May Contest Winners

Throughout the month of May, we had not one but TWO contests that rendered some amazing creations! Each month, we hold a Fan of the Month contest that gives 6 colorists a chance to win a ColorIt gift card. In addition to our monthly contest, we also held our first coloring challenge! We asked our Colorettes and Color Studs to participate in ColorIt's 3 Marker Coloring Challenge, which was exactly what it sounds like... color a page using 3 randomly selected markers! The results were unbelievable! The judges had such a hard time selecting the winners for each contest, but the results are in... take a look at the winners for May!

Each month, our judges Erika, AJ, and Audrey select 3 winning submissions based on very specific judging criteria. This is a very tough process since the talent within the ColorIt Community is beyond impressive! We are always so excited to see the submissions come rolling in each month. We want to reward all of our colorists, which is why we also select 3 submissions at random! Each winner receives a $25 ColorIt gift card, but this month, almost every contestant DOUBLED their prize by having their ColorIt Colored Pencils, Markers, or Gel Pens in their submission photo. Read on to see exclusive ColorIt interviews with the top 3 winners, the winning pages, and more!

1. When did you first pick up a coloring book?

I loved to color as a child, so when my three sons were young I colored with them. I think I enjoyed it more than they did! Twenty five years ago I started rubber stamping and still make all my own cards. This involves a lot of coloring, so when I discovered Colorit last fall, it seemed only natural to start coloring in actual books.

2. Describe your perfect coloring atmosphere.

A quiet space at a table in my craft room, looking out the window when I'm not coloring.

3. Tell us about your creative process when you get ready to color.

I just pick a picture at random, decide what I'm going to color with and keep going until I'm done. This may take hours or days depending on what else I'm doing in my life. I only work on one picture at a time because that's my preference.

4. How has coloring changed or added to your life?

Now that my husband has retired and we are both home together ALL THE TIME, coloring gives me time alone to think or just daydream. I enjoy it much more than I anticipated when I first began coloring. I find it to be so relaxing.

This coloring page is from our Colorful Expressions coloring book and was selected by AJ. (Big surprise!!) Denise wanted to point out that she even gave the bull "AJ Hair"! Very creative, Denise!

5. What advice would you give someone who isn't confident about their coloring technique?

Don't worry about going out of the lines or that your colors don't seem to go together in the end. Most of us are not professional artists and, hopefully, we are coloring for our own enjoyment. Most of what you color will only be seen by you, so do whatever makes you feel good. It's only paper and a way to add color to it, after all. Just go for it!

6. What's your favorite Colorit book? What title would you like to see in the future?

I don't have a favorite book because I love them all! It's good having a variety to choose from, especially within one book. A winter/Christmas book would be nice to have, along with very fine tip Colorit markers to fill in those smallest of spaces.

7. Is there anything else you want to share about your love of coloring?

I know my friends and family are probably tired of me talking about Colorit all the time. I genuinely enjoy the books and all the markers, pencils and gel pens. I own a lot of coloring "stuff", but the Colorit products are by far my favorite. The quality and durability are reliable and worth every penny.

1. When did you first pick up a coloring book?
   
   I was about three or four years old when I got my first Coloring book. I've owned at least a hundred since then.
   
   
2. Describe your perfect coloring atmosphere.
   
   It would be at my art desk (the one behind me in the picture) where I love to draw and color. I usually listen to music or watch my favorite artist on twitch while I color.
   
   
3. Tell us about your creative process when you get ready to color.
   
   I look at the picture for a few minutes before I even pick out the colors I'm going to use. I have to figure out where my light source is so I know where all my shadows and highlights will go. I do this every time I color.
   
   
4. How has coloring changed or added to your life?
   
   It's given me more confidence in myself. If I can take this image and create the illusion of three dimensions then what else can I do? Maybe art can be a career instead of just a hobby.
   
   
   This coloring page is from our Mythical & Fantasy coloring book and was selected by Erika! This page was a favorite with all the judges, since it was selected TWICE! Rachel used amazing detail to make this unicorn run right off the page. Wonderful job, Rachel!
   
   
5. What advice would you give someone who isn't confident about their coloring technique?
   
   You need to just have fun and enjoy the experience. Don't be afraid to mess up. Art is a work in progress. You will always find something that needs improvement.
   
   
6. What's your favorite ColorIt book? What title would you like to see in the future?
   
   That's hard because I like all of them. I love dogs so I have to say Dogs: Everyone's Best Friend is my favorite. I would like to see Dinosaurs! I've always loved dinosaurs ever since I saw Land Before Time when I was a little girl. (Same here, Rachel!)
   
   
7. Is there anything else you want to share about your love of coloring?
   
   I really enjoy being able to express my creativity through coloring. My favorite mediums are alcohol markers and colored pencils.

1. When did you first pick up a coloring book?

I started coloring a couple of years ago, when I was on medical leave from work

2. Describe your perfect coloring atmosphere.

I enjoy coloring no matter where I'm at, I just zone out and enjoy making a page come to life with all the colors

3. Tell us about your creative process when you get ready to color.

Sometimes I thumb through several pages before selecting the one I want to do, I have 7 of your books now (and have given most of the books I had bought before finding Colorit! When I select the page a lot depends on how I'm feeling at the time, sometimes I want something more simple and sometimes I choose one that's more challenging.

4. How has coloring changed or added to your life?

Coloring has been an answer to a prayer, my medical leave became permanent and I spend most of my days at home. It is such a stress relief for me. I can just zone out and concentrate on the page I'm working on and I get a great feeling of accomplishing something. I also love going back and looking at all my pages I've done, its amazing to see how much better I have gotten by looking at some of my earlier pages.

This coloring page is from our Colors of Nature coloring book and was selected by Audrey! This is Bobbi's birthday month! What better way to celebrate your birthday than with new ColorIt goodies! Happy birthday, Bobbi!

5. What advice would you give someone who isn't confident about their coloring technique?

I tell my friends and family that they just need to take their time and enjoy the coloring process. I love printing out the pages that we receive from watching Colorit on Wednesday night. I print and share my pages with them and explain that you can practice different ideas, techniques, colors etc. on them. There is no right or wrong way to color, Just have FUN! We all see things differently, so as Erika says "Free your creativity". I encourage them to watch Wednesday night and see all the different ways that people color the same pages, but are all so different.

6. What's your favorite Colorit book? What title would you like to see in the future?

It's hard for me to choose one book, they are all so fun. I think my favorite would have to be Mandalas 1 & 2, but also love the Colors of Nature! You can do so much with them and use pencils, pens, markers or use them all together! I guess I can't pick a favorite, lol.

7. Is there anything else you want to share about your love of coloring?

I don't remember how I found Colorit, I know it was on Facebook and I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I ordered a bundle and got 3 books and fell in love with the books, the paper, and how well done the drawings are! I had bought several different kinds of pencils but just wasn't really happy with them yet. I saved up and ordered the pencils when there on SALE! (yea me!) It didn't take me long to fall in love with them! best quality, best shading and the case is fantastic. I now have the markers and the pens too, and I love them all. My favorite day of the week is Wednesday! I love watching on Wednesday nights AJ and Erika are the best! they make you smile and laugh through the whole show and I always learn something new. The Party! was so much fun and I learned so much hope that you do it again! (please please please!) Coloring is my go to place to unwind and just stop thinking about all the stuff going on! It helps me to relax and feel good about myself and see that I can complete things.

Check out our randomly selected winners!

Melissa Sullivan colored this beautiful pastel fairy from our Mythical & Fantasy coloring book. This was Melissa's first time ever submitting and she won a $50 ColorIt gift card by including her pencils in her picture! She plans on using her gift card to buy 3 Colors of the Decades books for her and her two friends!!

Debra Bryan colored this stunning hummingbird page from our Blissful Scenes coloring book. We can totally see why this was framed!! The saturated colors and blending is unbelievable-- I'm loving the hummingbird in the bottom left! This is a masterpiece, Debra!

Rene Kopp colored our Coloring Party design from our Blissful Scenes coloring book! Just for showing off her ColorIt marker, Rene doubled her prize to $50. This page is so detailed... it looks like she used some of the techniques from our Coloring Party. Beautiful job, Rene!

We wanted our ColorIt Community to experience our markers, so we were sending out 3 randomly selected markers FREE so that our customers could experience the quality. This inspired us to start a 3 Marker Coloring Challenge! We received some wonderfully creative submissions and it was hard to pick just three. Take a look at the winners...

Maureen Russell used three of her ColorIt markers to color this page from Dogs: Everyone's Best Friend! This page was selected by AJ, which makes sense since the colors resemble his favorite baseball team, the New York Yankees! I love all the different coloring techniques used to make each dog completely unique. Great job, Maureen!

Donna Petry used three markers to color this beautiful mandala that was selected by Erika! The colors used in this page are so meticulously placed that it almost looks like there are more colors used throughout the page until you look close enough to see it really is only 3 colors! The color scheme is absolutely stunning, Donna! Love it!

Michele Rowe used three random markers per dog in this coloring page from Dogs: Everyone's Best Friend! I selected this page, but first I had to message Michele to ask if it was really all colored with marker that's how blown away I was by the detail! If you look closely, you can see Michele added extra fuzz to some of the dogs to make them even more cuddly! Spectacular job, Michele!

 Looking for a chance to win a ColorIt gift card?!

Enter in this month's Fan of the Month contest at www.colorit.com/FAN! Each winner receives a $25 ColorIt gift card-- double your prize by including your ColorIt Gel Pens, Markers, or Colored Pencils! Happy coloring!