Color Me Happy

Submitted by Evelyn C. McDonald
November 12, 2015 1:07 p.m.

Here is a sentence I had no idea I’d be writing. I spent a couple of hours coloring at the Book Loft. No, not having my hair done or my wardrobe colors defined. Rather I was at a workshop coloring with colored pencils in an adult coloring book. It’s an activity that’s becoming the newest leisure trend.

Coloring is considered beneficial for adults for three reasons. It is a way to be creative if you have no drawing or painting talent (that’s me). It promotes nostalgia, taking you back to childhood and the thrill of seeing a picture emerge. Probably as a result of the first two reasons, it is a way of relieving or at least reducing stress. You have to pay attention but you don’t have to think hard about what you’re doing. Thus it occupies your hands and let’s your brain go on idle.

Like many new trends, it has a methodology and tools. There are coloring pencils, pens, etc. that work well with the coloring book designs. The coloring books themselves are themed – animals, ocean creatures, flowers, nature, and so on. I chose a coloring book that contained mandalas. Those are basically geometric designs. Somehow I felt more at ease coloring something that did not have specific colors associated with it. Not sure I could bring myself to color a tiger anything but yellow and black.

The colored pencils I used were made by Crayola. Now there’s a name that takes one back to childhood. Crayola got into the adult coloring world because they realized it was increasing in popularity, hence a potential market. There are other companies that produce pens, pencils, etc. for art work.

The methodology is simple. Use as many colors as you like, and in any order you like. Don’t be too self-critical. Pick a time when you can devote a half hour or so to coloring. Pick any place you feel comfortable in but make sure you have good light, preferably natural light.

The Book Loft has been imaginative in its programs to reach out to the community. In addition to book signings, there have been lessons in conversational French and journaling workshops. The aim is to make the bookstore a place you go for fun and learning as well as books. And it seems to be doing just that. At my coloring session, there were at least 15 people, including a few from St. Mary’s, Georgia. There may be another session in January as an after holiday relaxer. You can get on the Book Loft’s email list by contacting [email protected].

Evelyn McDonald moved to Fernandina Beach from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. in 2006. She is a chair of Arts & Culture Nassau, a city commission charged with support of the arts in Nassau County. She serves on FSCJ’s Curriculum Committee for the Center for Lifelong Learning. She is also the chair of the Dean’s Council for the Carpenter Library at the UNF. Ms. McDonald has MS in Technology Management from the University of Maryland’s University College and a BA in Spanish from the University of Michigan.