Summary
Current Price: £16 Number of Pages: 96 Size: 24.5 x 20cm Paper colour: White Paper surface: Toothy Paper thickness: Very Good Linework: Varied Perforated: No One sided: Yes (one side pre-coloured) Binding: Lay Flat Drawings go into the spine: Yes Waterbased pen bleed: None
I have been waiting with baited breath for this book ever since I promoted the Kickstarter campaign for it back in November. What got me most excited was the promise of beautiful quality, from the paper and binding to the art itself. It also had a very unique premise that served to champion artwork from a variety of artists whilst giving the colourist a chance to take the piece and make it their own: half the image would be full colour, the other half monochrome. This makes it a fully collaborative project that shows off the artist's work whilst giving the colourist inspiration.
It's of no surprise to me whatsoever that the book throroughly exceeded my expectations. Amelia Gregory, the lady behind it all, has worked with textiles, fashion and creative projects for most of her life, so I knew the book's aesthetic would be outstanding.
When Amelia announced this project online, she left an open-ended brief for artists and illustrators to create a beautiful picture for the book. The only real stipulation was that it must be produced with one side coloured, one side black and white, and that the two pages should be connected in some way rather than just being the same image or, conversely, something completely different. And so, with the work of 44 worldwide artists, Amelia's Colourful Colouring Companion began!
As you can see, the illustrations that were chosen are no rushed sketches or boring filler pages- each and every single one is a unique, unusual, hand drawn piece of art. This book is a complete gem that can hardly be described as just a colouring book, it feels too special. If not for its artwork, then surely for its high calibre of production.
The paper is very thick and has a gorgeous toothy surface that handles coloured pencils like a dream, enabling you to add lots of layers and build up your blends. It's also bleed-proof for markers (not alcohol pens). At the back of the book is a short bio about each featured artist, so you can learn more about the people behind your favourite pictures. Each book is bound using a top-end (and expensive) binding process, than enables the book to lay completely flat so you can colour without the facing page flapping back at you, and of course get right into the spine with ease. The only thing I need to remember is not to put it on my knee when colouring, as it can loosen the pages.
I hope you'll love the book just as much as I do! My finished page is one of Amelia's own works, which I've tried to colour match as best I could to make it look like one seamless picture. On the next one I'm going to make it completely different colours, maybe even inverting the palette used on the pre-coloured page. There's lots of different things you can do to take the wonderful artwork and pair it with your own twist.
You can buy Amelia's Colourful Colouring Companion here.
It wouldn't be Colour with Claire without a giveaway around every corner, and after receiving two copies of this wonderful book, I thought it would be nice to give one of you the chance to own it. As the copy is 'in hand' and I can't afford to pay for overseas postage, this is primarily a UK only competition. If you are able to arrange and pay for your own shipping, you're welcome to enter. The giveaway ends on Monday 25th January at 12pm GBT. Good luck!
4 Comments
Cristín Williams
18/1/2016 09:23:38 pm
I love that this book features many artists, looks like a great variety of images and themes! I also love the fact there is a bio on each artist!
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Heather Hart
23/1/2016 05:49:32 pm
I love the whimsical designs and the detail! Looks like a lot of fun to color!
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Jacqueline Knights
24/1/2016 09:42:38 pm
Looks like a beautiful book, I'd love to jump on the colouring bandwagon with this one.
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