Let me tell you about my new love….Adult Coloring Books. I found these books while on my quarterly trip to Barnes and Nobles. While browsing I stumbled upon a whole display of these brilliant coloring books. At first I didn’t believe what I was seeing and then after reading the title I thought this can’t be. I had to stop and inspect the display to get a closer look. And what I found captivated my attention and drew me to the wonderful pictures each book had to offer. I was sold. I browsed through almost every book trying to decide which I would be taking home with me.
The Prices Ranged from 7$-15$ depending on the intricacy of the patterns and the thickness of the book. This display was in the entryway of the store, so after I browsed the display I ventured deeper into the store to seek other adult coloring books. I found an entire section of coloring books, which made my decision even harder.
I found books with titles that included words like, Calm, mindfulness, focus, meditative, and stress-relieving on the cover. There were many patterns to choose from. Some had complex patterns, some were simple patterns, some had mandala themes, others had a mixture of themes. There were books that were more masculine and catered to men and books that were definitely more feminine. I decided that I would look inside and see what patterns caught and kept my attention.
I found that I was more attracted to the more intricate patterns with more elaborate details. There was one book that had dark backgrounds in every picture that really turned me off, so I stayed away from those type of themes. I decided that I would pick one book with the mandala theme and one with a mixture. One of the books I choose came with a bonus pack of colored pencils which made it more appealing…. (I love deals).
Once I got home I purposely put my Adult Coloring Books away and waited for a stressful day to use them. When that day came I went to my book-case, pulled them out, picked out a pattern that I like, sat down at the table and began to color. I did not sit in a quiet corner, I sat in the same room that my husband was watching a very loud television in. So, I’m guessing at about the 15min. mark the room became very quiet. I became focused on remaining inside the lines, and making sure to notice were the tiny lines ended and began. I carefully picked out colors that I wanted for each section. I got so into it that I made sure my color strokes went in the same direction in some parts of my picture. It just looked better that way! I was so lost in what I was doing that the room disappeared. Before I knew it an entire hour and thirty minutes past while I was lost in my world. I was so quiet and so focused that my husband called my name twice before I heard him. He notice how quiet I was and wanted to know what could be keeping his highly talkative wife from interrupting his Sports Center (Ha!!)
I felt focused, relaxed, and I was so into what I was doing it was like “white noise” for me. I would never have guessed that something as simple as coloring could put me in such a calm and relaxed state of mind. I had completely forgotten about any stressors I had come home with and felt great. I won’t go as far as saying this is better than meditation, but for me this was totally relaxing and took my mind off of any stress that I felt.
I am a firm believer in Maintaining a Healthy Mind and I am constantly looking for ways to be mindful, improve memory, sharpen thinking, and boost brain power. As we get older we need to find ways to keep the brain sharp. We have to find ways to take care of and keep up healthy minds.
If Coloring is not your thing try Crossword Puzzles, Word Search, or one of my favorites Sudoku. There is an entire Adult Activity section at Barnes & Nobles with all types of activity books. Some I didn’t know existed. Here are a few that I found.
I will continue to enjoy My Adult Coloring Books and have ordered more colored pencils because I need more colors. I want to be able to color more elaborate color schemes. This is my new love.
What are you actively doing to keep a healthy mind?
These coloring books are a real discovery! we spent time with some friends recently and they and their kids all have these. It took us back to a place and a time when all that mattered in the world was getting colours in the right order. We might be trying them soon!
You’ll love them. Let me know what you think.