When my son was about four or five years old we would make paper dolls together. His figures were always heroic characters of the swashbuckling pirate variety or knights, kings and queens straight out of the Middle Ages. He would use crayons or markers and draw his figures on poster board. I would cut out the figures for him and then give him parchment paper so that he could create the costumes. His figures would then go on to storybook adventures in his toy castle or pirate ship. Since I am an illustrator it was just my sort of activity and there is nothing quite so special as the way a child sees the world and draws it.
I thought of writing this post when I added my own paper dolls at my Etsy shop this morning. It's so pleasant to occupy that fantasy world of childhood. I did a little online research about the history of paper dolls here. Did you know that paper dolls first appeared in the 1700s during the reign of Louis XV? Or that children in Colonial times attached the paper clothes to the doll with sealing wax? I'm going to get off the computer right now and do a real"hands on" activity!
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