My Paper Dolls for the 2014 San Diego Comic Con Art Show - Part 1

I'm back for my 2nd year at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con Art Show! I'm half way done with my goal of 12 paper dolls for the art show. I hope to finish the remaining six paper dolls within the next week or two. Art set-up is on Wednesday, July 23rd, 2014 at the San Diego Convention Center Sails Pavilion. 

Below are my first six paper dolls (all mermaids!) that I will be displaying at the art show. Again, I wanted to share my finished dolls and the inspirations behind their creations. Enjoy!

MERMAID PAPER DOLLS

Mermaid Paper Doll #102 - Brienne

Mermaid Paper Doll #102 "Brienne" is based on the character Brienne (Maid of Tarth) from the book series "A Song of Ice and Fire" (or others know it by the HBO television series "Game of Thrones") by George R.R. Martin. Brienne is not only very tall, she is also a skillful warrior. She wears blue armor which is the color of her House Tarth. I love Brienne's character and she is played brilliantly on the television show by actress Gwendoline Christie (see above).

Mermaid Brienne is also very tall. I made her about 2 inches taller than my usual Mermaid Paper Dolls. In addition, she is double-jointed at her arms and her tail. I thought since Brienne is at the level of a knight, she should be honored with a more agile paper doll.

For her suit of armor, I was highly inspired by the amazing costume designer Eiko Ishioka's  work on Francis Ford Coppola's film "Bram Stoker's Dracula" (1992). I loved how she  incorporated Japanese kabuki theatre-influenced costumes fused with elaborate Victorian period costumes. Her standout pieces for me and for my work on Brienne included the Count's blood-red armor suit and Lucy's brimming high-collared Victorian wedding/funeral dress (see above).

Mermaid Paper Doll #103 - Ellaria

My "Ellaria" mermaid paper doll is based on another "Game of Thrones" character. Ellaria Sand is the beloved mistress of Prince Oberyn Martell of House Dorne. She is described as  brave, strong, and eye-catching with an exotic, sensuous flair. I love both Ellaria and Oberyn! And she is wonderfully played by actress Indira Varma on the television series (see above).

One of my favorite things about Ellaria is the way she is dressed on the show. Plunging necklines, strong jewelry, and rich golden-yellow clothes complement her confident and erotic personality. I totally loved making "Ellaria" and shaping her into how I envisioned mermaid Ellaria would look like.

Mermaid Paper Doll #104 - Lupita in Chanel

This "Lupita" Mermaid Paper Doll is the second made (and far from the last) of gorgeous actress Lupita Nyong'o. My first Lupita Mermaid Paper Doll was based on a Miu Miu dress that she wore at a "12 Years a Slave" red carpet premiere. "Lupita in Chanel" is based on her playful and multi-colored dress that she wore at the MTV Movie Awards. I was immediately enamored by her Chanel high-collared dress with paillette-encrusted cap sleeves and I knew I had to make a mermaid doll inspired by this dynamic look!

Mermaid Paper Doll #105 - Haute Couture Ariel

"Haute Couture Ariel" is my re-envisioned look of Disney's very basic fashioned red-headed mermaid (see above) into a high fashion underwater siren. I really love to believe that with all plentiful sea life surrounding the spunky and adventurous Ariel, she would leave no sea shell unturned, and create the most amazing look of sea shells and other sea life just perfect for herself!

Mermaid Paper Doll #106 - Dark Lady

My Mermaid Paper Doll #106 "Dark Lady" was inspired by a character in Joe Hill's comic book "Locke & Key". The whole "Locke & Key" story is outstanding and the art by Gabriel Rodriguez is absolutely stunning. The Dark Lady (see above) is the echo of gender-switched Lucas Caravaggio after being possessed by the demon known as Dodge - pretty crazy stuff, right?!? "Dark Lady" Mermaid is also shown wearing a crown similar to the Crown of Shadows worn by the Dark Lady who thereby can control an army of living shadows!!!

Mermaid Paper Doll #107 - Steampunk Maggie

"Steampunk Maggie" is named after Maggie Dubois (played by Natalie Wood, above) a character from the 1965 movie "The Great Race". "The Great Race" is perhaps one of the best Steampunk-esque classics of the early Steampunk movie era. Together with the character Maggie and the beauty of steampunk fashion, I created an elaborate Steampunk Mermaid version with details such as the eclectic top hat and under bust corset.


I hope you enjoyed this first set of paper dolls for the upcoming 2014 San Diego Comic Con Art Show. I will post the second set (final six) as soon as I finish making them! 

Thanks for stopping by!

The Doily Duck's Top 3 Fashion Favorites: 2014 Academy Awards

The only thing more exciting than seeing who will win the Oscar is seeing who they will be wearing on Hollywood's biggest event of the year! And it's the red carpet of the Oscars where the stars are suppose to stun and pull out all the glitz and glamour! Unfortunately, I have to admit I wasn't too excited about the vast majority of gowns and suits worn at this year's Academy Awards. It's not that the vast majority didn't look glamorous, which they did, it's just they really didn't make me go "WOW"! 

Of course, I did find my favorites of the evening. And, again, just for the Academy Awards, I will honor my favorite dressed lady and gentlemen with the 2nd Annual Golden Doily Duck award where they will be crowned "Best Dressed Duck" and "Best Dressed Drake", respectively!

With no further adieu, here are my top fashion favorites of 2014 Academy Awards:

 LADIES - RunnerUps

3. Jennifer Lawrence

Jennifer Lawrence looked fantastic in her fitted strapless red Dior Haute Couture dress. I thought her simple details, with side peplums and gorgeous backward diamond necklace, perfectly accented her very structured and stunning look. I also loved her swept back short hair. The only thing missing was perhaps her dress "on fire"! Ha!

Honorable Mention Award: Oscars After-Party Dress

I had to give Jennifer Lawrence's After Party Oscar dress an honorable mention. She wore a Tom Ford sequined mini-dress that looked like shattered glass. She looked absolutely hot in this dress (even wearing no underwear) and I loved it more than her Oscar Red Carpet dress!

2. Lupita Nyong'o

Lupita and her red carpet fashion has been amazing these past few months and her award-winning Oscar gown was no exception. She wore a beautiful plunging Nairobi-inspired icy blue custom Prada gown. The ice blue gown looked so gorgeous against her flawless skin.  Her whole look was stunning, fresh, and ethereal! And her gold and diamond Fred Leighton headband was beautiful and such a perfect accent to her shimmering gown. 

And a big congratulations to Lupita on winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress! I did vote for her on my family's annual Oscar poll (but sadly I didn't win) and I thought she had the best acceptance speech of the night!

GENTLEMEN - RunnerUps

3. Pharrell Williams

Okay, I know this outfit wasn't the short pants suit Pharrell Williams wore on the red carpet! But I loved Pharrell's whole outfit during his onstage Oscar performance for his song "Happy". He wore his classic Adidas track jacket in black leather with red sequined sneakers. And to top it off, he once again wore his iconic Vivienne Westwood buffalo hat in formal black. His signature buffalo hat was inspired by the 1982 song "Buffalo Gals" by Malcolm McLaren. I loved his entire performance and extra points for running into the crowd and shimming with Lupita Nyong'o!

 2. Michael Fassbender

Michael Fassbender looked absolutely hot in his Tom Ford black tuxedo with black bow tie.  Although, Michael really doesn't need to wear a tux (or anything for that matter) to look good! And he took with him the hottest accessory of moment, his mom, the fashionable Adele.

And now I present to you the winners of the 2nd Annual Golden Doily Duck:

 The Golden Doily Duck

BEST DRESSED DUCK

1. Charlize Theron

Charlize Theron looked absolutely incredible! She was so glamorous and so, so sexy! Charlize, hands down, had the most daring and dramatic outfit of the evening and she wore it perfectly. She wore a stunning black Christian Dior Haute Couture gown with full sheer fishtail skirt and a curvy plunging neckline with invisible illusion straps. She also wore a huge 31-carat Winston diamond cluster pendant that looked almost as gorgeous as Charlize herself!

BEST DRESSED DRAKE

1. Jared Leto

Jared Leto was dressed like the man of the moment! He wore a Saint Laurent white dinner jacket, very slim cut black pants, and a crimson bow tie. I thought he rocked the white suit jacket the best and even with his long, flowing ombre hair, he exuded great red carpet style. And again, he brought his best accessory with him that evening, his gorgeous mom, Constance.

And congratulations to Jared for winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor! I voted for him, too, and thought he had one of the best speeches of the night!

Big applause again to Charlize and Jared on being honored with the 2nd Annual Golden Doily Duck! They now join Naomi Watts and Eddie Redmayne of last year's Oscars as my top fashion favorites of Hollywood's biggest star-studded night!

And that's it, folks! I hope you enjoyed my fashion favorites for the 2014 Academy Awards!

(Photo Credits: Getty Images/Jordan Strauss/Matt Sayles/Invision)