Category Archives: Adult Color Books

Colorful Fantasy Coloring Book: by Molly Harrison

By: Molly Harrison

Rating: 5 of 5

The designs are recognizably Ms. Harrison’s. Her adult fantasy figures have beautiful faces, elegant poses, and long and flowing hair. The designs have a nice level of detail but are not intricate with tiny spots to color.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
25 Elegant Female Fantasy Designs
Printed one side of the page
Paper is type of CreateSpace paper: thin, white, slightly rough, and non-perforated.
Glue Bound
Designs do not merge into the binding and designs have a double framing line at the outer edge for a natural stopping point. There is plenty of room to cut pages out if you choose to do so.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paper
Water-based markers bleed through in spots
Gel pens and India ink pens leave colorful shadows on the back of the page. India ink pens can seep through in spots if used heavily or in multiple coats.
Colored pencils worked nicely with this thin but slightly rough paper. I tested both oil and wax based pencils and got good color with multiple layers of the same color, good results from layers of different colors and nice blending results using a blending stick. Hard lead pencils easily dent through the page and can damage the page below.
I suggest using a blotter page of card stock or a couple of sheets of heavier weight paper under your working page. It can keep seeping ink and marring dents from ruining the pages below.

MERRY PRINCESSES – B

By: RH Disney

Rating: 5 of 5

The 24 pages of designs are a larger format than the usual coloring book. There is a handle that creates a cut through hole in all of the pages (too bad as it would have been nicer to have the whole picture but it probably makes it easier for children to carry.) There is also a fun sheet of stickers. The paper is thin, white (rather than the usual newspaper style pages that are common in children coloring books.) and pages can be removed from the glue bound edge with a little bit of care. The back of the book is a heavy duty cardboard. It makes for an excellent surface for coloring where ever you are.
That the designs are printed on one side of the page is great for my use as my markers bled through the page. I found that marker bleed through the page so either taking each page out to color or putting a blotter page under the coloring page works best if you are using them. Gel pens show through on the back of the page but don’t leak through. Coloring pencils work well and can be layered and blended well. Crayons work too but it is difficult to get the crayon into the smaller details (especially on the dresses.) I am using a combination of markers, pencils, and crayons for my coloring.

Creative Haven Deluxe Edition Celtic Nature Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: Cari Buziak

Rating: 5 of 5

The book has 63 different designs. The designs are quite detailed and in some cases, intricate with small elements to color. I can see myself (and my husband) spending many hours coloring in this book and experimenting with colorways and shading to enhance the Celtic look and feel of the designs.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
63 Celtic inspired designs with elements from nature (birds, flowers, fish, insects, etc.)
Printed one side of the page
Paper is white, medium weight, slightly smooth and has perforated pages.
Glue Binding but you can remove pages at the perforation easily
Designs stop well before the perforations
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers bleed through in spots and leave colorful shadows on the back of the page
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows of color on the back of the page. India ink pens can bleed through if you apply heavily or with with multiple layers.
Coloring pencils work well with this paper. I was able to use both wax and oil based pencils equally well. They lay down good color, layer the same color and multiple colors and blend easily using a pencil style blender. Hard lead pencils, like Verithins, leave dents on the back of the page.
I either use a blotter page under my working page or I remove pages from the book to color. I like card stock for my blotter page but a couple of sheets of heavyweight paper works as well.

Creative Haven Fanciful Foxes Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: Marjorie Sarnat

Rating: 5 of 5

As with her other coloring book designs, the 31 designs in this book are detailed with lots of swirls and twirls (though not with extremely intricate and tiny elements to color.) There is simply so much to color and to spark my imagination. My current favorite is an homage to my days of learning to type The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. Long hours of practicing typing that phrase was never so much fun as coloring Ms. Sarnat’s cute design.
This is what I saw while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium. I will list, in the comments section below, the coloring medium I use for testing and for coloring.
31 Cute, Imaginative and Detailed Fox Designs by Majorie Sarnat
The designs are printed one side of the page
Paper is the usual Creative Haven quality: white, medium weight, slightly smooth and has perforated pages.
Glue Binding but with perforated pages so removing a page is fairly simple.
The designs stop well before the perforations
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers bleed through in spots and show colorful shadows on the back of the page
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows of color on the back of the page. India ink pens can bleed through when I apply more than one layer of ink.
Coloring pencils work well with this paper. I was able to get good color, layer the same color and multiple colors and blend easily using a pencil style blender. I tested both oil and wax-based pencils with similar results. Hard lead pencils, like Verithins, leave dents on the back of the page.
I suggest either removing pages from the book to color or using a blotter page under your working page. I like card stock as it keeps ink from seeping through and damaging the pages below.

World’s Cutest Animal Coloring Book, The [US] (Lonely Planet Kids)

By: Lonely Planet Kids

Rating: 5 of 5

The designs are presented in a circular mandala style. They are detailed but intricate (i.e., no tiny little spots to color.) While the book is released in the Kids line, I think it works equally well for adults to color.
What is interesting about the presentation is that the facing page to each design is an already colored example. You can use it as a guide or merely enjoy how the design was colored by someone else as you pick and choose your own color scheme. It has the effect of making the designs printed one-sided (if you don’t care about ruining colored page.) That is what I will do but I will work this book from back to front so I can enjoy the picture while I am coloring.
In addition to the design pages, there is a map at the back of the book which shows where each animal can be found. There is also a couple of pages that give a small bit of information about each animal as well.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
22 Cute Animal designs presented in circular mandala form
Designs printed one side of page (with color version on facing page, I.e, back of the preceding page)
Paper is heavy weight, white, slight smooth and non-perforated
Sewn binding you can remove several pages in whole at a time by snipping a few threads
Book opens fairly flat for coloring by heavily creasing/breaking the spine
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page. If you use this medium, it will ruin that colored design on the back of the page I suggest (and use) a blotter page when using this type of medium to keep ink from seeping into the next page. I like card stock for this purpose.
Water-based markers, India ink pens and gel pens did not bleed through or leave shadows on the back of the page.
Colored pencils work well with this paper. Even though the paper is slightly smooth to the touch, it still had enough tooth to grip pigment. I tested both oil and wax based pencils with good results for pigment lay down, layering the same color, layering multiple colors and blending using a pencil style blending stick.
As this is noted for children (though I think it works well for adults as well), I tested crayons as well. They work well with the paper but lacked the fine point needed for some of the detailed work.

HOLIDAY STYLE

By: Mary Man-Kong

Rating: 5 of 5

The 24 pages of designs are a larger format than the usual coloring book. There is a handle that creates a cut through hole in all of the pages (too bad as it would have been nicer to have the whole picture but it probably makes it easier for children to carry.) There is also a fun sheet of stickers.
The paper is thin, white (rather than the usual children coloring book newspaper style pages) and pages can be removed from the glue bound edge with a little bit of care. The back of the book is a heavy duty cardboard. It makes for an excellent surface for coloring where ever you are.
What I especially liked about it for my use is that it is printed on one side of the page. This is important for me as some of the medium I use with bleed through the page.
I found that marker bleed through the page so either taking each page out to color or putting a blotter page under the coloring page works best if you are using them. Gel pens show through on the back of the page but don’t leak through. Coloring pencils work well and can be layered and blended well. Crayons work too but it is difficult to get the crayon into the smaller detail areas. I am using a combination of markers, colored pencils, and crayons for my coloring.

Creative Haven Sea Life Wonders Coloring Book: Amazing Designs on a Dramatic Black Background (Adult Coloring)

By: Lindsey Boylan

Rating: 5 of 5

The designs are complex with detailed elements. In some cases, I think I will need to use smaller nib pens to color in the smaller spaces. My preference with this type of background is to use pens or markers as my colored pencils can leave lighter marks on the black if I happen to color over the edge. I’ve found that the wetter mediums are more forgiving if I cross into the black background.
There are a wide range of sea creatures and plants with the doodle style elements that allow me to experiment with color and have fun creating my own vision of sea life.
This is what I saw while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
31 Sea Life designs including above and below the ocean
The designs are printed one side of the page
Paper is the usual Creative Haven quality: white (though printed with a black background), medium weight, slightly smooth and has perforated pages.
Glue Binding but with perforated pages so removing a page is fairly simple.
The designs cross slightly over the perforations (nothing essential lost if you remove the pages from the book)
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers bleed through in spots and show colorful shadows on the back of the page
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows of color on the back of the page. India ink pens can bleed through when I apply more than one layer of ink.
Coloring pencils work well with this paper. I was able to get good color, layer the same color and multiple colors and blend easily using a pencil style blender. I tested both oil and wax-based pencils with similar results. Hard lead pencils, like Verithins, leave dents on the back of the page.
I suggest either removing pages from the book to color or using a blotter page under your working page. I like card stock as it keeps ink from seeping through and damaging the pages below.

Hidden Nature’s Frame Fantasia: A Colouring Book to Keep Your Favourite Moments

By: Toc de Groc

Rating: 5 of 5

Hidden Nature’s Frame Fantasia: A Colouring Book to Keep Your Favourite Moments

By: Toc de Groc

Rating: 5 of 5

The designs are fun to look at and to color. They are detailed but not intricate and small to color. The blank areas range in size and shape according to the design. Some of the designs have themes (such as travel, cooking, artwork, etc.) but others are more generic. I like the diversity of the design concepts but with the cute kitten theme throughout. The designs are printed on one side of the page with the exception of the alphabet at the back of the book. On the back of the design pages there is a design in white on peach that is generic in nature or which coordinates with the design on the facing page.
The book cover is white and has beautiful embossing on it. There is a half size dustcover sleeve which surrounds the book. The book has an open easy hinged binding which allows the book to open flat and to remove pages easily by carefully pulling them away from the binding.
45 Designs (plus alphabet at back of the book and intro pages)
Picture frame template included
Printed on one side of the page
Paper is heavyweight, white, slightly smooth and non-perforated though still easy to remove pages
Glue binding with notepad style binding for easy removal of pages in whole
Book opens completely flat for coloring with no damage to spine
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paper
Water-based markers, India ink pens and gel pens do not bleed through or leave shadows on the back of the page
Colored pencils work well with this slightly smooth paper. It still has enough tooth to grip pigment well. In testing both oil and wax-based pencils, I was able to layer the same color, multiple colors and to blend easily using a pencils style blending stick.
In addition to the copy of this coloring book that I purchased on Amazon, the publisher sent me a sample advanced reader copy of this book.

Golden Ratio Coloring Book: A Hand-Drawn Adult Coloring Book

By: Rafael Araujo

Rating: 5 of 5