But then, just a few weeks ago, an officemate mentioned about this coloring books for adults which could somehow relieve stress and makes you relax. With the nature of my work, I thought, why not give it a try. After browsing further on where to buy coloring books for adults from the FB group, my officemate and I hurriedly checked Powerbooks in Greenbelt upon their store opening. There were a very few coloring books for adults on display and some books we saw when the store was still closed were no longer there. Specifically, what catches my eyes was the Mandalas coloring book but it was no longer there. So my officemate asked for it from the saleslady. It turned out, those books were already reserved. But the saleslady was kind enough to double check if those reserved books can be available. Luckily, the saleslady handed us 3 more variety of coloring books, one of which is the Mandalas I was eyeing. Without hesitation, I bought it while my officemate opted for the The Can't Sleep Coloring book. Hers was more expensive but with various designs while mine was purely Mandalas, but I was happy with it. Of course we also bought colored pencils. We chose Faber Castell brand, 24 pieces. I also purchased other mediums like markers and metallic gel pens. I wanted to try various mediums to check which ones will look good and which will be more comfortable to use.
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| My 1st coloring book |
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| Coloring pencils from Faber Castell |
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| Colored pens and metallic pens |
The Faber Castell coloring pencils were kinda light in shade. Or maybe I just didn't put to much pressure on coloring. But anyway, it still provide nice and clean output.
I also bought the Faber Caster coloring pens. It has very pointed tips and doesn't smudge on the artwork. I find this very useful on those small and intricate designs. Partnered with Dong A metallic gel pens, you will get an accurate shading on those deisgns.
On my first artwork, I combined all these 3 mediums. About quarter of using colored pencils on my artwork, I can already feel a bit of tiredness in my hands. So I then tried the colored pens and metallic gel pens. They were easier to use and not tiring. Although on my first try with the colored pens, I used it on a not so small details which made it look thick and uneven. I shaded too much and so it kinda stain the back of the page. Maybe because I was making sure all white marks were covered. On my first try, I was able to finish it in two days. I was only coloring at home after work. Here's my first artwork. What can you say? You will notice the part where I used the colored pens. #fail
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| 1st artwork Medium: colored pencils, colored pens and metallic gel pens |
As of this writing, I was able to color 4 mandalas and 1 in process. The one I'm working on right now is kinda experimental artwork since I used watercolor pencils. Will probably post about my experience on it soon.
I'm not really sure if I felt relaxed or it relieves my stress, but I was enjoying coloring my adult coloring book. It keeps my mind focused and busy in determining what colors to use. What I like best is that you can combine any colors you want without following any rules on whether this color should match this color. I'm not sure if this new hobby is letting out my creative side but I like combining different colors and using different mediums.
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| 2nd artwork Medium: colored pencils and metallic gel pens |
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| 3rd artwork Medium: colored pencils, colored pens and metallic gel pens |
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| 4th artwork Medium: colored pencils |
There's also an app in Apple Store and Google Play Store called Colorfy which is an adult coloring book. It's a nice alternative if you want to color on the go. However, some colors and artworks are not for free and it is quite expensive.
Right now, I'm in search for other adult coloring books. I might get bored and tired with Mandalas! I hope I will still continue doing these to keep my mind off on stressful things.