal dress. She embodies the fairy version of a southern belle. I wanted my Rosetta fairy paper doll to appear as a vintage fairy made of soft, delicate roses and one would only find her flying in and out of an old, secret cottage garden somewhere in the deep south.

MERMAID PAPER DOLLS

Mermaid Paper Doll #118 - Ode to Daenerys

"An Ode to Daenerys" Mermaid Paper Doll is based on the character Daenerys Targaryen from the HBO television series "Game of Thrones" and portrayed by actress Emilia Clarke. Daenerys is also known as Daenerys Stormborn or more importantly as the Mother of Dragons. She is also one of the last confirmed members from House Targaryen. She has very typical Targaryen features with her silver-blonde hair and purple eyes.

My mermaid version of Daenerys is based on a gown she wore during the Season 4 finale "The Children". It was one of her more interesting costumes worn and thought it could be beautifully translated into a mermaid-appropriate underwater fashion. And, personally, the end result was quite near perfection! Love it!

Mermaid Paper Doll #119 - Ode to Missandei

My "Ode to Missandei" mermaid paper doll is based on another "Game of Thrones" character. Missandei is a Naathi scribe who speaks many languages. She is described as having eyes like molten gold and is played by actress Nathalie Emmanuel on the television series. Strong-willed and intelligent she is Daenerys Targaryen's handmaiden and trusted advisor - pretty much they are like gal pals! 

My Missandei mermaid's look is inspired by a costume of gorgeous blue worn by Nathalie during one of Season 5's episodes. I wanted to keep Missandei's look simple yet beautiful just like on the show and perfectly contrasts yet complements Daenerys' more elaborate costumes.

Mermaid Paper Doll #111 - Lupita in Calvin Klein

After seeing actress Lupita Nyong'o wearing her gorgeous custom pearl gown at the 2015 Academy Awards, I knew I had to create a mermaid paper doll version. Even Lupita herself said she wanted this pearl dress to be "an homage to the sea"! Mermaid Paper Doll #111 is the second Lupita-inspired mermaid paper doll to be shown at the San Diego Comic-Con Art Show.

BEBE PAPER DOLLS

Bebe Paper Doll #31 - Hello Kitty Ballerina

"Hello Kitty Ballerina" is my second Hello Kitty-inspired Bebe Paper Doll made for the Comic-Con Art Show. This latest one wears a ballerina gown made completely of Hello Kitty bows. I can only imagine this ballerina finishing her Hello Kitty-themed performance in front of a sold out crowd of hard-core Hello Kitty fans! In the end, she is given a bouquet made of red bows and a Hello Kitty balloon! Bravo!!!

Bebe Paper Doll #32 - Princess Peach

My boys, Paco and Tomás, are big Super Mario fanboys and I wanted to make a paper doll of a Super Mario character in honor of them! So what better character to pick than the one and only Princess Peach! My "Princess Peach" Bebe Paper Doll was an absolute fun to make and I think paper dolls Mario and Luigi would totally rescue her from the clutches of paper doll Bowser! And my boys think this paper doll is the best of the lot…bonus points!!!

Bebe Paper Doll #33 - Kiki's Delivery Service

"Kiki's Delivery Service" Bebe Paper Doll is based on Hayao Miyazaki's 1989 Japanese animated film fantasy about a 13-year old witch named Kiki discovering her place in the world. It's a gorgeous animation as is all Miyazaki's films. This Bebe Paper Doll is my second Miyazaki character made for the Comic-Con Art Show (last year I made Sophie from "Howl's Moving Castle").

I loved making this Bebe version of Kiki! I really wanted to capture every detail about her down to the little cat embroidery (representing her cat Jiji) on the corner of her dress. Of course, the one accessory that had to be near perfection was Kiki's big red bow on her head! 

Bebe Paper Doll #34 - Daredevil's Karen Page

"Daredevil's Karen Page" Bebe Paper Doll is based on the character Karen Page from the Netflix series "Daredevil". "Daredevil" is one of my favorite new shows and I really wanted to create a paper doll inspired by one of its character to represent my fangirl love for that show! I decided on making Nelson and Murdock's Law Firm secretary, Karen Page, played by actress Deborah Ann Woll. 

I originally wanted to make a paper doll based on "Daredevil" nurse Claire Temple (played by the gorgeous Rosario Dawson) but since Karen had a more distinctive wardrobe selection I opted to do her instead. Maybe next year, Claire!

My "Karen" Bebe Paper Doll wore a dress (a Paul Smith Black Label Tweed Paneled Dress) inspired by her 'Rabbit in a Snow Storm' episode. I loved the challenge of trying to capture the tweed look of her dress and all the subtle details of her accessories (e.g. bracelets and her very own exclusive Daredevil 'DD' designer black bag!).

MISCELLANEOUS PAPER DOLL

16th Century Flemish Catwoman

"16th century Flemish Catwoman" paper doll is the first of its kind! She is inspired by French Photographer Sacha Goldberger's Super Flemish Superhero Portraits. I fell in love with his Super Flemish portraits the moment I first saw them and they are worth checking out here! My "Flemish Catwoman" is out on the prowl and has her claws set on a rare bird and its birdcage!

I hope you enjoyed my final 12 paper dolls for the Comic-Con Art Show! I still have to get them all framed (I already selected their individual backdrops as seen in each photograph) and labelled but that shouldn't take too long to do! Also, if you were lucky enough to get Con badges this year, come stop by the Art Show located upstairs in the Sails Pavilion and check out my paper ladies! In addition, all my paper dolls will be up for auction during the entire Comic-Con run and any paper dolls not sold will be added to my Etsy shop Rock Paper Tekla. 

I look forward to sharing pictures of my art exhibit as well as my time at the 2015 San Diego International Comic-Con in San Diego in a later blog post. And thanks for stopping by!

A New Season: My Latest Paper Dolls

March has been a good month to catch up on making paper dolls for my Etsy shop! I was able to make a handful of Mermaid Paper Dolls, a couple of Bebe Paper Dolls, and several Menagerie Paper Dolls for this latest group. Each and every paper doll was a pleasure to create and as always I wish I could keep them all!

I have also decided that all paper doll sales through the month of June will go towards my husband's latest fundraising efforts with Team-In-Training (TNT) for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Carlos is currently training with TNT for the 2015 San Diego International Triathlon and, in addition to training, he will be raising funds to help find cures and better treatments for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's Disease, and myeloma. Also, if you would like to make a personal donation in support of Carlos's efforts with TNT, please follow the link below (all donations are 100% tax deductible and any amount is very much appreciated!):

http://pages.teamintraining.org/sd/sdtri15/cbacalski#My-Fundraising-Page

And here are my latest paper dolls and their inspirations! Enjoy!

BEBE PAPER DOLLS

Bebe Paper Doll #29 - Baby Doll

Bebe Paper Doll #29 "Baby Doll" is an ode to the vintage paper doll cut-outs. I thought it would be fun to create a Bebe Paper Doll inspired by the cutesy, Golden Age paper dolls of the 1950s - think of Mad Men's little Sally Draper lovingly playing with her paper dolls just as her mother, Betty, had before her!

Bebe Paper Doll #30 - Selfie

Bebe Paper Doll #30 "Selfie" is actually based on me! I've always wanted to be this fantastic artist and paint a fantastic self-portrait but I'm not a very a good painter! I do, however, think I am a pretty good paper doll artist and decided why not make a paper doll self-portrait?!? I happen to love jumpsuits (one of my favorites is this blue jumpsuit from Anthropologie, above) and have a deep fondness for wearing animal headwear (my latest wolf hat/scarf, above)! So this Bebe doll is also wearing a jumpsuit complete with eyeglasses, strappy sandals, and funky animal accessories (bunny barrette and deer bag). Oh, I also had this Bebe doll sporting a wrist watch because in reality I should wear one more often!

MERMAID PAPER DOLLS

Mermaid Paper Doll #111 - Lupita in Calvin Klein

After seeing actress Lupita Nyong'o wearing her gorgeous custom pearl gown at the 2015 Academy Awards, I knew I had to create a mermaid paper doll version. Even Lupita herself, said she wanted this pearl dress to be "an homage to the sea"! Mermaid Paper Doll #111, is my third Lupita-inspired mermaid doll and this one is multi-jointed at the arms and her mermaid tail.

Mermaid Paper Doll #112 - Lupita in Giambattista Valli

I couldn't resist making another Lupita-inspired mermaid paper doll! This next mermaid doll is based on her 2015 Golden Globes lilac-hued gown by Giambattista Valli. I loved how the dress flowed like a waterfall made from purple flower petals!

Mermaid Paper Doll #113 - Fleur de Papier

Mermaid Paper Doll #113 "Fleur de Papier" or "Paper Flower" was inspired by the French outdoor flower shops. Also, I wanted to make a mermaid paper doll that felt like Springtime and flowers always reminds me of this new season. 

Mermaid Paper Doll #114 - Madame M

My "Madame M" (M stands for Mermaid!) mermaid paper doll is a tribute to John Singer Sargent's painting "Portrait of Madame X". Sargent's portrait of a young socialite named Virginie Gautreau has always been a memorable painting from my youth with Madame X's pale skin contrasted against her dark colored dress. This painting was actually quite scandalous back in its days in France.

Mermaid Paper Doll #115 - Mermaid in Blue Floral Dress

Mermaid Paper Doll #115 "Mermaid in Blue Floral Dress" is inspired by a recent exhibit called "Black Dolls" at Balboa Park's Mingei International Museum. The exhibition showcased unique handmade African-American dolls made between 1850 and 1940. I was especially fond of the small details embroidered or sewn onto each dolls, like, the stitching of red thread or red accessories and how it beautifully contrasts against the doll's dark skin. In addition, many of the dolls wore pretty blue or denim-colored dresses that I totally fell in love with!

Mermaid Paper Doll #116 - Raven

Mermaid Paper Doll #116 "Raven" is based on the intriguing bird, the raven. With its striking black plumage, the raven gives off such a dark and romantic presence, and I wanted my mermaid paper doll to have a similar look as well! In addition, I wanted her to appear  like she was gliding or flying through the waters as effortlessly as birds appear in the sky.

Mermaid Paper Doll #117 - Art Deco

Mermaid Paper Doll #117 "Art Deco" is influenced by the Art Deco movement of the 1920s and 1930s. Art Deco is not only an architectural style (e.g. San Diego City and County Administration Building in pink hue built in 1938, above; Cincinnati Union Terminal rail station with emerald green water fountain built in 1933, above), but an overall design aesthetic found in jewelry, clothing, furniture, and handicrafts. I wanted my "Art Deco" mermaid doll to reflect this influential visual arts design style with its geometry, color, energy, and ornamentation.

MENAGERIE PAPER DOLLS

Menagerie Paper Doll - Vida y Muerte

Menagerie Paper Doll "Vida y Muerte" or "Life and Death" represents this union of opposites and just how life and death are beautifully intertwined. Death is a part of life even for mermaids!

Menagerie Paper Doll - Steampunk Ariel

Menagerie Paper Doll "Steampunk Ariel" is my version of Ariel the Mermaid dressed in her best Steampunk wardrobe. Above are a couple of other artists' versions of Steampunk Ariel (one by Mecanique Fairy and the other by Steam Ingenious). I liked to think my Steampunk Ariel would sport a more modern hair style with her short bob and still fiery red hair!

Menagerie Paper Doll - Sea Maiden & her Sea Horse

Menagerie Paper Doll "Sea Maiden & her Sea Horse" is my version of a mermaid riding a seahorse. Of course, this concept is not a new one but I thought I would make my seahorse with a real horse head and all dressed up and ready to hit the underwater scene!

I hope you enjoyed my latest paper dolls! I will be taking a break from making paper dolls for the month of April and starting sometime in May, I will begin making my paper dolls for the San Diego Comic Con Art Show in early July. The majority of my paper dolls for the Art Show will be fangirl-based so if anyone has any suggestions on who I could possibly make, I'd love to hear them!

Thanks for being here!