Customer Reviews

Great Fashion Designs of the Forties Paper Dolls: 32 Haute Couture Costumes by Hattie Carnegie, Adrian, Dior and Others (Dover Paper Dolls)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love all of Tom Tierney's fashion paperdolls. The paperdoll models are great and the clothes are beautifully illustrated.This book covers examples of 40's day/evening wear. The movie star books-like Garbo and Crawford- feature costumes. I look for the costumes when I watch the old movies. There are some changes, but you know the outfits when they appear on screen! Each costume/fashion has the designer and year listed with it. I have most of his paperdoll books and made a costume from the Carmen Miranda book!!

The forties were fascinating years in the history of fashion, and Tom Tierney has captured them beautifully with this book. The abrupt change from wartime to the New Look is well depicted.
I especially loved the inclusion of the WAC and Navy Nurse Corps uniforms.
My reason for not rating this book a full 5 stars is that the 3 outfits by Dior have been inaccurately drawn (I'm a huge Dior fan, so I am familiar with photos of his designs). Also, Dior introduced the layered tulle ballgown in the spring 1947 collection, a design that had a huge impact on evening wear for the following decade, yet this type of gown is not included in this work.

Most paper-doll books I had as a child featured one or two paper dolls, and a wide variety of clothing. They were, (as here) attached with flimsy little tabs....and, of course, the "clothing" was always falling off the dolls. Hats, (and sometimes, purses and shoes), were drawn and attached separately...leading to more "falling off". The paper clothes were always drawn to fit the paper doll -- if the paper doll had one arm down, and one arm slightly raised, in a 7/8 view, that's how ALL the dresses and outfits were drawn for that doll. If there was more than one doll, (usually 2), there were two set views of clothing.

In this book -- and also the others in this fine series -- such is not the case. Firstly, each OUTFIT comes COMPLETE....complete with ATTACHED hat, shoes, and gloves. There is a cut-out for the doll head to show through, and -- in the case of veiled hats -- part of the face, semi-covered by the thin, fashion-veil, is shown, as well. So, you can't add the hat of one outfit to another outfit -- but what of it? At least here, they don't fall down!

Another innovation in the paper-doll books in this series is that a wide variety of poses is shown for the dresses. Only two paper dolls are in the book -- but their poses, (with one or more arms close to the body), allows for a different arm pose to be drawn on the dress models! So, one doesn't get "cookie-cutter poses", but a refreshingly wide variety of stances! This innovation in paper-doll design can be seen on the cover of this book -- with the two ladies on the left in similar poses...but one having an arm up, whilst the other has the same arm towards her back. (Both fit on the same paper manniquin!)

I do wish, however, that the paper dolls themselves were made, not on just slightly-heavier paper than the fashions, but on MUCH heavier paper than the fashions, Perhaps even cardboard...

The beautiful clothes -- some from almost-forgotten designers, some from legendary ones -- are wonderfully and realistically drawn. Curious readers might even want to "google" the designers' names, find out their life stories, and see if they are still alive. Day dresses, evening clothes, and sportswear...all are represented here. They might even give modern clothes designers inspiration, on adapting these clothes, (really, not so different from some 2008 designs), for today's lifestyles and fashions. I wish, however, that more fashions were included....perhaps a "Book 2", of each decade, could also now be produced????

A child might want to cut these dress designs out, and put them on the paper dolls. But I strongly suggest that adult readers do not do so. Just leave the dresses, and the slightly-heavier manniquins, where they are. They won't get lost that way....and will continue to give the viewer pleasure and perhaps, inspiration, as long as this book, (and the others in this wonderful series), are owned!

Was amazed at the styles in the fifties. Book was in very good shape. Love these kind of paper dolls

I love the paper dolls, I was specifically looking for the paper dolls for Adrian, hey that's an idea, just publish one for Adrian. The few there were great, I'd buy it again....