Challenge #93 New Tangle Bunzo

Rick & Maria at Zentangle, Inc. have released another new official tangle: Bunzo.  So, it's no surprise that exploring it is the weekly challenge at Laura Harms, I Am The Diva CZT blog.  The steps are posted at the challenge link and also on the lasted newsletter from Zentangle.  This is really a fun little tangle made from doing one shape (like a comma) over and over again, while it grows into a different form each time.  I started my tile with the border and string, then began Bunzo in the largest section of my tile and took it out to the very corners of the string.  After that it was just picking out the rest of my tangles and watching it unfold before me (the beauty of Zentangle).  When I turned it every which way at arm's length, all I could see is a large spider with all the webs it had spun.  Was that the first thing you saw too?  I hope you have fun with Bunzo too!

P.S.  My Purk turned into a Bunzo too...hmmm a tangleation maybe?

Tombow Markers & Pre-strung Tiles

I was playing with my tombow markers this weekend and decided to try them on two pre-strung tiles.  I put the color in all the areas of the pre-strung tiles.  In the first one I tangled on top of the color in each section and was ready to do the same in the second, but then decided to tangle around the outside of the color.  I just couldn't stop there for some reason, and added the Poke Leaf on the color.  I love playing with the color, and now that I am half way through my pre-strung tile pack, I can tell you that I really love the pre-strung tiles even more than I thought I would!  I think they help in getting you out of a string rut, where all of yours own strings start to feel the same.  I just might need to get another pack for myself.  :)

Another fun zentangle class

I really enjoyed sharing the art of zentangle with 5 lovely ladies and a lovely 14 year old girl!  It was so nice to meet all of you:  Judy R., Diane, Karen, Sandy, Judy W., and Alicia (Mom-Kim too).  I hope all of you enjoyed the class.  Your work was wonderful!

Challenge #92: Stripes

This week's challenge from the diva is to use stripes as your string.  A nice easy challenge that I enjoyed once again.  Thanks Laura! 

Creating Patterns with Bugs

I went to a great exhibit this week (at the Lincoln Center in Ft Collins)  that was so beautiful that I had to share this with you.  Jennifer Angus is an artist who works with the unique medium of bugs.  She is a professor in the Design Studies department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  She has exhibited her work internationally and has been the recipient of numerous awards.  The brochure states: The use of a material that is often regarded as repugnant, arranged in familiar, repetitive and compelling patterns create a tension that is fascinating to experience. The bugs are all real, though dead and dried they remain in their natural color.  While she does not collect insect species that are endangered, she notes that the habitats of most of these bugs, particularly in Thailand and Malaysia where she collects her bugs, are under assault from the human demands of agriculture and urbanization. In alignment with her message of conservation, Angus notes that she collects the insects in a responsible and sustainable manner, through farmed resources when possible, repairing and reusing her bugs as long as she is able and then giving them to youth for study when they can no longer be used for exhibition.  Enjoy!

Challenge #91 Beads of Courage

This week's challenge from Laura, at I Am The Diva blog is to call our attention to a wonderful charity for children with a chronic illness or condition.  Take a moment and read all about it in the link to Laura's blog, it really is an amazing program!  I started with a small bead in the middle and just they just kept getting bigger as the string wound around.  Then I added a variation of n'Zeppel around the outside.  Happy Birthday, Artoo!

Mandala/Zendala Playing

I love mandala's/zendala's!  I love making them from scratch and doing the pre-strung zendala tiles from Zentangle, Inc.  Sooooo, when I saw that Geneviève Crabe of Tangle Harmony fame announced her mandala stencils, I knew I had to give them a try.  I love these stencils!  As Geneviève explains, when making mandala's from scratch, you always need a ruler, compass, and protractor.  Then its on to drawing circles, angles, all that math stuff, ugh.  Well, Geneviève created these stencils with lines and circles of dots (at all the intersecting points) a half inch apart, and gives you 3 different stencils, each angled at different degrees.  The first mandala pictured is one I made with these stencils, and it was so cool to make a mandala without using any tools.  That's right, I didn't even use a ruler once!  This is really a cool tool if you love making mandala's from scratch.  Check it out at this link and watch her video:  http://www.amarylliscreations.com/zentangleharmony/shop/mandala-stencils/. 

The second zendala is one of the pre-strung zendala tiles that come in that wonderful tin, from Zentangle Inc.  I was in a Paradox mood when I did this one. 

Last but not least, I got my first set of Tombow markers!  I just got the very basic color set and I can see now that I will need to order more colors.  Keep in mind, I am just learning to work with color.  I tried using the indirect approach on the first one and got the colors too dark, so I added a white gel pen on top. I did the direct approach on the second for more vivid color.  I have a ways to go learning color, but I know this is going to be fun and like I tell my students with Zentangle....practice, practice, practice, it just keeps getting better! 

the art show 2012

I was invited to attend a juried art show last night at LifePointe Church in Fort Collins.  It was a wonderful evening with 26 local artists, a wide variety of art, live music, and food.  Our booth fee was donated to benefit Kid's Hope USA.  I sold several small items and had the opportunity to let people know about Zentangle and my classes.  Thanks to everyone at the church that put this show together, and for inviting me.  Doug and I had fun attending the event! 

Challenge #90 Tangle Patterns String #01

This week's challenge from our lovely Diva, Laura Harms, is to use one of the strings from the wonderful Linda Farmer's www.tanglepatterns.com website.  If you are a student of mine, you are already aware of this website and all the wonderful information it contains.  Linda has been collecting quite a few string ideas on her site, so I am happy to finally get the opportunity to give the first one a try. 

Challenge 89: UMT-Sankegg

It's the first week of the month, so that means the challenge from our DIVA is a UMT (use my tangle) challenge.  This week the tangle is SANKEGG, from Maria Vennekens/CZT from the Netherlands.  It is a tricky little tangle that takes a bit of concentration.  I grabbed a pre-strung tile and thought it would look cool in a spiral, but it had other plans.  I just couldn't get it to go around in a curve.  What a great example of ignoring the string and just going with the tangle.  I always tell my students not to let the string inhibit you, but use it as a starting point and if your tangle finds you going outside the string...so be it!  Sometimes my zentangles look nothing like the string I start with...how fun is that!  Thanks Maria, for another fun tangle and Laura, for another fun challenge. 

Challenge #88: Tangle IX

Okay, I am really late with last week's challenge, but I was out of town all week...more on the lovely vacation we took later.  I did draw both of these last week, but not being a computer geek, I had to wait until I got home to post them.  One of these days, soon, I hope to join the rest of the world with a smart phone!   Last week's DIVA challenge was to use the official tangle, IX.  I am not too sure if I care for this tangle or not yet, so I will give it some more play time to decide, but for now here is my version of IX.