evening gown

Pink 1860s Ball Gown with White Scroll Pattern

13 comments
Share

Click for larger version (PNG); click for PDF version. Click here for the list of dolls.

Well, today’s dress wasn’t quite what I wanted. I was planning on trying to draw lace with the white gel pen, but I ended up doing it all in pencil instead, and then I picked up the wrong pencil while doing the bodice and colored for a while before I realized my mistake. What I have here is totally different from what I wanted, because after my mistake the only thing I could do was to make it as dark as possible and draw something distracting on top of it. I probably wouldn’t quite so annoyed about my bodice mistake if that skirt hadn’t taken so long!

Anyways, I just thought I hadn’t done a hoop skirt for a while, and it would offer a lot of opportunities to practice drawing lace with the gel pen, which I didn’t even do…

… I’m just going to post this and be done with it!

poll by twiigs.com

White and Pink 1930s Style Evening Gown with Rhododendrons

37 comments
Share

Click for larger version (PNG); click for PDF version. Click here for the list of dolls.

Got started a little late today, so this dress isn’t my favorite, but it’s reasonably cute, I think. It’s supposed to be in the style of 1930s evening gowns, although it’s not based on any one dress. (So as always with the historical costumes that I pretty much make up, take the style, color, etc. with a grain of salt.) The rhododendrons come from some pictures my dad posted on Facebook of wild rhododendrons blooming around my family’s property on Hood Canal. Whenever I go to visit I always seem to miss seeing them bloom, so it’s nice to have pictures at least!

Every day that goes by makes me feel crueler and crueler. Someone, guess the answer soon! A couple people have come really close, but the exact number is still a mystery. But at least you know it’s under 1000 and — OK, above 200. I know, that’s not really much help…

Question: How many Prismacolor pencils do I own as of May 18th?
This includes the ones that I use, all the stubby little pencils that are too short for my current sharpener but I just can’t toss, all the ones I have in reserve and my set of Verithin pencils I hardly ever use.

Just to restate the rules:
1) It’s a new year, so even if you’ve already won one, feel free to guess again.
2) One guess per person per post.
3) If no one gets the exact number by noon EST, May 25th, I’ll pick the closest guess.

Evening Gown in Layered Fall Colors

7 comments
Share

Click for larger version (PNG); click for PDF version. Click here for the list of dolls.

So I was talking to my husband about what I should do for today’s paperdoll. “You should make a beginning of fall fairy,” he said. “Nah,” I said, “not if I’m going to end up doing fairies for the first week of Halloween costumes.” “You should make a beginning of fall mermaid,” he said. “Nah,” I said, “I just did a mermaid.” “You should make a beginning of fall human,” he said. “What a great idea!” I replied.

That is what it is often like talking to me, I’m afraid. I’m a lousy brainstormer. But anyways, he’s a good one, and that’s why we have this dress today. Remember that, when you are wondering why I have a Mega Man costume up, sometime in the next couple of days.

Congratulations to Catie, who guessed my favorite Prismacolor color: ultramarine! Now, you may be clicking back to the list of Prismacolors thinking “wait, what, that ugly thing?” For some reason, the color on the website is completely different from the actual color the pencil produces, a heavenly rich blue. I actually don’t use it all that often, because it can be a little finicky to blend with the other blues – it has a kind of reddish undertone, and most of the blues really don’t – but when I do it really makes me happy. The 1893 bathing suit’s blue is primarily done in ultramarine, with blue violet lake and cloud blue blended in – and still the scan doesn’t do the original justice.

The poll is still open for set 1 of Halloween costumes!

poll by twiigs.com

1885 Black and White Ballgown for Coloring, plus Purple and Green Princess Gown

26 comments
Share

Click for larger version (PNG); click for PDF version. Click here for the list of dolls.

I know, I know, AWOL again. I do really well when I get on a roll, and then I get off that roll and start rolling on something else. Yeah, I know… sad, huh.

Well, anyways! This gown is vaguely based on a couple of images of 1885 evening gowns that I have. I really like late 1800s evening gowns, although I’m really a big fan of the gowns of the 1800s in general… Although I don’t think the skirt is draped quite right I do think it turned out cute, and it sure is fussy, so here I put it up for hours of coloring fun, possibly even days if you really bother with every little rose and bit of lace. I really like coloring, and I will admit it is easier sometimes if I already have the outline done like with these – I don’t know how some of my kindred paperdoll blogging spirits can always work in black and white. I just sit here and pile up whatever Prismacolors I’m using, and I always sing to myself if I’m home alone, too.

Click for larger version (PNG); click for PDF version. Click here for the list of dolls.

As for this gown, Melanie Ann who won my guess-the-number-of-colored-pencils contest wanted me to color it in purple and green, so here we have, well, lots of purple and green! (With a little gold, because I just had to have a highlight color…) I hope you like it, Melanie Ann. However, I will say, I don’t think one piece of fabric can actually drape like that skirt does, so please overlook all paperdoll-related warping of reality.

I had fun coloring to someone’s specifications, so I wanted to do another contest. Here it is: Out of all my Prismacolors, which one is my favorite color?

As I have more than 100 different colors, this one might take a while… Here is a list of available colors.. Post your answer in the comments – guessing will be closed at 7:30 AM EST on Monday the 28th, unless no one guesses. Winner gets to tell me how to color that 1885 gown up there :)