Art of Coloring Paisley, by Leisure Arts, Book Review

How is it that coloring books have become so popular amongst adults?  I think one of the reasons is our need to unplug and return to the real and tactile activities.  Performing activities such as coloring involves using your hands in a different manner than when using our devices and computers.  Working with our hands brings us back to feeling more human and connected to the world.

** Note: Leisure Arts has given me this product to review, all opinions are my own**

Plus, making art is a terrific way to deal with depression, anxiety, and a whole list of health issues.  Even if you consider yourself healthy, using tangible items like pencils and crayons is a great way to unwind and relax.

So what is so special about the "New" Adult Coloring Books?  Well, for one there is such a wider variety of themes and titles available in the market presently.  It seems that every kind of store sells them too!  Adult coloring books have been available for years in Art supply stores, and some bookstores.  However, they were more of a specialized item that appealed to a small niche.  When social media took an interest, it just snowballed and has become the phenomenon we now know.

I have always loved to color in books and just on any surface.  I could never get enough coloring books.  Now I am so pleased to see all the that the market has to offer.  As a child, I never questioned the quality of the books themselves.  I did feel some frustration at having images printed on both sides of a page, though!  I felt challenged to color the left-handed side of pages, and that the paper was usually newsprint.  Today I prefer thicker papers.

I love the weight of the paper used in the series of coloring books from Leisure Arts.  The paper is bright white, thicker than the old style books, the images to color are printed on one side of each page, and the pages have perforations to enable an easier way to tear out.

I used a variety of coloring tools to test out the quality of the pages: crayons, pencils, markers, and pens.  I found that each had good to excellent results.  My tools of choice were mostly by Tombow** (Irojiten Colored Pencils, Recycled Colored Pencils, and Dual Tip Brush Markers).  I used crayons from my children's old stash which was a mixture of brands.  The pens I used were also a combination of Gel and Ballpoint pens from various Brands in my stash.  When using markers I recommend placing a sheet of scrap paper underneath the page you are coloring, to prevent the ink from bleeding onto the next page.  I experienced this only with some very new, and juicy red markers!

**Tombow provided me with the mentioned products as part of the Brand Ambassador Program.

Links: http://www.leisurearts.com

           http://tombowusa.com

Thank you for stopping by, and enjoy relaxing with some coloring!

***I am compensated if you click and purchase on the links to Amazon***

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