Coloring Books for Grown Ups

As I mentioned in a previous blog post (see Doodle for Your Noodle below) Be Brave. Lose the Beige is obsessed with creativity. I consider myself to be a creativity evangelist I’m so persuaded of its impact on brain health. Studies have demonstrated participation in the arts promotes physical and mental health, particularly among aging adults. Besides, it’s fun and, as per an earlier blog post, creativity can relieve boredom (I find boredom to be a cardinal sin).

Since even the word “creativity” can elicit tension and intimidation, Be Brave. Lose the Beige is on a mission to make creativity more accessible. That’s why I’m delighted to have discovered two non-threatening creative endeavors guaranteed to be stress relieving and fun.

I wrote about doodling in my previous post. Visit Pinterest or Amazon and you will be introduced to a whole world of doodling, an artistic expression that can be a soothing take on relaxation.   

In this post, I want to introduce you to Coloring Books for Grownups. Yes, I really mean it adult coloring books are all the rage right now, largely due to the work of Johanna Basford. The Today Show on NBC did an entire segment on the concept of adult coloring books, which, until Johanna Basford, were virtually unheard of. (Except for those of us who secretly, or perhaps not so secretly, pilfered pages from our kids’ coloring books for our own creative coloring) Basford, who describes herself as an illustrator and ink evangelist, took nine months creating her first book, Secret Garden. This book has sold over a million copies and is selling out all over the world, having been translated in 22 languages. She followed up with Enchanted Forest. The #1 and #2 books on Amazon are not mystery novels or courtroom thrillers, but Secret Garden and Enchanted Forest. (Kids, you better hide your coloring books, grown ups are headed your way.)

Google, Pinterest, and even Johanna Basford’s website, have lots of single coloring pages available for downloading. Markers, crayons, and colored pencils serve to transform these black and white illustrations into colorful masterpieces. Basford has turned her facebook page into a gallery of art work uploaded by fans on her website. Thus, coloring has the triple benefit of being…

• an engaging creative endeavor (the benefits of which I’ve enumerated above)
• fun and relaxing
• possibly featured in an online gallery.

Send your doodles or coloring pages to me at Liztkg@cfl.rr.com and I will feature them on my gallery page.