Tag: Geneviéve

Geneviéve: Feminist Hero

This month’s theme of “hero” was surprisingly challenging for me!  Trying to come up with something that was honest to my own values and not too frivolous was harder than I expected. I almost went with a firefighter theme, but the truth is there aren’t many female firefighters. Most women don’t have the upper body strength to do the job. And that’s okay. I didn’t want my Geneviéve to look like some Barbie fake firefighter because that doesn’t work for me at all.

Given current discussions in the media, I’ve been thinking a lot about my relationship with “feminism”. Yes, I deliberately put quotes here because too often I feel like it’s been co-opted by people with whom I disagree. But in its purest spirit, I’m a feminist. And even if it still sometimes feel like there’s so much work to do, I’m very appreciative to all the women who paved the way. So this offering is a tribute to them. Women who would not be told how to dress or live their lives encumbered by societal expectations.

Bloomers had been around since the 1860s, but the bicycle craze of the end of the century normalized them. I still wear skirts most of the time to work, but hats off to you ladies that I slip into my jeans whenever I feel like it.

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf]

Geneviéve: Cihuateteo

I wanted to do something off the beaten path for this month’s vampire theme, so I dug deep and found vampiric creatures from the ancient Aztecs: Cihuateteo. Cihuateotl is truly a gruesome figure (as many Aztec deities are). She represents the spirit of women who die in childbirth (hence the crown of baby skulls and the one around her neck). She preys on women and children, stealing babies and causing their mothers to go mad. Basically not a pleasant creature nor one you would want to invite to tea.

I based my costume here on a bit of statuary (which I included for reference) with some embellishments and liberties. Instead of the typical Aztec stylized skulls, I made them a bit more naturalistic.

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf]

Geneviéve: 1989

Unfortunately for me, I graduated in 1989, which made this month’s theme a real challenge. I was not a fashionable teenager and I hated current trends. If I drew the kinds of clothes I actually wore in 1989, they would not strike anyone as indicative of that particular year. And let’s face it, the 80s were bad for everyone!

So I picked a few things that were ubiquitous then. Bolero jackets, layered flouncy cocktail dresses with ruched mermaid bodices. Giant bows, skinny belts, and somewhat balloony capri pants.

If I hadn’t done this in such a quick heat toward completion, I could have made my senior dance dress. A good friend sewed it for me. Beautiful, wine-red velvet and lace–maybe almost even in style.

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf]

Geneviéve: 1880s

This month’s theme is about our favorite era. Mine was always going to be the 19th century and the 1880s is my favorite decade of that century. This was an easy pick for me!

I have always loved the hourglass silhouette of this era: the long sleeves, the high collars, and the embroidery, patterned fabrics, and other detailing on clothes of this period. I am less fond of the bustles. These varied widely through the 80s from enormous to almost non-existent heading into the 90s. Also love all the accessories of this era: the buttons, jewelry, gloves, shoes (oh my God, the shoes!), and other frippery.

For Geneviéve I kept things relatively simple. I imagined the bodice here might be a solid dark velvet perhaps, but I left it blank for you to decorate as you like. The two pieces will layer for an afternoon and evening look (which was common then).

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf]

 

Geneviéve: Baile Folklorico

For this month’s challenge I wanted to do something off the wall like make a cello dress, but I’m just not that creative when it comes to designing things. So instead, I just went on the spur-of-the-moment and drew the first thing that suggested music to me.

I chose the traditional dress of the Baile Folklorico, which is a dance that I grew up with. The colorful fanning dresses and the beautiful braids and lacy shawls, etc., were common in my childhood and I always loved the sheer variety of colors used in these garments: the bolder the better!

My line work here is a little shaky; I’ve fallen out of practice and desperately need to get back into it. I’m glad I have these monthly themes to keep me going!

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf

Geneviéve: Sekhmet

I’m struggling with an update that blows chunks and backend problems the likes of which make me sigh, but I’m posting this last Geneviéve anyway.

The theme was mythological creatures, so here she is as the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet. I was going to draw her sun-disk “crown”, but when I logged in, I found all these black beans in my soup and so didn’t have time to make that final piece. But at least she has a scepter!

Had a lot of interesting things to say about Sekhmet and why I chose her, but am too irritated to bother at the moment. Download and enjoy while I determine whether this blog might need to be nuked.

I hope if I give it a break for a few days I can come back to this more rationally and maybe solve the backend problem and save its sad little life. For the moment I haven’t lost any of the content, so at least that’s a positive thing, right?

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf plate!]

Geneviéve: Ocean Explorer

For this month’s “occupation” theme I wanted some- thing unusual and adventuresome. My first impulse was to do a deep sea diver and then I wandered to astronaut and archeologist and even garbage maintenance before I returned to the ocean. Maybe she’s a treasure hunter. Maybe she’s an oceanographer or cetacean biologist. Or maybe she just teaches scuba lessons.

That’s what appealed to me about the dive-wear: there’s so many different things she could be!  You get to pick. In the meantime, I included some fishy friends she might encounter on her dives.

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

This collaborative doll is posted at the end of each month throughout 2017. There’s a new theme each month!  To find all related posts on this blog, just click the “Geneviéve” tag.

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf plate!]

Geneviéve: As Eponine

This month’s theme is literary! Picking my favorite book character was easy. It was always going to be either Eponine from Les Miserables, or Haydee from the Count of Monte Cristo. Haydee would have been more exotic, but Eponine won out. It was easier to draw gutter 19th century French clothes than try to do justice in short order to 19th century Turkish royalty. I would have had to Google it to death.

I hope you enjoy these outfits. You have Eponine’s day wear with a long belted wrap, and her outfit for sneaking through the barricade. She disguises herself as a boy to get a message to Cosette (who didn’t deserve it). And her actions have tragic consequences.

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

This collaborative doll is posted at the end of each month throughout 2017. There’s a new theme each month!  To find all related posts on this blog, just click the “Geneviéve” tag.

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf plate!]

 

Geneviéve: In Outer Space

I cheated a little with this one. The theme “outer space” goes hand-in-hand with the fact that I’m a big fan of that galaxy far, far away. Immediately I thought it would be cool to make Geneviéve into a Twi’lek.

Or you can skip the extra head and she can be a cool smuggler or Resistance fighter using one of her previous heads. I also added an astromech in an attempt to make her a little more “outer spacey” since technically she’s not wearing a flight suit or a helmet or other gear you would associate with actually being, you know, in space.  The astromech at least implies that she’s a pilot. It’s an R7 unit. Feel free to name it yourself.

I hope you’ll forgive this indulgence.

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

This collaborative doll will be posted at the end of each month all throughout 2017 with a new theme each month.  To find all related posts on this blog, just click the “Geneviéve” tag.

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf plate!]

Geneviéve: At the Oscars

Sunday is Oscars night! What better excuse to dress to the nines? In addition to a formal red carpet gown, Geneviéve has a flirty after-party dress (she’ll have to borrow some shoes, though: oops!). If I was smarter, I would have made it so that you could layer the dresses. But that didn’t occur to me until too late. Yes, I was too lazy to fix it. Or squeeze in shoes.

These dresses and wrap are based on this look from Blumarine.

Find more theme outfits to match this doll at the following fabulous blogs:

This collaborative doll will be posted at the end of each month all throughout 2017 with a new theme each month.  To find all related posts on this blog, just click the “Geneviéve” tag.

[Click on this link or the picture to download a printable .pdf plate!]