It’s National Colouring Day! With colouring at the heart of everything we do, it should come as no surprise that this is a day that's extra special to us here at eatsleepdoodle! As a company obsessed with colour-in creativity, we are absolutely over the rainbow with excitement to celebrate a day dedicated to all things colourful!

To mark the occasion, we’re diving into the wonderful world of colouring with a blog that’s sure to brighten your day! We’ll be chatting all about the benefits of colouring for kids (hint: it’s great for developing creativity, focus and so much more!) plus, we’ll be sharing tips and tricks to help take your colouring skills to the next level and make your eatsleepdoodle gifts pop!

So, grab your colouring pens, let your imagination run wild and get ready to colour outside the lines! Let’s make this National Colouring Day the most vivid one yet! 🎉

But first, why is colouring good for kids?

You know we love the fun and creativity of colouring, but that’s not all… colouring also has lots of benefits for children’s development! For example, colouring helps develop fine motor skills by teaching children how to control their hand movements, which is essential for tasks like writing, tying shoelaces and using cutlery. It also sparks creativity, giving kids the freedom to choose their own colours and explore their imagination! Not only does this boost their artistic abilities, but it also helps improve problem-solving skills and encourages outside-the-box thinking.

Colouring also provides a calming activity that promotes focus and patience and is great as an alternative to scree-time. It teaches kids to concentrate on the task at hand and can even improve behaviour and performance at school! Additionally, it provides a safe space for children to express their emotions, helping them to manage big feelings and stress. Plus, there are some cognitive benefits too! Through colouring, kids can learn all about shapes, patterns and cause and effect. It even introduces early maths concepts like size and counting!

Check out our previous blog to find out more about the benefits of colouring for children!

 

Our top colouring techniques to make the most of your eatsleepdoodle gift!

Whether you’re a careful colourer who stays perfectly inside the lines or a free spirit who loves to colour outside the box, we celebrate all styles at eatsleepdoodle! With all our colouring being reusable with a simple machine wash, we love to experiment with new techniques, colour combinations and creative ways to decorate our textile gifts differently each time. Whether you want to create a 3D effect, mix up your own custom colours or make one part of your design pop, we have some must-try tips and tricks to level up your colouring game! Here’s our top colouring techniques to try on your next colouring adventure, featuring our rawr-tastic dinosaur design:

 

Block Shading

Starting off with an oldie but a goodie! Whilst this isn’t exactly a new technique, creating a bold, even base of colour is super important to help your colouring look its best.

What it’s good for: creating strong pops of colour and an even base layer for other designs.

Why not try… outlining the edge of your colouring first with the fine tip of your pen. Once you have a good outline, colour in larger areas with the thicker tip. For super bold colour, leave the area to dry then repeat shading to strengthen the colour and watch it pop!

 

Ombré/Colour Blending

Using your top-notch block shading skills, why not try blending colours! Ombré is an effect where colours blend smoothly into one another, usually mixing from light to dark or vice versa. To achieve this fun effect, block colour in overlapping layers using multiple colours until they blend into each other seamlessly!

What it’s good for: adding depth and a realistic effect!

Why not try… one thing that we love to use this technique on is lava! Blending yellow, orange, and red, add an ombré effect as you colour in the volcano on our dinosaur design!

 

Spots and Stripes

Spots and stripes are a great way to add some interest to your design - whether on their own or layering on top of block shading, spots and stripes add fun texture to plants, clothes and more! They’re also great for adding colour to large areas, like the humpback whale on our under the sea design!

What it’s good for: creating textures or adding colour to large areas.

Why not try… adding some spots and stripes to the succulents on our dinosaur design!

 

Colour Mixing

Our rainbow of 20 wash-out pens has a colour for every occasion, but sometimes we like to get even more creative and mix our own! For the odd time we have a very specific colour in mind, we love to layer different shades together to create our perfect match!

What it’s good for: creating an endless range of custom colours!

Why not try… we love our rich brown colour from our classic pen set, however we wanted a lighter shade of brown for these Jurassic rocks. Try mixing the orange and grey shades from our pastel pen set for this prehistoric hue!

 

Fine Detailing

As with block shading, it’s important to master the basics! Adding details to small areas of your design is a great way to make things more interesting.

What it’s good for: adding precise details and accents!

Why not try… using the fine tip of your eatsleepdoodle pen to add details in a contrasting colour!

 

Shading

This technique is great for adding depth and making designs look more realistic! By strategically placing different shades of the same colour, you can create the appearance that parts of your design are further back/forward than others, creating the illusion of a three-dimensional object. You can also use shading to make things appear to be in the shade, for example under a tree!

What it’s good for: adding a 3D effect or creating the illusion that something is underwater or further away!

Why not try… using a darker shade below the water line to enhance the effect that your dinosaur is underwater!

 

Cross-hatching

Finally, we have cross-hatching. Like spots and stripes, cross-hatching is a great way to show texture or colour in areas that may not look as good with block colour, such as glass windows! It’s also a great way to add shading (by placing your lines closer together) when using only one colour!

What it’s good for: adding colour and shading to a large area or colouring smooth textures like glass!

Why not try… cross-hatching the fences on our dinosaur design!

 

We hope you have found these techniques helpful and are inspired to try some of them next time you colour. For more details, check out our reel on Instagram to see the techniques in action and follow along with a dinosaur backpack of your own!

We have loved celebrating National Colouring Day with you and talking all things colour-in! We hope we’ve inspired you to pick up those pens today and get your doodle on. Be sure to tag us on our socials so we can see all your fabulous colour-in designs!

Don’t forget you can get in touch with us on social media and share your adventures and colouring creations by using #eatsleepdoodle – we always love to see what you’re up to! You can also tag us on Instagram (@eatsleepdoodle_), Facebook (@eatsleepdoodlehq) and TikTok (@eatsleepdoodle_).