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This review is a bit different from normal because I don’t actually have hard copies of these two calendars. I have been sent printed copies of all of the images included in each calendar by the illustrator Nikky Hall and will therefore only be doing a partial review of each. I will make it very clear about the parts I can and cannot comment on so that you can make as informed a choice as possible about whether you’d like a copy of either of Nikky’s calendars.
Having looked on Amazon at the extensive range of photographs and descriptions of the calendars it’s clear that they’re spiral bound so they hang showing one page at a time with a black strip at the bottom showing that month’s name, days and dates. There is no space to write on this calendar or use it as a planner, it’s just to show you what day each date is. The calendars are available in A4 and A3 size so they’re fairly large and will look lovely on your wall. The binding style means that they should hang flat against the wall. I cannot comment on the paper quality as I do not have hard copies of these calendars so I don’t know how smooth or textured the paper is and which colouring mediums it’s most suited to. However, you won’t have to worry about bleeding because each image is printed single-sided so there is no issue about ruining the back of the page.
Colour Your Mind Calendar 2016 – The images in this calendar are fairly floral in nature. They include patterns, mandalas, scenes and written words and phrases. They’re all drawn in a similar style but the content isn’t especially cohesive and each image stands alone rather than telling a story with the others. Four of the images are in very similar pairs and while none of the images are direct copies, these two pairs are disappointingly similar to each other which is a shame in a calendar that only includes 12 images. There is also a spelling mistake in one of the phrased images which includes a rogue apostrophe but for the not so grammatically restricted among you, this won’t matter one bit! The images are mostly cartoon-y in style and are fairly detailed with a moderate level of intricacy. Of course, this will vary between the different calendar sizes and if your vision and fine motor control aren’t great then getting the larger size calendar is sure to help as the spaces will be larger and less difficult to colour.
Colour Your Mind: Inspiring Foliage Calendar 2016 – The images in this calendar are very floral and grounded in nature. A number of the images include pictures of butterflies, plants, flowers and leaves. Quite a few of the images also include open spaces which could either be left blank, or you could add your own drawings or patterns to them to truly make them your own. A couple of the images also include the phrase “We Are Family” which can be fully coloured. Three of the images look like they were originally created as square pictures and were adapted to become rectangular ones and consequently they have a blank 1cm strip across them followed by either two smaller versions of the original image put next to each other, or a repeat of the top part of the image again (similar to wallpaper repeats).
In terms of mental health, these calendars are good because you can display your finished pictures on your wall to brighten up even the darkest days. If your vision and fine motor control aren’t ideal then get one of the A3 copies so that all of the spaces are a little larger to colour and you’re not having to strain or accidentally go over the lines. The line thickness in both calendars is fairly consistent throughout and ranges from thin to medium in the A4 size which would obviously be a bit thicker in the A3 copies. The majority of the images in each are grounded in nature which I always find the most calming to colour and the pages are a manageable size to provide a good project but not one that will take days on end to complete. Some pages are quite quick to colour which is great for your bad days and others will take more concentration and focus which will be better suited to your good days.
All in all, these are nice calendars which are sure to brighten up your walls and bring colour to your whole year. They’re quite pricey and not ideal if you’re wanting to use the calendar as a planner as there is nowhere to write events on them but it’s a nice format to display your colouring. If you like these images then keep an eye out in the new year when I’ll be reviewing some other colouring products created by Nikky Hall.
If you’d like to purchase a copy of either of Nikky’s calendars, they’re available here:
Colour Your Mind Calendar 2016
A4 size
Amazon UK – Colour Your Mind (Wall Calendar 2016 DIN A3 Portrait)
Book Depository Worldwide – http://www.bookdepository.com/Colour-Your-Mind-2016-Nikky-Hall/9781325121199/?a_aid=colouringitmom
A3 size
Amazon UK – Colour Your Mind (Wall Calendar 2016 DIN A3 Portrait)
Book Depository Worldwide – http://www.bookdepository.com/Colour-Your-Mind-2016-Nikky-Hall/9781325121205/?a_aid=colouringitmom
Colouring Your Mind: Inspiring Foliage Calendar 2016
A4 size
Amazon UK – Colouring Your Mind – Inspiring Foliage (Wall Calendar 2016 DIN A4 Portrait)
Book Depository Worldwide – http://www.bookdepository.com/Colouring-Your-Mind—Inspiring-Foliage-2016-Nikky-Hall/9781325122318/?a_aid=colouringitmom
A3 size
Amazon UK – Colouring Your Mind – Inspiring Foliage (Wall Calendar 2016 DIN A3 Portrait)
Book Depository Worldwide – http://www.bookdepository.com/COLOURING-YOUR-MIND-INSPIRING-FOLIAGE-Nikky-Hall/9781325122325/?a_aid=colouringitmom
The images below were coloured using Stabilo 68 Fibre-tip pens.
In The Midst Of Madness 