Monthly Archives: January 2017

Little Red Riding Hood: A Fairy Tale Coloring Book with Adorable Fantasy Characters, Enchanted Forest Animals, and Cute Nature Scenes

By: Jade Summer

Rating: 5 of 5

This is the first coloring book I have based on Little Red Riding Hood. It covers the story from beginning to end (though leaving out the most frightening scenes.) I like that the artist used some discretion and substituted in pepper and sneezing for how Grandma gets back out. I also like that the wolf seems so mild at first (very friendly looking) and his wolf demeanor changes when he gets to Grandmas.

It will be a lot of fun to color in this book. I especially like getting two copies of each design in this book (25 different designs but two copies each) as I can share with my grandchildren when they are ready to color something this detailed.
The designs are quite detailed and some of them contain what I consider intricate and small elements to color. I found that my ultra-fine points, brush points and small nib gel pens worked well as did my colored pencils when sharped to fine points. Crayons would be much more difficult to work with unless you can sharpen them to a small point.
While you can have access to .PDFs when you purchase this book, my review is based on the book as it is received from Amazon. That way you will know what the pages look like and how they accept color. I like that the publisher provides the digital version as well so you can choose the paper you wish to use and/or to color the pictures as many times as you choose.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
25 x 2 each Little Red Riding Hood inspired Designs
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated. The back of the page is printed black.
The designs do not merge into the binding. There is a heavy framing line at the outer edges of the design to give the project a more finished look, especially for framing. There is a slight shadowing effect to the framing line which gives the image an almost 3D effect.
Glue Binding (there is room to cut the pages out if you choose to do so.)
Though you cannot see the bleed-through easily due to the back of the page being printed in black, I recommend the use of a blotter page when working in this 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.
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.

Angels: An Adult Coloring Book with Beautiful Christian Women, Relaxing Floral Designs, and Inspirational Religious Themes

By: Jade Summer

Rating: 5 of 5

This is a lovely book of female Angel designs. There are 25 different designs but you are given 2 copies of each to total 50 coloring pages. The angels are posed against backgrounds rather than a simple figure. Some are full face and others are in profile. The dress is quite different with some in traditional long gowns and others in slightly more revealing two piece dresses or sleeveless gowns.

The designs are quite detailed and will take hours to finish. They are not what I consider intricate as the elements to color do not require special small nib pens/markers. I am able to use a wide variety of coloring medium on these designs.
While you can have access to .PDFs when you purchase this book, my review is based on the book as it is received from Amazon. That way you will know what the pages look like and how they accept color. I like that the publisher provides the digital version as well so you can choose the paper you wish to use and/or to color the pictures as many times as you choose.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
25 x 2 each Angel Designs
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated. The back of the page is printed black.
The designs do not merge into the binding. There is a heavy framing line at the outer edges of the design to give the project a more finished look, especially for framing. There is a slight shadowing effect to the framing line which gives the image an almost 3D effect.
Glue Binding (there is room to cut the pages out if you choose to do so.)
Though you cannot see the bleed-through easily due to the back of the page being printed in black, I recommend the use of a blotter page when working in this 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.
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.

Posh Adult Coloring Book: Thomas Kinkade Peaceful Moments (Posh Coloring Books)

By: Thomas Kinkade

Rating: 5 of 5

Attached to this review will be my silent video which will show all of the pages of the book, both the designs and the photos. I will also upload a few pages in photos to show how the book is put together.

This is the second Thomas Kinkade coloring book in this series. The books are published by Posh and follow the same format, that is, a black on white line drawing to the right and a matte color photo of the design to the left. The size of the book is the same as is the texture of the paper. What is different is that Peaceful Moments is printed on bright white paper where the first, in comparison, is more of a very slight ivory white.
There are many of my favorites included in this book, so I am thrilled with it though coloring in it will be a challenge as it was with the first book. The designs are beautiful but lack details so that my finished projects look quite different from the originals. That is to be expected, though, because Mr. Kinkade’s artwork is so wonderful.
Most of the designs in this book are architectural in nature with buildings (cottages, Victorian homes, lighthouses, etc.) but a few are simply beautiful landscape scenes. I like the mix and look forward to having a lot of fun with this book.
There will be at least one more book in this series based on Disney artwork. A commenter on one of my reviews suggested that a gray scale coloring book would be lovely. I agree wholeheartedly. It would be wonderful to have such a book in a larger format. That would be a great way of getting all the detail in a coloring book. I hope someone at the publishing house takes up this idea.
The designs are printed on the right hand side of with the photo of the actual painting on the left hand side (i.e., opposite each other in the book.) This will allow me to look at the photo of the real painting while I am coloring my own. Certain coloring medium will bleed through and can ruin the colored designs (see below.)
Here is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my medium:
63 Thomas Kinkade designs with 63 color photos as well
Designs printed on one side of the page with a photo on the back of the page.
Paper is bright white, very slightly rough, non-perforated and medium weight.
Designs stop before the binding area but unfinished elements are left on all four sides of the design which does not have a framing line.
Glue Bound
Pages can be cut out without loss of designs. I don’t plan to do so as I want to keep the continuity of the colored picture and design together.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paper.
Water-based markers leave shadows of color (with some spotting through) on the back of the page except for the brush end of Tombows which did not leak through.
India ink pens leave shadows of color on the back of the page.
Gel pens do not bleed through.
Colored pencils work well with this paper. I tested both oil and wax based pencils and was able to get good results from both. I got good pigment (especially with multiple layers of the same color.) I was able to layer different colors and to blend easily using a blending stick.
If you decide to use markers, you will probably have some amount of bleed-through onto the back of the page. I recommend using a heavyweight sheet of paper or card stock below your working page. That will keep ink from damaging the next design below.

Creative Haven Spring Scenes Coloring Book (Creative Haven Coloring Books)

By: Teresa Goodridge

Rating: 5 of 5

I own the two previous books in this series by Teresa Goodridge (Winter and Summer) and have found the Spring book to be an improvement over both. While the colored samples are still pictures of the original watercolor artwork rather than colored samples of the actual designs in the book, the problems with the tiny details (especially on faces) is much improved in this book. Details are more finished (less open ended, sketchy type details.) Coloring in it is easier as well as being able to use more types of coloring medium with larger nibs.

The designs are quite lovely with lots of spring themes. There are flowers, birds, outdoor scenes with fun activities like kite flying, walking in the part, riding bicycles, and shopping in an open-air market. The designs are quite detailed and do contain intricate and small areas to color. It is not a book that I would recommend to anyone with fine motor or vision issues.
I noticed that the feel of the paper is slightly rougher than other Creative Haven books I have ordered in this last six months or so. I like the new texture as it is even better for use with colored pencils.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
31 Spring inspired Designs
The designs are printed one side of the page
Paper is the usual Creative Haven quality: white, medium weight, slightly rough and has perforated pages.
Glue Binding but with perforated pages so removing a page is fairly simple.
The designs stop well before the perforations and each of the designs has a framing line at the outer edge.
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 and even better than many of the more recent Creative Haven coloring books I have bought. I was able to get good pigment (color) lay down, layer the same color and multiple colors and to 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.

Creative Haven Hearts Coloring Book: Romantic Designs on a Dramatic Black Background (Adult Coloring)

By: Lindsey Boylan

Rating: 4 of 5

I own a number of coloring books by Lindsey Boylan and all of them are white line drawings on black backgrounds. Hearts is the same format as the rest. There are 31 designs which include hearts as their theme but I found that the detail in the designs sometimes obscured the hearts to the point of not being noticed. I can hopefully rectify that in coloring by using colors which will bring the hearts to prominence.

The designs are extremely detailed and have intricate elements to color. There are lots of flowers, vines, and tiny little lines within small elements. The hearts themselves are filled with lots of elements as well. It might have been nice to get a more simple heart or two to color with shading, etc. Some areas are so detailed that I will put a swathe of color over the tiny elements as if they were not separate and call it good.
On the whole, I still like the coloring book. It is a book of projects for those who like detail and want projects that will take longer rather than shorter periods of time to finish. It is not a book that I would recommend at all to anyone with fine motor or vision issues. It is simply too intricate and detailed and will require the use of smaller nib pens/markers and very sharp pencils.
I noticed that the feel of the paper is slightly rougher than other Creative Haven books I have ordered in this last six months or so. I like the new texture as it is even better for use with colored pencils.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
31 Very detailed and intricate heart designs on black background
The designs are printed one side of the page
Paper is the usual Creative Haven quality: white (with black background printed on), medium weight, slightly rough and has perforated pages.
Glue Binding but with perforated pages so removing a page is fairly simple.
The designs stop before the perforations; however, most leave dangling and unfinished elements at all four sides of the designs (three edges and perforated edge.) Seven of the designs have framing lines with finished edges.
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 and even better than many of the more recent Creative Haven coloring books I have bought. I was able to get good pigment (color) lay down, layer the same color and multiple colors and to 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.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Adult Coloring Book

By: Joss Whedon

Rating: 5 of 5

Attached to this review, I will include a silent flip-through video (and a few photos) so you can see if the book will work for you.

I have been a fan of the original Buffy television series since it first aired and am thrilled to have a coloring book based on those episodes. What makes it even better is that the quotes and episode/season information is also provided.
The designs are great fun and have a good amount of detail. It is fairly obvious that the artwork was done by a team of illustrators as there is a great different in feel and style between designs. What is really interesting is that the back of the book tells you abut each illustrator and gives them credit for each page that they provided.
Some of the designs resemble the characters more than others and some have more of a graphic novel/comic type look to them. I’m fine with both styles. In all cases, the action is great and the scenes chosen are fun to look at and especially to color.
I’m planning on playing the applicable episode in the back ground as I color each design. That way I can revisit the original while I am having fun changing up the colors in my coloring book!
This is what I found when I colored in this book and tested it with my coloring medium:
45 Buffy designs inspired by the original television series plus a great intro/title page designs
Designs printed on front of page and quotes and episode/season information printed on back of pages
Paper is heavyweight, white, slightly rough and non-perforated
Glue bound
Designs merge into the binding; if you cut pages out you will lose portions of the design
Book lays fairly flat for coloring if you heavily crease/break the spine
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page. If you use this mediu, I suggest a blotter page of card stock or heavy weight paper under your working page. That will keep ink from seeping through to the next design.
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 really well with this paper. It is slightly rough to the touch and grabs pigment well. I was able to layer the same color for deep pigment, layer multiple colors and blend easily using a blender stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils.

The Princess Bride: A Storybook to Color

By: Rachel Curtis

Rating: 5 of 5

The Princess Bride is one of my and my family’s favorite films. It is one of the few movies that we upgrade to new formats (VHS to DVD to Blu-ray) as soon as it is available.) We watch it at least once a year and quotes from the movie pepper our everyday life. Generally, my husband responds to any of my requests with As you wish and as our guests leave, we call out Have fun storming the castle.

I was really happy to find this coloring book with so many of the memorable scenes in it. Of course, there are favorites that I wish had been included but there can only be so many.
The coloring book starts with the first scene of the movie and continues until the last. In between, we get to visit with so many of the characters. The faces sometimes generally are quite good with, perhaps, the exception of Buttercup whose likeness is not as great as the others. Still, they are all very recognizable in the context of the scenes which are shown.
The coloring book has a detachable dustcover. The outside of the smooth cover is black on white line drawings with gold metallic accents. The inside of it is a repeating crown pattern. While it is very smooth, I still found that I could color on both sides of it. The inside attached cover is the same design with a golden brown in place of the metallic. The inside of the attached cover is a gold tone on black background in a repeating pattern of roses and swords.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
74 pages of designs from the Princess Bride (including title and intro pages) and a couple of pages for you to draw your own designs.
Some of the designs are wall-paper style (repeating patterns) but I like the majority of those and there are not too many of them.
Designs are printed on both sides of the page.
Paper is white, heavyweight, slightly smooth (but still with decent tooth), and non-perforated
The binding is hybrid with glue and many small stitches. This is not the type of book which is easy to take apart. I plan on leaving the pages intact.
There are two page spread designs and designs which have elements which disappear into the binding.
It takes some effort to break the spine to get the book to lay flat. I find that is generally the case with hybrid bindings.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page. If you use these markers, you will bleed through and mar the design on the back of the page.
Water-based markers, India ink pens and gel pens do not bleed through the paper. Gel pens take a considerably longer time than usual to dry.
Colored pencils work well with the paper. While it is slightly smooth, it was still able to grip pigment well. I was able to get deep color with repeated layers of the same color. I was also able to layer multiple colors and blend well with a blender stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils with good results.

Secret Jungle: An Adult Coloring Book with Stress Relieving Animal Designs, Inspirational Nature Scenes, and Relaxing Tropical Landscapes

By: Jade Summer

Rating: 5 of 5

This is a coloring book of 25 different designs; however, there are two sets of the designs for a total of 50 pages to color. The designs are inspired by the jungle and there are lots of plants and animals. Be sure to have a good number of green pens/pencils handy. There is a tree house in one designs and, in another, a hidden temple nestling into the deep recesses of the forest. With its wide range of animals, I’m not sure where this jungle would be located but perhaps that is the point it is a secret jungle.

The designs are detailed but not what I consider intricate with small areas to color. I am able to use a wide variety of coloring medium on these designs.
While you can have access to .PDFs when you purchase this book, my review is based on the book as it is received from Amazon. That way you will know what the pages look like and how they accept color. I like that the publisher provides the digital version as well so you can choose the paper you wish to use and/or to color the pictures as many times as you choose.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
25 x 2 each Jungle inspired Designs covering a wide range of subjects
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated. The back of the page is printed black which is something I am find typical of Jade Summer coloring books.
The designs do not merge into the binding. There is a heavy framing line at the outer edges of the design to give the project a more finished look, especially for framing. There is a slight shadowing effect to the framing line which gives the image an almost 3D effect.
Glue Binding (there is room to cut the pages out if you choose to do so.)
Though you cannot see the bleed-through easily due to the back of the page being printed in black, I recommend the use of a blotter page when working in this 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.
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.