Disclaimer: This review was conducted by Suzy Goodyear. This item was purchased by me as part of my personal collection. Some of the links below are associated with affiliate programs which provide me with a small commission from any orders you may place. This will not affect the price or quality of products you receive but will assist me with the costs involved in running this site. For more details please see our Disclosure Statement.
Artist
- Thaneeya McArdle
Publisher
- New Design Originals Corporation, an imprint of Fox Chapel Publishing (2014)
- Printed in the United States of America
Book Dimensions
- Approximately 11 inches x 8½ inches (27.5cm x 21.5cm)
- There are 30 pages to color in the book
Quality of Paper
- Good – the paper is thicker than standard printer paper but not as thick as Card Stock
- The paper does allow for a range of coloring media to be used but it is worth noting that water-based markers and gel pens will shadow and possibly bleed through. Alcohol markers will definitiely bleed through the paper.
- The paper is a dull white color
Single or Double Sided Print
- Single-sided print
Intricacy of Designs
- The designs are not intricate
- There is a good balance between detail and space. There are quite a lot larger spaces to color for those who find coloring in tight or very detailed spaces to be a challenge
Types of Pictures
- Most of the pictures are mandala types and are related in some way to nature i.e. containing butterflies, birds, animals, etc
Binding
- Tightly bound which can be laid flat for easily coloring in the book itself
- Glued
- Pages are perforated for easy removal
Notable Aspects
- The first five pages of the book contain some great information and tips on coloring techniques, personalising your art, coloring media and color theory.
- There are also seven full page examples of some of the pictures from the book already colored using various media
- Some pictures have less detail in them to allow the colorist to add their own details if they want
- On the back of each coloring page is an inspirational saying and some lines for you to make notes and add any information about your coloring you want.
Pros
- Good quality paper
- Pictures printed on only one side
- Perforated pages so you can easily remove the pictures from the book if you want to
- Beautiful fun drawings
- Not too much intricate detail so it’s easy to see and to colour in the pictuures
Cons
- Whilst the paper allows for use of many different coloring media, alcohol based markers eg Sharpies, Bic Mark-its,
Copic markers, and similar types of markers will bleed through. - Water-based markers and gel pens are likely to shadow on the reverse side and may bleed through to the back of the page.
Price Range
- $$ – typically AUD $5.01 – $20.00 / US $3.76 – $15.00 / £2.61 – £10.00 / €3.31 – €13.25
Conclusion / Recommendations
I enjoy Thaneeya McArdle’s art. It has a very fun edge to it. It’s not too intricate and not too simplistic. I find it is perfect for really bright colours.
Nature Mandalas has a range of fun mandala pictures featuring, animals, birds, flowers, abstract designs, butterflies, etc. There is plenty of scope to show your creativity with colour in these pictures.
I have used mainly markers, both alcohol and water based and gel pens so far in this book. Everything I have used has flowed smoothly across the page. I leave the pages in the book and color directly into the book. I do get shadowing and bleed through on the back of the colored page when I color with markers. However, as I always use a laminated piece of paper under the picture I am coloring I have had no bleed through issues onto the next pages in the book.
When using any media other than colored pencils, e.g. Gel Pens, markers (either water or alcohol based) or watercolor pencils, shadowing and bleed through are likely. Alcohol markers will definitely bleed through the paper. If you like to leave your pictures in the book when you color them, I recommend you place another piece of paper or card behind the page you are working on, that way you will avoid having color transfer through to the picture on the next page.
If you like designs or mandalas that have space for coloring and don’t have lots of tiny details, then you should really enjoy coloring the pictures in Nature Mandalas.
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