An Adult Coloring Page for Thanksgiving

When I was a kid I didn’t look forward to the turkey, mashed potatoes, or even pumpkin pie. What I wanted to do more than anything else on Thanksgiving was color the giant full-page turkey for the “Oh, You Turkey” contest in the Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis. Unfortunately, you can only enter the contest if you’re under the age of 12.

Seeing as how adult coloring books are all the rage, I thought it was appropriate to relive my childhood dreams, so I ask my friend Liz Apple to design a coloring page for Thanksgiving. I hope you have some colored pencils, markers, and paints around — you’re going to need them.

The Star Tribune encourages kids to send their turkey drawings back to the newspaper and they highlight the winners in a later edition. I never was featured (Shock! Horror!), but I loved seeing what other kids did with their turkey. A turkey that looked like a green alien? Fun! A turkey that was all different shades of blue? So inspiring! I was always the kid who sent in a turkey that tried to look exactly like a “real turkey” and looking back I realize I should have tried to be a little more creative. So, now is the time!

So if you, like me, want to relive the best part of Thanksgiving as a kid, download our coloring page, print it out, color your heart out, and share it with us on Instagram and Twitter by tagging your photo with #kitchnturkey. Here are some of our favorite designs over the last couple years.

For more fun project ideas and illustrations, check out Liz Apple’s personal website. You can also follow her on Instagram and Tumblr.