Colorist Spotlight: Stephanie Walker

Meet Coloring Enthusiast Stephanie Walker

Stephanie Walker from Minnesota

For this week’s colorists spotlight series I’m introducing Stephanie Walker. Not only is she a marker maven, she is also the new guest columnist for this site. She has already written one fantastic tutorial on how to easily take apart a coloring book, and she’ll have more tips and reviews for us over the coming weeks. Read on to learn about Stephanie’s journey in adult coloring. Perhaps you will discover some new techniques, artists, books, tips, and ideas for coloring.

(Responses have only been slightly edited for spelling and grammar. Click any picture to open it larger and see a slideshow. -Sue)

When did you get into coloring and what were the circumstances that led you to it?

Every 5 or so years throughout my adult life I would give in to temptation and buy a couple coloring books and a fresh box of crayons just so I could color because I missed it! I never knew about the adult coloring trend until a friend on Facebook shared a link to a coloring group. I read through some of the comments and within hours, I was hooked. I haven’t looked back since!

Why do you color? What are the benefits of coloring for you?

Line art by Dwyanna Stoltzfus, colored by Stephanie Walker

I color for fun and mindfulness. I like to lose myself in the process of coloring a picture because it allows me to forget the rest of the world for awhile. A nice side effect of coloring is stress relief and relaxation. If I am stressed out or feeling a little out of touch with my inner peace, I’ll break out my coloring books and immerse myself in color therapy for a few hours. It does wonders!

What are your favorite media to color with? Do you have a particular favorite type or brand or coloring tools?

My favorite medium right now is Bic Mark-It markers. I also love Sharpies, Gelly Roll gel pens, and colored pencils, though I am still a little intimidated by the pencils.

What are the top 3 coloring tools you would not want to be without?

As far as coloring tools, I would never want to be without card stock for printing coloring pages I’ve purchased online, Bic Mark-It markers, and a white Gelly Roll gel pen for correcting small, out of the line mistakes.

What are some of your favorite coloring books, artists, and styles of coloring art?

Artist: Damone Heins – Colored by Stephanie Walker

Of course I love Sue Chastain’s whimsical, lighthearted style. I love her MiniMENTALs book the very best because of the smaller size. It is perfect for when I want to color something quickly. I also love anything in the Absur’D series; my favorite being Feral Fairy Tales. I love Steve ‘Squidoodle’ Turner, Joseph Shivery, and so many more. There is so much amazing talent out there, it blows me away!

What do you look for when choosing a book or piece to color?

I like fun, unique images. I want something different from the “norm”. I don’t care for gray scale. I stay away from images with too much wide open space simply because I like to make my markers last as long as possible. Patterns are very appealing to me as well as fantasy art.

“Hope” from OrnaMENTALs Feel Good Words colored by Stephanie Walker

What’s your favorite place to color? Do you have any coloring rituals?

My favorite place to color is my mom’s kitchen table. I got her into coloring now and it’s a fun activity to do together. We both spread out our markers and go to town! I always have my chapstick and something to drink close by. Hee hee. My mom is a little neater when it comes to her coloring space. I am all over the place. I often end up elbowing into her space. I definitely like to have a lot of room and good, bright light.

Would you share a favorite color palette?

These are some of my favorite colors from my Bic Mark-It set: (from top to bottom) Lemon Bliss, Summer Melon, Peach Parfait, Pink Flamingo, and Fandango Pink

Bic Mark-It colors: (from top to bottom) Lemon Bliss, Summer Melon, Peach Parfait, Pink Flamingo, and Fandango Pink

What tip or piece of advice would you give to someone just getting into coloring?

The best advice I would to give to someone just getting into coloring is have fun! Take it easy, practice a lot of you want to get fancy, don’t be hard on yourself by comparing your level of coloring with anyone else because we all start somewhere. Mainly, just keep coloring enjoyable!

Follow your Bliss colored by Stephanie Walker

Follow your Bliss from Feel Good Words by Sue Chastain. Colored by Stephanie Walker

Stephanie is 38 and lives in Minnesota.

Thank you for taking the time to answer this interview, Stephanie! I’ve enjoyed learning your story. Check out more of Stephanie’s coloring articles in the links below. -SC