Scandia: A Colouring Book Journey

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Scandia Coloring Book Review

Zeenah Shah is well known for her hand printed textiles inspired by her love of all things Scandinavian. It was no surprise then, that this talented artist created a Scandinavian Coloring Book. This is her first foray into the adult coloring book market and hopefully, we will see more from her.

Scandia, as the name implies, features images inspired by the Scandinavian way of life and region all presented in Zeenah’s distinctive style and design.

Cover & Layout

The cover of Scandia really sets it apart from other coloring books in the market. It features a die cut tree with lovely teal font. The die cut is highlighted by the teal protective page behind it and matching teal spine.

The book measures approximately 25cm x 25cm (approximately 9.8 in x 9.8 in) making it a good sized coloring book without being too small or too bulky.

Scandia has a replica of the cover as the first image in the book followed by a short introduction by Zeenah Shah.

Illustrations

The illustrations all are Scandinavian inspired and are printed on single sided white paper. The paper quality is of a medium weight and good quality. The line work is dull black and has a medium line weight overall. The line work is very easy to see without my glasses on, instantly making it a winner with me.

Scandia - detailed trees from the Scandinavian coloring book — Scandia – detailed trees

The majority of the illustrations have a pattern infill consisting of lines, zig zags, waves, leaves and other detail. The pattern makes the image dynamic and interesting and is reflecting of the region. There are some illustrations with larger spaces, suitable for beginners or those with visual or other impairments that make it difficult to color fiddly bits. There are, however, numerous images with a number of fiddly bits (small patterns). If those highly detailed images are an issue for you, rather than coloring those areas individually, you could just wash the area over and still have a lovely final result.

Scandinavian Coloring Book — Mandala type design with a Scandi feel

The illustrations are nicely varied with different levels of complexity. This makes them suitable for those new to coloring and those that have been coloring for a while.

The art work really makes you think you are in a Scandinavian country. The designs are simple but elegant which is so indicative of this area. Zeenah has included illustrations of trees, animals, flowers and patterns in this book. I like the variety of illustrations throughout the book, many of which would look gorgeous framed when completed.

Zeenah Shah scandinavian inspired coloring book — Zeenah Shah scandinavian inspired art

The images are presented nicely centered on the page. However, there are a few illustrations that use the whole of the page and coloring near the spine may prove difficult. Fortunately, Scandia only needs a little encouragement to lay down flat and make it easier to color those tricky spots.