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Coloring for grown-ups


clickprincess

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This is one of the fastest growing hobbies around the world right now and I'm wondering who else enjoys coloring as a grown-up? I always colored with my children and then my grandchildren, but now we closet colorers no longer have to stick to the kiddie books. There are hundreds of incredibly detailed coloring books available for adults these days.

 

Johanna Basford's "Secret Garden" and "Enchanted Forest"  books are the leaders in the field. I believe she was the first to publish a coloring book aimed at the adult market. Her images are lovely!

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I love to color! It was, hands down, probably my favorite past-time as a kid. I felt pressured to "grow out of it" though, because there weren't coloring books marketed to older kids at the time. I transitioned into paint-by-numbers in my teen years because it felt more age-appropriate than coloring images like Mickey Mouse or Bugs Bunny. In my adult years, I fell away from artistic past-times altogether and bought a Kindle instead. Now, I'm so excited that there's a such thing as adult coloring books!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I've been reading a lot of articles that talk about the psychological benefits of coloring. Research has shown that coloring can be almost as good as meditation for clearing the mind and helping people find balance. It's also a great way to unleash creativity and not just for art. Once you get going with any creative type of activity, it is almost like it exercises your creativity, making it stronger, and that creativity can come out in other ways, like writing or just problem-solving.

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I recently started a practice called zentangle. It is basically a way of drawing by using structured patterns and shapes. It can be extremely relaxing, but also a little frustrating if you get stuck trying to think of a new pattern to introduce to your piece. I think I like adult coloring more because it is a truly mindless activity. The adult coloring books available are quite beautiful when finished, especially if you use good, art quality color pencils or pens.

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  • 3 months later...

This is quite the treat in this high tech age. Back to basics. I think I'll send my daughter this: http://www.johannabasford.com/ 

She always did have an artistic bent, and still does, but she has grown out of the typical coloring book tailored for young children. I think she would really love to spend time doing something like this, as I would enjoy seeing her express her creative side.

Thank you for sharing that Click, I had no idea this sort of thing was making the social rounds.

 

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My daughter, who is currently attending university, uses the adult coloring books to relax after studying.  She has found that it is a great catharsis for the stress of studying and research.  I have to agree that it seems to work for her.

I've done a few pages and I have to say they are pretty to look at.  It brought me back to when I used to color with the kids.

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  • 1 month later...

I resisted this trend for a long time because I really did not need another hobby cluttering up my house. Then I broke down and got a coloring book with line drawings of Vogue magazine covers from the 1910s and 20s. The illustrations are Art Nouveau style, and very fun to color!

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  • 1 month later...

I have recently come across a coloring book for adults at my friend's place and it looked amazing. I haven't done it yet though, but I definitely am planning to buy one for myself soon.

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I have recently come across a coloring book for adults at my friend's place and it looked amazing. I haven't done it yet though, but I definitely am planning to buy one for myself soon.

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Larkeye, you have to try the watercolor pencils.  My daughter has started using them to color in her coloring books and the effects are really cool!  She says it's much easier than using regular pencils and markers.

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Kad613, I have a couple sets of those pencils and I love them! I have been experimenting with different ways of applying the water. You have to get it just right or the colors mush together or run off the paper. Does your daughter draw and then paint water over it?

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No, she dips the pencil lead into a glass of water, dabs off the excess water on a paper towel and then colors with it.  Doing it that way gives her more control over the amount of water on the paper. She usually starts in the center of the area she is coloring so she can see how much it spreads.

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