Colouring books for grown-ups

YOU probably haven’t thought about colouring books since you were six. But, right now, the top of the bestsellers list on Amazon’s Art, Architecture and Photography page is filled with colouring books for adults.

Devotees extol their relaxing properties, saying that colouring- in is a meditative activity and an opportunity to escape.

Whatever the reason, Waterstones has reported a 300 per cent rise in sales between 2013 and 2014.

The Mail told last week how illustrator Johanna Basford, 31, of Ellon, Aberdeenshire, took the publishing world by storm after creating her book, The Secret Garden, which has been translated into 14 languages.

The mother of one, who is married to James Watt, owner of drinks company BrewDog, has sold more than a million copies of her books.

Some books, such as The Art Therapy Colouring Book by Richard Merritt and Hannah Davis (£9.99), are marketed as a therapeutic activity, while others, including Millie Marotta’s Animal Kingdom (£3.99) are clearly just for fun.

Who said crayoning was for kids?