Colored Masquerade Gown in Black, White, Purple, Red and Gold

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Sofia won my last contest for guessing that one of my top ten favorite movies is Casablanca. (The other nine: Whisper of the Heart, Vertigo, The Thin Man, Some Like It Hot, Robin Hood (Disney version), Porco Rosso, North by Northwest, Dr. Strangelove and All About Eve.) She wrote: “Casablanca is one of my favorite movies, too, and definitely a film everyone should see. Anyway, I’d like to see the masquerade dress from this post: https://lianaspaperdolls.com/2009/10/12/halloween-masquerade-series-1-black-and-white-masquerade-gown-with-bonus-colored-brown-and-red-elf-gown/ in dark colors… maybe a mottled red/black/purple kind of brocade or damask pattern on the skirt, with gold trim.” I hope you like this version, Sofia. I certainly do, although it made my thumb go numb again. I’ve got to start splitting up these pattern-heavy coloring jobs over the course of a couple of days! (Not a complaint, I really like being challenged to do something cool like this.)

Colors used: French Grey family (white cascade, sleeves, etc.), Cool Grey (70% and 90% on the top part), Dark Umber, Light Umber, Goldenrod, Sunburst Yellow, Crimson Lake, Tuscan Red, Moss Green, Limepeel, Imperial Violet, Greyed Lavender, Black Grape, Black, Colorless Blender


January Birthday Dress with Red Arabeque Patterned Tunic and Long-Sleeved Underdress with Snowdrops

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And, for my last post of June, we have… the January birthday dress. Did I ever mention how lucky I am anyone still bothers reading this site? I’m sorry, January birthday people, although you do technically have one January dress for Sylvia. I never liked that one, though. You see the big white band on the red overskirt? There was supposed to be a snowdrop pattern there. I just couldn’t bring myself to do it for some reason. I don’t know if I like this one either, but that’s because the original is so much better than the scan… Oh well. Anyways, all I have to do is April now, and then I can catch up on the rest of the months as they come.

Prismacolors used: French Grey family (dress), Cool Grey family (snowdrops), Black, Kelly Green, Poppy Red, Crimson Red, Crimson Lake, Tuscan Red, Colorless Blender.


Colored 1700s Gown in Gold, White and Pink

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Trazy won the contest before last, for being the closest to guess our wedding anniversary (August 9th). She wrote: “i think i would like the newest balck and white dress to be colored in the gold colors, and have some kind of royal feel to it. I want the bows/decorations/trimmings to be pink, and the rest either white, gold, tan, or something similar. the skirt should have some kind of lighter golden swirly royal pattern, a lighter gold than the background…”

I would write more about this dress, but this one took me four hours to color, and there is a sort of tingling feeling in the tip of my left thumb, plus I’m having trouble feeling the pad of my left index finger now as I type. I might have overdone it… but it was worth it!


Colored Elf Gown in Blues and Greys with Grey Lavender Edges and Silver Trim

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Emily won my last contest, for guessing that I had had visitors from 115 countries last week, and this was her request: “Can I choose a dress that has already been colored? Because if so I would like the Lord of the Rings elf gown from 10/5/09, but (kind of opposite of how it was colored before) in blues and grays, maybe a bit of very blueish lavender, and silver trim.” I really like how it turned out… hope you do too, Emily! (And don’t worry, trazy, I haven’t forgotten yours! I just want to do it justice, and I’ve messed up on the pattern too many times today…)

In my imagination, the elf who wears this dress and the one who wears today’s dress are good friends. The one who loves bright colors (we’ll call her Cathiel) has, over the years, influenced her friend’s color sense; you can thank her for the purple at the edges of this one, which seems quite muted to her but was a big leap forward for her sober-minded friend, who we’ll call Rhylar. It also means that she can thank her mother and aunt (who, unsurprisingly, disapprove of her style) quite sincerely for their optimistic gifts of pearl grey and clay rose robes: she assures them that she will put them to good use, and she does. They make wonderful gifts for the more conventional Rhylar. They like to find a picturesque spot and practice duets; Cathiel is a middling flutist, while Rhylar is decent on her harp, but a gifted singer. Often the former will lay aside her flute, close her eyes and just listen to her beloved friend sing a song or two, and if part of her attention wanders and she mentally changes Rhylar’s rust-colored gown to a snappy, sunshiny yellow, it only heightens her enjoyment of the scene.