All tangled up!

I finished it!

Project Pack 03

This was a challenge! I struggled with the "tool" for drawing ribbons, with making the "fold" in the ribbons, with filling in the space. (I considered adding some background "ghost tangles" in pencil, but  decided to hold off.) It still seems like it's missing something to "tie" it all together, as I saw in Shelly Beauch's frame and background behind the ribbons. Adding color with water color pencils was lots of fun. Time will tell if I move on to the Renaissance project. Stay tuned!

This week in our Zentangle SparkPeople Team, we've been looking at Step 5 of the Zentangle Method...tangle! This is such a personal topic, since this is where your personality and creativity really shine through. The good news? There is a plethora of patterns to choose from. The bad news? There is a plethora of patterns to choose from! You really have to hone in on your desires and needs at this point. Remember steps 2 and 3, where you spent a few moments centering? What did you find?  Need to try something new? Need to focus on your mindfulness? Need to create comfort? Need to explore the familiar with new eyes? Once you've centered yourself, you may want to consider the following options:

• For something new, there is a myriad of sites for new tangles. The latest addition is tanglelist.com.
• For focus, try a monotangle, or duotangle, with one of the basics, like crescent moon or hollibaugh, and focus on synchronizing your breath and your strokes.
• For comfort, take a favorite, or mac n' cheese tangle. (To help with this, Maria suggests making a list of your 10-20 favorite tangles.)
• For a new perspective, take a familiar tangle and tangleate, using my "What if?" approach. (For example, with a grid tangle, what if you use it as a ribbon, or a fragment, or with wonky lines, or with embellishments, or as a checkerboard, or as a string?) The possibilities are endless!
• And if you just don't know what you need? Choose a random tangle from your list of favorites. If they're numbered, you might want to use a die or a "random number generator", which you can find on tanglepatterns.com.

These are just a few ideas. Tangle challenges are great, too. Although some of these are now defunct, the sites are still active, so you can easily access past challenges. (See the right side bar for a list.) Facebook has countless challenge groups, too.

How do you approach Step 5?

A quick note from the garden: no new stars this week, apart from the baby cardinals in a nest outside our window! No photo, as their mom has hidden them well! 

Thanks for stopping by! I'll be visiting my daughter next week, and a dear friend the following week. Hope to see you again soon!