There’s nothing that makes our day like seeing the way our books inspire others to color up something beautiful. We discovered Dede Willingham a month or so ago when she hosted a live stream of herself coloring one of the pages from our Epic Coloring Book. The stream (which you can still watch on her uStream channel) also included Dede walking us through the book, showing the many pages she had already colored in, and discussing her favorite illustrations. Her colored pages looked phenomenal and she had so many kind words to say about our book to her community. The way Dede colors is special because she doodles in her own additions to the illustrations that weren’t there before. It’s easy to just fill in between the lines, but Dede really interacts with the art and builds on it with her own flair. She adds tattoos, or wind and snow, and other exciting details that I’d never have expected.
Naturally, Dede swept us off our feet! She’s a portrait artist who draws a wide range of things from pets to celebrities for commissions. In her free time, she enthusiastically participates in and engages with the online art community. She does a live stream every Monday at 9am (some Wednesdays and Fridays too) in which you can watch her draw or color. The show is called Coffee and Art in the Morning and it’s amazing to see her in action, so give it a look. Below are some more pages from our Epic Coloring Book that Dede worked her magic on. It’s simply enchanting to find how many small details she weaves in to breathe new life into these black and white pages.
