Create Your Own Colorful Pictures Of Animals Whether wild, forest, farm or domestic, an animal coloring book is the perfect way to get away from it all. Coloring is something which has been associated for a long time with children and it has been taken for granted that, as we mature, we put aside our crayons and turn our attention to more adult pursuits. In recent years however we have witnessed this wisdom being overturned and coloring for grown-ups has become a widespread and growing activity. But why has coloring for grown-ups become so popular? There are many reasons for the rapid growth in adult coloring, but here are just a few... Coloring Relieves Stress And Anxiety Psychiatrists have known for a long time that coloring relaxes the fear center of the brain and allows your mind to rest. Indeed, Carl Jung, the founder of analytical psychology, gave his patients mandalas to color more than 100 years ago. In the hectic world we inhabit today the stress relieving properties of coloring are more valuable than ever. Coloring Trains Your Brain To Focus Staying inside the lines as you color a simple black and white line drawing takes focus and, while you concentrate on this stress-free and relaxing activity, you can forget about your worries. Coloring is a mental exercise which lets you set aside everything else for the time you spend doing it, and this is very important in our hectic world. Coloring Helps To Develop Motor Skills And Vision Coloring forces the two hemispheres of the brain to communicate and involves both the use of logic (used to color forms) and creativity (as we mix and match colors). This, in turn, brings those areas of the brain concerned with vision and fine motor skills into play, and helps in keeping these active and in developing them further. This is the aspect of coloring which is being increasingly seen as especially valuable for older individuals, as many people believe that it can delay, or even prevent, the onset of dementia. Coloring Provides The Opportunity To Be Social Although you might believe that coloring would be a solo occupation, its rising popularity is fast turning it into a social one. Friends, families, co-workers and others are getting together to enjoy something to eat and drink and the opportunity to socialize, through their shared interest in coloring. Indeed, this is a perfect excuse for getting together, as coloring takes only minimal concentration and can be done easily in a group. Coloring Lets You Be Yourself When it comes to coloring there are no rules and your coloring book is your coloring book. If you accidentally make the dog's hind leg green because you thought that it was part of the grass, who is going to care? If you feel like making the sky yellow, what does it matter? You are allowed to be as creative and experimental as you like because this is your project, and yours alone. When it comes to picking colors don't forget that the American artist James Whistler once remarked, ""Mauve is just pink trying to be purple."" You may already be a fan of adult coloring, in which case you will appreciate its value. This may however be a new enterprise for you and one that you are contemplating for any one of a number of different reasons. If this is something new for you then I encourage you to try it out. There is a reason why so many people are excited about the world of adult coloring, so join in and begin enjoying the benefits for yourself today.