Monthly Archives: December 2016

Creative Haven Circular Cities Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: David Bodo

Rating: 5 of 5

This is my first coloring book by this design duo (David and La Jeana Bodo) so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Certainly, the cover art is representative of what is inside as it is both a design in the book and a compilation of various elements from many of the designs in the book. While the designs are detailed, for the most part, there are no small and intricate parts to color.

While the city designs are circular, the design pages are not. There are corner or side elements on each page along with a framing line at the outer edge. I like the format as it gives you the fish-eye look at the city but still presents you wish an easily framed design if you should wish to frame your finished project(s).
The designs are of well-known cities around the world. Some of the most famous and recognizable landmarks of each city is included in the circular design. While seven of the designs are of cities in the United States, I still found the cities of other countries I would expect and many others that were a pleasing surprise.
The name of each city, along with the associated landmarks, are listed on the back of the applicable designs. I like that it is on the back as I want the ability to guess at which city is which based on what I know of the architecture of the place. It also keeps the information together if you remove pages from the book.
These are the cities that are included:
Bangkok, Barcelona, Berlin, Buenos Aires, Cairo, Chicago, Dubai, Dublin, Edinburgh, Hong Kong, Honolulu, Istanbul, Las Vegas, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Mexico City, Miami, Montreal, Moscow, New Orleans, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Rome, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, Venice, Vienna, and the World Compilation.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper.
31 City/Architecture Designs in an unusual circular format
Designs are printed one side of the page
Paper is white, medium weight, slightly smooth and has perforated pages.
Glue Binding with perforations so you can remove them one at a time.
The designs stop well before the perforations
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers bleed through with colorful spots and 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 use more than one layer of color.
Coloring pencils work well with this paper. I was able to use both wax and oil based pencils equally well. I was able to get good color and to get deeper pigment by layering the same color. I found that I could layer multiple colors and blend easily using a pencil style blending stick. Hard lead pencils leave dents on the back of the page.
I generally prefer to use a blotter page under my working page to keep ink from seeping through but you can also 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 Winged Fantasy Designs Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: Aaron Pocock

Rating: 5 of 5

I have another coloring book by artist Aaron Pocock (Fantasy Designs) and enjoyed it so much I purchased this book before I could have a Look Inside peak at what it contained. I’m glad that I did so as it is a great representation of fantasy winged creature art. The range is from curious animals to elegant females and pretty much everything in between. Some of the designs are peaceful and some are quite furious in their aspect.

The designs themselves are quite detailed. There is a heavy use of shading. Many of the designs contain intricate spots to color which might require very small nib pens/markers or extremely sharp pencils. Because of that, it might not be for those who have fine motor or vision issues.
This is what I saw while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
31 Detailed Fantasy designs based on winged animals and creatures
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.

Art of Coloring Star Wars: Rogue One

By: Disney Book Group

Rating: 4 of 5

Attached to this review will be a silent flip-through of the entire coloring book so you can make an informed decision as to whether or not it will work for you.

I’m a fan of Star Wars and have been looking forward to both the Rogue One movie and coloring book. I’ll be seeing the movie shortly but I received my coloring book ahead of time. The designs are well done based on what I have seen of trailers and movie stills. The characters look true to life and the creatures and machines are well drawn. The designs span from detailed to very simple. There are many wall-paper (repeating pattern) designs and there are really nice character studies. The designs range from simple line drawings to those where there are heavy lines and heavy use of black (which may be a problem for some.)
Where I have some problems with this book is how it was published. If I could give this book a 3.5, I would do so based on the publishing and the abundance of wall-paper designs. As I cannot, I rounded my stars to 4.
The book is part of the Art of Coloring series and has changed format in a number of ways from the earlier Star Wars book. Rogue One has a soft cover, is smaller, has thinner paper, has glue binding and has perforated pages. Personally, I don’t mind the change (except for the thinner paper) but it makes for a mismatched set. Having said that, I’ve been told by some individuals who are just now buying the older books that they are now being published with soft covers as well. I can’t confirm that as I purchased mine and my husband’s copies earlier on.
The book is sized smaller at 10 7.8 x 7 inches (compared to approximately 11 1 /2 x 8 inches. For those who like to scan and print their pages on better paper, this will make it easier as it should work with most standard scanner/printers.
The soft cover is okay but I would have hoped for a better value on the book if the quality of the publishing was being diminished. That is also true of the paper. Rogue One has more of a medium weight versus the heavy weight of Star Wars.
The change from sewn to glue binding makes it more difficult to get the book to open flat for coloring. As the pages are now perforated, the lack of ease of snipping threads to remove pages is less important.
The perforated pages is a nice change; however, given that the designs are printed on both sides of the page and many of the designs spread across two pages, the usefulness of the perforated pages is diminished. The only way I think that these larger designs can be printed effectively would be to use a fold-out page. I’ve seen this done in a number of coloring books and hope that the trend will catch on.
One of my issues with designs/publishing is a heavy use of wall-paper designs (oddly with a number of them repeated throughout the book). I would have been okay with this if the publisher had used some forethought and placed the wall-paper designs on the reverse of the more unique designs. There seems to have been an attempt to do this (at least with the character designs) but about half way through the book, that seemed to mostly disappear.
Because of the way the book was put together, for the most part, I will be using colored pencils. I will be willing to give up most of the wall-paper designs if I prefer to use markers on the reverse page but that will be limited to maybe a third of the designs in the book.
This is what I found while coloring in the book and testing my color medium on the paper.
126 Rogue One inspired Design pages (plus designs on title and copyright pages.)
51 pages are of wall-paper style repeating designs
10 of the Designs spread across two pages
Printed on both sides of page
Paper is medium weight, white, very slightly rough, and perforated
Glue binding
Many designs extend across the perforations, some into the binding. Certainly true of the two-page spreads and removing them from the book will result in loss of design. I was able to break the spine to get into the binding area a bit easier but there are still some issues.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paper
Water-based markers either bled through or left colorful shadows on the back of the paper.
Gel pens and India ink pens left anywhere from colorful shadows to indistinct shadows on the back of the page but even at best, where still noticeable.
Colored pencils worked well with this paper. I was able to get good, deep pigment. I could layer easily (both same and different colors.) Blending was okay though the tooth of the paper was not optimal. I was able to blend with a pencil style blending stick.

Coloring for Daniel: An Adult Coloring Book for Hope, Strength and Healing

By: Various Artists

Rating: 5 of 5

I recently came across a coloring book by Daniel Savage called, Gnomes. I read about his story and then found that a group of 32 artists (including Mr. Savage’s own 10 year old daughter) had contributed designs to this coloring book in his honor and support.

The artist, Daniel Savage, has been diagnosed with a late stage form of cancer (Stage IV metastatic cancer which is terminal.) Even while he is going through this struggle, he is trying to leave a legacy and provide for his family.
The artists involved in this project are generous with their time and with their talent. All of the proceeds (100%) from this book are being donated to the Mr. Savage’s family. I am thankful that there individuals who will give so much to such a cause. I have coloring books by some of these artists and will certainly be looking at purchasing books by each of them in the future.
There are a wide variety of designs. Some are messages of hope while others show us the usual style of the artist’s designs. In all cases, the designs showcase all of the artists talents.
This is what I discovered when coloring in this book and testing it with my color medium:
32 Various Designs in a coloring book to honor and support Daniel Savage plus four bonus designs by the Mr. Savage’s daughter.
Printed one side of the page
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated.
The designs do not merge into the binding
Glue Binding
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page quickly.
Water-based markers bleed through in spots.
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows on back of the page. India ink can bleed through if you apply heavily or multiple coats.
Coloring Pencils work well with this paper. I found that I could layers the same color for deeper pigment or multiple colors and I could blend easily using a blending stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I also found that hard lead pencils leave dents through the paper.
I like to use a blotter when working in the book. I use a page of card stock or several sheets of heavyweight paper under my working page. It keeps seeping ink and marring dents from ruining the pages below.

Gnomes: An Adult Coloring Book of Gnomes Throughout Time

By: Daniel Savage

Rating: 5 of 5

I have friends and family who enjoy placing gnomes in their gardens. I even have a couple myself. I wanted to find a coloring book which featured gnomes and this is a great one. When I found this book, I actually found a back story that was extremely touching as well.

The artist, Daniel Savage, has been diagnosed with a late stage form of cancer (Stage IV metastatic cancer which is terminal.) Even while he is going through this struggle, he is trying to leave a legacy and provide for his family. My son passed away at 18 after a battle with leukemia, so I know the struggle and hardship that can descend on a family during a battle with cancer.
That Mr. Savage continues to think of his family and hopes that this book will be part of that legacy is very touching to me. I think about them as I color in the book and hope for the best for all of them.
The designs are very upbeat and fun. There are 32 of them and they are fairly easy to color and have a nice amount of detail.
This is what I discovered when coloring in this book and testing it with my color medium:
32 Gnome inspired designs
Printed one side of the page
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated.
The designs do not merge into the binding and have a framing line at the outer edges of each design.
Glue Binding
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page quickly.
Water-based markers bleed through in spots.
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows on back of the page. India ink can bleed through if you apply heavily or multiple coats.
Coloring Pencils work well with this paper. I found that I could layers the same color for deeper pigment or multiple colors and I could blend easily using a blending stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I also found that hard lead pencils leave dents through the paper.
I like to use a blotter when working in the book. I use a page of card stock or several sheets of heavyweight paper under my working page. It keeps seeping ink and marring dents from ruining the pages below.

My Fantastic Journey – Adult Coloring Book: Find Inspiration and Relaxation on a Journey to Another World

By: Okami Books

Rating: 5 of 5

This is my first coloring book by artist Alina Marchenko. I own several other books by Okami Books which seems to be a publisher for a variety of artists. I’m pleased to find such a diverse publisher and will be looking for new releases by this company in the future.

The designs in this book are quite detailed and, at times, even intricate, with small areas to color. The designs all have a swirling quality to them as if the ink were flowing in a perpetual motion. Because of the intricacy of the designs, I don’t suggest this book for anyone with fine motor or vision issues. It will be a bit of a challenge for everyone else.
The subject of the designs are generally women, animals, or women with animals (though I did glimpse a gnome as well.) The cover is very indicative of the designs in the book so I was not surprised by the style of the designs. What I was surprised by was the number of designs in this book. It is a very good value to receive 40 different designs and it will provide many hours of coloring enjoyment.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:
40 Hand-drawn illustrations of animals and women
Printed one side of the page
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated.
The designs do not merge into the binding and have an unusual form of framing line at the outer edges.
Glue Binding
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page quickly.
Water-based markers bleed through in spots.
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows on back of the page. India ink can bleed through if you apply heavily or multiple coats.
Coloring Pencils work well with this paper. I found that I could layers the same color for deeper pigment or multiple colors and I could blend easily using a blending stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I also found that hard lead pencils leave dents through the paper.
I like to use a blotter when working in the book. I use a page of card stock or several sheets of heavyweight paper under my working page. It keeps seeping ink and marring dents from ruining the pages below.

World of Cats: Adult Coloring Book

By: Cindy Elsharouni

Rating: 5 of 5

I own several coloring books by Cindy Elsharouni which generally have designs of horses and some of dogs. This is the first coloring book I have by this artist which is devoted to cats.

I have a soft spot for cats as I have owned many over the years and was involved with rescue efforts for a number of years as well. Now that all of my cats have passed on, I get my vicarious enjoyment through coloring designs that remind me of them.
There are a variety of breeds in this book I noted American Shorthair, Siamese, Scottish Fold, Persian, and many more. It is lovely to see so much choice to color in one book. Most of the designs of cats are done realistically but there are a few which have various elements added to their body/face so that you can experiment with fun colors.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:
42 Cat Designs in Various Breeds (45 including title and intro pages)
Printed one side of the page
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated.
Most designs do not merge into the binding; however, two designs have slight elements which do merge into the binding.
Glue Binding
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page quickly.
Water-based markers bleed through in spots.
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows on back of the page. India ink can bleed through if you apply heavily or multiple coats.
Coloring Pencils work well with this paper. I found that I could layers the same color for deeper pigment or multiple colors and I could blend easily using a blending stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I also found that hard lead pencils leave dents through the paper.
I like to use a blotter when working in the book. I use a page of card stock or several sheets of heavyweight paper under my working page. It keeps seeping ink and marring dents from ruining the pages below.