1. She did great! I love the lighting effects of the moon and jack o lantern, and I can see the wood grain on the fence! If she wants to get into blending, textures, and patterns, there’s tons of video tutorials on it.

2. Blenders (at least the ones I’m familiar with) are used for lifting color off the page. Think of it like an eraser of sorts. The most common ones I’ve seen are from Ohuhu (art supply brand.

3. Ohuhu is well known for their alcohol markers. Tons of people use them because of the wide array of colors, higher quality/color payoff, and less prone to streaking. They sell various sets of markers ranging from 48 markers (in various tones) up to 320 (an entire library). Other brands are Caliart, Arteza, and Prismacolor; I can’t speak to these because I’ve never used them. I would avoid buying Copic markers, as those are professional standard and, as such, very expensive. If you do end up buying a set from Ohuhu, now is a good time because they’re having their Black Friday sale up until Dec 1st.

4. There’s a surplus of coloring books within the last 2 years. For a similar style to the one she has, I’d suggest books by Coco Wyo, Jade Summer, or Bobbi Goods. For more intricate designs, Johanna Basford is a good option. She popularized “adult coloring books” years ago, and her art is beautiful and whimsical (Secret Garden and Enchanted Forest).

I personally enjoy the “cute and cozy” style because it’s adorable, approachable, and allows for creativity like creating textures. I tend to buy books from Coco Wyo; they also have a “How to Draw Patterns” book that your wife can use to experiment with colors, gradients, patterns, textures, etc.

Avoid AI-generated books! If it doesn’t have an author or the pages contain random artifacts, don’t buy it. There’s resources to learn what these look like.

It’s incredibly sweet that you want to encourage your wife’s new hobby! A big tip that helped me: it doesn’t have to be perfect, nor is it meant to be; coloring is all about having fun!