Daily Archives: January 3, 2017

LANG – Adult Coloring Book – “Cheerful Journey” – Artwork by Debi Hron – Hardcover – Spiral – Designs for Beginner to Expert – 100 Pages – 9″ x 11″

By: The LANG Companies, Inc

Rating: 5 of 5

I was thrilled to find a coloring book filled with designs by Debi Hron. I’ve enjoyed her artwork over years and the designs in this book are indicative of those I have found in household goods, calendars, Christmas cards and more. There are birds, sunflowers, snowmen, scarecrows, and my favorites, her cute cats.

The designs span through a variety of seasons. Some of them have sayings and quotes and others are solely design focused. They designs appear to be hand-drawn with the wonderful look that one expects from such.
I’m amazed at the fact that the coloring book has 100 pages and is so well made. I wish most coloring books were made to this level, let alone having so many designs to choose from. This is a wonderful value for anyone who enjoys Ms. Hron’s fabulous artwork.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:
100 Design pages featuring hand-drawn artwork by Debi Hron featuring many of her design series
Designs are printed on one side of the page
Paper is medium weight, white, slightly rough and perforated
Many designs do cross over the perforations but stop short of the spiral binding. If you remove pages from the book, the edge that you will lose does not contain essential elements of the design.
Spiral Binding with hard covers that help the book lay flat and provide a good coloring table
Alcohol-based markers bled through this paper only slightly. I would still use a blotter of card stock to protect the designs below my working page when using these style of markers.
Water-based markers, gel pens and India ink pens did not bleed through or leave shadows on the back of the page.
Colored pencils worked well with this paper. It has a good tooth and allowed for applying layers of the same color to get rich pigment. I could also layer multiple colors well and I could blend both oil and wax based pencils easily with a pencil style blending stick.

Red Queen: The Official Coloring Book

By: Victoria Aveyard

Rating: 5 of 5

I will attach a silent flip-through video of the entire coloring book and will post some photos of this book so you can judge for yourself if it suits your needs.

I was really happy to see a coloring book based on the Red Queen series. I had a little problem figuring out which scenes were which and who each of the characters were. It would have been nice if some sort of info had been printed on the back of the page to make it easier to figure out.
The book is made up of 45 design pages (not including intro page.) The designs are in two separate categories which are character based scenes and sayings/quotes. Most of the designs are of characters. The sayings/quotes make up 16 of the design pages and are done is a lovely banner style in both cursive and block letters. The character designs are beautiful and elegant. They also appear to be hand-drawn which is my favorite style of coloring designs.
The character designs are detailed and some have intricate and small areas to color. The sayings/quotes are open and flowing and will be fairly easy to color. I, personally, like having both in the book. The sayings/quotes pages will give me an easy down-time project in between the more involved character pages.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
45 Designs pages (including character scenes and sayings/quotes) inspired by the Red Queen series
Designs are printed on one side of the page
Paper is white, medium weight, ever so slightly rough (good tooth for colored pencils) and perforated pages
Glue Bound
Designs (character scenes only) cross over perforations and merge into the binding area. The sayings designs stop short of the perforations.
If you break the spine (heavily crease it), you can get the book to lay fairly flat for coloring.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page
Water-based markers and India ink pens leave shadows on the back of the page
Gel pens did not bleed through but required additional drying time
Colored pencils work well with the paper. It has just enough tooth to grab pigment well. I was able to layer the same color for deeper color, layer multiple colors well, and to blend easily using a blender stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils.
I use card stock as a blotter page under my working page to keep ink from seeping through to the design below. You can also simply remove pages from the book before coloring to avoid this issue.

Romantic Country: The Second Tale: A Fantasy Coloring Book

By: Eriy

Rating: 5 of 5

I so loved the first book in this series, Romantic Country, I didn’t think it would be possible for artist Eriy to come close to the success of it with her sequel book. I was wrong. If anything, I think that Romantic Country The Second Tale is even better. It is a beautiful set of designs.

It’s hard to imagine but the artist draws her beautiful artwork using ink and a toothpick! Because of this technique, the lines of the drawings have a varying thickness and the print is lighter in tone than in other coloring books. Of the 65 designs in the book, 20 are two-page spreads.
The designs take us back to the beautiful land of Cocot. There is a map at the front of the book which shows all of the landmarks. There are thumbnails at the end of the book which explain each of the designs and what and where they are in Cocot. There is a fold-out poster at the end of the book as well.
The book is divided into five chapters: The Glow of Beautiful Old Castles, Magnificent Lakeside and Mountain Landscapes, Fairies and Works of Nature, The Witch and the Hidden Secret Forest, and Cheerful Town Scenes. Each of the chapter heading pages includes a lovely two-page spread designs. Additionally, the designs within each chapter relate back to the title of the chapter. There are a couple of designs at the front of the book which sit outside of the chapters. These designs are not included in the thumbnails at the back of the book.
The book has a brown kraft paper style attached cover. This cover has line drawings on front and back covers which you can color if you wish. The detached dustcover is beautifully illustrated with colorful designs of Cocot. The inside of the dustcover is white.
This is what I found when I was coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
65 Beautiful designs set in the fantasy land of Cocot. There are 20 two-page designs spreads.
Designs are printed on both sides of the page
Paper is cream colored, heavyweight, smooth and non-perforated.
Sewn Binding
Designs merge into the binding area and two-page spreads cross over the binding as well.
The book opens fairly flat for coloring but a little effort is needed to color into the binding edge
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper. I don’t suggest this medium as it will ruin the design on the back of the page. If you decide to use this style of markers, I suggest a blotter page of card stock or a couple of pages of heavyweight paper under your working page to keep ink from seeping further in to the book.
Water-based markers and India ink pens left slight shadows on the back of the page. I could see them and it bothered me enough not to want to use these for coloring my designs.
Gel pens did not bleed through but required additional drying time.
Colored pencils worked fairly well with this paper. I tested both oil and wax based pencils and had a little trouble blending with both. Due to the smooth texture of the paper, when I used a blending stick, there was a slight amount of smear versus blend. Otherwise, colored pencils worked well. Pigment went on deep and thick and I was able to easily layer multiple colors.

Hidden Garden: An Adult Coloring Book with Fun, Easy, and Relaxing Coloring Pages (Perfect Gift for Fantasy Lovers)

By: Jade Summer

Rating: 5 of 5

This is a lovely book of coloring designs based on gardens. The designs are whimsical with gates, fountains, birdhouses, animals, fairy houses, and even a young girl on a swing. There are all sorts of elements which bring me right into the garden setting while I am coloring in the book. Having a wide variety of green pens/markers/pencils will make coloring in this book even more fun.

The designs are detailed and a few have intricate and rather small areas to color. The projects will be fun and take some time to finish so there is a great value here. There are 25 designs but the publisher has included two of each design for a total of 50 coloring pages. I have to decide whether I will color the designs two ways or share the book with my husband and see how differently we color the same 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 Detailed Garden inspired designs
Designs are printed on one side of the page
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.
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.

Alice in Wonderland: An Adult Coloring Book with Fantasy Themes and Mythical Creatures (Based on the Classic Fairy Tale by Lewis Caroll)

By: Jade Summer

Rating: 5 of 5

I am a huge fan of Alice in Wonderland and like to pick up different artist’s interpretations of the story. This coloring book has 25 different Alice designs (the referenced 50 comes from getting two of each of the designs.) The designs are very detailed with lots of swirling lines. A few of the designs have intricate spots with small areas to color but for the most part, most standard coloring medium nibs should work fine. I think crayons might be more difficult unless you can sharpen them to a fairly fine 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 Designs based on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Designs are printed on one side of the page
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.
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.

Art of Coloring: Moana: 100 Images to Inspire Creativity

By: DBG

Rating: 4 of 5

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

The designs in this coloring book are quite cute and remind me of the film in good ways. Not all of the characters are represented but those who are have great quality designs.
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.)
The book is part of the Art of Coloring series and has changed format in a number of ways from the earlier books in this series. Moana 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 recently seen (at my local bookstore) that the older books have changed format and are now being published in the same format as Moana.
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. Moana has medium weight paper (compared to the heavy weight of the earlier books.)
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. While my pages line up well, they line up at the binding and the perforations and the glue binding make it difficult to open to see the continuity of the design.
The perforated pages are 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.
One of my issues with designs/publishing is a heavy use of wall-paper designs. 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.
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.
124 Moana inspired Design pages
30 pages of wall-paper style repeating designs
17 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 with coloring and continuity of design.
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.

Lovely Swirls: Coloring Book for Adults

By: Happy Coloring

Rating: 5 of 5

I own several coloring books by artist Stefania Miro so when I saw that she had a new swirl design book, I was very happy to purchase it. The 30 designs (31 if you include the title page which duplicates another design in the book) are of animals, birds, and flowers (and even a mermaid) with mostly swirling vines surrounding them. I don’t believe I saw a straight line anywhere in the coloring book.

The designs are detailed but not what I call intricate (i.e., with tiny spots to color.) Some of the designs are easily colored while others will take more time to complete.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:
30 Flowing and Swirling designs
Designs are printed on 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 (there is room to cut the pages out if you choose to do so.)
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.