I’ve had a lot of fun lately creating rainbow coloring pages using the new text-to-coloring-page generator from ColoringPagesTools. If you’re not familiar with this website, it’s very easy to use. It works like other text-to-image generators in that you can create a custom image by providing a prompt. But instead of an image, it generates a coloring page outline.
Free Pages and Custom Rainbow Coloring Pages
And just like any text-to-image generator, there are some limits on account-free use. For example, you can generate two Standard pages without an account. But if you want to generate more than that, you’ll need an account. And even with an account, you have only two free credits. Those two credits will be enough for two Standard pages, unless you already used your free tries in the same browser or on the same network.
But I think most people will find that they don’t need to worry about those limitations because there are so many free printable coloring pages available on their site.
So even if you don’t have an account, you can download and print as many of these rainbow coloring pages as you’d like. But if you want to customize them, you’ll need to log in to get your free credits. You can describe what you want in plain English, using up to 500 characters. Then choose a style, page shape and quality before generating your page.
A Rainbow Arch Above Clouds
I found a few examples of rainbow coloring pages online, but I wanted to try my own prompts. So I created my own rainbow coloring page using this prompt…
“a rainbow arch above clouds”
It’s pretty much exactly what I wanted! A rainbow arch above clouds. There are seven bands ready to color in.
The difference between my version and the ones I found online is that mine has thicker lines and larger shapes. This is a great example of how a young child might color something versus someone who enjoys detail.
Trying a Rainbow Above Flowers
If you’re interested in trying out this tool, I suggest starting with a simple scene. My first attempt at a rainbow coloring page didn’t turn out quite right, but I’m sure it’ll come together with a little tweaking. Here’s what I tried…
“a rainbow above flowers”
It’s actually a really nice coloring page, but I wasn’t entirely satisfied with the spacing of the rainbow bands. They weren’t spaced out evenly. That probably means I should’ve been more specific in my prompt. Let me try again…
“a rainbow above flowers”
I still don’t love this one, but I do like it better than the previous one. One thing I noticed is that it has more areas to fill in, which is good if you’re looking for a more detailed coloring page. But if you’re looking for a simpler coloring page, I would avoid prompting for things like “flowers” and “patterned bands.” You can also choose Simple style for thicker lines and larger shapes, or Detailed for finer lines and more areas to color. The tool recommends large, closed shapes for young children and more detail for older colorists. It also recommends leaving colors, shading and text out of your prompt.
I also noticed that there are some closed areas that could be colored (the large area on the bottom left), but they aren’t usable since they’re open to the outside. So while I wouldn’t normally consider those to be “coloring spaces,” I did notice that there are eight total coloring spaces in this page. If you’re looking for seven bands, you may want to include that information in your prompt, but keep in mind that it’s a preference, not a guarantee.
In any case, I love the idea of having customizable coloring pages that can be printed and colored right away. I’ll definitely be back to experiment with different prompts and see how it goes!
Downloading and Printing Your Coloring Page
To review the coloring page before printing, I recommend downloading the PDF file and opening it up. You can then zoom in to look at the details. When printing, make sure that the size of the PDF matches the paper you plan to use. If you choose US Letter size, make sure you’re using US Letter paper. If you choose A4 size, make sure you’re using A4 paper. Then select 100% scale. If you want, you can also download a PNG version of the coloring page and open it up in a photo editing program like Photoshop or GIMP to adjust colors, brightness, contrast, etc., before printing.
You can also download the coloring page directly from the website and print it from your browser. However, I prefer to download the PDF file and print it from Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Rainbow Color Order and Chosen Palettes
Now, let’s talk about rainbows. As I mentioned earlier, I’m a bit of a rainbow geek. 🙂 There are so many different types of rainbows, and each one looks a little different. But in general, they follow the conventional rainbow color order: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.
That’s also the order that appears in most rainbow coloring pages. The upright rainbow arch usually has the top band (or outer band) toward the inner band. In reality, real rainbows have a continuous range of hues rather than distinct bands of color, but for teaching purposes, it’s helpful to divide the spectrum into seven colors.
However, I’m not always happy with the way the rainbow is colored. Sometimes I prefer a rainbow that doesn’t use all seven colors, especially if I’m making a decorative coloring page. In those cases, I prefer a rainbow that uses fewer bands and a chosen palette of colors.
One thing I love about Superstar Worksheets’ “Rainbow Coloring Page with Color Words” is that it has all seven color names included. So if you’re looking for a rainbow coloring page that has all seven colors, you can check to see if the seven-band outline includes all seven color names.
Cloud Shading and Simple Craft Ideas
There are also optional partial cloud shading options. Superstar Worksheets suggests using light blue to give clouds more color and shadow.
That’s a really nice idea, and I think I’ll try that with my next rainbow coloring page. I’ll leave room for white areas, and maybe add some cotton-ball clouds to the colored page.
I also like the idea of turning the finished page into a simple craft. For example, I could cut apart the colored rainbow bands, and then reassemble them in color order. That would make a great puzzle activity for older kids.
Or I could add cotton-ball clouds to the colored page.
Those are both really simple ideas, but I think they’d be great additions to the finished page.