Wine?!? Yes, and plenty of it. Coloring parties for grown-ups are the latest fad sweeping the nation – and it all started on Ocracoke!
On a recent Friday night, I was finally able to join in at a Books to Be Red coloring party. Owner Leslie Lanier sets up tables and chairs, and provides coloring pages and stuff to color with. And wine, of course, and some snacks. Sometimes she even gets a chance to sit down and color herself, but mostly she is busy with re-fills and ch-ching! selling coloring books and supplies to the customers who just got hooked.
A group of 14 women and two children were huddled over their pages, relaxing and coloring away their stress. Some were regulars at Books to Be Red, and some were visitors. They mutually admired each other’s work, and chatted pleasantly about how much fun they were having.
Among the colorers was a group of ladies from Beaufort, NC, who visit Ocracoke every year. This is their 7th annual escape to the island, and the coloring party was a serendipitous discovery.
“We’re close by, but we feel like we’re forever and away on Ocracoke,” said Susie Cuthrill. She was having a great time. “This is the first time I’ve colored since I was ten years old,” she said.
Since the summer, Books to Be Red has had a sign out facing Hwy 12 that advertises “Adult Coloring Books!” Except for one highly-disappointed-to-the-point-of-being-angry customer, most shoppers know the coloring books aren’t XXX-rated, but highly-detailed designs for adults to decorate. These aren’t your dollar store coloring books for the young’uns, made with rough manila paper. These are fine art books, and you get to help make the art. And lately, they have been paying the bills at Ocracoke’s independent bookstore.
The coloring craze has been “crazy to watch” said Leslie. She recently saw that Barnes and Noble was hosting a coloring event at one of their stores.
“I’ve been doing that since July!” she laughed. Books to Be Red was ahead of its time.
It all started with one book: Secret Garden by Johanna Basford.
“Allison Moote told me about it,” Leslie said, back in 2013. “It was hard to get, and it kept getting backordered. Then, at one point, I had at least 35 copies, and Amazon was sold out!” The frenzy had begun, and Books to Be Red was ready for it. The coloring books display is the biggest in the shop, and there are two big shelves of lovely art supplies.
All coloring books are not created equal. “The quality of the paper, whether the pages are double-sided, or if they’re perforated – there are lots of different things to consider,” Leslie said. And, as relaxing as coloring is, “It’s not for everyone,” Leslie laughs. “The books are so detailed.”
Gardens, patterns, mandalas, fairies, horses, mermaids, dolphins, Game of Thrones – there are themes for everyone on your shopping list.
“Men come to color, too,” Leslie said. “Four Coasties were here one night. Men get really into it. Their women drag them in, but then you have to run the guys out.”
Leslie’s customers like to share their coloring successes with her. She often gets texts and Facebook posts showing their completed pages, and, even better, coloring parties that they’ve hosted with friends. She likes knowing that Books to Be Red inspires her customers and they associate the bookstore with fun and relaxation.
“I’ve had three coloring parties this week,” she said. One was a non-alcoholic evening in honor of the AA Jamboree folks visiting the island. Leslie has also hosted private coloring events for groups. All ages love it, too.
Now that the fad has caught on everywhere, the word is out that coloring reduces stress, and makes people feel good.
“A woman who was here last week has gone through cancer twice, and her oncologist told her coloring was good for her health,” said Phyllis Wall, one of Books to Be Red’s regulars.
“Who had time to color?” island resident Liz Hotchkiss said, about her pre-retirement years. Now that she has the time, she colors on the ferry, she colors at home, she colors at Books to Be Red. Her favorite book is Time Garden, which adds a new dimension to the phenomenon by telling a story. Gazing at Liz’s book with so many carefully-colored pages completed, the other ladies sighed, wistfully dreaming of long hours in their own timeless garden.
“I started coloring again with my nieces,” said Elizabeth Dyer, who's another local regular. “I sit with them and listen to them chatter.” Chatter abounds at coloring parties.
Most of the women shared fond recollections of coloring as children, or with their own small children, years ago. Two moms were there with their young offspring, making memories today.
Sofia, age 5, told me, “My mom said I could come if I could act like an adult.”
“When we got home after the first coloring party, Sofia said ‘That was the best time – am I invited back?’” her mom, Lisa Vergara, said. Sofia sits quietly, colors intently, and is always welcome to join the Books to Be Red partiers.
There is no sign that the coloring craze is dying out anytime soon. Christmas is coming and the coloring books artists, publishers, and booksellers are responding accordingly.
“This place is riding the wave,” said Phyllis.
“Books to Be Red was at the front of the wave,” Leslie added. “We’re going to keep going with the coloring parties until we don’t want to do it anymore.”
If you’re on the island, you’re in luck! There’s a coloring party tonight from 6-8pm. If you're coming soon, call 252-928-3936 to find out when the next one is!
P.S. When she heard that I was writing this article, my daughter Mariah sat down and wrote the following:
The kid’s point of view of coloring books:
“Coloring books are the bomb dot com,” states Mariah Temple, age 9.
“I think that everyone should have a coloring book. They’re many choices: Secret Garden, Where in the World is Koneko Cat, Harry Potter coloring book, the Mindfulness Coloring Book, etc. You will find great quality in any of these. You can get your coloring books at Books to Be Red. I love coloring because it calms you and relaxes you. You can work on such detailed things and be so calmed. It’s great!’
