iiiiReader Book Reviews

Enchanted Forest 2017 Wall Calendar: An Inky Quest and 2017 Coloring Calendar

By: Johanna Basford

Rating: 5 of 5

This is a spiral bound 2017 calendar based on some of the artwork from Johanna Basford’s popular coloring book Enchanted Forest. I must say that of her coloring books available at this time, Enchanted Forest may be my favorite so I was really pleased to find this calendar for my craft room. I recently picked up my copy of this calendar at my local big box store.

The original coloring book was printed on a cream tone paper but the calendar is printed on white. The calendar is the standard 12 x 12 inch wall calendar and is larger than the original book (approximately 10 x 10 inches.) It looks as if the designs were enlarged for the calendar format.

Because of the enlarged designs, I think that this might be a great way for someone with fine motor or vision issues to have an opportunity to color some of Ms. Basford’s designs. In the book, the details may have been a little too intricate for some people and the enlarged designs in the calendar may be just the right size for those individuals. It could be a great holiday gift.

There are holidays listed for a variety of English speaking countries, including the UK, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland.

In addition to the pictures for each month, there is also one on the reverse side of the cover which is opposite a four-month segment of calendar for the last four months of 2016. The cover can also be colored and has pretty gold foil accents.

I purchased the Secret Garden Calendar last year and I think that the paper used in this calendar is superior to that. I also really like the spiral binding instead of the staple binding of the older calendar. The paper is a medium weight card stock in white.

This is what I found while coloring in this calendar and testing the paper with my coloring medium.

13 Enlarged drawings from the Enchanted Forest coloring book.

Designs are printed on one side of page with calendar on the reverse, except the first design which has the cover on the reverse.

Paper is medium weight chipboard, white and non-perforated.

Spiral binding

Designs do not cross over the binding area and stop short of the hole at the top of the page (for hanging purposes.)

Alcohol-based markers bleed through quickly.

Water-based markers, India ink pens and gel pens did not bleed through the page. Some gel pens needed extra drying time. I suggest that you test any wet medium to see if you get leak through with the brand that you use.

Colored pencils work well with this slightly rough paper. I was able to put down good pigment, layer same and multiple colors, and blend using a blending stick. This was true of both oil and wax-based pencils.

I am using the 12 x 12 inch piece of cardboard as a surface under my working page. I am also using a 12 x 12 inch card stock for my blotter page (found these at my local craft store fairly inexpensively.) This keeps damage from ink that seeps through the page at a minimum.

I personally don’t care if the ink messes with the calendar page on the back, so I will use wet or dry medium depending on my mood. The cover and the picture below are the ones that I will use only colored pencils on as I don’t want seeping ink on either of those pages.

Color At Home: A Young House Love Coloring Book

By: Sherry Petersik

Rating: 5 of 5

I’ve read the Young House Love blog for years and was happy to find out that Sherry and John Petersik were collaborating with illustrator Joan Borawski to develop a coloring book based on interior design. I’ve found their blog to be both fun to read and an inspiration for changes I have made around both my current and last house.

The designs in the book are wonderful. They are clean line drawings that are fun and easy to color. In addition to the actual coloring pages, there are also some hints for interior design and some exercise pages for trying out some of those hints. Most of the designs are detailed and a few of them include intricate elements to color. The designs show a wide variety of rooms, a couple of outside views, as well as some furniture and other design collage style pages.

The book is printed on both sides of the perforated page and 15 of the designs spread across two pages. What is great is that the designs stop right at the perforations and pick up on the next page at the same spot. It makes it easy to color the whole design without having to struggle coloring into the binding area.

I have a couple of coloring books by this publisher and the paper, binding, and the printing of this book are quite different from those. While I like the prior books, this one steps up a level in publishing. It’s a real pleasure to color in.

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

61 pages of designs inspired by Young House Love (not including title, intro or exercise pages.)

Printed on both sides of the page

Paper is heavyweight, white, slightly smooth, and perforated

Sewn binding. You can remove pages in whole by cutting the binding; however, I would simply remove pages at the perforations.

Designs do not merge past the perforations.

Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page. They are the only wet medium that I tested which did bleed through the page.

Water-based markers, India ink pens and gel pens did not bleed through or leave shadows on the back of the page. Gel pens did require additional drying time.

Colored pencils work well with this paper. Even though the paper is slightly smooth, it grips color really well. I was able to layer and blend easily with both wax and oil based pencils.

In addition to the copy of this coloring book that I purchased on Amazon, the publisher sent me a sample advanced reader copy of this book.

Mouse Guard: Coloring Book

By: David Petersen

Rating: 5 of 5

My husband and I have both enjoyed the Mouse Guard comic series of books over the years so it was an easy decision to purchase the coloring book based on the artwork of those books. The book is a larger format book and is quite thick as well.

The artwork in the coloring book seems to have been lifted from the books themselves. As a result, there is a fairly large amount of black in the designs. That doesn’t bother me but it is something that should be noted. There are a couple of pages that are extremely heavy with black and I will try to post at least one of those in photos. With books that have this, I incorporate the black as part of my design and figure I will save ink.

The designs are detailed and some have intricate spots to color. They are a really great representation of what I have seen in the book series. The book is printed on ivory color which adds to the ambiance as it gives the designs an type of antique vibe.

While the coloring book is printed on both sides of the page, only the designs that spread across two pages have elements which merge into the binding area. While most of the designs are limited to one page (and most of those have framing lines at the outer edge), there are 14 designs that spread across two pages. In my copy, those pages line up extremely well and I have been able to get the book open flat enough for coloring purposes. It is still a bit difficult to get my pencils into that area but it is do-able.

This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing it with my coloring medium:

90 pages of Mouse Guard coloring designs

Printed both sides of the page

Paper is heavyweight, ivory, slightly rough (with good tooth), and non-perforated

Sewn Binding

Only 14 two-page spread designs merge into the binding area, the rest are one page designs that have have space between the edge of the design and the binding.

Pages can be removed in whole (several at a time) by snipping threads but it may prove difficult to line the two-page spreads once they are removed.

Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paper

Water-based markers, India ink pens and gel pens all leave shadows on the back of the page.

Colored pencils work well with the paper and will be my choice of coloring medium for this book. The paper has a very slight roughness to it and provides a good surface for pigment. I tested both oil ad wax based pencils and found that I could easily layer the same color, multiple colors, and blend using a blending stick.

The Poldark Colouring Book

By: Gwen Burns

Rating: 5 of 5

My husband and I are fans of the Poldark series from BBC One. This coloring book is based on the first two series and shows scenes from each which includes some hint as to plot lines. The coloring book is really well made and the characters are, for the most part, very true to life.

The 46 designs include a lot of character studies which I really appreciate. They also give a hint of the lush beauty of the countryside, homes, and clothing that I appreciate in the series.

The designs are done with a very light hand with an almost sketch-like quality to the drawings. The artist has, in a number of the designs, included lines across the characters faces, etc. for shading purposes. Some people like this and some do not. I’m fairly neutral on the matter but wanted to be sure to mention it.

I really appreciate that this book was printed single sided. So many of the of television/movie/book coloring books are done two-sided which makes it difficult for someone who colors with alcohol-based markers. With the high level of detail in these designs, it shows that a single sided book with great designs and detail can be accomplished and accomplished very well.

This is the UK version of the coloring book. As both my husband and I color, I also pre-ordered the US version and will provide a comparison of both coloring books when I receive that book.

Here is what I have experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper.

46 line drawn designs which are based on series 1 and 2 of Poldark

Printed on one side of the page

Paper is medium weight, white, slightly rough and non-perforated

Sewn Binding

Designs merge into the binding area; however, several pages at a time can be removed by snipping a few threads and no portion of the design will be lost

Book can be opened fairly flat by breaking the binding but it is still a bit difficult to color into the binding area

Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page

Water-based markers do not bleed through

India ink pens leave a very light shadow on the back of the page

Gel pens do not leak through but require a few minutes more of drying time.

Colored pencils work very well with this paper. The oh, so slight roughness to the page provides excellent tooth for pigment. I was able to layer the same color, multiple colors and blend well with both oil and wax based colors.

An Adventure in Arendelle (Disney Frozen) (Big Coloring Book)

By: Frank Berrios

Rating: 5 of 5

We are big Disney fans at our house and were really pleased to find this coloring/sticker book. According to the product description, it is geared toward children and I understand that completely. However, I found it fun to color in as an adult.

The 24 pages of designs are a larger format than the usual coloring book. There is a handle that creates a cut through hole in all of the pages (too bad as it would have been nicer to have the whole picture but it probably makes it easier for children to carry.) There is also a fun sheet of stickers. The paper is thin, white (rather than the usual childrens off-white newspaper style pages) and pages can be removed from the glue bound edge with a little bit of care. The back of the book is a heavy duty cardboard. It makes for an excellent surface for coloring where ever you are.

Doodle Animals Coloring Book for Adults

By: Happy Coloring

Rating: 5 of 5

I own a couple of coloring books by Amanda Neel and while I am familiar with her doodle style, this is the first such book I have seen by her which includes a variety of animals. The designs are nicely printed with fairly easy to color doodle areas. Some designs make the doodles so intricate it is hard to get a pencil or pen point into the area to color. That is not true with this coloring book. I also appreciate that these are original designs versus books based on licensed (e.g., Shutterstock) designs.

The designs are a wide range of animals, including: horse, tiger, bear, seal, fish, alligator and many others. I choose to do the zebra as my first project. I’m fairly new to Inktense as a coloring medium but wanted to try it on this type of paper. While I don’t test Inktense or other watercolors (due to my lack of experience with the medium), I can note that the paper rippled a bit from the water. I tried to use it sparingly but it may be that I still put too much on the page.

Here is what I found while coloring in the book and testing my coloring medium on the pages:

30 various original doodle animal designs some with backgrounds (plus a bonus title page to color)

Printed on one side of the page

Paper is typical of CreateSpace publishing thin, white, slightly rough and non-perforated

Glue bound

Designs do not merge into the binding area and have a framing line at their outer edges

Pages can be cut out of the book without losing any portion of the design

Book can be opened fairly flat for coloring by breaking the spine.

Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper rapidly.

Water-based markers bleed through in spots.

Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows on the back of the page. India ink pens can bleed through in spots if you apply the ink heavily or in multiple layers.

Colored pencils work well. I tested both oil and wax-based and had good results with both. I was able to lay down good color, layer the same and multiple colors, and blend easily using a pencil style blender. Hard lead pencils can leave dents through the paper.

I use a blotter page of card stock to keep seeping ink and dents from damaging the pages below my working page. A couple of pages of heavyweight paper works well, too.

tokidoki Coloring Pad

By: tokidoki

Rating: 5 of 5

This is the second Tokidoki coloring book that I have purchased (as well as a fantastic set of postcards.) For fans of Tokidoki, this is a great deal. This coloring pad is a larger format than the coloring book and it has a full 60 different designs in it. So many of the characters are in it that I am having lots of fun imagining my own color schemes for each of them.

The designs are well printed and are easy to color. Many of the designs are detailed but not intricate and small to color. They are printed on one side of the page with the glue binding at the top exactly what you would expect from something called a coloring pad of high quality.

This is what I found while coloring in this book and checking the paper with my coloring medium.

60 full page Tokidoki coloring design pages

Designs are printed on one side of the page

Paper is heavyweight, white, somewhat smooth (but with good tooth), and, not perforated, the pages are easy to remove from the top glue binding

Glue bound with the type of edge you expect from a notepad

There is an additional illustrated cover with gold foil touches which hinges open and away from the pages and a very heavyweight cardboard back cover which provides a great surface for coloring anywhere.

Designs run to the binding but you can remove full pages without loss of any design elements

Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paper readily

Water-based markers bleed through in tiny spots

India ink leaves slight shadows on the back of the page

Gel pens do not bleed through but require additional drying time.

Colored pencils work really well with this paper. While it is somewhat smooth, the paper has a good tooth for grabbing pigment. I had good results from both oil and wax based pencils with layering same and different colors as well as blending using a blending stick.

I suggest a blotter page under your working page (or removing the page before coloring) if you are using markers. I like card stock but a couple of sheets of heavyweight paper work as well. This will keep seeping ink from ruining the pages below.