Monthly Archives: September 2017

Disney Dreams Collection Thomas Kinkade Studios Coloring Book

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 coloring book, both the designs and the photos. I will also upload a few pages in photos to show how the book is put together.

I own and really like both of the prior Kinkade coloring books but this one has to be my favorite. I am a fan both of his artwork and of Disney in general, so this book combines two of my favorites things. On top of that, I really like the way that illustrators interpreted the designs in this coloring book. Where the first two books had very sketch-like designs, in this book, much of the design is done is straight-forward line drawing. It will be much easier to color because of it. I find that I like the drawings in this book much more than the most recent Disney coloring books.
Many of my favorite classic movies are included and there are also many of the newer sequel film characters included as well. The first thing I did after looking through this book was to go back on-line and order more copies to give away as gifts this holiday season. I know that they will be a big hit among my family and friends.
This is the third Thomas Kinkade coloring book in this series and the first one to feature his Disney artwork. The books are published by Posh and follow the same format. The size of the book is the same as is the texture of the paper. The paper in this book is soft white.
The designs are printed on the right hand side of with the color 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.) I purchased a second copy to keep the photos pristine as I work with alcohol-based markers most of the time.
Here is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my medium:
63 Thomas Kinkade Disney 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 soft 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 dual-end Tombow markers 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 Merry Christmas Designs Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: Suzanne Anoushian

Rating: 5 of 5

The Christmas season is my favorite of the year. I like to do all sorts of crafts and coloring Christmas designs is something I really enjoy. Merry Christmas Designs is by artist Suzanne Anoushian who is new to me. The designs range from Santas to Christmas trees to elves, wreathes, stockings and all sorts of things I think of for the season. Each of the designs also provide information, songs, or even stories that relate to Christmas as well.

I chose to do a design based on glass ornaments as I like to collect a wide variety of ornaments, including vintage glass ones. I had a lot of fun using both markers and gel pens (especially ones with glitter and metallic looks.) I’ll post a photo of my first project as well as samples from the book.

The designs have a sketch-style look to them. Even the words look hand written in very neat penmanship. The designs are detailed though not what I would call intricate to color.

This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper. I will list, in the comments section below, the coloring medium I use for testing and for most of my coloring projects.

31 hand-drawn Christmas inspired designs with lots of Christmas information

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.

The Night Before Christmas Coloring Book (The Classic Edition)

By: Charles Santore

Rating: 5 of 5

This is a wonderful entry in the series of Classic Coloring books featuring the artwork of Charles Santore. The poem is by Clement C. Moore and the illustrations are by Charles Santore. Along with the poem and the designs, there are small color pictures from the illustrated version of this book on the inside front and back covers. That way, you can use similar colors if you so choose.

The coloring book is a larger than standard format. The designs are mostly done in line drawing form with some designs having considerable shading included. Those few images border on the edge of being grayscale designs.
The poem and illustrations are set up in true storybook style, with the text on the left hand side (back of page) and the illustration to the right. The illustrations match well with the text on the facing page with a lot of emphasis on images of Santa.
Some mediums will bleed through the page (see below), which will interfere with the text but if that doesn’t bother you, you can treat the book as if the designs were one sided.
This is what I found while coloring in the book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:
23 Designs inspired by the famous poem The Night Before Christmas. Illustrations are by Charles Santore.
Designs printed on one side of the page with storybook text on the back.
Paper is white, every so slightly rough to touch, medium weight and non-perforated
Hybrid glue and sewn binding (lots of small stitches.) You cannot snip threads to remove pages from the book.
Designs stop short of the binding and have a framing line at the outer edges
Book opens easily to flat position for ease of coloring.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page
Water-based markers and India ink markers leave a slight colorful shadow on the back of the page.
Gel pens do not bleed through an left an indistinct shadow on the back of the page.
Colored pencils did well with this paper. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I was easily able to get good pigment with multiple layers of the same color. I also was able to layer multiple colors and blend well using a blender stick.

Chibi Girls 2: A Cute Coloring Book with Adorable Girls, Playful Scenes, and Fun Adventures

By: Jade Summer

Rating: 5 of 5

This is the second coloring book of Chibi Girls designs by Jade Summer. There are 30 different designs (with 2 copies of each design for a total of 60 coloring pages.) The designs show a lot of fun little Chibi girls in a variety of places and occupations. The designs include a Samurai girl, a fairy princess, an elf, a surfer, a birthday girl and many more. Each design is cuter than the last. There are no repeats from the last book.

The word chibi is a Japanese slang term for small person. The cute little girls in this book are small but have beautiful big eyes and even bigger personalities. The designs are detailed with full backgrounds; however, they are not intricate and hard to color.
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:
30 unique designs x 2 each cute Chibi girl designs for a total of 60 coloring pages
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.
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.

Creative Haven Vintage Christmas Windows Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: David Bodo

Rating: 4 of 5

This is an interesting coloring book by David and La Jeana Bodo. The concept is vintage Christmas windows. What surprised me is that the drawings were much more like a cartoon than a realistically drawn window scene. While some fall into the category of vintage, others are simply window displays. There are displays of old time scenes and displays of elves surfing with Santa snoozing in a hammock – all in one book.

For me, the one drawback in this coloring book is that the features on the various faces were not drawn with the same detail. Some are quite detailed, others much less so, and finally, others have no detail at all. Given that the size of the faces were similar, I don’t think it was an issue of lack of space but rather a choice or something that was left undone.
The drawings are detailed and some have intricate and small areas to color.
I’ve noticed that the paper quality over the last few months seems to change quite frequently on the Creative Haven line. Because of that, if you buy one of these books, it may be slightly smooth or slightly rough depending on when and where it was printed.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
31 line drawing designs which represent Christmas window displays
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. The window and window coverings make up the frame at the outer edges of each design.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers bleed through in spots (somewhat heavier than with previous paper in the Creative Have line) 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 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 Cozy Creatures Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: Jessica Mazurkiewicz

Rating: 5 of 5

This is a really cute coloring book of designs by Jessica Mazurkiewicz. She has dressed a wide variety of animals in some fun cozy clothing. There are dogs, cats, llamas, tigers, turtles, koalas and even an octopus garbed in (mostly) sweaters. Each design is more adorable than the last and should make for fun coloring during the cold months of winter when I am wearing by cozy clothes as well.

The drawings in this book are detailed but not what I consider intricate or difficult to color. I especially like that the animals are placed in scenes rather than simply having a dog or cat dressed in a sweater and no background. The cute backgrounds give context to the designs.
I’ve noticed that the paper quality over the last few months seems to change quite frequently on the Creative Haven line. Because of that, if you buy one of these books, it may be slightly smooth or slightly rough depending on when and where it was printed.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
31 line drawing designs of different animals all dressed in cozy clothing
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 cross over the perforations but nothing integral to the design is lost if you remove a page from the book. The designs stop at the edges of the page, so coloring in this book will involve unfinished elements at the edge.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers bleed through in spots (somewhat heavier than with previous paper in the Creative Have line) 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 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 Fantasy Butterflies Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)

By: Marty Noble

Rating: 5 of 5

I have and enjoy a number of coloring books by Marty Noble. This book is quite different from those that I already own. The designs focus on butterflies with lots of decorative embellishments within their wings, for instance, butterflies within butterflies or flowers or birds as part of the wing pattern.

This book is a combination of 15 new designs by Ms. Noble and 16 designs which are re-printed from an earlier coloring book by Dover: Fanciful Stained Glass Coloring Book (2012). I don’t own the previous book (which was printed on translucent vellum instead of coloring paper) so getting these designs in the Creative Haven format is really great for me to color.

For my first project, I chose to do a butterfly with butterflies making up its wings. I did the design with regular fine point markers and with the brush end of my Copic markers. This design was fairly easy and open to color but the book contains many designs which are detailed and some with intricate and small spots to color. I’ll post a photo of my first project as well as samples from the book.

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

31 Butterfly designs with lots of decorative touches

Designs are printed one side of the page

Paper is typical of Creative Haven: 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 in spots and 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. 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 blending stick. Hard lead pencils, like Verithins, leave dents on the back of the page.

I prefer to use a blotter page under my working page to keep ink from seeping through or dents from marring the pages below. 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 work as well.