Dual Review: The Wandering City by Carlo Stanga and Maped Graph'Peps Fineliners

The Wandering City

Summary
Current Price: £12.05
Number of Pages: 96 
Size: 25 x 21cm
Paper colour: White
Paper surface: Smooth 
Paper thickness: Very Good
Linework: Fine​ 
Perforated: No 
One sided: No
Binding: Glue 
Drawings go into the spine: Yes ​
Waterbased pen bleed: None

Carlo Stanga is an Italian illustrator and Architecture graduate living in Berlin. His work has won many worldwide awards in his field, and The Wandering City is his first colouring book. 

What actually is The Wandering City? 

"Many ancient tales tell of a legendary city appearing and disappearing in various regions of the world and at different times in history. It is known as the Wandering City and has been sighted in the North Pole, in the Caribbean, in the middle of the Amazon forest, in the Gobi Desert, in Europe, far and wide. The spirit of the city is influenced by the architectonic styles of the different cultures it visits and by the light of the many different skies." 

Interesting! The book certainly encapsulates everything you would expect, with plenty of sprawling cityscapes, expansive buildings and beautifully designed linework. None of the illustrations are of real places, it is all set in fantasy, but takes heavy inspiration from architectural styles of the world.

The book is published by Moleskine, a highly renowned Italian manufacturer of paper products, so you'd expect the calibre to be on point. The Wandering City does not disappoint, with a lusciously thick fold-out card cover (entirely colourable), high quality paper and crisp printing. Waterbased pens do not bleed through, which is advantageous as the pages are double-sided.

Although the structures are imposing and very detailed, the lines are not perfectly clinical or digital looking, which gives it a softer, more personal feel. There are many small spaces to get your fineliners into, so if you prefer wider colouring areas you should think twice before purchasing this book.

Here is a small section I completed using the pens reviewed below...​

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Maped Graph'Peps Fineliners

Maped, a world-leader in offic supplies, have recently produced a pack of 20 coloured fineliners to rival brands like Staedtler and Stabilo. These pens have a 0.4mm nib and are triangular shaped, making them comfortable in the hand for long periods of use. The colours include some unusual tones which is nice to see in a small set, with 5 different green tones and a lovely lavendar purple. They're priced at just under £10 which I think is a very good price for a pack of 20.

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​The pens have a long, slim barrel, black coloured with indents for grip towards the tip. The respective colour is shown both on the cap and the end, which is handy when chosing your colours at a quick glance. The tips are rounded and not at all scratchy, very similar to Staedtler Triplus. The ink is vibrant and flows freely from the nib with little pressure, making application smooth on the page. 

​Now onto the not so good points: the caps are very loose and come off easily, meaning they need to be kept in the pack they arrive in rather than rattle around in a pencil case. This is a real disadvantage as not everyone wants to store them in the packaging, particularly on trips out when room is an issue. Sometimes it can be difficult to even remove them from the pack without inadvertently pulling the cap off, which is surely a design flaw. The other thing is, many reviews mention the short life span of these pens. I haven't used them enough to comment on this, but they do feel very light. Whether this means anything or not, I don't know, just an observation. 

I was given these products in exchange for an honest review. You can find them on Amazon here:

The Wandering City: Colouring Book

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Maped Graph' Peps - 20 Assorted Coloured Fineliners - 0.4mm Fine Point