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"Enchanted Forest" and "Secret Garden" ,coloring books for Adults, are the bestselling books on Amazon in the United States right now Scottish illustrator Johanna Basford is topping the charts, with her colouring books for adults taking top spots on Amazon's bestseller lists. Her book "Secret Garden" features intricate black-and-white drawings of the flora and fauna that surrounds the illustrator's home in rural Scotland.
Basford’s intricately drawn pictures of flora and fauna in Secret Garden
have sold 1.4m copies worldwide to date, with the newly released
follow-up Enchanted Forest selling just under 226,000 copies already.
And it is not just Basford who is reaping the benefits of the hordes of adults who, it turns out, just wanted something to colour in. In the UK, Richard Merritt’s Art Therapy Colouring Book sits in fourth spot on Amazon’s bestseller lists, Millie Marotta’s Animal Kingdom – detailed pictures of animals to colour – sits in seventh, and a mindfulness colouring book sits in ninth.
The popularity of the adult coloring book seems to be riding a wave of nostalgia. Last year, we reported on the resurgence of summer camps aimed at adults, which include arts and crafts, color wars, and outdoor sports. Now, "preschool for adults" is a thing that exists. Brooklynite Michelle Joni Lapidos holds classes in her two-bedroom apartment, for grown-ups seeking to "release their inner child."
“[The pictures] are all over Twitter and Instagram. People are really proud of them – they are so intricate,” she said. “You don’t have to have any artistic talent but what you create is unique. People send us pictures of them framed, and laminated. The appetite is simply enormous. I reckon people are taking their kids’ pictures off the fridge and replacing them with their own.
Some Reviews:
And it is not just Basford who is reaping the benefits of the hordes of adults who, it turns out, just wanted something to colour in. In the UK, Richard Merritt’s Art Therapy Colouring Book sits in fourth spot on Amazon’s bestseller lists, Millie Marotta’s Animal Kingdom – detailed pictures of animals to colour – sits in seventh, and a mindfulness colouring book sits in ninth.
The popularity of the adult coloring book seems to be riding a wave of nostalgia. Last year, we reported on the resurgence of summer camps aimed at adults, which include arts and crafts, color wars, and outdoor sports. Now, "preschool for adults" is a thing that exists. Brooklynite Michelle Joni Lapidos holds classes in her two-bedroom apartment, for grown-ups seeking to "release their inner child."
“[The pictures] are all over Twitter and Instagram. People are really proud of them – they are so intricate,” she said. “You don’t have to have any artistic talent but what you create is unique. People send us pictures of them framed, and laminated. The appetite is simply enormous. I reckon people are taking their kids’ pictures off the fridge and replacing them with their own.
Some Reviews:
I
had to wait two longs weeks to receive my copy of Secret Garden because
it was out of stock when I purchased it, but it was well worth the wait
- it's a book full of amazing and beautifully detailed pictures that
are very fun to color.
Every picture is so detailed and unique - some are full scenes, while others are more pattern-like; all are very pretty and follow the same style of drawing and, of course, theme (I am absolutely in love, and possible obsessed, with Johanna's style of drawing). What I also love is that when I add color to the drawings, I really am making it my own; everyone has their own style of coloring - compare the same drawing that was colored in by two different people, and you would see that the drawings are almost like two different pictures.
Some of the details can be harder to color because of how small some of them are, but I've been using assorted gel pens, and it's been working out very well. I've only used gel pens, and so far, I love it - the colors come out just as vibrant as markers, but dry more evenly and don't bleed through.
The paper takes the gel pen ink very well - it is heavier weighted paper (not quite as heavy as card stock) and a tiny bit waxy, which allows the ink to flow more easily before drying. The paper is heavy enough that I don't mind the pictures being double sided at all.
There are so many things to color that I also don't mind one bit that Johanna has added unfinished, detailed inky drawings for us to add in our own inky doodles in order to continue/finish her drawings - I really like this aspect of the book; her art inspires and shows me how I can add my own doodles; it also makes doodling much less intimating because it's not just a blank page, she's started it for you, but leaves plenty of space for you to make it your own. But again, if you aren't one to doodle, and are just looking to color her art, there are tons of full drawings to keep you occupied for quite some time.
I have been consumed with spending almost all of my spare time coloring this book, while Netflix plays in the background. It's a peaceful and entertaining activity that gets your creative juices flowing that was much needed for me, since I wasn't using my creative skills enough til now. I can't say how much I love this product and that I am very happy Johanna Basford decided to make a coloring book. I can't wait for my copy of Enchanted Forest to come in and to see what her third book will look like - I know I will definitely be ordering a copy for sure!
Every picture is so detailed and unique - some are full scenes, while others are more pattern-like; all are very pretty and follow the same style of drawing and, of course, theme (I am absolutely in love, and possible obsessed, with Johanna's style of drawing). What I also love is that when I add color to the drawings, I really am making it my own; everyone has their own style of coloring - compare the same drawing that was colored in by two different people, and you would see that the drawings are almost like two different pictures.
Some of the details can be harder to color because of how small some of them are, but I've been using assorted gel pens, and it's been working out very well. I've only used gel pens, and so far, I love it - the colors come out just as vibrant as markers, but dry more evenly and don't bleed through.
The paper takes the gel pen ink very well - it is heavier weighted paper (not quite as heavy as card stock) and a tiny bit waxy, which allows the ink to flow more easily before drying. The paper is heavy enough that I don't mind the pictures being double sided at all.
There are so many things to color that I also don't mind one bit that Johanna has added unfinished, detailed inky drawings for us to add in our own inky doodles in order to continue/finish her drawings - I really like this aspect of the book; her art inspires and shows me how I can add my own doodles; it also makes doodling much less intimating because it's not just a blank page, she's started it for you, but leaves plenty of space for you to make it your own. But again, if you aren't one to doodle, and are just looking to color her art, there are tons of full drawings to keep you occupied for quite some time.
I have been consumed with spending almost all of my spare time coloring this book, while Netflix plays in the background. It's a peaceful and entertaining activity that gets your creative juices flowing that was much needed for me, since I wasn't using my creative skills enough til now. I can't say how much I love this product and that I am very happy Johanna Basford decided to make a coloring book. I can't wait for my copy of Enchanted Forest to come in and to see what her third book will look like - I know I will definitely be ordering a copy for sure!
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I LOVE this book! So much fun.
HOURS of endless coloring, even the inside dust cover has entertained me
for endless hours! (picture is of dust cover inside). You will not be
disappointed. Buy this for every color enthusiast you know!!
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I have become completely obsessed
with this coloring book for adults. After posting my first completed
picture on facebook, half a dozen of my friends went out and purchased
the book and now we are thinking of starting a wine/cheese and adult
coloring club!
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