Free Christmas and winter coloring pages for adults

Nibfern has two free Christmas coloring pages for adults, both from Quiet Winter: a decorated Christmas tree with wrapped gifts, and a polar bear. Each is a realistic drawing with a light gray shading guide, exactly as it is printed in the book, in US Letter and A4, with a full-color reference. Get the Christmas tree free with your first name and email. The other drawings in the book each have a free color reference, linked below.

Your free Christmas page: the Christmas tree

The download has three pages. The first is the Christmas tree exactly as it is printed in Quiet Winter, with its corner marks: a fir hung with candles, glass ornaments and a ribbon, a star on top and a pile of wrapped gifts underneath. The second is the same drawing in color, to use as your reference. The third has a code you can scan to see the whole book. Print the first page at 100% on the heaviest paper your printer takes, then trim to the corner marks for a 7 x 9 inch print that fits an 8 x 10 frame.

What colors to use for a Christmas tree

1. Branches: start with a mid green, then press harder with a deep blue-green in the gaps between the branches and under each tier. Leave the tips lighter.
2. Ribbon and star: golden yellow with ochre on the shadow side, and a little bare paper for the shine.
3. Glass ornaments: pale blue and white, with one small white highlight on each ball and a darker edge on the side away from the light.
4. Candles: cream, with a yellow and orange flame.
5. Gifts: pick two or three colors that sit well with the tree, such as teal, cream and a darker green, and tie them together with the same gold for the bows.
6. Background: a deep red arch makes the green and gold glow. Color it last, with even, light layers.

The Christmas tree color guide has the reference in full and the pencils to start with.

The second free page: the polar bear

For a winter page rather than a Christmas one, choose the free polar bear instead. The polar bear color guide has the real colors: ivory and pale cream for the fur, soft blue-gray in the shadows, a hint of pale yellow on the back, and black for the nose and eyes.

Christmas subjects to color

These are the Christmas drawings in Quiet Winter. Each link opens the subject's page in our free color guide, with its real colors, a finished color reference and the pencils to reach for.

• Northern cardinal: bright red and crimson, with a black face mask.
• Poinsettia: the red parts are colored leaves, not petals.
• Holly sprig, mistletoe and an evergreen wreath.
• Snow globe, frosted lantern and stone fireplace.
• Reindeer and amaryllis.

Winter animals to color

• Snowy owl, red fox and arctic fox.
• Snow leopard, lynx and gray wolf.
• Emperor penguin and chick, harp seal pup and red panda.

How to color snow and white fur

A white animal is never just white. If you leave the polar bear or the snowy owl as bare paper, it looks unfinished. Instead:

1. Keep the paper white only for the brightest highlights, where the light hits the top of the head and back.
2. Lay a pale cream or ivory over the rest of the fur with light pressure.
3. Shade with cool colors, not plain gray: a pale blue, a soft blue-gray or a hint of lavender where the gray shading guide is darkest. Snow and white fur pick up the blue of the sky.
4. Add warmth with a touch of pale yellow along the back and the top of the legs.
5. Color the background first if it is dark. A deep blue sky makes the white fur look brighter.

The same steps work for snow on branches, the snowy spruce and the log cabin roof. Our guide to coloring with a gray shading guide explains how to read the gray under the lines.

More Christmas coloring pages to print: a digital coloring book

If one page is not enough, the Christmas set on Etsy is a printable digital coloring book of 20 cozy Christmas coloring pages from Quiet Winter: the Christmas tree, the cardinal, the poinsettia, the reindeer, the snow globe, the stone fireplace and more. It is an instant download in US Letter and A4, and every drawing comes three ways: light grayscale, line only and a color guide. For all 45 winter and Christmas drawings, there is the Quiet Winter Complete Set, and if you color on an iPad, Quiet Winter for Procreate.

Make it a Christmas gift

Color the Christmas tree in early December, trim it to the corner marks and put it in a plain 8 x 10 frame: a handmade gift that costs an evening. For someone who loves to color, the whole book makes the gift, with 45 winter and Christmas drawings to color, cut out and frame. See Quiet Winter, or read color it, frame it, give it.

In short

Print the free Christmas tree or polar bear page, use the color references for the cardinal, poinsettia, snowy owl and the rest of Quiet Winter, and if you want more, the Christmas set of 20 printable pages is on Etsy.

Buy on Amazon Printables on Etsy

Quick answers