Happy Summer!

No doubt. Summer's here. Rain is not. I began my watering tasks this week, for the flowers, birds and other critters. I am very frugal with water. You won't find a sprinkler in my yard, although I would like to run through one!

With my time in the garden increasing, my time inside is down, and with it, tangling time. I still tangle every day, after realizing how important it is for my mental wellness. I've almost filled my journal that I made for June travels.

Featuring a variation of the Bekk tangle

The colors of morning on the porch

Featuring the new tangle Haeckel, kind of

I made some new background paper with distress inks in cool colors for my Meals on Wheels cards. I hated to waste the tiny scraps, so I put them to good use in journal.

With LaMar tangle

Pia

Scarabou

How do you handle heatwaves?

My neighbor, unlike me, loves the heat. I have always withered in the heat and humidity of North Carolina, and, in the 50 years I've lived here, I've never acclimated. Mosquitoes adore me. And I'm at the age where I've finally come to understand what happens to my skin in the sun. So when it's hot, as it has been this past week, I get out early and try to get back in before 11.

Tangling inside has been a great escape! I pulled out some previously colored tiles, from April 2020, when I scratched my cornea and couldn't see well enough to tangle. "Dropping" watercolors and pigments became a favorite stress reliever. I used my Alhambra string stencil for the last two tiles.

In my small journal, I played with using color with white space. (I tend to overdo it sometimes with the color!)

The drawing practically fell out of my pen, and then stopped, so I picked up my paintbrush and continued from there! 

Thinking about borders, I first applied the pigments, then tangled, using the color as my string.

Needs three little birds.

Happy Father's Day, and happy summer solstice!

 

More Postcards to Myself

When I was on vacation, I didn't have time to complete all my drawings. I would take pictures of things that I found inspiring, and when I got back home (to the hotel), I chose one and did an ink drawing. If time permitted, I pulled out my pocket watercolors set and water brush pen and added color. If not, I waited until there was time. This week, I finished two more entries.

I saw two new tangles and added them to my new journal, before thinking, "This should just be for travel tangles." Oh, well! I like using the small journal during the summer, when I spend less time inside drawing.

Bitona, on tanglepatterns.com, is easy and fun to draw!

Well-T, also on tanglepatterns.com, is a high-focus tangle, but enchanting!

I did a couple of pre-dyed tiles before vacation that I hadn't posted.

A morning on the porch

A new tangle, "Maggie May"

Finally, two of my cards for our Meals on Wheels friends this week:

"Bluster" and "Flamed Flower" tangles

Postcards to Myself

Catching up on Lar's vacation time, we took off to the southwestern mountains of North Carolina last week. We explored mountains and waterfalls, and admired the natural beauty and wonder. Asheville seduced us again, and revealed its hipper district with thrift shops and used bookshops aplenty.

After our previous trip to Asheville, prepandemic, I purchased an Eni Oken lesson "Souvenir Samplers", about using images from one's travels to make a small collage. I liked the project, but found that the tiny tangles were restrictive, so I took the concept and altered it. I made a new 3.5 inch square journal with an inspiring travel quote on the cover.

My 2019 "Souvenir Sampler", 6x6 inches

My new journal

Each day, in the beauty around us, I looked for images that I thought I might be able to deconstruct. I didn't always use proper tangles in my artwork,but focused on patterns.

"Crizzy" is a tangle reminiscent of the zinnias in front of this restaurant

Beautifully carved butcher tables from France in the lobby

Msst, for the waterfalls, with some ash and locust leaves

The lily pad pond at the entrance to the hotel,

drawn with Margaret Bremner's Lilypads tangle, of course!

I still have a couple more to finish, so stay tuned.

Have you ever used your vacation images as inspiration for your tangles?