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Adult colorings special edition - Gwendolyn Franklin

11/11/2015

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Gwendolyn Franklin makes my blogging life real easy. I don’t have to write anything about her because she does a splendid job telling it herself. This blog entry is a special edition because Gwendolyn isn't only a coloring artist, she is an artist in the true sense of the word. When you see her original works, I think you'll agree.
 

I was born in Lincoln, Ne. My Dad joined the military before I was born and we got to in S. Carolina and Alaska before getting sent back to Nebraska. 

I've lived in the Omaha Ne area since my family moved here when I was 7. When I was young, my Mom had always done ceramics with us. When I was in Jr. high, mom started selling Artex. This was paint that came in tubes with tips that the paint would come through, and you used them to paint on fabric that pictures were preprinted on. So I guess you could say art has always been in my life in one form or another. 
 
I became a mother myself just before I turned 20, and my daughter and I lived with my parents for a few years, then moved into our own apartment where it was just the 2 of us.
 
It was then that I started school for interior design. One of the required classed was an intro to art class. Before this class, my pictures that I'd casually draw were a little child-like. I'd never had any classes and never thought I'd be good at it. After completing the class, I was amazed with what I could do.
 
I continued drawing on my own over the next couple years before I decided to apply to a commercial art school. 
I wish I had stuck with the interior design classes because there would have been a lot more job opportunities in that field. 
 
Over the next several years, I held down many part or full time jobs to make a living, but nothing that I loved doing like the art. I just couldn't seem to break into that field. Eventually, I got a full time position at a high school with a good school district.
 
I met my husband in 2007 and we married 2 years later. 
 
Currently I work with the support staff at an elementary school. 
 
About a year and a half ago, my husband and I bought our first house. After we moved in I kept thinking about my art. A friend and I decided to go to one of those places where you can have some wine and paint pictures in a casual class. We had so much fun that I began finding little painting projects at home. I was finally painting again.
 
I started painting small, paper mâché boxes. I had another friend at work who saw one of them and asked to buy it. From there it started taking off and expanded into larger keepsake, jewelry and prayer boxes. Recently I've been asked to do a few canvas portraits and landscapes. 
 
I got into coloring books a few months ago. I've been dealing with stress and headaches and it was a way to relax my mind and de-stress at work on my breaks. I started with mandalas and I think those are still my favorite to do. 
 
I also love reading and love listening to audiobooks when I'm working alone I listen to a lot of different genres, but my favorite is humorous fantasy. I love a great story with goofy and sarcastic humor. 
 
My husband and I absolutely love going to anything that can be considered a carnival or festival. Things like Art or State fairs, or festivals like Octoberfest or Greek days will bring out the little kid in both of us. Live music and dancing is a favorite activity too. 
 
We have 3 children, 2 grandchildren and 2 cats. Since we're empty nesters, these 2 angels are more like our babies. At least we talk to them as if they were our children. 
 
Here's a picture of our 2 cats. We adopted them from the humane society a few months after buying our house. These 2 had bonded from birth and the NHS were hoping they wouldn't be separated. We fell in love with them, and these 2 angels chose us too. They sat up and started watching us closely from the moment they saw us. 
 

This photo was taken after we'd coaxed them out of hiding with toys. Their names when we got them were Layla (black one) and Tayla (tabby) and we never got around to officially renaming them. I usually call them by funny nicknames because they make me laugh with their outrageous antics. 
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Take a look at some of Gwendolyn’s work:
ORIGINAL PIECES
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COLORINGS
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Adult Coloring - Kathy Garner

11/10/2015

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Kathy Garner is a rather interesting individual. She’s a professional nurse, but also a part-time dance instructor. Now this combination has its perks … should anyone get hurt during dancing, help is immediately on hand.

If that isn’t enough, Kathy is also a makeup artist and of course a coloring enthusiast. She only started coloring six weeks ago, to help her cope with stress as she says. Coloring helps her clear her mind after a hard day of coping with the problems of various patients.

Kathy is originally from the Philippines, but currently resides in Toronto, Canada, with her husband and six year old son.
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Adult Coloring - Alexandra Heep

11/9/2015

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Alexandra Heep, a freelance writer and published poet, found out about adult coloring books in an online support group for chronic pain sufferers. Members talked about the therapeutic benefits of coloring, and since then she has been coloring regularly.

While coloring for stress relief and enjoyment, she also analyzes and blogs about what she has learned about this activity. Her favorite coloring subjects include cats, outer space and nature scenes.

Her favorite media include brightly colored gel pens and glitter markers, and she is always on the lookout for inspiring materials.


She currently resides in the Chicago area with her partner Tom where she tends to a tiny, but thriving garden, a well-fed cat named Gracie, and an aging wiener dog named Adrian.
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Adult Colorings - Elisanne MacHardy-Mead

11/6/2015

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Elisanne lives in the country in East Tennessee with her two dogs, Skippy, a Jack Russell Terrier and Sugar Britches, a labramutt.
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Sugar Britches helping with coloring
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Skippy taking a break
Elisanne is a professional jewelry artist using teeny tiny seed beads to create wearable art.
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She has been an artist for as long as she can remember and has always had some form of creative expression going on. She draws and paints or creates art through cooking and gardening.
Elisanne can be contacted at:
elisannemead@gmail.com

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As for Elisanne's colorings, see for yourself ...
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Adult Coloring - Dora Johnson

11/5/2015

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Dora Johnson doesn’t like talking about herself. In one little sentence she shares that she’s been together with Jim for 22 years and married to the man for 15.

But ask her about her pets, and you’ll get a fountain of information.
Her niece found a turtle in the garden and Dora gave him a home.

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Another day she found a cat sitting on the engine of the car, and he too was invited in.
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Apparently word got around in cat world, because a short time later two kittens came wandering into her yard and joined the family along with a cat that had to be rehoused from her brother’s place.
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When Dora isn’t taking care of the cats and the turtle, she goes to school where she recently graduated with an Associates degree and continues studying for a Bachelors degree. She enjoys reading, building freaky style bicycles, going for rides with her bicycle group through Michigan and Canada, does afghan crocheting and of course coloring.
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When looking at Dora’s coloring, I’ve come to the conclusion that she has a) an abundance of patience, and b) very good eyesight. Not to mention talent to make these stunning creations.
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Just look at her colorings …
 
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Adult Colorings by Andrea Wolf

11/4/2015

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Let nobody say that they don’t have time for adult coloring. Meet Andrea Wolf. Andrea is 53 years old, a wife, a mother, a grandmother, and a caretaker of three cats, (one of them called Mr. Pants), a granddog and an assortment of fish. A busy lady to say the least.
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Mr. Pants
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Happy swimmers
For over 20 years, Andrea was in the dental field, but one fine day she called it quits and switched to working in a gift shop.

In addition to photography, adult coloring is her passion and she specializes in Mandalas.  In Andrea’s own words …


Buddhist monks have been creating the Mandalas for years now and a few years back when I was studying Buddhism, I bought a book to color. No one I knew had any knowledge of these books and it wasn't anything that the mainstream audience was aware of. It was a way to help Buddhist meditate and help with the meaning of "Letting Go." They would draw the Mandalas and color them and then burn them.


I am very grateful that Andrea didn’t burn her Mandalas as they are an explosion of color and beauty.
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Adult Coloring by Helen Elliston

11/3/2015

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Two weeks ago I was introduced to adult coloring. Research revealed that this type of activity has taken off like a shot and is quickly growing into the most popular hobby among adults.

Some take-up coloring merely to pass the time, others as a way to sooth anxiety, or as a cure for insomnia. After all, coloring relaxes the mind and gives one time to be alone with one’s thoughts.

When I went looking if there was an adult coloring group on Facebook, it turned out there are several, each with thousands of members, showing their work.

Work that is simply amazing. Images of flowers, birds, landscapes, mystical creatures, etc. all done in great detail with coloring nuances so true to life, I thought I was looking at actual pictures instead of drawings.

For the next few days, I will be featuring a number of artists and what their pens have produced. First up is Helen Elliston. Helen lives in Devon, United Kingdom, and her work (all of her work) can be viewed at http://helenclaireart.co.uk
 
Here are some of Helen's colorings:
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Adult coloring now has its own online store at www.adultcolorings.weebly.com
Scenes above are from Helen's adult coloring book "Inky Ocean",
​available on Amazon.
http://tinyurl.com/ps4w5ha

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