Zentangle is...

The Zentangle® Method, created by Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts, is an easy to learn, fun and relaxing way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns.

Sunday, April 29, 2018

Where to go for String Support

Here are some useful links I gave in today's "String Theory" class.



Here are some of the ideas for strings I mentioned.
  • Letter
  • Number
  • Stain
  • A shape you trace (lid, coaster, tile, leaf, etc.)
  • Rope strands
  • Ribbons
  • Stack of wavy or straight lines
  • Another tangle. Hollibaugh for "ribbons", Printemps for a spiral, Bales for a wonky rectangle.

Wednesday, April 18, 2018

Diva Challenge #360: Tripoli and Shattuck

It's Wednesday, and I'm ready to post! That doesn't happen often! With a fairly busy end of the week, I took to my art journal this morning after prepping a page titled "Emerge" yesterday. If you saw my post last week, you may recall that I've been trying to incorporate more Zentangle into my art journal.
Last night I returned to my small handmade 3.5 journal to play with Tripoli and Shattuck, two of my favorites, and some Koi watercolor pens.


This morning, on to the big journal. I did the tangling before I knew if I would use "emerge", which seemed tricky. Once finished, I looked for a quote. The quote inspired the addition of color, which, for me, brought it all together.


"I'm very representational some of the time, and a little all of the time. 
But when you're painting out of your unconscious, figures are bound to emerge."
-Jackson Pollock

I like this. Here are some other pieces leading up to it.





"I am neither of the east nor of the west. No boundary exists within my breast."--Rumi


Inspired by creationsceecee video



Started with a giant bleed-through, ended with Zendalas! (Templates from Zendala Dare)

Thanks for your time. Have a lovely week!





Friday, April 13, 2018

Diva Challenge #359: Finger String

Most of my art time this week has been in the company of my art journal, with very little Zentangle involved. I have mixed feelings about this. I'm having so much fun working on a larger surface, problem-solving, playing with paint and glue and paper and ink and sparkles and text and...everything! The Pinterest pages and the youtube videos just delight the senses! Michele's recommended creationsceecee videos are so relaxing and instructive. But I am missing Zentangle, too, with its structure.
So this week, I decided to combine the two, or at least try! (Yesterday, after subbing in a sixth grade class, I needed something quiet and soothing!) I traced my hand in the journal, and immediately thought, "That's a lot to tangle!!!" So I drew a stacked string behind it. The bands were wide, so I picked up my gold Shadow Gelly Rolls. Filling them in, I made some mistakes, but just kept going. This hardly thrilled me!! The empty hand puzzled me. I had thought I would leave the negative space, but the dots from the Rhodia paper just didn't work.  The journal52 theme for this page was "Release". I hesitated, but put down some blue acrylic for a sky.  Clouds, then some shading,  highlights and my reminder to "Let go".


(5.5 x 8 in. /14 x 21 cm) 
I like how it finally came together.

Thank you for visiting! I look forward to seeing your tiles!


Sunday, April 8, 2018

Diva Challenge #358: Pickpocket, or Mistakes

Mistakes. According to Einstein, "Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new." They prevailed in my artistic endeavors this week! A hot mess of mistakes. Trial and error. Attempts gone awry. I used to tell my middle school students, in their moments of frustration, that learning is messy, not pretty or comfortable!
Our Diva challenged us to use Tomas Padros' new tangle "Pickpocket".  My first attempt, not shown, taught me that I need to be focused on the connecting lines that imitate the "telephone" lines Maria describes in Huggins. And then, those pesky triangles, that remind me of the "Play" and "Rewind" buttons on my old tape player, which remind me of how old I am. Can I still learn? Ha! My second attempt saw me focused on direction--under, over, left, right. Not my personal forte, but I did it! My third attempt turned me on my head again, so out came the giant black marker to reclaim the space! My final attempt  s l o w e d  me down, and almost made me snap at my husband when he asked me a question!





Marks-a-Lot to the rescue!


My art journal, where I collect favorite quotes and try to learn how to keep paint and ink from falling off the page, reflected my experience with Pickpocket. If you were here last week, you may recall Michelle Obama's quote: "Just try new things. Don't be afraid. Step out of your comfort zones and soar, all right?" I continued in this vein with a quote from Mary Tyler Moore: "Take chances. Make mistakes. That's how you grow." I had this nice background that I created with watercolors and a straw.


I finished the page with some tangles and the quotes, and then without scanning, went back to work on the previous page. This was a simple page, where I just wanted to play with texture and acrylic. Forgetting to put wax paper behind the page, I spritzed it and finished the page with a quote from Chuck Palahniuk. 


And then I laughed out loud when I turned to the next page and saw the results!


Lesson 1: Don't forget the waxed paper! Stay away from the Gelly Roll! Laugh if you goof!

Finally, two more pages where I seemed to maintain my focus a little better!


"I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress and grow brave by reflection." --Leonard da Vinci
Photo courtesy of Duke Performances and Steve Olivia


Remembering a childhood friend who recently passed away

Thanks for checking in on me! If your week is messy, have a good laugh!