Matryoshka Party Kit Printable PDF

My Matryoshka Party Kit Printable PDF includes all this!

I have been working for the last month on bringing you a Matryoshka theme party kit! Last week I completed the design and over the weekend I staged my own Matryoshka party! 

The Matryoshka Party Kit includes:

Streamers

Food Label Signs (blank for handwriting)

Cupcake Toppers

Straw Decorations

Paper Dolls that stand and nest

Coloring Sheets

Finger Dancer Dolls

Doll Face Stickers

Party Favor Box

Cookie Doll Decoration Card

Invitation

Thank You Card

Close-Up of the table items

Another Close-up

My Matryoshka Favor Box

These are my original designs and I worked really hard to make each item easy to assemble. I'm very pleased with the way the Matryoshka Favor Box came out. It's one continuous piece with only one tab to glue!

My Matryoshka Invitations

 I wanted the invitation to have some aspect of how a nesting doll works but I wanted to minimize construction work. I decided to come up with a design that did not require cutting, only folding (the cards do come 2 to a sheet so the only cutting is cutting the 2 cards apart on a dotted line). I think I achieved the effect I was going for with minimal effort for the assembler. The card is designed to open in the middle (like a nesting doll). Open the doll to reveal the hidden invitation!

My Matryoshka Thank You Cards

The Thank You Cards are just a simple fold over card with a blank inside.

Matryoshka Party Activities
(3 Paper Dolls that stand and nest, 2 Coloring Sheets, 4 Finger Dancer Dolls)

I've tried to anticipate your needs by offering an entire Party kit and also offering two smaller kits: an Activities Kit, and a Decorations Kit. The Favor Box, Invitations, Thank You Cards and Coloring sheets are also sold separately. If there is any other configuration or item you are wanting to purchase individually, please let me know and I will make additional listings.

I think these Matryoshka party kits are perfect for birthday parties, bridal showers, or baby showers! I hope you like them! Happy parties! :)

Queen Elizabeth I - English Matryoshka

Queen Elizabeth I - English Matryoshka

Hello and Happy Mother's Day! I have been busy working on my latest Matryoshka drawing from my list of suggestions and just completed her this morning (and listed her in my shop). She is my first redhead! The suggestion was "English" and after conducting a poll on facebook I chose Queen Elizabeth I to represent England. Because she is royalty, I tried to infuse the illustration with ethereal qualities. I've learned a few new techniques drawing the lace and feathers that I am very excited about. I may have to draw other ethereal female images. Let me know if you think of any you would like to see! :)

This is my original rough sketch for the illustration:

Queen Elizabeth I - pencil sketch

Please keep in mind this is a rough sketch, drawn one morning before the sun rose, in a dimly lit room, with a lead and eraser challenged pencil. I really need to stock up on new pencils and erasers. ;)

Matryoshka Coloring Sheets PDF

Matryoshka Russian Nesting Doll Coloring Sheets PDF

I have been busy working on a Matryoshka party kit chock-full of fun and helpful printable PDFs. I can't wait for you to see them! I wanted to give you a taste while I complete the design of the other elements. These coloring sheets come as a two page PDF file. Page 1 shows a single black and white version of my Classic Matryoshka Russian Doll, and page 2 shows three nesting dolls. Fun for a bored rainy day activity, and fun and economical for party or classroom activities. Once purchased you can print as many as you like as often as you want! I hope you like them and are inspired by this and my future party kit to have your own Matryoshka themed party! Happy May my friends! :)

Colored Shells and Matryoshka Party Kit

Hi everyone! I hope you had a nice weekend. I want to share with you a fun, creative idea we came up with that you might want to do too. This year when we colored our one dozen eggs (with a typical store bought Easter egg dying kit, that comes with dye tablets that you add vinegar and water to) it went too fast (as fun things often do) and before we knew it, all our eggs were colored! My daughter said (in her imaginative kid way), "What else can we color?" I looked at her and said, "Good question." We thunk and we thunk, and she said, "How about that plaster Christmas decoration I have left over. That was a great idea! So now the pressure was on, I needed to come up with something too! Then it came to me, "Seashells!" They have a surface similar to eggs and I thought surely the vinegar and dye would etch and adhere much like it does to the surface of an egg. And you know what? It did! Not as vibrantly, but still they turned out pretty pastels. My daughter had a ball (as did I) and we ended up with more dyed shells than eggs!

The basket in the photo is my Easter basket from when I was a little girl. It is a wicker basket striped with green and pink dyed wicker. It has faded over the years. I sat there dying those shells and thought, "Hey I bet this would work on my wicker basket!" By the time I thought of it we had already poured out the pink dye but I used a paint brush and painted over the outside green stripes of the basket. The wicker drank it right up. I'll have to remember to brush on the pink dye next year. So I leave you with my daughter's question, "What else can we color?" :)

Oh, and another question - I am in the process of designing a Matryoshka Birthday Party Kit as a PDF printable. What types of items would you like for me to include? Thanks in advance for your input! :)

Thai Dancer Matryoshka

Thai Dancer Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Thai Dancer Matryoshka

As promised in my last post, my newest illustration- Thai Dancer Matryoshka! I drew a dancer because I was inspired by the hand positioning and all the gold adornments of the traditional dance costumes. Also, I couldn't resist adding another "Gold" girl to my collection. I think she would look splendid displayed along with my Cambodian Girl Matryoshka, don't you?

Thai Dancer Matryoshka and Cambodian Girl Matryoshka (she is a fan dancer),

I'm realizing that many of my Matryoshka illustrations are inspired by traditional dance costumes but I haven't always labeled them as "Dancer", this was unintentional though. I may go back and rename some of them at some point.

Have you noticed my new blog layout? I rearranged it to include a new Etsy mini (top left) of my Etsy favorites! My Etsy favorites will include Matryoshka, girls room and nursery decor, and cultural items you may be interested in. I am browsing Etsy for fun items to share with you everyday so please check back often! :)

Akha Girl Matryoshka

Akha Girl of Thailand Close-Up Portrait

Akha Girl of Thailand

I have just completed my Akha Girl Matryoshka illustration! While working from my suggestions list I came to Thai and in my research came across this beautiful and interesting people. The Akha people live in various regions of Asia but in my research for this illustration I focused on the Akha people living in Thailand where they are referred to as hill tribe people. So this is the first of my Thai Matryoshka illustrations, she is all silver adornments (and colorful beads) and my next traditional Thai Matryoshka will be all gold adornments. Please keep the great suggestions coming! :)

Below is my grouping suggestion for this illustration.

Hmong Girl Matryoshka, Akha Girl Matryoshka, Tibetan Girl Matryoshka

Turk Bride Matryoshka Illustration

Turk Bride Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Turk Bride Matryoshka

Happy Friday! I completed my Turk Bride Matryoshka this morning and listed all items of her in my shop. She is the first of my Matryoshkas that I have titled "Bride" but not the first that incorporates in their traditions gold coin jewelry and adornments. You may remember my Greek and my Afghan Matryoshkas. Below are three that would make a nice grouping of blues, golds, reds and rusts. I hope you like my newest Matryoshka and please remember your cultural suggestions are most welcome! :)

Cambodian Girl Matryoshka, Turk Bride Matryoshka, and Greek Matryoshka

Hungarian Girl Matryoshka Illustration

Hungarian Girl Matryoshka

Happy spring! I just completed a Hungarian Matryoshka illustration. She wears my version of traditional Hungarian, Kalocsa dress, complete with floral embroidery. Thank you for your continued support and suggestions.

Here are more of my matryoshkas wearing aprons:

Portuguese Girl Matryoshka

Polish Girl Matryoshka

Czech Girl Matryoshka

Chilean Girl Matryoshka

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Irish Dancer Matryoshka

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Norwegian Girl Matryoshka and Norwegian Purse

Norwegian Girl Matryoshka and Norwegian Traditional Purse illustrations

Hi everybody! Thank you to everyone who has participated in my BOGO sale celebrating my shop's 2 year anniversay! It is still going on as I write this post. Fittingly, my latest Martyoshka illustration has a companion illustration, a Norwegian Traditional Purse. Knowing I just created this pair of illustrations, I couldn't take down my BOGO sale yet could I??? It just wouldn't be fair! :)

The Norwegian culture was kindly suggested by a customer. In my research for this drawing I enjoyed learning about Norwegian bunads, traditional costumes worn by men and women alike. I especially fell in love with the purses. When I was finished drawing, and realized how small the purse would be in the final print, I decided this just would not do! So, I created a companion print to the Matryoshka of just the purse. I hope you like them both! :)

BOGO SALE!

Thank you for all your support in my shop's first two years! In honor of my shop turning 2 I'm having a BOGO SALE, Buy One Get One Free! Please hop on over to my shop and check it out! :)

Pastel - Nesting Dolls, Message Hearts, Eat Me Macarons, and Ukrainian Eggs

Pastel Four Print Set

My latest set of illustrations is for the love of babies, little girls and Mommies everywhere; Matryoshka, Message Hearts, Eat Me Macarons, and Ukrainian Eggs in pastel colors. Perfect for displaying together on a nursery or girl's room wall. I hope you like this set! :)

Matryoshka Magnets

Classic Matryoshka Magnet Set

Did you know I offer magnets as well as prints of my Matryoshka? I do. In fact a customer contacted me with a great magnet suggestion this week. She asked if I could create a magnet set of my Russian Doll Classic Matryoshka Family illustration. I'm so excited about how it turned out (above image)! When I packaged them up together in a cello sleeve, stacked with the largest one in the back and the smallest in the front, they looked so pretty, such a garden of colors! I need to photo the next batch I package, and post it to show you.

International Matryoshka Magnets

I can't believe how many international Matryoshka illustrations I have drawn in a little over a year. I have 31 now and I'm working on my next, a Norwegian Matryoshka. I never could have drawn so many without all your helpful suggestions. Thank you!! The image above shows them all, and a link to all the magnets. If you are looking for a specific nationality or ethnicity that is not currently available in my shop please contact me and I will add it to my list of suggestions. You can leave a comment here or send me a conversation on my shop. Thanks again! :)

Southern Nigerian Matryoshka

Southern Nigerian Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Southern Nigerian Matryoshka

Introducing my Southern Nigerian Matryoshka, another wonderful culture suggested to me. While doing my research I marveled at all the beautiful Gele head wraps I found. I hope I did the Gele justice. Also, I continue to be amazed by how many cultures in our world wear red beads of some kind. I can't help but group my Matryoshkas (in my head) into categories based on similarities. I have the red bead girls (Polish, Brazilian, Dutch, Croatian, Italian, Ukrainian, and now Southern Nigerian), the gold girls (Cambodian, Pakistani, Russian, Greek, Afghan), the jasmine flower girls (Cambodian, Pakistani, Japanese), the list goes on and on. It is such fun.

In the months ahead I am going to be posting suggested groupings of Matryoshkas based on color, region, and season. I hope you find these posts helpful. My first grouping suggestion is my fiery red and light aqua blue color combination Matryoshkas. Happy decorating! :)

Southern Nigerian, Aqua Indian, Chilean, and Vietnamese Fire Matryoshka

Ukrainian Girl Matryoshka

Ukrainian Girl Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Ukrainian Girl Matryoshka

Say hello to my Ukrainian Girl Matryoshka! I hope you like her! She is making me yearn for spring, with her colorful flowers and maypole like ribbons! I have been drawing her on and off for a couple of weeks now. She took me a little longer than usual because I have been so busy revamping my shop and educating myself on running my business, that I have had little time to draw. Etsy had a really terrific Etsy Success Symposium day last week, with some wonderful speakers. I learned a lot and am implementing. There are videos posted of some of the Symposium in case you missed it and are an interested Etsy shop owner. My favorite part of it was April Bowles- "Achieving Your Creative Goals"(the second video at the link, the first one isn't working). April's website is Blacksburg Belle.

My Ukrainian Girl Matryoshka was suggested by someone who contacted me through my Etsy shop. I am working exclusively from my list of suggestions now. Please keep the suggestions coming! :)

Czech Girl Matryoshka

Czech Girl Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Czech Girl Matryoshka

My Czech Girl Matryoshka was inspired by the folk dress of the people of Skoronice in the Czech Republic. One of my wonderful customers requested I draw a Czech girl and suggested folk dress from this area that was Moravia. In my research I found lots of lace, puffy sleeves, and black aprons embroidered with colorful flowers.

This matryoshka also has a personal connection because I live in Winston-Salem, NC. The "Salem" comes from a settlement founded by Moravians who settled in North Carolina in the 1700s. It is now the historical Old Salem with restored buildings, museums, shops and gardens. My husband and I were also married in a Moravian church in neighboring Kernersville, NC.

Next on my list of requests is a Ukrainian Girl with blue eyes and brown hair. She should be fun to draw too because the girls traditionally wore wreaths of flowers as a headdress. Please keep the suggestions coming! :)

Italian Girl Matryoshka

Italian Girl Matryoshka

Ciao! Well, it is about time I drew an Italian Girl Matryoshka isn't it? I mean, my last name is Italian, my husband is Italian, even my Grandfather was Italian. Also, I have had requests for her. What can I say, I am only one artist and there are so many people to draw! :)

I have departed from my usual very symmetrical style of drawing matryoshka and stayed truer to my original sketch with this one. There is a lot to live up to when drawing an Italian! Leonardo, Michelangelo, I mean the pressure! LOL Anyway, I hope you like her.

Also, I want to share with you links to two recent blog posts about my work. The first one is a lovely lady and her family, who's little girl just turned 5. She had a matryoshka themed birthday party and contacted me to ask if I could make an Afghan Matryoshka for her daughter Ava, which I did (I love it when people give me suggestions). The party was a huge success and she has posted about the party and included photos on her blog The Art of Family.

The second blog post is on my friend Carrie's blog The Vintage Wren (also the name of her wonderful Etsy vintage store). Carrie and I went to school together and were inseparable. We had such fun studying Graphic Design and Art together and are still good friends. Carrie wrote a very kind post about my work, you can read it here. In addition to Carrie's vintage shop she also has an art shop- The Artful Apple and a knitting shop- Lily & Lulu filled with beautifully knitted garments and creative and inspiring renderings. Here are a couple of my favorites:

FORK

Tuesday (cowl)

I don't know how Carrie does it all; three shops, three children, a beautiful blog with incredible photography and she is beautiful as well, in every way. :)

Irish Dancer Matryoshka

Irish Dancer Matryoshka

Irish Dancer Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Happy New Year to you all! Thank you for all your past support and I wish you a very happy, healthy and successful new year! I have a new Matryoshka illustration to show you, my Irish Dancer Matryoshka! She was suggested to me by a wonderful customer who is collecting my work. I created my very own Celtic knots for this piece. I have always wanted to experiment with drawing Celtic knots. It was such fun, I imagine it is something I will want to do again in the future. It is tempting to make a line of these dancers all standing side by side. That would be an excuse to draw more Celtic knots! You all have such great suggestions, please keep them coming!

Croatian Girl Matryoshka

Croatian Girl Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Croatian Girl Matryoshka

Happy New Year to you all! I hope you have a fun and safe New Year's Eve and Day. Speaking of "New" I have a new drawing to show you! My Croatian Girl Matryoshka. I've had two kind requests for a Croatian Matryoshka and one was even so kind as to send me a link to what she had in mind— a Croatian Folk Dancer! This was really allot of fun. Something about red and white I just love, maybe it is the valentine connection. I hope she surpasses their expectations and I hope you love her too! :)

Afghan Girl Matryoshka

Afghan Girl Matryoshka Close-Up Portrait

Afghan Girl Matryoshka

Happy Holidays to you all! We are enjoying (a very unusual for the southern US) white Christmas weekend here. I hope wherever you are, you are cozy. I have a new illustration to show you, my Afghan Girl Matryoshka! Someone was nice enough to suggest her. For the clothing she suggested bold colors and tiny circle mirrors. I also added gold coin fringe which I saw in some of my research. I hope you like her! :)

Happy Holidays!

Holiday items in my shop! :)

Hello everyone! I hope you and your loved ones are well and enjoying this holiday season! Above is a compilation of a few of my snowy, holiday, gift ideas from various sections of my shop:

Accessories
Books & Zines
Magnets
Prints

I am hoping to have a chance to draw this week. You all have given me several suggestions for matryoshka- Afghan, Croatian, and Irish. If I have forgotten one that you would like me to draw please remind me. I am sticking with traditional cultural themes but also have an American Women series that I will be adding American women from different eras. If you have any suggestions for any of those I would love to hear them. Thank you for your support and I wish you and your families and friends a wonderful holiday season! :)

Finnish Girl Matryoshka

I've had a couple of people request a Finnish Girl Matryoshka. After much research I was having a difficult time deciding which ethnicity to portray first, until Jill of Barrel of Monkeys was kind enough to point me in a direction. She suggested Kansallispuku style! So this is my version of a Finnish Girl, Kansallispuku style Matryoshka! How do you like the wind in her hair and hair ribbons? I'm really enjoying it! Can you tell? Thank you for the suggestion Jill! Everyone please keep the suggestions coming and if you know of examples of traditional dress that really helps! :)

I think my Polish, Finnish, and Dutch Matryoshkas would look splendid displayed together.