The Menagerie adult colouring book

The Menagerie: Animal Portraits to Colour
Published by Michael O'Mara Books (12 November 2015)
ISBN: 978-1910552155

My verdict
The Menagerie is an amazing colouring book. The pages are slightly larger and thicker than other books I have reviewed so far. Each page is single sided, which is brilliant as you don't need to worry about any bleed through. And every page is perforated near the book spine, so you can easily tear them out and display them without ruining the book.

As expected, the pictures are all of animals, from a stag and a giraffe to a red panda and a zebra. They are in gorgeous detail, but you can choose whether to colour in every little space or just colour in larger areas.

Most have backgrounds already printed on them but you can always add your own or colour these in yourself.

This work in progress (Bengal tiger) is coloured with Faber-Castell Polycromos pencils (a range of just 24 goes a long way!). Here, I've coloured in some larger areas to create more impact.

This Work in Progress (hippopotamus) is being coloured with a mixture of Staedtler triplus colour pens, Staedtler Fineliners and Stabilo point88 pen - none of which bled through. I am colouring in every little area to show the detail.

The Menagerie will delight people of all ages. My youngest son (age 12) 'stole' one of my pages (the llama) to colour - although I have now bought him his own copy of the book.

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Lost Ocean Colouring Book by Johanna Basford

Lost Ocean: An Inky Adventure and Colouring book
By Johanna Basford
Published by Virgin Books/Ebury Publishing (22 October 2015)
ISBN: 978-0753557150

My verdict

Lost Ocean is a beautiful colouring book with stunning pictures on an ocean theme (as expected). This is my first Johanna Basford book so I can't compare it to her previous books, but I will certainly be looking out for more of her work.

The pages are double sided, so my suggestion is that you don't use any pens that may bleed through (e.g. Sharpies). There is a double-sided four-page spread at the end of the book to pull out. There's an adventure theme all the way through, with pictures to find as you colour in the pages.

The pictures are exquisitely drawn, with minute detail in places. You need very fine pens and well-sharpened pencils. Each page certainly kept me amused for hours.

Work in progress 1
I'm colouring this with a mixture of Staedtler triplus colour pens, Staedtler Fineliners, Stabilo point88 pens and Uni-ball Signo Sparkling Gel Ink Rollerball pens. None of the pens can be seen through the page.

Work in progress 2
This is the last colouring page of the book, other than the pull out spread. I'm using WHSmith colour pencils and also Faber Castell Polycromos pencils. Not that many of the pages include mermaids, shipwrecks or treasure - most of them focus on fish, shells and other forms of sea life - which is why I chose this.

I do feel that some of the pictures could have taken up more space on the page, as there's quite a bit of white space. A couple of mandalas had large gaps in the middle, making them look a bit empty. I'm sure that someone with artistic talent could fill them in their their own drawings and pictures. I may even have a go myself.

Examples of more pages to colour, to give you an idea of the variety and detail:

I was very excited to receive an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Colour Me Mindful Seasons

Colour Me Mindful Seasons
By Anastasia Catris
Published by Orion (24 September 2015)
ISBN: 978-1409163732

My verdict
Colour Me Mindful Seasons measures 17cm x 17cm,  so it's much smaller than many of the other adult colouring books on the market. But its portability makes it the perfect size for travel and a useful addition to any collection of larger adult colouring books.

The book may be petite, but there are still plenty of pictures packed into its double-sided pages. As expected from the title, the pictures have a seasons theme, symbolising Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. The varied topics include the Chinese New Year, Easter, summer holidays, Halloween and Christmas.

Each picture is beautifully drawn with some tiny details. This does mean that you need good eyes (or, if not, a magnifying glass) to do some of the colouring. You also need some very sharp pencils or pens with a very fine nib.

I used WHSmith colour pencils, which blend well and come in a range of colours.

I also used a mixture of Staedtler triplus colour pens, Staedtler Fineliners, Stabilo point88 pens and Uni-ball Signo Sparkling Gel Ink Rollerball pens. None of the pens could be seen through the page.

(Work in Progress)

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Making Friends with Anxiety: A Calming Colouring Book by Sarsh Rayner with Jules Miller

Making Friends with Anxiety: A Calming Colouring Book
By Sarah Rayner with Jules Miller
Published by CreateSpace (24 July 2015)
ISBN: 978-1514190098

My verdict
The Making Friends with Anxiety: A Calming Colouring Book is different to the other colouring books I have reviewed so far. This one aims to provide some background information on anxiety and stress relief, rather than just pictures to colour. So it's a good choice for people who are looking for some health advice too.

On the left hand pages, there's health information and useful tips on anxiety and stress and ways to cope (such as colouring, arts and crafts, gardening, pet therapy and cups of tea!). Then on the right hand pages, there are the illustrations to colour - these pictures fit in well with the text (e.g. pet pictures for the pet section, gardening pictures for the gardening section etc). The layout of the book means that the colouring pages are one sided, so it doesn't matter too much if the colouring seeps through the page.

The pictures are well-drawn with some intricate detail. For the picture below, I used a mixture of Staedtler triplus colour pens, Staedtler Fineliners and Crayola washable pens. The pens didn't go through the page at all. I haven't quite finished colouring the picture, but this gives you a good idea of the content.

For the following picture, I used WHSmith colour pencils (which are brilliant if you're on a budget) and Derwent Academy Colour Pencils (which are a bit more expensive).

Here's another picture, which I have yet to colour. It's not a great photo, but you can see the detail of the background and wallpaper, as well as the dogs in the foreground.

Overall, this is a great colouring book containing fun detailed pictures. It's a good size as it's not very bulky and, if you suffer from anxiety or stress, you may benefit from the useful lifestyle tips too. Sarah Rayner has also written a book called Making Friends with Anxiety, containing tips, exercises and anecdotes.

I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Colour Me Mindful

Colour Me Mindful Underwater
By Anastasia Catris
Published by Orion (30 July 2015)
ISBN: 978-1409163060

Colour Me Mindful Tropical
By Anastasia Catris
Published by Orion (30 July 2015)
Underwater ISBN: 978-1409163084

Colour Me Mindful Birds
By Anastasia Catris
Published by Orion (30 July 2015)
Underwater ISBN: 978-1409163107

My verdict
Colour Me Mindful Underwater/Tropical/Birds books are the perfect size for travel, as these are much smaller than most of the other adult colouring books I have seen. The books measure 17cm x 17cm.

The pictures are exquisitely drawn with some tiny details in most pictures. This does mean that you need good eyes (or, if not, a magnifying glass) to do some of the colouring. You also need very sharp pencils or pens with a very fine nib.

Underwater: 

Tropical:

Birds:

I used Derwent Academy Colour Pencils, which worked beautifully. I loved blending them with a Derwent Blender pencil. I also added in some Derwent Academy Flip Metallic Pencils. And I used a mixture of Staedtler triplus colour pens, Staedtler Fineliners and Crayola washable pens. One of the darker shades of pen did go through the page slightly, but this may have been because the pen was a bit scratchy or I pressed too hard. None of the other pens could be seen through the page.

I received copies from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Magical City (adult colouring book) by Lizzie Mary Cullen

The Magical City
Designed by Lizzie Mary Cullen
Published by Penguin Books (978-1405924092)
ISBN: 978-1405924092

My verdict
This is one of the most eye-catching adult colouring books I have seen. I love the swirling pen-and-ink drawings of familiar buildings and cities, such as the Eiffel Tower, Great Wall of China and sights of London (e.g. Big Ben, Baker Street and Camden).

I chose this picture of Hyde Park, London, to colour first:

I used Derwent Academy Colour Pencils, which worked beautifully. I loved blending them with a Derwent Blender pencil. I also added in some Derwent Academy Flip Metallic Pencils.

The book has fairly thick paper so I also tried some pens. I used Staedtler triplus colour pens and Crayola washable pens. You couldn't see the pens on the back of the paper on the other side.

Complete picture:

New work in progress:

This a gorgeous colouring book and I discovered that adult colouring books provide me with a great way to relax. And as with many adult colouring books, there are objects to search for (and the solutions at the back). The only downside is that I then get less reading time!

I will upload more pages onto this review as I finish them off.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

animorphia (adult colouring book) by Kerby Rosanes

animorphia
By artist Kerby Rosanes
Published by Michael O'Mara Books (25 June 2015)
ISBN: 978-1-910552070

My verdict
animorphia is one of the quirkiest adult colouring book I have seen so far. I fell in love with the pictures containing bizarre creatures, woodland settings and unexpected objects. Each page was a wonder to take in before I even sat down to do any colouring. Each picture has intricate detail, but this isn't so small that it's difficult to colour.

It was a difficult decision, but I eventually chose this picture to start off with:

I used Derwent Academy Colour Pencils, which worked beautifully. I loved blending them with a Derwent Blender pencil. I also added in some Derwent Academy Flip Metallic Pencils.

The finished picture:

There are also pages with search puzzles and drawing pages, where you add to the picture. I added the tiny details on the two centre fish with a normal HB pencil (sorry for the poor photos!).

As you can see it's going to take a while to finish the page!

For anyone who prefers using pens for colouring, I also started another page using Staedtler triplus colour pens and Crayola washable pens. The paper is reasonably thick, and you couldn't see the pens on the back of the paper on the other side.

The finished picture:

New work in progress:

animorphia is a gorgeous book and, with over 45 large intricate colouring and drawing pages, it's well worth the money. I have really enjoyed spending time colouring these pictures and will continue to do so.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.