Hopping on the Coloring Bandwagon

I am always looking for free things to do to get out of the house at night when the hubby is at a game. There is only so much TV and movies, I can watch. Yes, I like my “me time“ and there are days that I want to be anti-social but there are times that I just need something to do. I discovered that the library is a wonderful place to find free events at night. And since there are at least 4 libraries all within 15 minutes of me, I have plenty of opportunities to get out of the house…and sometimes learn something new.

When I was at the Kimberly Library last week, I picked up their April/May Flyer and noticed there was an adult coloring event as part of Turn off Screens Week. They said it was an event for the whole family. The library would provide coloring sheets, markers, and colored pencils. I know Neenah had several events like this as well usually during the day. Since the hubby was going to be home late from his game, I decided this might be a good time to see what this coloring craze was all about.

To be honest, I was not expecting to really give it a shot. I had to pick a book up at the library and figured I would check it out. I wasn’t planning on staying that long. I didn’t want to be the only single person there at this family event. As luck would have it, another lady walked in in front of me. I figured well the least I can do is check it out.

The Kimberly Library isn’t that big. It’s in the village municipal building. I figured we would color at the tables in the library. Not the case. When I walked in, there was a sign pointing us to the one of the rooms in the building. Several tables were set up with crayons, markers, and colored pencils. There were piles of coloring sheets, both kid friendly and adult ones, spread out on another table. One of the librarians was serving up hot chocolate and popcorn.

I picked out two different coloring sheets from the piles and settled in near the lady that walked in ahead of me. One of the sheets I picked up was tea cups which I thought was perfect considering I just had a tea party. Upon starting to color, I realized that as fitting as the picture was there were too many small details that made coloring tedious at first. The markers were relatively fine tipped but still made staying in the lines at times difficult. After a while, another lady joined us. I would add comments occasionally to the conversation but focused on finishing my tea cups before I had to leave.

We acquired all these jugs of markers before the end of the night

I enjoyed the ladies company. I’m not 100% sold on the whole adult coloring book mania. The markers made it difficult for the intricate details but I liked how the color popped. Colored pencils were nice but didn’t leave that vibrant hue that the markers did and I didn’t have as many choices. I know people find it relaxing but I found it tedious and frustrating when I went out of the lines. Maybe if I chose I different pictures.

Even though it’s not as relaxing as I thought it might be, I probably will attend another coloring event. Maybe I will stock up on my own markers or colored pencils to see if that helps. Maybe I will stick with the kids’ pictures for now.

I am proud of my tea cups though. It is hanging on the fridge. I still have a mushroom picture to color…. Maybe I should practice with that one. I know that I’m not going to run out and buy an adult coloring book any time soon as tempting as it may be.