GIBSON GIRL

GIBSON GIRL. Charles Dana Gibson was a prolific magazine illustrator of the early 20th century. His iconic "Gibson Girl" figure epitomized the independent young woman emerging at that time. 

I'll be back next week with more fabulous paper dolls! 

 

1909 CINDERELLA

1909 CINDERELLA. Here is a sweet little doll from a magazine printed 115 years ago, long before Disney got ahold of her. This was the sort of Gibson Girl artwork popular at the turn of the last century. I particularly like her Fairy Godmother as depicted here.

 

KEN & BARBIE STEP OUT

KEN & BARBIE STEP OUT. I'm always nostalgic for the 1980's. It was the time when my career took off and the fashions with their sometimes wild mix of periods and styles still resonate with me (I owned a light blue suit like the one above for example). Anyway, who better than Ken & Barbie to wear those clothes?

 

SHIRLEY TEMPLE MAGAZINE DOLL

SHIRLEY TEMPLE MAGAZINE DOLL. Who had the most paper doll sets issued? Shirley Temple of course. It is hard to imagine today just what a big star she was 90 years ago, although thanks to the many films she made in the 1930's her fame endures. 

Here is a nifty little doll published in a magazine with some of her film costumes to cut out.

 

JOAN COLLINS

JOAN COLLINS. And to end the week with something completely different here is that star of DYNASTY herself with some fabulous 1980's fashions.

More great paper dolls to come next week!

 

KATE GREENAWAY BOYS

KATE GREENAWAY BOYS. And here are the boys to accompany the girls posted yesterday. Greenaway's versions of late 18th and early 19th century clothes are fanciful at best and can't be relied on for accuracy of the period. They are charming to look at however and I do remember the resurgence of interest in her work in the 1970's when I was in training to become a costume designer.

 

KATE GREENAWAY GIRLS

KATE GREENAWAY GIRLS. Kate Greenaway lived and worked in England in the mid to late 1800's. Her fanciful illustrations of nostalgically dressed boys and girls harkened back to a century earlier, inspired by classical paintings of the 1700's. There was a resurgence of her works in the 1970's to accompany the popular Arts & Crafts movement of the time. 

These are charming paper dolls based on some of her drawings. Tomorrow I will post the Boys.

 

DONNA REED

DONNA REED. Academy Award winning actress and television star of the 1950's and 60's. There are some nice fashions in this set which for some reason have no tabs!

 I'm never really bothered much with tabs anyway since they are usually inadequate or not in the right places half of the time. I just cut my own where needed. I also use double stick tape to place my own tabs near the bottom of long or full skirts to hug them tight around the doll's legs for a flatter look.