Joey's Weekly Challenge: Z is for Zinger

I love Zinger and try to use it whenever I can. I like to add tendrils, even if they're not a real tangle! This time I used a prestrung Renaissance Zendala. That gave me a nice string to get started. 
Thanks, Joey, for a fun final Alphabet Monotangle Challenge! I can't wait to see what you come up with next!

Diva's Weekly Challenge #244: Hollibaugh

Can I just describe what I had envisioned for this week's challenge? Let me just say there were lots of ribbons, since I only learned yesterday that you can search for types of patterns--organic, grid, ribbon, border, etc.--on tanglepatterns.com! All these months I've been trying to keep a catalogue of types, when I could've been using Linda's ingenious "Search by type". (If you, like me, were unaware of this great tool, it's on the left menu bar. In her post "How to Draw ORGANIC", she elaborates on other tools for picking the right pattern.)

Here's what I actually ended up with!

This was my first attempt at using colored pencils on a Renaissance tile. Many of you do this so beautifully. Thank you for inspiring me. I'll try to improve!

Thanks for stopping by, and thank you, Linda and Erin, for helping me grow. Have a wonderful week, and happy Thanksgiving if you're celebrating it!

Joey's Weekly Challenge: Y is for Yuma

This tangle was a new one for me. I really didn't know how this was going to go, but I had fun and like what came out of just going with the flow! 

Thanks for the Yuma introduction, Joey! Next week, she will have a Z tangle for us. And then..?

Thanks for visiting! Have a great week, and a happy Thanksgiving if you're celebrating!

Tripoli Encore

Maria Thomas recommends spending at least two weeks with a new tangle to really get a feel for it. I think I've spent over two months with Tripoli now! Here's another version, this one curvy:

Joey's Weekly Challenge: X is for XPlode

I'm feeling more flowery than explosive today, so my XPlode may look a bit different from yours! It's basically all there, just curvier! I used Elephant Poop paper (Yes!) and GelliRoll pens. I wasn't sure how to shade it, so I left it alone. Thanks, Joey, as always, for a fun challenge!

Thanks for visiting! Have a great week!

Diva Weekly Challenge #244: Tripoli

Thank you, Laura, for this week's challenge to use Tripoli. It is the pattern I've spent the most time with, partly out of difficulty and partly out of love :) As I drew my tile, I was focused on my breathing, on turning the tile, on keeping my auras even. Whenever I draw it, I think of the Place de l'Etoile in Paris, where the streets come together under the Arc de Triomphe to form "une toile", a star. That always helps me. Today, I also thought about the victims and their families from Friday's massacre. My Tripoli turned into a floating rectangle, which reminded me of "un tapis de prière", a prayer rug.

Thank you for visiting. I wish you peace.

Zendala Dare #116: Peace for Paris

Joey's Weekly Challenge: W2

When I learned W2, it created a bit of turmoil in our class! It was the last tangle of the lesson, and some of us could not find that rhythm of the over / under. So I had some trepidation about using it again when I saw Joey's challenge! I reviewed my notes, practiced so I could find a way that "worked" for me. I thought about how I might teach it to someone. After all, if you really want to learn something, teach it, right? Once I was comfortable, I created a frame that was slightly off and started my squares. As I was drawing, I was appreciating the seat of an old chair that belonged to Lar's great-grandfather, who had shortened the legs on it to have a comfortable seat by the fire after working in the fields.  For me, it has a very ancient, primal feel. The woven seat has almost broken. I find it so lovely that I've refused to redo it. 

And just for fun...

Thanks so much for stopping by! Your comments are valued!

Diva's Weekly Challenge #243: Just a tiny taste

I am truly a minimalist at heart. My motto is: I have what I need and I need what I have. Sometimes, however, I get caught up in more, more, more when I'm tangling. I was so happy to read this week's Diva Challenge. And without saying any more, here it is!

Thanks for visiting! Comments and suggestions are always welcome. Hope you'll stop by again soon!

Zendala Dare #115: THANKS

Today I had an incredibly high energy level. This followed several days of what I now refer to as "oldness"! Achy joints, fatigue, etc.  I imagine that most of us experience those ups and downs, and highs and lows in our lives. I am so thankful for today, and for Erin's zendala dare for this week. In addition to her lovely template, she added another challenge: to use tangles that begin with T-H-A-N-K-S. When I read this on Tuesday, I thought I would probably pass! But this evening, after a day of feeling productive and energetic, I gave it a go. I am glad I did.

Tipple, Hollibaugh, Ambler, NZeppl, Keeko and Scoodle

THANKS to Erin, and to all my fellow Zendalists who inspire me and motivate me! Have a great week!

Manic Monday!

Lar and I are having the downstairs painted. We are holed up in our sitting room near the painters. Our cats are locked upstairs in my office, and very unhappy with all of this. I have lots of time for tangling--woohoo! Here are the fruits of my labor thus far:

Joey challenged us with Verdigogh this week. I always think of rosemary sprigs when I draw this. This week's version pleased me as is--unadorned. 

The Diva had us learning Maria's new tangle, Gourdgeous. I had given this a whirl when it first came out a couple weeks ago. It was hard for me, so I decided I didn't like it! But today, I tried again, and started to feel more comfortable.

So glad to have these to work on while the painters are here! 

Thanks for stopping by! I always appreciate your comments! Have a great week.

Zendala Dare #114 Redux

Earlier this week, I posted my take on Erin's beautiful template #114, which I had managed to hide completely! I wrote that I would try to do it over, even though this is a "busy" week. ("Busy" in quotation marks since I am, after all, retired!)
Today is my anniversary, and I really wanted to make time for a zendala for my wonderful sweet Lar. When we wed 18 years ago today, he offered me his last name: Sparrow.
Please indulge me for using the sparrow stamp in my ZIA zendala. Lar and I found it this week and it seemed perfect for the task.
Happy Anniversary, Lar!

Tidings, Jonqal, Keeko, Mooka