A few weeks ago, a group of friends and I visited the local art museum. There was an Ansel Adams exhibit, so we were all looking forward to seeing some of his famous photos. The exhibit was very good, as we all knew it would be. The best part of the trip, however, came as we entered the small gift shop.
A friend of mine spotted some DIY art books on one wall, so I joined her there and started looking. What I found was a book called Crazy Paisley from the Creative Haven series. Yes, this was a coloring book! There were no cartoon characters inside; this was a more mature coloring book. So I spent the $5.99 and purchased this book for myself.
I am a doodler. In meetings, I often doodle in the margins of my pages. In front of the TV, I want to keep my hands busy, so usually I would pick up my phone by default. Now that I have Crazy Paisley with me, I can keep my hands busy with a much more rewarding activity. What is great about this is it keeps me feeling productive when I am waiting or listening – and I can still fully understand what is going on around me. If I am distracting myself with my phone, I miss lots of the conversation that is going on around me - and sometimes directed towards me! With coloring, I can fully grasp the conversation and be engaged, while keeping my hands busy.
You may not be convinced to start coloring again, but I did some searching and found more reasons that adults can benefit from coloring. It improves hand-eye coordination and can help you maintain a sharp mind. It can help you de-stress. It can help to spark creativity. It can help you connect with your inner child – and your actual children. Sometimes, coloring can give the same benefits as reflection, so it can help lower blood pressure.
You can purchase lots of more mature coloring books from Amazon.com. The Creative Haven book that I have is sold there for $5.39. There are two books that look great by Jenean Morrison called Pattern + Design Coloring Book that look great, too (those are larger and cost $10.80.) If you aren’t sure you want to invest in a book, just go to Google images and type “adult coloring pages.” There you will find plenty of free printables that can get you started. I use nice gel pens to color, but markers and crayons work great too.
So if you are looking for a simple, fun, and relaxing activity, join me and start coloring!
