Fantasy Coloring Pages

• Dragons: a hatchling cracking out of an egg, a dragon asleep on a hoard of coins and one in flight over mountains
• Wizards and witches: a study lined with potion bottles and a hedge witch stirring a cauldron
• Elves, dwarves and travelers: an elf archer in a tree city, a dwarf at a forge and adventurers reading a map by a campfire
• Enchanted places: a mushroom village, a floating island with waterfalls, a crystal cave and a ruined castle under two moons
• Mythical creatures: a griffin, a phoenix rising from flames and a winged horse
• Objects and maps: a sword in a stone, a treasure chest and a blank fantasy map to name yourself

Fantasy gives you more freedom than any other theme, since nobody can tell you what color a dragon is. A few choices separate a muddy page from a striking one.

Pick a mood first. Warm colors like red, orange and gold suit dragon fire, forges and deserts. Cool blues, greens and violets suit ice caves, night forests and elven cities. Choose one family for most of the page and save the opposite for a small focal point, like a glowing crystal.

Make things glow. Leave the light source white or pale yellow. Color the area around it in a soft ring of the same hue, getting darker as you move away. It works for lanterns, spells, moons and dragon breath.

Scales and stone. Give every scale a base shade, then darken its lower edge. On stone walls, vary three grays or browns from block to block so the wall doesn't look flat.

Metal. Armor and swords look shiny when you leave a hard white streak and put the darkest tone right next to it.

Colored pencils suit the detailed pages. Metallic gel pens in gold and silver are useful for coins, crowns and stars.