Lost Ocean: An Inky Adventure and Coloring Book for Adults

Johanna Basford is the designer who started my hobby of adult coloring books with her genre defining book, “Secret Garden” and her equally fantastic follow-up “Enchanted Forest”. With her newest book, “Lost Ocean”, she builds upon the stunningly beautiful and extremely intricate designs that I have come to expect from her. The subject of the coloring book is the ocean. There are so many designs, including: sailing ships, mermaids, fish, sea mammals, jellyfish, and shipwrecks and more flora of the deep than I can count, each page is a wonderful experience in coloring. There seems to be about 80 designs to color which is less than in both of her earlier books. The book is also a hunt for hidden items and there is a key for what you are looking for as well as where they can be found. There is a picture of an octopus that reminds me way too much of Homer Simpson. I may have to color its head yellow with white and blue tentacles. The one disappointing thing about this book is the paper. It seemed that the artist and publisher had finally understood the need for thicker and/or better paper. Recent versions of “Secret Garden” had improved paper – so much so, that this note is now included at the top of the page in all italics and with caps “Good news for all SECRET GARDEN fans! All editions of SECRET GARDEN now feature thicker and heavier paper stock, fighting bleed-through from ink pens.” From my point of view, one would think “Lost Ocean” would have the upgraded paper. It does not. In fact, it does not even have the same publisher. The paper is thinner and is worse and not as good as the last book. Maybe that is because of the change in publisher, but the artist and her staff should have verified what grade of paper was being used. The artwork makes up for this but I really wish an artist of this caliber's work was presented in the best possible way. The book (except for a single four page spread design at the back of the book) it is not perforated and almost every marker I have bleeds through. I can use my pencils and my gel pens. As with her previous books, the designs are printed on both sides of the paper. As I know that I love to use my markers, I have already purchased a second copy of the book so I don't have to choose a medium based on what happens to the backside of my page. I don't do this for many books, but I have found that I prefer to do so with Ms. Basford's as I want to color every page. I decided to purchase the UK version of the book as my second copy as I have heard that it uses a heavier weight paper than the US version. As I am disappointed in the paper in the US version, I'm curious to see the difference between the two when it arrives in 2-3 weeks. I was so pleased to find this book and my new, relaxing hobby of coloring. I design needlework for my “day job” but that contains a lot of stress (deadlines, trying to perfect the pattern, etc.) Coloring has become my way of relaxing at the end of a day (with music in the background, too!) I find that it helps me fall asleep with an easier mind.

Compared to the other coloring books by Johanna Basford, this one is the most detailed. Some parts are so tiny I don't know how I won't go over the lines (but that's okay!) I just want to give a fair warning for people with arthritis or shakiness. In my opinion this is the most beautiful and stunning book. Usually I find maybe ten pages that I can't wait to color. But with this one I'm excited for them all. If you're looking for a less detailed book I would suggest the jungle. One thing I've learned is that you need to love what you're coloring. I bought a generic adult coloring book at the grocery store thinking it would be fun. I colored a bit of one page, put it down, never touched it again. I think about coloring Lost Ocean and can't wait. Its such a calming activity. One feature about this book is the very long folded page at the end. I didn't think I would like it because I only color in my lap while in bed. But after seeing the details of the two sided pictures I changed my mind. I plan on coloring the entire page and put it up on the wall. Yes its that pretty! I use gel pens with these books, its just what I prefer. They are bright pretty colors. Mentioned in the Jungle book, the introduction advises colored pencils as the best choice. It says gel pens aren't the best idea because they aren't blendable, plus smudges, and even says don't press too hard. Here's the thing though, I found a 120 gel pen set for very cheap on Amazon. Some colors are blendable but not all. I don't need blending anyways because I have every color I would ever need! Plus they come in neon, pastel, glitter and matalic for making things pop out! I love shading, contrasting, and blending. If you have enough colors nothing can hold you back, I have enough. I let the page dry before closing the book and I'm careful about where to start coloring as not to smudge with my wrist. The gel pens have never seeped through any pages, no matter how hard I press. Plus they don't have to be sharpened every few minutes which could drive me nuts! I first saw these books at Michael's. They were too expensive for my taste so I happily purchased here for cheaper. My first one was Secret Garden. While I adored the drawings, I disliked the writing and encouragement to get me to draw my own designs. Im very good at drawing but I just want to color. It defeats the purpose and was a waste of paper because I didn't draw my own designs when it prompted me to. So I'm glad that Lost ocean doesn't have this. The Secret Garden also had a maze that really look like its for kids. If you like detailed coloring I definitely recommend this one. But I think once you try one you'll most likely get the whole collection. I hope she comes out with more in the future although it will take me a LONG time to finish one book. I'm a stay at home mom so I'm lucky to get an hour to color. If I had more time on my hands I'd probably be halfway done by now. I'm just happy I find time to do this AT ALL!

Beautiful as always, love Johanna Basford coloring books. Very detailed with unique hand drawn images. Page thickness is so nice. Not single sided so that’s a bummer because I work in alcohol markers and lots of layers with water based markers. You inevitably have to give up a page or two. Worth it tho. These books are so entertaining.

Like other Johanna Basford coloring books, I love this. And if you are also a fan of her books, you will love this too. I love that some of her coloring pages are in great detail while others contain less detail so you can add your own details like shading into her wonderful works of art. You can use different medias in her books like gel pens, colored pencils, or even crayons and markers. I love that versatility because I don't like to use just one. The pages are nice and thick so my gel pens do not bleed through. As for the pictures themselves, they are definitely her style of drawing set in an ocean atmosphere. I am super excited to use the beautiful colors that are naturally associated with the ocean. There are so many different scenes in this book that will draw out a lot of creativity. It is a beautiful book and I am super excited to start coloring it. My only gripe is that there are drawings that cover two pages and it is hard to color the middle where the spine is connecting them. I am planning on undoing the books so I can lay the pages flat but I am afraid of tearing or ruining any pages. There is a nice bonus at the end of the book that unfolds to a 4 page long scene front and back that will make for an awesome piece of work when it's done but it is gonna take awhile! I read some other reviews that said their book did not have the removable cover like her other two books but mine did indeed have the removable cover and I would be disappointed if it it didn't.

Se vi piace colorare o anche solo ammirare gli splendidi disegni di questa autrice oppure copiarli, questo libro fa per voi. Ricco di dettagli, pirati, sirene, pesci multiformi e tesori. Un magico carosello di fantasiosi e minuziosi particolari, belli anche solo per guardarli. Insomma Johanna Basford è a tutti gli effetti una pietra miliare nell'arte dei disegni antistress. Che però, a mio parere, antistress non sono.

Chegou 12 dias antes da data prevista, tudo bem certinho, bem embalado, super satisfeita . Sobre o livro PERFEITO... Obrigada Amazon, nota 10 😊

ça n'a pas été simple mais j'ai réussi trouver ce cahier car ma fille voulais des mandalas sur le thème de la mer... Il est super, les dessins sont beaux, pour certains avec énormément de détails ce qui garantit des heures de coloriage sans problème (certains mandalas nécessitent beaucoup de patience / minutie). Ma fille l'adore et ne l'a toujours pas terminé !

ممتاز

El libro me encantó, desde la portada hasta el final las ilustraciones son hermosas y detalladas. Pedí el de pasta blanda y la calidad es muy buena, las páginas son gruesas. Muy lindo libro, espero adquirir otro pronto. Además puedo agregar que el pedido llegó mucho antes de lo esperado y en excelentes condiciones, eso le da puntos extra. Recomiendo la compra.