Enchanted Forest Coloring Book

Update: I ordered a second copy because I liked the book so much, but the pages on the new book are cream instead of white (not as pretty and the colors are dampened), and It Does Bleed Through. I'm talking regular markers--major bleed through. The fifth printing has bright white pages and no bleed through, the seventh printing bleeds through terribly and isn't worth your time. See photos for examples. In the photos, the book on the left is the 7th printing, the book on the right is the 5th. The photos show the copyright page as well as examples of bleeding versus non-bleeding paper. (Previous review below) This book is so, so cool. I had browsed it online but not purchased because I now prefer seeing coloring books in person to check the quality--a few books purchased online weren't as good/thick quality paper as I'd hoped, or the illustrations were pixelated and looked cheap. I finally saw this one in a store, and wow. It's beautiful, imaginative, and stunning overall. The reason I write this review is to add a comment on markers. The book is so lovely I wanted to upgrade my markers, which are the skinny crayola super-tips. These markers are okay and good for the price, but downsides are that the scented ones smell awful (to me) and the tips fray sometimes, which makes it hard to color where you want to. I have a set of 36 Pentel markers that I love, but I love them so much that I really wanted more colors--unfortunately, that is the most colors make. Here is the helpful note: These markers do not bleed through the pages of this book. I am not bearing down hard, but I have layered some colors twice (carefully), and it's fine. I was all set today to buy a nice Prismacolor set, but checked other reviews first to make sure they were good in the book, since the book's loveliness was the whole point of a better marker experience. Other reviewers said Prismacolors bleed through, so I won't be spending big bucks on a set for this book. Hope that helps anyone who was wondering about markers on the pages of this little wonder! PS--There ARE a lot of leaves, which some people find repetitive, and I can agree with that viewpoint. But I am going to mix them up with fall colors, and it's still an amazing work of illustrations.

Johanna Basford is the designer who started my hobby of adult coloring books with her genre defining book, "Secret Garden". With her newest book, "Enchanted Forest", she builds upon the beautiful designs that I have come to expect from her. As with her earlier book, I love that even the inside of the dust cover as well as the cover of the book itself give me an opportunity to spend hours coloring. There are so many wonderful woodland creatures to color, I could (and will) spend many hours with this book. Apart from the fun of coloring, the book is a quest for certain items. Some of these items "unlock" the castle door - which provides you with a beautiful fold-out four page design. At the front of the book, a visual list is given of which items are hidden as well as how many are available throughout the book to find. At the end of the book, there is a visual key that tells you which items are included in which picture. The book is a nice weight of paper but it is not perforated and almost every marker I have bleeds through. I can use my pencils and my gel pens fairly easily. As with most story/adventure/hidden object coloring books, the designs are printed on both sides of the paper. The designs are rather intricate and I find that I like to use my pencils sharpened to a fine point when filling in the smallest of these areas. I was so pleased to find this book and my new, relaxing hobby of coloring. I design needlework for my "day job" but that contains a lot of stress (deadlines, trying to perfect the pattern, etc.) Coloring has become my way of relaxing at the end of a day (with music in the background, too!) I love to watch television but I have found that ending my day with my coloring books gives me a much easier time of falling asleep.

This was my first adult coloring book and to be honest it is a little intimidating. There is so much detail and tiny little parts to color in. But it is absolutely beautiful. With each page turn is another beautiful one to start. I would recommend using soft core colored pencils as the pages are double sided. Having not colored much of anything since I was a child, it took me longer to try this new trend. I'm the kind of crafter that likes it complicated. To be honest, this felt a little under my level of craftiness.....But I'm a jerk at times, yes I will admit it. My sister got me to try it out, with all of her enthusiasm over this new hobby of hers. I searched all through Amazon, as I was told, has the best variety. So I began searching and fell in love with the images in this book. It certainly didn't look easy, or beneath me....again, I'm a jerk. I adore this book and can lose hours bringing those images to life. It's not easy, nor is it hard. It is a very meditative past time. You can let all the BS you have dealt with throughout the day slip away. I do recommend this hobby for friends who are self-proclaimed "not crafty". It's also not an expensive hobby if you can control yourself. This book is filled with detailed images and it would take a very long time to do the entire book. Especially if you're a busy mom or dad. It's adorable without being overly girly. You will, however, use a lot of green in this book....sharpen your pencils!

Sometimes the simple things in life are best. Forget high tech, forget digital, or virtual reality. Simply taking a pen or pencil to paper and filling in colour to these beautiful and intricate pieces of art is all you need to relax and feel better about your day. The designs in this book are simply amazing and it's beautiful to, first, assess the drawing, figuring out in your mind what colours you want where, and then see the piece of art developing as you bring it to life with colours of your choosing. I'd love to see how others chose to colour the same pieces I've done. I'm sure there's as much variety and diversity in that, as there are people buying these books. When I first heard the concept of "colouring books for adults" I dismissed it as foolish. But then I looked into more closely what exactly it was, the magnificent illustrations that Johanna has put together, and the simply amazing pieces of art that you helped create at the end, and I realized this is something more than just colouring within the lines. If you haven't tried this yet, give it a chance. Even if you're a bit skeptical like me, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. And as is often the case, Amazon has the best prices on whatever colouring medium you'd like to choose.

Hermoso y de excelente calidad

Wonderfull book! I'm amazed with the details of this book, it is beautifuly done! It arrived very fast, very well also. In the picture the cover and the first page I painted. I'm totaly in love with the book!! Great job! Thanks!

Vorneweg: die englische Variante ist identisch mit der deutschen, nur etwas günstiger ;) Das Malbuch ist mein erstes Erwachsenenmalbuch. Es besitzt wunderschöne, romantische Motive, welche sehr sauber und filigran gezeichnet wurden. Von anderen, günstigeren Erwachsenenmalbüchern kenne ich es leider anders. Das Papier, welches hier gewählt wurde, ist eher von etwas rauer Natur, was die Farben insbesondere von Buntsiften wunderbar aufnimmt, es ist ziemlich dick, so dass Fineliner oder Gelstifte nicht durchdrücken und den Farbton würde ich als helles elfenbein bezeichnen. Anbei ein paar Fotos. Ich bin von dem Malbuch von Frau Basford total überzeugt, auch die passenden Stifte von Staedtler (Staedtler 157 C24JB - Buntstifte ergosoft Set 24 Farben) sind sehr hochwertig und wunderbar farbintensiv, so dass ich es bedingungslos weiterempfehlen kann.

Amazing product! This is the first book I've ordered and so happy that I ordered it after going through endless other colouring book options! The paper is good and thick. Great for pencil colours/ pens/ water colours. The designs are really good..Love the gold detailing on the cover page too! Definitely going to order more from this publication :)