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Artistic Repose

November 10th, 2014

When I was a kid, coloring was one of my favorite activities. My coloring books were always done from front to back, in order, and the pictures were colored to perfection with outlines and a lot of shading. I remember once my little brother got ahold of one of my coloring books once and scribbled on a page halfway through the book. I didn’t even want to finish the book, but of course my parents weren’t about to buy me a new coloring book for that reason. If I remember correctly, I carefully cut out that page so it was no longer in the book and then I could proceed.
coloring 1
A few months ago I spotted Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt and Coloring Book at a local bookstore. I was immediately taken and dreamed of coloring the beautiful pictures within. Impulse purchases are not my thing, so I didn’t buy it right then. Much time was spent mulling over whether I should buy the book. Last week I decided to go for it and got it and a set of Staedtler markers.
coloring 3
The markers are perfect, but the color does bleed through to the back page a little. I really like the saturated color they produce, so I’m using them on front cover and any pages that don’t have anything on the back. I have a set of Prismacolor colored pencils I will use for the other pages. Here’s the front of the book after I got finished with it (see image above before coloring).
coloring 2
coloring 5
coloring 4
The coloring pages in this book are highly detailed, it takes a lot of time to complete each one. It was definitely $15 well spent for the many hours of artistic repose I will get from it! You can bet I’ll be coloring through it in order, let’s hope Mr Chiots doesn’t get ahold of it and decide to color a page halfway through.

Did you enjoy coloring as a kid? Do you still color as an adult?

15 Comments to “Artistic Repose”
  1. Marina on November 10, 2014 at 6:38 am

    My American grandmother would come and visit me in France, and she once she brought me a story book, and a box of pencils, and we carefully colored the story book. It was a very special time!

    Reply to Marina's comment

  2. jean on November 10, 2014 at 7:01 am

    I did not know that coloring books were published for adults, too. That is a beautiful book and I love how lovely you colored the cover. Makes me want to do that.

    Reply to jean's comment

  3. Nebraska Dave on November 10, 2014 at 7:43 am

    Susy, coloring was not one of my interests as a child. I was an outside adventurer. Even without any playmates, the hills, woods, ditches, corn fields, old buildings, you name it, was open to exploring. When Winter weather prevented being outside, I was reading about adventure through the Hardy Boys book series or other adventure books. Today some 60 years later, I’m still kind of the same way. Outside is my world but during the Winter I’m reading about outside. There are some new adventurous times but now outside is mostly just gardening. I did do the graphics on Terra Nova Gardens’ fence last year but that’s about as close as I have come to coloring as an adult.

    Have a great artistic repose day.

    Reply to Nebraska Dave's comment

  4. Jill on November 10, 2014 at 8:10 am

    I have kids so, yes, I colour as an adult. I hadn’t thought of adults colouring for their own pleasure, but the book is beautiful. My Husband and I usually end up colouring the pictures provided to our kids in restaurants, so it does make sense. My youngest is constantly drawing and colouring but my 4 year old has just recently become avid about writing and colouring. It’s a pleasure to watch and encourage. The timing is right, too, with winter here now. Enjoy the book :)

    Reply to Jill's comment

  5. Emma on November 10, 2014 at 8:42 am

    What a beautiful coloring book. I loved coloring as a kid and still do as an adult. My latest obsession is creating mandalas. Just splurged on some lovely new markers this week.

    Reply to Emma's comment

  6. Jennie on November 10, 2014 at 9:31 am

    I love those markers too-I got some for Christmas from my husband. My three year old Larkin covets them, and they are known as “Mama’s special pens”. Love your artwork- it’s very therapeutic isn’t it?

    Reply to Jennie's comment

  7. DebbieB on November 10, 2014 at 10:11 am

    Susy, that’s awesome. I love that someone is catering to the adults of us who still love to color. And even better that they left the cover un-colored so you could do it yourself. I could never keep a coloring book to myself and undamaged – I had 3 younger siblings and had to share a room – but I used to take a clean sheet of paper and with a black pen make a giant elaborate scribble on it with many many intersections, then carefully color in each tiny section. Loved that! Nowadays I get my ‘color fix’ with fiber and yarn and thread.

    Reply to DebbieB's comment

  8. Jodi on November 10, 2014 at 10:46 am

    That looks amazing! I love to color. I don’t own any special markers, my daughter loves to draw and color as well. I just use what she has, but every Christmas she gets new supplies. I’m going to look into the ones you mentioned.

    Reply to Jodi's comment

  9. harper on November 10, 2014 at 10:55 am

    I just bought that book last month when we were traveling around Maine. I bought it with the intention of giving it to my sister for Christmas, but I’m starting to rethink it. :) What a fun coloring book. And to those pens. Yes. I have had many sets over the years. Each time I’m in Germany I purchase several more. They are truly the best. Enjoy!

    Reply to harper's comment

  10. Sierra on November 10, 2014 at 2:48 pm

    Beautiful! I actually thought of you when Isabella and I sat down to choose coloring pages from pintrest and then spent Friday evening coloring. I was never very particular about coloring books, but people know they are not allowed to borrow my fiction and nonfiction books. I can barely stand to touch the book if a corner is bent…a bent spine…don’t even get me started! I’m getting better though and have resigned myself to even ordering some used books to save money AND I am no longer completely disgusted by the feel of library books. So for the sake of supporting my local library and not spending as much on books, I am now a very frequent library patron. :)

    Reply to Sierra's comment

    • Susy on November 10, 2014 at 3:10 pm

      I buy used books on occasion but have recently received a couple that smell weird, so much so that I simply can’t read them. I’m rethinking my used book buying idea.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  11. Charlie@Seattle Trekker on November 10, 2014 at 3:15 pm

    The world should be filled with beautiful and special things like this.

    Reply to Charlie@Seattle Trekker's comment

  12. Kimberly on November 10, 2014 at 5:22 pm

    I haven’t colored in a long time, but I saw this same book at a local craft store recently, loved the designs and thought it would be a great deal of fun to color. After seeing it on here, it has just jumped onto my
    Christmas list – it would be a nice way to spend a winter evening and dream of spring.!

    Reply to Kimberly's comment

  13. Joan on November 10, 2014 at 7:11 pm

    What a timely post! As you know I’m going through a very stressful time and needed something calming to do in the evenings. I purchased a coloring book a few days ago and began coloring with some pencils that I purchased with it. The pencils aren’t the greatest, and there are no purples, so last night I ordered a set of 72 prismacolor pencils. I can’t wait for them to arrive. And I just added The Secret Garden to my wishlist, and will order it later if I’m still in the mood to color.

    Reply to Joan's comment

  14. Lorri on November 10, 2014 at 8:17 pm

    That’s a great gift idea. I used to love coloring but wouldn’t have thought of a grown-up style coloring book. What a fun way to relax!

    Reply to Lorri's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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