Paper Dolls

I have begun to scan some more of my old paper dolls after I found a bunch in the basement. Some of which have belonged  to my mom, so they date back to around 1950-55. They are in pretty bad shape since they have been played with a lot - by my mom, my sister and I. My daughter can play for hours with paper dolls, but I have decided not to let her play with the original, falling-apart-dolls. Instead I will scan them, Photoshop-repair them and print them. Good as new :)

This is what one of the dolls looks like pre-repair. Front and back.

It was drawn by the Danish artist Ulla Pihl who gave her dolls a really sweet personality. According to online research this doll was called Askepot (Cinderella). In spite of trawling the Internet I have only been able to find a poor copy of a Finnish version of the whole sheet:

My favorite paper doll

Lotte was my favorite paper doll when I got her on a trip to Sweden in 1979. The publisher called her Lena - serious - laughing and crying. This was because she had two faces that you could put on her. I have lost the crying face but other than that I think she is complete.

Cute Danish Paper Doll

This is a paper doll I bought for my daughter two years ago. I had the good foresight to scan it before cutting. It was printed on cardboard which made it difficult to cut out. While it is nice to have cardboard doll I do find that the clothes really should be paper. The end result is so much nicer - and for a little girl it is easier to play with.

Cinderella and Prince

My daughter has recently entered the "princess stage". Everytime she sees a girl in a dress, she calls her a princess. So, I went looking for a real fairytale princess and stumbled upon this lovely Cinderella paper doll. You can find the complete set with cover, dolls and clothes at  Bonecas de Papel.

Karnival paper doll from Finland

This is another paper doll from around 1980. It was one of my favourite dolls because she had such varied clothes.

Cute Paper Doll

Yesterday I retreived my old paper dolls from the attic. Among them I found this little doll that I got around 1980. She also has a little hat, but my 3-year-old got hold of my collection and it seems to have gone missing. I'll probably find it again, when I do I will post it too. Three hours later...Found it. Rescanned with hat.