A Late Winter: My Latest Paper Dolls

I finally found a weekend late this winter to make more paper dolls for my Etsy Shop. I can't believe I haven't made any new paper dolls since last October. It has been a busy last few months mostly due to the hustle and bustle of family life and all the holidays that happened along the way. 

But I am thankful for that open weekend and getting back to what I love to do! Once I got started on the first paper doll I couldn't stop making them and I still have many more brewing inside my head that I hope to make on my next available weekend!

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

MERMAID PAPER DOLLS

Mermaid Paper Doll #95 - Green Anemone

Mermaid Paper Doll #95 was inspired by another underwater beauty, the Giant Green Anemone. I love how stunning sea anemones look with their many layers and mix of colors.

Mermaid Paper Doll #96 - Abyss

'Abyss' was clearly influenced by the deep ocean known as the abyssal zone. I imagined her  masked in a dark grey camouflage with hints of opaqueness like the creatures that live in this vast depth of watery darkness.

 Mermaid Paper Doll #97 - Vintage Romance

'Vintage Romance' Mermaid Paper Doll was mainly influenced by the rich colors of Art Nouveau. Elegant muted earth tones and delicate jewel-like tones of this mermaid paper doll highlight such colors in the Art Nouveau style. 

These next three mermaids (#98 - #100) are tributes to three characters from the outstanding cartoon series "Avatar: The Last Airbender".

Mermaid Paper Doll #98 - Fire (An Ode to Azula)

Mermaid Paper Doll #98 "Fire" is my interpretation of the character Azula, Princess of the Fire Nation. Azula is the key adversary to the heroes of "Avatar: The Last Airbender". She was a fire bending prodigy, very cunning, narcissistic and crazy as hell!

Mermaid Paper Doll #99 - Water (An Ode to Katara)

Mermaid Paper Doll #99 "Water" is my ode to Katara, the waterbending master, of the Southern Water Tribe. She was characterized as spiritual, resourceful, compassionate, and an incredibly fierce and talented waterbender.

Mermaid Paper Doll #100 - Earth (An Ode to Toph Beifong)

Mermaid Paper Doll #100 "Earth" is my tribute to Toph Beifong, earthbending master from the Earth Kingdom. Toph was by far one of the most powerful of earthbenders of her time and she was also the discoverer of metalbending. She is one of my favorite characters from the Avatar series. 

Born blind, Toph had a unique style to her earthbending that made her both unpredictable and unconventional. She loved battling and took great pride in her earthbending skills. Toph was characterized as independent, confident, tomboyish,  stubborn and very direct.  Mermaid #100, adorned with green armor like scales with hints of silver metal, is ready for any battle!

Mermaid Paper Doll #101 - Lupita in Miu Miu

Mermaid Paper Doll #101 is based on the talented and gorgeous actress Lupita Nyong'o.  The Miu Miu dress that she wore to the Los Angeles premiere of "12 Years a Slave" was one of my favorites! Even though her dress was a pale pink hue, I opted to show her mermaid version in white. I imagined as a mermaid, she made her dress from aged white whale bones and ocean flora!

Lupita has been my favorite style icon on the Red Carpet this past award season. She just looks smashing in everything she wears and I can tell you this won't be the last Mermaid Paper Doll inspired by her.

MENAGERIE PAPER DOLLS

Hipster Rock Merman & Boho Tekla Centaur

My newest Menagerie Paper Dolls are dedicated to my Mom and Dad. I used personalized rubber stamps made of my parents faces on their wedding day by the talented Etsy artist Kozue. I originally had them made two years ago for their 50th Wedding Anniversary but didn't get a chance to use them.

I thought since my Dad was a sailor in the Navy it would be fun to show him as a merman. And not just any merman, a hipster one because my Dad to this day has always been pretty fashionably hip even with his handlebar mustache from the 1970s through the 1980s. My Mom was never a fan of sailing on a large Navy Ship (which she has) and felt to me she should be more a land-based creature! Strong, protective, and motherly, my Mom has been the anchor to her large herd of kids and now grandkids at our family homestead. 

'Rock' is my Mom's nickname for my Dad and 'Tekla' is my Dad's nickname for my Mom, and of course are the inspiration for my Etsy Shop name. I really enjoyed making these two paper dolls and put in a lot of small details to personalize their looks from the nautical themed t-shirt of my Dad's merman to the bouquet of seaweed and coral and to the deer antlers that adorn my Mom's centaur's headpiece. These two paper dolls are definitely one of my favorites of all time!

I hope you enjoyed my latest paper dolls and I hope to continue making more dolls more often! Also, I signed up for this summer's San Diego Comic Con Art Show again which I am so excited about! Last year's Art Show was so fun and I can't wait to return and make more fantasy and fandom paper dolls for everyone at the Con to see!

Thanks for stopping by!

My Latest Paper Dolls

A great way to start off the New Year is by making new mermaid paper dolls! Here are my latest mermaids and their inspirations.

My Mermaid Paper Doll No. 75 "Toledo Gold" is inspired by a couple of my favorite jewelry pieces made using the "Damascene Technique". Damascening is a process where precious metal, like gold or silver, is applied in a decorative pattern over the top of a non-precious metal, like iron or steel. Toledo, Spain is the world's largest center of production of Damascene. With my finished mermaid, I wanted her to have a very dramatic look, high in contrast and pattern, just like many damascene designs.

Mermaid Paper Doll 75 - Toledo Gold

My vintage pair of damascene jewelry, "bird & flowers"and "bull" pins.

Carlos's damascene bolo tie from his family trip to Toledo, Spain in 1990. Bolo ties first became fashionably popular in the 1950s then had a big comeback in the 1980s. Just a random side note: the loveable Duckie Dale rocked these "shoestring ties" throughout the '80s movie "Pretty In Pink" (see below). Maybe someday I'll get Carlos to wear a bolo tie in some form of fashion!

Jon Cryer's Duckie Dale sporting the bolo tie.

Mermaid Paper Doll No. 76 "Suvannamaccha" or  "Golden Mermaid" is based on the mermaid princess in the Cambodian and Thai versions of Ramayana, a timeless and enchanting epic of India. My Golden Mermaid is a modern take of the mermaid princess. She is, of course, adorn with her golden jewels yet fashionably fitted with beautiful patterns & rich colors reminiscent of Thai silk fabric.

Mermaid Paper Doll 76 - Suvannamaccha (Golden Mermaid)

Suvannamaccha the mermaid princess. (Source: fckyeahcambodia)

Thai Silk Fabric (Photo: Greg Vaughn Photography)

Mermaid Paper Doll No. 77 "My Sweet Sushi" is derived from a couple of influences: Kawaii and Sushi. Kawaii means "loveable" or "cute" in the Japanese culture and I wanted No.77 to carry a bit of that sweetness to her look...soft colors, hearts, flowers, and butterflies. In addition, some of my favorite Kawaii drawings are that of Sushi characters shown as cute animals or just plain sushi with simple faces. So to carry over that concept of Sushi into my mermaid, I gave her custom-fitted gown the look of being wrapped in seaweed. Although her seaweed (wrapped around her waist and above her tail) is more of a teal green color rather than black!

 Mermaid Paper Doll 77 - My Sweet Sushi

Cute Sushi Animal Characters (Source: A Little Kitty Deviant Art)

Another Kawaii Sushi illustration (Source: Meowza)

Mermaid Sushi. (Source: Honey and Tea)


Seaweed wrapped Spam Musubi (Source: Cooking Hawaiian Style)

Valentine Heart Sushi (Photo: Isriya)

Mermaid Paper Doll No. 78 "Golden Sparkles" is inspired from the flowing fins of the Siamese fighting fish also known as a Betta fish. My boys recently got a pet betta fish (named "Sparkly") for their new aquarium. We were all impressed by Sparkly's beautiful colors (ranges from purple to blue to red) and his large, flowing fins. I thought it would be neat to make a mermaid based on Sparkly. I imagined for this mermaid that she would have hints of golden sparkle as well as the dramatic appearance of swimming eloquently through the ocean waters draped in a flowy gown. 

 Mermaid Paper Doll 78 - Golden Sparkles

A golden-yellow Siamese Fighting Fish similar to our purple Twin Tail Halfmoon betta, Sparkly. (Source: fnzas.org.nz)

Mermaid Paper Doll No. 79 "Shanghai Sea" is my version of a 1920s Shanghai Calendar girl wearing the traditional Cheongsam dress. The cheongsam dress was first created in Shanghai, China in the 1920s.

 Mermaid Paper Doll 79 - Shanghai Sea

Vintage Shanghai posters of Chinese calendar girls (called yufenpai) circa 1920s - 40s. (Source: Sleevey Wonders Blog)

Mermaid Paper Doll No. 80 "Embroidered Hand Fan" is largely inspired by my love of Spanish culture. For this mermaid I fashioned her in a gown reminiscent of a traditional Spanish hand fan with delicate cloth webbing. I also gave her a hair ornament similar to the decorative Spanish hair comb known as a peineta . A peineta is usually worn under a mantilla, a lace veil worn over the head and shoulders.

Mermaid Paper Doll 80 - Embroidered Hand Fan

Spanish Fabric and Lace Hand Fan (Source: Lands Faraway)

A Spanish Peineta. (Source: Lands Faraway)

Spanish Basque painter Ignacio Zuloaga y Zabeleta's (1870-1945) portrait of aristocrat and socialite María del Rosario de Silva, Duchess of Alba. She is wearing the Spanish mantilla and peineta (comb) and holding an embroidered hand fan. (Source: porcelainsandpeacocks)

I hope you enjoyed this in-depth look at my latest paper dolls! Also, I hope everyone is having a wonderful start to their New Year! Cheers!!