Colour-it-Green: guilt-free colouring

The best thing about creating my own product was being able to choose, from start to finish, how to go about it. When I work as a graphic designer my clients control everything. I can offer suggestions, solutions, options - but at the end of the day they are only that. The client has the final say.

When I developed my colouring book, I was the boss of everything. I designed both the logo and the layout, drew the doodles and decided which ones to include. I chose the cover image and made the centre spread a single A3 poster-sized doodle. All of this was fun, creatively satisfying. 

Equally rewarding was the control that I had in the production and manufacturing process. I decided to Indie publish it, doing a small run with a printer that I trust. This enabled me to use Indigo printing, which is more environmentally-friendly than offset printing. I was able to choose paper (stock as it is called in the trade) not only for its thickness and colour, but because it was ethically and sustainably produced. See my Colour-it-Green page if you'd like to know more.

I recommend using Crayola pencil crayons to colour my doodles, not because I'm being paid to do so (I wish!) but for both aesthetic and ethical reasons. The crayons give the best result of any brand I've tried on the stock, with vibrant colours that blend and shade beautifully. And the information that Crayola provides on their website about the manufacturing process, green initiatives and social responsibility, is reassuring.

It turns out that colouring my doodles is not only mindful and relaxing, it's guilt-free too!

Useful links:

• Crayola green initiatives
• Crayola green products