Daily Archives: August 29, 2016

Merry & Bright Holiday Coloring Book

By: Thaneeya McArdle

Rating: 5 of 5

Merry and Bright is the one of the two holiday coloring books by Designs Originals this year. Both books are collections from a variety of artists who publish books from Designs Originals. The artists include: Thaneeya McArdle, Angelea Van Dam, Robin Pickens, Valerie McKeehan, William Vanderdasson and Jenny Newland.

Most (if not all) of the designs seem to have been published in each artist’s own holiday books in the past or those about to be published. I own a few of those books but have no problems with the duplication of the designs, especially as this great holiday coloring book is very affordable. Some of the designs are full size compared to medium size in their original books so I am pleased with that change.

The designs are a really nice mix with lots of Christmas and holiday spirit. They range from cute line drawings to chalk-board style designs to detailed and intricate designs. It gives the colorist a really diverse group of designs to choose from and a good number of artists to try.

This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium. In the comments section below, I will list the coloring medium I use for testing and coloring.

32 Full Size Christmas/Holiday Designs from a variety of artists

Printed one side of the page back of page has journal lines and a quote

Paper is medium weight, white (though some are printed with black background), slightly rough and perforated

Glue Binding

Designs stop well before the perforations

Alcohol and water-based markers bleed through the page

Gel pens and India ink pens can spot through to the back of the page

Colored pencils work well with the paper. Both oil and wax based pencils provide good color, layer, and blend well. Hard lead pencils can dent through the page.

I use a blotter page of card stock or heavyweight paper (two sheets0 to keep seeping ink and dents from marring the pages below. I recommend using a blotter or that you remove pages before coloring.

A Garland of Grace: An Inspirational Adult Coloring Book Featuring the Proverbs

By: Christian Art Publishers

Rating: 5 of 5

This is another beautiful coloring book by Christian Art Publishers. The book is filled with 58 lovely designs (licensed by Shutterstock) with verses (and cites) from the Book of Proverbs. This is the book I look to for day to day lessons on what is expected from each of us. Sometimes the lesson is easy and sometimes it is hard to take. But it is always right.

The book is very well made and has many of the points that I look for in coloring books. While the images are licensed, they have been reworked to be used with the Bible quotes. Out of the 58 designs, only one is familiar to me as one that I have colored previously. There are 58 large designs plus 11 bookmark and card sizes, too. While the pages are perforated, you will have to cut the bookmark/cards out of the page in order to use for their intended purpose. There are no cutting lines.

The Bible translations used for the verses are: Holy Bible, New International Version NIV, Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Holy Bible, Contemporary English Version, and Holy Bible, English Standard Version.

This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:

58 Designs with Inspiring Life Lesson from the Book of Proverbs with bonus 11 bookmark/cards size designs

Printed one side of the page

Paper is heavyweight, white, somewhat smooth and perforated

Sewn Binding

Some Designs merge past the perforations and into the binding area. If you remove designs at the perforations, you will not lose elements essential to the designs.

Book can be opened fairly flat for coloring but you must use a lot of pressure to break the spine.

Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page. I suggest use of a blotter page if you use this type of marker. It will keep ink from seeping through to the design below. I use card stock as my blotter but a couple of pages of heavyweight paper work well, too. Of course, you can always remove your pages from the book prior to coloring.

Water-based markers, gel pens, and India Ink pens do not bleed through the page. Some gel pens require additional drying time.

Colored pencils work well with this paper. Though it is somewhat smooth, it still has enough tooth for good pigment, layering, and blending. I tested both oil and wax based pencils with good results.