I started colouring workshops for adults

Picture: ATHENA PICTURES For as long as I can remember I’ve always loved drawing and colouring. It’s completely absorbing and makes whatever stresses you have in life fade away.

After I finished school, I did an art degree and set up a business as an illustrator in 2013. I started off making cards and colouring books for children.

Then a few years ago, I decided to set up workshops where children could colour in a picture from one of my books.

The classes were a big hit, and I noticed that when they had a colouring pencil in their hand, they found it much easier to open up and talk about things.

But it’s not just children who find colouring therapeutic. In the past few years, adult colouring books have become incredibly popular. Last month I set up a colouring workshop for adults, and was amazed by how popular it was.

I put on some gentle music in the background and let people choose a picture to colour in. Since they were adults, I expected most of them to go for a wildlife picture but to my surprise the most popular choice was a unicorn. I suppose it just goes to show adults love to use their imagination as much as children do.

We spend so much of our time rushing between work and family commitments, so it’s no surprise we’re desperate for new ways to switch off from it all.

By sitting and colouring for an hour, the women in my workshop were able to take that time out of their day to do something just for them. And at the end, they had a beautiful picture.

■ See sarahlovell. art for details about workshops

Sarah Lovell, 38, an illustrator, lives in Wimborne, Dorset, with her husband Peter, 43, a company director, and their children Claudia, nine, Henry, seven, and fouryear-old Samuel.

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