Why We Started Local Color: The Story Behind Our Real-Place Coloring Books

Most coloring books look like they could belong to anyone, anywhere. The scenes are beautiful—but often anonymous.

Local Color started with a different question:
What if your coloring book could feel like home?

It Began With a Walk

The idea for Local Color didn’t appear at a drafting table. It began on an ordinary walk.

Passing familiar buildings, corner shops, and stretches of sidewalk, we realized:

• These are the places where real life happens
• These are the backdrops to our memories
• These are the scenes we rarely see turned into art

We didn’t just want to draw flowers and patterns. We wanted to draw the café where someone had their first date, the bookstore where a child picked out their first favorite series, the street where families gather for parades.

Turning Cities Into Coloring Adventures

From there, the vision became clear: create coloring books built entirely around real places.

That meant:

• Walking, photographing, and sketching actual streets and landmarks
• Paying attention to the details that make each city unique
• Balancing recognizable accuracy with a style that’s fun and inviting to color

Our goal was simple but meaningful: when someone opens a Local Color book, we want them to say, “I know this place.”

Why Real Places Matter to Us

We believe:

• Everyday places deserve to be celebrated—not just postcard views
• Small moments (a quiet morning coffee, a walk to the bus stop) can be just as meaningful as big life events
• Art can help people see their own surroundings with fresh appreciation

Coloring real places also creates natural opportunities for connection:

• Parents sharing stories with kids: “This is where we used to go before you were born.”
• Friends comparing memories: “I remember standing in this exact spot during that big storm.”
• Newcomers learning about their adopted city: “I haven’t been here yet, but now I want to go.”

Designing for Real Life, Not Perfection

We know life is busy. That’s why our books are:

• Printed on quality paper that feels good to use
• Filled with scenes that are interesting but not overwhelming
• Created to work with colored pencils, markers, or crayons—whatever you have on hand

You don’t have to be an artist. You just have to be willing to sit down, pick a page, and start noticing.

Looking Ahead: More Cities, More Stories

Local Color isn’t just about one city or one collection. It’s about a way of seeing:

• That your neighborhood is worthy of being drawn
• That your daily routes are part of a larger story
• That creativity can fit into small pockets of time

As we grow, we’re excited to bring more places into our books—more skylines, more streets, more hidden gems that locals know and love.

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Thank you for being part of this idea: that the places you already live, work, and walk through are worth turning into art.

Whether you’re coloring solo, with kids, in a classroom, or with friends, we hope Local Color helps you slow down, look around, and fall just a little bit more in love with the world right outside your door.

Check out these products you might like: Beverly Hills Coloring Book, Los Feliz Coloring Book, Venice Beach Coloring Book.

You might also like our posts on: Fun and Creative Gifts to Spark Kids’ Imaginations, Coloring for Self-Care: A Mindful Way to Unwind, and Boosting STEM Learning Through Coloring Activities for Kids.