The preppy style
Preppy coloring pages with classic bows, stripes, plaids, and icons
Open a polished mix of preppy pattern coloring pages: striped bows, argyle diamonds, gingham grids, tennis rackets, loafers, monogram frames, smiley faces, and sweater-inspired repeats. The set ranges from big, simple icons that younger kids can finish with crayons to tighter plaids and layered stripe designs for tweens, teens, and adults who like neat pattern work. Use the pages for a dorm-room mood board, a school-break art activity, or a quiet afternoon with markers. Each printable keeps the preppy look recognizable while leaving plenty of room for your own color choices.
Preppy pages stack the motifs of the moment — checkerboards, smiley flowers, waves, cherries — in bold, sticker-like arrangements. Bright markers were made for this style.
The Preppy collection
23 original pages drawn FOR this style — the heart of the theme.
Preppy across all our worlds
The preppy style lives beyond its collection — a varied pick from the rest of the catalog, each page linking home.
Fun facts to share while coloring
Preppy style gets its name from the private preparatory schools that many students attended before college, especially in the Northeastern United States. Its look borrowed from campus sports, so tennis rackets, rowing stripes, rugby shirts, and polo collars all make sense on these pages. The polo shirt became famous after French tennis champion René Lacoste introduced a short-sleeved knit shirt in the 1920s as a cooler alternative to stiff tennis clothes. Argyle diamonds trace back to the tartan of Clan Campbell of Argyll in Scotland, and the pattern spread widely on socks and sweaters in the early 1900s. Madras plaid is named for Madras, the former English name of Chennai, India, where lightweight cotton checks were exported.
Coloring tips
For a classic preppy palette, set out navy blue, crisp white, kelly green, bubblegum pink, cherry red, sky blue, butter yellow, khaki tan, and a touch of gold. On plaids and gingham, color every other stripe first, then add the crossing stripes lightly so the overlap looks woven instead of muddy. Argyle works best when the diamonds stay clean and the thin diagonal lines are drawn last with a sharp colored pencil or fine-tip marker. Give bows and loafers small shadows along the folds and seams. For a theme-specific twist, turn a blank monogram frame into your own crest: add initials, a tiny tennis racket, a bow, or a varsity number in the center.
