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 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.
'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.
'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" 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" 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" 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 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.
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
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!
