There’s a creative and fun way to show off your artistic talents. Using printable coloring pages is a creative way to personalize a space, and whether you’re coloring animal pictures, scenes featuring superheroes, or entire worlds, these coloring pages can become creative decor pieces in just a couple steps. This article will explain how to elevate your colored pages into interesting wall art you can use to decorate a home, a classroom, or an office. You can use many different techniques to take the printed design to the next level so that you finish with a display worthy of showing off.
Selecting the Right Coloring Pages
The journey to printable coloring page masterpieces for your walls starts with a correct coloring page! You want high-quality pages that include bold outlines and unique details, like realistic details for animal coloring pages, or great movements in superhero coloring pages, or a magical feel to fantasy coloring pages. Choose coloring pages that suit your theme; you may want to add a homey feeling with a nature theme and color animal pages, or you're a little more modern and want to use a superhero coloring book. You want files in a high-resolution format at least 300 DPI, that you take notice; pixelated images do not print well when you plan to color and display.
Print your art pieces on heavier-weight papers (24–32 lb card stock), as heavier papers support bright, rich, bold colors and hold on to some of that color without soaking through. No shades of gray in your art projects! Although most artists use heavy matte papers, matte papers work well with pencil and crayon coloring, while glossy papers add vibrancy to colors, with markers or gel pens. Your work will have a professional finish once you purchase a frame for display.
Coloring Techniques for Best Results
Coloring can make or break wall art. For really nice colors, it will be helpful to use nice, quality products like colored pencils, markers, or gel pens. When coloring animal pages, don't be afraid to blend colors to mimic the texture of fur and scales. When coloring pages related to superheroes, bold, contrasting colors can be useful to highlight capes or emblems. For fantasy world pages, castles or dragons can be colored with metallic or glitter pens to add a sense of magic.
You can always try coloring techniques such as shading, blending, or layering to add depth. For instance, you can add multiple gradient shades of green along with some color blending of shadows to create a forest with depth and perspective. Always take your time and try to be neat, because mistakes can be amplified with wall art than with other coloring pages.
Five Steps to Transform Coloring Pages into Wall Art
Follow these steps to turn your colored pages into art:
- Trim and Mount: Carefully trim any excess paper around the design. Then, mount the page on a colored piece of cardstock or foam board with the same trim on the colored material; this will create a nice border around the page.
- Frame It: Select a frame that goes with your decor, maybe a simple black for superhero art or a nice rustic wood for animal scenes. Make sure you get the frame that fits the page, such as 8.5x11 inches.
- Protect the Artwork: You will want to use a frame that has glass or acrylic to protect the pages from dust or fading. You can get clear static cling laminate and laminate the page yourself; this is a simple and affordable option.
- Add Finishing Touches: Think about using mat board; this will give the finished piece a more polished look, especially with complex fantasy pieces. Usually, neutral tones will be best to highlight the colors without overpowering them.
- Hang Wisely: Be sure to display your new art in a well-lit area, such as a living room or classroom, to highlight all the beautiful details. You could also consider grouping pieces together; a gallery wall of all the animal pages, for instance.
Showing off and protecting your art
To preserve your coloring page art, consider displaying it somewhere that is not exposed to direct sunlight to minimize fading. If you are going to frame your art, use UV-protective glass in the frame, especially with lots of color such as a superhero or a fantasy page. If you want to be clear as to how you want to display a few or more pages together in displaying a cohesive look, then you could do a themed collection. So maybe hang up a few animal pages together in a more nature-themed corner, and/or hang some more superhero art together in a kids room, etc.
Final thoughts
Printables can be transformed to wall art, and it is a creative outlet to be proud of. Selecting high-quality coloring page designs that you love, being thoughtful of coloring techniques, and simply framing them as outlined in a few basic steps can result in truly unique art you have created. Whether it is a colored animal portrait you wish to hang up, heroic themed scenes, or illustrations from fantasy worlds, your completed coloring pages can add personality and style to your space. See what printable coloring pages you can find to turn those creative efforts into wall art!