WATCH: An innovative way to de-stress is making waves around the world. Ines de La Cuetara reports.
MONTREAL — It’s an activity that’s usually thought of as childish, but adult colouring books may soon be coming to a bookstore near you.
“Its flying off the shelves; literally, we’re constantly re-ordering them,” said Cathie Repper, who works at Multimags in Montreal.
The store has a whole new section dedicated to this growing genre and Repper told Global News she is now even colouring herself.
“I tried it, and now I’m obsessed.”
The trend started in France, where adult colouring books are reportedly selling faster than cookbooks. Geared towards women, they are being marketed as art therapy stress relievers.
Does it work?
Experts are saying there is truth to those claims; your choice of colour, for instance, could reveal your mood.
“It doesn’t solve your problem, but it is certainly going to de-stress you.”
“It will give you the opportunity to maybe be a little freer to look at your problem differently,” clinical psychiatrist, Pierre Faubert, told Global News.
Faubert added that anxiety is often caused by the feeling that there are no boundaries in a person’s day to day, and the simple act of colouring within lines could help with that.
“Some people don’t have boundaries, so they will draw or colour within the boundaries,” said Faubert. “Sometimes that can have a very securing effect.”
The designs in adult colouring books are typically much more complex than those found in children’s colouring books. The whole point is to get people to lose themselves in the colouring.
“It gives you back that kid moment,” noted Repper.
“But it also gives you 30 minutes to not think about anything, not to be constantly on the run.”
Would you try it?
Some Montrealers have already embraced the idea of colouring.
“Actually I bought a Minion colouring book, Despicable Me,” said a woman outside the Indigo bookstore in Montreal. “Why did I buy it? I like colouring. It is a de-stressor.”
However, others remained skeptical, especially as the average price of a colouring book starts at $20.
“It’s a good concept, I just don’t think I would want to spend that much money on something like that,” one man told Global News.
Nevertheless, Repper said she believes adults should just give colouring a try.
“After a long day at work, you go home, have dinner, then colour,” she explained.
“You’re kind of a kid again but at the same time you’re letting go of your day — it’s like taking a really long, hot shower.”
Unconvinced? Why not give a colouring a try by printing off a colourable from our Pinterest page.
We’d love to see some of your best colouring! Share them with us on our Facebook page here.
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