Why adult colouring books are here to stay and how they relieve stress
You'll have seen them piled high in bookshops: adult colouring books are a phenomenon - and some say they are good for your health
When Brandon Blaine's teenage daughter was in the hospital, the 43-year-old from the US state of Texas didn't turn to meditation, yoga or therapy for comfort. Instead, he picked up colouring pencils and his daughter's colouring book.
"There was some real therapy in doing that while she was in for over a week," says Blaine.
Now, one of his creations from that fraught time - a teal mehndi-style peacock with a vibrant red-and-pink tail - reminds him of what it was like. And that his daughter got better.
Adult colouring books have been flying off the presses over the past few months, appearing on bestseller lists for Amazon and , and also in Hong Kong
Colouring books are for kids, you say? Think again. These feature intricate designs of places real and fictional, from streetscapes of Paris to secret gardens to mandalas, a Buddhist symbol.
Just like meditation, yoga, prayer, if you focus on something repetitive and soothing, it can hold your attention and allows you that time to relax
Adults who colour say the books are an easy and accessible creative outlet - a way to do art, even if they aren't the next Monet. It's a way to relax, unplug and return to carefree childhood, they say. Call it colouring books doubling as cultural criticism.
