How it works

Every picture in these pages is a mystery. All you see is a field of dots, each one carrying a small symbol. You might guess the shape of what is hiding there — but not how it truly looks. Which colours, which markings, which character: that only shows itself when you colour it in.

Here is all you need: match each symbol to its colour using the Colour Key on the next pages (the same key is printed on the back cover, so you never have to flip far). Colour the dot. Move on to the next one.

Dots marked 4 stay BLANK — white is a colour too, and the empty dot is how we paint it. And yes, the lonely dots scattered around the edges belong to the picture. They keep the mystery a mystery until the very end, and once coloured they become little sparks of colour in the dark.

There is no wrong order. Some people work colour by colour, hunting every B on the page before moving to the next letter. Some work top to bottom and watch the picture grow. Both are right. Both are wonderfully calming.

One picture takes about half an hour to an hour of quiet, focused colouring. When the last dot is filled, step back — and meet your mystery.

Paper and pencils

COLOURED PENCILS are the heroes of these pages. They cover beautifully on the black pages, they never bleed through, and light colours (white, cream, sand) look striking on the dark background.

GEL PENS also look fantastic on black — especially white, neon and pastel ones. Give them a second to dry before resting your hand on the page.

MARKERS AND FELT TIPS can bleed through any paper, which is exactly why every picture in these pages is printed on ONE side only, with an empty page behind it. If you use heavy markers, slip a spare sheet of paper behind the page you are working on.

The exact shade never matters. If the key says Teal and your set has no Teal, use the closest blue-green you own — near enough is near enough. The picture will come together all the same.

Good light helps more than good pencils. The symbols are small on purpose (that is the mystery part), so treat yourself to a bright lamp and a sharp pencil tip.

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