Photo from Taylor Russell's website
SNOHOMISH — A Snohomish Panther has produced a brand-new coloring book of 20 historic homes from around Snohomish.
Taylor Russell is a 2009 graduate of Snohomish High School and, according to her website, has “a passion for history, houses & well-drawn maps.” Two years ago, she started the “Snohomish Walks” Instagram account and began photographing homes around Snohomish with architectural styles that stood out to her.
“There is a lot of Victorian and Queen Anne,” Russell said. “I would say there’s a lot of Folk Victorian, too, which is a simpler style from the same time period as Victorian. There’s a couple of houses in Snohomish that have clinker bricks on their facade.”
One of those homes is depicted on the book’s cover. In fact, Russell cites this home as one of the houses that inspired this project.
“I had a collection of beautiful pictures of Snohomish and I wanted to do something with them.” Russell said. “I put together this Instagram and then started writing little historical captions for them as well. That kind of attracted its own audience and I got a lot of good feedback. It really fueled me and made me excited and the coloring book was born from that.”
The coloring book is Russell’s love letter to Snohomish and the charm of downtown. Illustrator Rumi Das hand-drew the line art.
“The thing I really love about Snohomish is that historic architecture and the feel of walking around downtown.” said Russell. “Real estate is super crazy right now in the Pacific Northwest and I worry that some of that will get lost or it won’t be preserved. I want to do things that really honor historic homes.”
The book is now available on the Snohomish Walks Etsy store as well as Looking Glass Coffee, 801 First St.
Laura Page, who owns Looking Glass Coffee with her husband Tex, said she fell in love with the concept.
“Snohomish has a very rich and intriguing history and I love to learn more about it,” Laura Page said. “I thought the books would be a perfect addition to Looking Glass Coffee, as we are located in the historic downtown district of Snohomish, surrounded by many of the houses featured in her book.”
Russell’s passion for Snohomish history doesn’t stop at coloring books. She also has a limited-edition puzzle available in her Etsy store that is a colorized version of a map of the town from 1890.
“It’s super fun because you can do the puzzle itself, put that together, and then the image has like a little map key with all these different buildings and places that still exist today,” Russell said.
The book may only include 20 homes, but the Snohomish Walks Instagram account certainly has more than 20 images. Russell said she is considering a followup book.
Russell created the coloring book (and puzzle) for anyone who shares her love of Snohomish and architecture. She says the book makes a great housewarming gift for a new Snohomish resident or a unique present for a Snohomish wedding.
