The original Christmas gift for an adult who colours
Adult colouring has found its audience: it's calm, it pulls you off screens, it keeps the hands busy. The trouble with shop-bought books is that they colour mandalas or anonymous gardens. A personalised album changes that: the adult colours their own photos, their loved ones, the places they love. The same soothing effect, but with meaning on every page.
A few examples that work for this case
Original Christmas gift ideas for adults
For an adult, “original” mostly means a gift they wouldn't buy themselves and haven't already received three times. That often points to an activity rather than an object. These ideas are a change from the perfume set and the scented candle, each with its upsides and limits.
1.A colouring book made from their own photos
Their travels, their dog, their people, their home, as colour pages and line art pages. For someone who already colours, it's genuinely new. For someone who hasn't picked up a coloured pencil since grade school, it's a gamble with a safety net: they still end up with a lovely keepsake album.
2.Colour by number from their photos
The same idea in a guided version: every area has a number, and a key gives the colour. For adults who like following instructions and watching the picture come together, without agonizing over each shade.
3.A beginner craft kit
Embroidery, watercolor, calligraphy, block printing. Beginner kits include the supplies and a pattern. Choose based on their tastes, not on what you'd like them to try.
4.A hands-on class
Pottery, cooking, a tasting, an intro to photography. A half-day class leaves a memory and sometimes a new hobby, and it's more fun for two.
5.A challenging jigsaw puzzle
A thousand pieces or more, a beautiful image and a free table over the holidays. A calm gift for people who like slow evenings in.
6.Quality supplies for their hobby
Artist-grade coloured pencils, a sketchbook, a good pen. For someone who draws or colours, it's a safe bet, and it pairs nicely with a colouring book.
Free colouring or colour by number: which one to pick?
The classic colouring book gives you a line art page to fill in however you like. The colour page opposite works as a model you can follow or ignore. It suits adults who enjoy picking their own colours, blending shades and reinventing a scene.
Colour by number is more structured. The left page shows each area filled with its colour, the right page the same areas blank and numbered, with a key. You know exactly what to do, which relaxes a lot of people and annoys others. If the person loves sudoku or model kits, this is probably the one.
Both lines come in the same three formats at the same prices, £19.99 to £51.99 for the printed book, shipping included.
Which photos work best in an adult colouring book?
Adults spend time on a page, so it needs something to work with. Scenes with a setting do well: a café terrace on vacation, a kitchen on a holiday, a hiking trail with some terrain. Close-up portraits colour faster, so keep a few to vary the pace.
Start from what matters to them: their pet, their home, the garden they tend, a trip that stuck, their friends. For a couple, alternate photos of the two of them with moments among family and friends. Leave out shots taken from very far away, night scenes and images crowded with logos or text.
The inside paper, a 90 gsm uncoated stock, takes coloured pencils and water-based markers well. Those are the supplies to tuck into the package if you want them to start that same evening.
Who to give it to: partner, friend, parent or yourself
For a partner, the book becomes the story of the two of you: how you met, your trips, your home, the kids if you have them. Some couples colour it together one evening a week, with the phones left in another room.
For a friend who colours, stick to what you truly share: your trips, your nights out, your college years. A 12-photo book is enough, there's no need to know their whole life to fill it.
And nothing stops you from giving it to yourself. Colouring your own photos over the holidays, or keeping a record of the year, is one of the uses it was designed for. Either way, allow 5 to 7 business days before shipping, then carrier transit, which is slower in December, and check the estimated delivery date before you pay.
Our tip for an adult
For an adult who colours seriously, the 24-photo album gives enough to last several weeks. Favour photos rich in detail (landscapes, life scenes, expressive portraits) that make interesting pages to work with a pencil. A mix of loved ones and meaningful places works better than a series of portraits alone.
Recommended format
48-page book, £51.99
Hardback
An adult who colours to unwind appreciates having material: the 24-photo format lasts several weeks of pages.
Create the album to colourHow we make your book
Printed on demand by our print partner, close to your delivery address. Square 21.6 cm format, 90 gsm uncoated inner paper that holds pencils and water-based markers well, hardback on the 12 and 24-photo formats (saddle-stitched on the 6-photo format).
- 21.6 cmsquare format
- Stays flat when open on the table, the right size for colouring.
- 90 gsmmatte uncoated paper
- A grain that grips coloured pencils and won't bleed with markers.
- Soft or hardcover
- Softcover for the 6 photo format, rigid hardback for the 12 / 24.
- 5 to 7days to ship
- Printed as a single copy by a professional printer, then shipped with tracking.
Frequently asked questions
Does personalised colouring have the same anti-stress effect as a standard book?
Yes, the gesture is the same: areas to fill, a slow rhythm, attention settling. The difference is that the images carry personal meaning. Colouring a loved one's portrait or a place you love adds a dimension generic mandalas don't have.
Which format for someone who colours a lot?
The 24-photo one. It gives 24 pages to colour, enough to last several weeks without getting bored. For more occasional use, the 12-photo format is plenty.
Can I use alcohol markers or watercolor in the book?
Better not. The inside paper is a 90 gsm uncoated stock designed for coloured pencils and water-based markers. Alcohol markers can bleed through and mark the next page, and watercolor makes paper of this weight buckle. For smooth blends, soft coloured pencils give the best results.
Is a personalised colouring book a good gift for a man?
Yes, if the selection feels like him: his bike rides, his vegetable garden, his travels, his kids. Some men haven't coloured since childhood and get back into it more easily with pictures that mean something to them. If he likes clear instructions, colour by number is often a better fit than free colouring.
How long does it take to colour a whole book?
It depends on the format and the person. A simple portrait can be done in an evening, while a detailed scene may take several sessions. With 24 pages to colour, the large format keeps a regular colorist busy for several weeks. The 12-photo format suits more occasional colouring.
Our personalised books made from your photos
Three ways to turn your family photos into an activity book, from free colouring to guided play.
- Personalised colouring bookEach photo becomes a colour keepsake page and the same scene to colour freely.
- Personalised colour by numberYour photos as numbered zones with a colour legend: guided colouring, true to the memory.
- Personalised dot to dotThe drawing of your photo appears as you connect the numbers, then gets coloured in.
Ready to create your book?
Every page is checked before printing.
Create the album to colourRead more
Practical guide
Everfold, My Colorful World, Us in Colors and Memory Pencil: one page per photo, or two?
Everfold, My Colorful World and Us in Colors turn each photo into one black-and-white line-art page. Memory Pencil, which wrote this comparison, makes two: a colour reference page of the memory, then the same scene to colour.
Practical guide
How to choose a dot-to-dot book your child will actually finish
Between a child just discovering numbers and one who can follow a long sequence, the right book is not the same. Real difficulty, readability, number of dots, themes: the guide to choosing well.
Other ideas you may like
Christmas gift for your parents
Give your parents a colouring book made from their family photos. A Christmas gift that genuinely moves them.
Personalised Christmas gift from a photo
Your family photos turned into a colouring book to gift at Christmas. One colour page and one page to colour per photo. Delivered before Christmas.