Ever Though About the INSPIRATION Behind Adult Coloring Books? (GIVEAWAY!!)

Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this info/product, free of charge,from Inkspirations, for giveaway ans posting purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it,  all opinions are my own.

Ever thought about the lovely artists who come up with the great prints for us to color and relax by?

We have, and we're thrilled to have a great interview with Inkspirations illustrator Beth Logan,
talking about their latest book:

What led you to creating and publishing coloring books?

I have been drawing and designing for the licensing industry for over 2 decades, where I work with manufacturers and publishers who create awesome products like greeting cards, fabric, giftware, all sorts of goodies. I’ve been wanting to create coloring books for some time now, and have been pretty excited about this one.

Why the gardening theme? Do you have a green thumb in addition to being an illustrator?

Gardening seemed like a natural place to start for my first coloring book. You could say it’s in my blood. My granddad kept an acre of meticulously groomed terraced paths through the woods right in the middle of the town where they lived, the pathways lined with found-object sculptures and birdbaths made from electrical insulators or industrial lampshades. Clever little handmade signs along the paths showcased his quirky sense of humor. It was a wonderland for me as a child. And right in the center of it was my grandma’s fabulous flower garden. She arranged and photographed her flowers, and pressed them to make cool, unique handmade cards.

When my parents’ vegetable garden outgrew our own yard, they expanded it into a vacant lot across the street. I grew up working in those gardens and helped can and preserve our harvest to enjoy year round.

My small city lot pales in comparison and is far from the magazine-perfect garden of my dreams, but I love my crazy mix of veggies and flowers I call home. Digging, weeding and trimming is like a form of meditation for me…much like drawing and coloring.

Where does your inspiration come from?

Some of it comes from my own little garden and the critters who visit here, but I suppose mostly I’m inspired by amazing spaces I visit, those gardens I dream mine could someday be like! That’s kind of the best part of being an illustrator: my dreams can become reality on the page.

What is the process of making a single page like?

As I do with all my artwork, these designs were drawn by hand and scanned so I could work with them in Photoshop. In most of my commercial work I use Photoshop to adjust colors, add or change details, and reformat designs to fit on different sizes and shapes of products. For the coloring pages, I traced them in Photoshop using my Wacom tablet and stylus just as I would a pen and paper. Some started as a pencil or ink drawing in my sketchbook but quite a few of the images in this book started out as full-color pieces using watercolor, colored markers, and Prismacolor pencils (!!! Did you see our review of them earlier this morning??) that I had originally created for greeting cards, garden flags, or wall décor before I traced them digitally to turn them into line drawings for colorable pages.

Sort of like coloring in reverse, I guess, which was actually really fun for me!

Do you like to listen to music while you work?

I listen to a pretty wide variety of music, podcasts, and audiobooks when I’m working in my studio, but most often this time of year I keep it quiet inside, as I prefer to listen to all the birds outside my studio window!

Which was your favorite page in the book to illustrate?

There’s a drawing of a full, lush flower garden with a little trailer in the background. This is an illustration of a happy memory of a dear friend: her funky little pink trailer, her enormous fat cats, her whirligigs and quirky collectibles and most of all her gorgeous flowerbeds.

When she was no longer physically able to get down in the dirt and work in that garden, she still had that plant and bulb buying addiction that gardeners have! She couldn’t pass up a garden center or bulb catalog without picking up “just a few new things”. I’d get the phone call every month or two, no matter the season or weather: “Hey kiddo, you’d better get over here. I’ve got a bunch of new bulbs that need to be planted. I’m tired of that one yellow rose bush, I found a different one to replace it. The ajuga needs thinning. I think that big rhodie should be moved. Oh, and I have some plants for you.”

I’d go visit and often spend the entire day sweating in that garden. I learned a lot from those visits, and although I miss her terribly, she can be found in many forms all around my own garden (including that one yellow rose she was tired of!).

I can’t look at that picture without smiling.

What's next? Are there more coloring books in your future?

I’m currently busy with a few projects including a couple new coloring book ideas. I can’t be too specific at this point (I’m sorry!) but I will say that they’ve been inspired by some major life changes I’ve experienced in the past year and a half. The themes are deeply personal to me, the sharing of which is pretty new ground for a weird little private keep-it-to-yourself introvert like myself but it feels really good and the art is super fun. I think this is something a lot of other people will really relate to and I can’t wait to share it. Oh, and did I mention the art is super fun?

What advice would you give to someone interested in pursuing a career in art, 
or publishing their own coloring book?

Be yourself.

That’s the most important thing. Create the art that you love, the stuff that comes from that spot deep down inside that no one else can touch: that thing that makes your work uniquely you and not anyone/everyone else. The light that comes from that will transcend any trend or market or color-of-the-year or whatever, that’s what will shine through. Besides, like Oscar Wilde said, “…everyone else is already taken.”

Set serious goals; determine what you’d like to accomplish. What is your art perfect for? Where does it fit in? Focus and learn about that market. There are so many great resources now: websites, e-courses, books, blogs, consultants, workshops…so many ways to learn, and learning is key. Research your buns off. Talent is awesome, but a savvy professional who fully understands the market in which you are pursuing is going to be the one who finds success.

Living the creative life sounds pretty dreamy but it takes ridiculous amounts of time and patience, not to mention ultra-thick skin. It’s not for sissies. But if creating is what you want to do, it’s worth every scar and callous. And if you’re serious and driven and stay focused, you’ll be amazing at it!

Where can people see more of your work?

Hmmm, it’s all over the place: the best way to keep up what’s out there at any given moment is to follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and my blog. You’ll find links to all of them on my website: www.bethlogan.com. Thanks for asking!

About Inkspirations

Inkspirations is the beautiful new line of adult coloring books from HCI Books,  the original publishers of Chicken Soup for the Soup. Inkspirations brings people an outlet from the horrors of the world; a quiet and peaceful place where tranquility replaces anxiety. Fun to color and brighten up someone's day, or pretty enough to keep and frame, these lovely adult coloring books take us back to our childhood and the quiet comfort and tranquility that coloring brought us. 

Whether coloring with friends, family, or on your own, it doesn't take much to color your day a little brighter. With moving quotes alongside unique and graceful images, Inkspirations coloring books include a wide array of themes to help express creativity and enjoy therapy through coloring, to start overcoming heartache, releasing tensions, and building positive energy! 

Some of the Summer releases include:
 Inkspirations Animal Kingdom-  More than thirty beautifully detailed designs bring a dazzling array of colors and patterns of nature– the bold black stripes on a tiger's back, the kaleidoscope of teals in a peacock's plumes, the fiery orange of a fox's coat, or the rainbow of colors in a macaw's feathers. 

 Inkspirations for Cat Lovers- From long-haired to short-haired and everything in between, you will find more than 30 original designs that celebrate the many ways in which cats bring joy (and fur!) into our lives.

Inkspirations for a Happy Heart -Sharing more than 30 original designs to make your own, plus motivating mantras to help you relax, unwind, and greet each day with renewed optimism and creative energy.With Diane Yi's style of intricate details with exquisite flourishes,it provides a perfect canvas that will inspire you to color your world a little brighter. 

and of course

 Inkspirations in the Garden - Celebrateing gardens in all their glory, from images of delightful cottage gardens to well-manicured rose gardens, from lush tropical gardens to relaxing Zen gardens. The original designs feature exquisite floral patterns to color and customize, plus heartwarming scenes of loveable backyard critters, like ladybugs and bumblebees, and even the squirrels and rabbits who sometimes become our garden nemeses.

GET INKSPIRED

Bonus content and special offers are just for Inkspirations fans! You can get them AND  FREE pages to color from Inkspirations by signing up for the Inkspirations newlsetter today.

Giveaway:

One LUCKY BTHM reader will get to 
WIN THEIR CHOICE of the lovely Inspirations Coloring Books!

a Rafflecopter giveaway



About Beth:

Beth Logan has loved to draw since she could first hold a crayon. A native of the Pacific Northwest, she studied graphic design at the Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle.

Several years later and completely by accident Beth stumbled head-first into the art licensing business, and today her art can be found on all sorts of wonderful products.

Beth spends her days happily blogging, drawing and painting in the Seattle home she shares with her weird furry little family, easily inspired by a few of her favorite things: animals, gardening, and nature.