Weekly Challenge #177 – MMMM – Truffles!

Tags

Diva's Challenge, tangle, Weekly Challenge, Zentangle

This week the Diva’s Weekly Challenge is hosted by Caroline Broady – the youngest CZT to ever host the challenge. Caroline has offered her tangle – Truffle – as the challenge this week. The stepouts to this tangle are offered within the blog, so follow the link and try it yourself. Truffle is a tangle that can be played with and varied to your heart’s content. In my first tile I made it rather small and then added other tangles that overpowered the little Truffle. As you can see here.

For the second attempt, I made Truffle much bigger and only added Rain as an additional tangle. I think I like the second one better in that you can immediately see the Challenge tangle rather than having to search for it as in my first attempt.

 

 

 

Have a happy tangly week!

 

 

 

 

Weekly Challenge #176 – “B.Y.O.B”

Tags

Diva's Challenge, tangle, Zentangle

Very interesting challenge this week offered by guest CZT Amy from Tennessee. We were to use our own beverage of choice to create a stain on a tile and use that stain as a string. Coffee was my beverage of choice – so handy at that time of the day. I added a few grounds to the wetness in order to get a darker stain. Here is what I ended up with:

A strange string, no doubt, and I had to take a day to contemplate what I might do with it. As I was thinking about it, I roamed my books and TanglePatterns looking for inspiration.

It took awhile to get the inspiration and I can’t say that I ever experienced an AHA! moment.

An aside —- We just got a new laptop with Windows 8 on it so I am trying to adapt to an new way of doing things and it isn’t easy. Frustration in figuring out how to do things is driving me up the wall. So scanning, editing, getting around a document, the web, even the desktop on this contraption is all just that much different that I have to discover how to do it all over again. Scanning nearly had me in tears!!! Okay, enough, I will get on to the task at hand. (I hope)

 

 

Unshaded Zentangle

 

Here it is without the benefit of shading.

Tangles used are: MI2, Purk, Shattuck, Bunzo, Marasu, Tipple and a slight bit of Hollibaugh-ness. It’s difficult to tell, but I used a brown Micron pen for a bit of the MI2. I wished I had used it somewhere else on the tile as well. Maybe next time.

 

 

 

 

 

Shaded and highlighted

 

 

Shading and highlighting adds so much more to the whole effect. I added highlights with a white Gelly Roll pen and a white charcoal pencil.

When I teach a class I often tell students to prop their tile up in a place they can see it the next morning. As they approach it they will discover that what they were unhappy with the day before had improved overnight and they will see it with new admiring eyes.

 

 

 

This was an unusual and interesting challenge. I may do this kind of string again just to see what else I could come up with. Until next time, tangle on, my friends.

 

 

A day late?

Somehow my activities haven’t allowed me to post as often as I should – won’t make any promises, but trying will be done.

My sister, Cari (cctangles.wordpress.com), inspired me to do the Diva’s Challenge from last week which was Challenge #172 which can be found here. Both Mooka and Auraknot are challenging alone and putting them together was rather mind boggling. I thought Cari did a wonderful tile incorporating the two tangles.

My tile is a bit busy because I kept seeing places I could add more Mooka. Then I thought the Auraknot just disappeared so I darkened the outline of the Auraknot tangles. The two images are below – the first before the darkening and the second after. Do you think it made a difference?

Before outlining Auraknot

After outlining

Can’t decide – but I am glad that I met the challenge and posted it. I usually do the challenge each week, but I haven’t taken the time to put it up here. I can’t wait to tackle this week’s challenge. Check it out here.

Well, that’s it for this post. Keep tangling – I know I will!

Diva Challenge #161

Tags

Diva's Challenge, Quandary, Zentangle

“In a Quandary about Quandary”

Although I often create a tile for the Diva’s Challenge, I don’t always (as you can tell) post it here or link it on Laura’s blog. I know, I know, what is up with that? Most of the time there is no time and that’s the only excuse I have.

This week I wanted to get in the thick of Quandary with everyone else – it is a tangle that I struggle with so I thought it would be good for me and my brain to rise to this challenge on all levels. So here it is –

All Quandary (with some dots)

Nothing fancy – I just concentrated on doing Quandary – I haven’t tried it for quite awhile. I would like to do more with this tangle, but right now I have to get ready and pack up to teach a class in New London this afternoon. I am so looking forward to meeting this group of excited new tanglers.

Until next time – tangle on, my friends.

Catching up . . .

Well, not really. There comes a time when it really is impossible to catch up, so to speak. One can only take up from the present point and carry on from there.  The last few months of 2013 apparently were pretty busy for me as I didn’t get here to relate what I was actually doing. It must have been something . . . hmmm . . . it might have even been important, but I can’t put my finger on it so let’s get on with 2014.

I have recently started a series of 6 classes in two different locations. There are only a few students in each but the enthusiasm and excitement can’t be missed. Here are the first tiles from my class in Oshkosh:

Wednesday evening class

Here are the first tiles from my smaller class in Clintonville:

Tuesday night class

I am in on a CZT swap. I think I may have lost my mind somewhat. This swap involves tangling 52 ATCs for trading with other CZTs. The host of this swap will be combining everyone’s contribution so that those who are participating will receive a deck of ATCs where each has been made by a different certified Zentangle teacher (CZT). So much of the last part of December and most of January had me feverishly creating tangled ATCs. Below are the results:

 

 

 

 

 

Tangle on, my friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Que Sera, Sera

Tags

tangle, Zentangle

I wasn’t up to the Diva’s Challenge this week – but that doesn’t mean I didn’t do any tangling. I usually tangle daily – experimenting and trying different tangles together. The tile I am showing you I had started last week and put it aside after doing the two inner circles of Knightsbridge and Sand Swirl and the leaves. I wasn’t sure what to do next so I decided to do nothing. Sometimes you just need to give yourself some time – no need to rush into anything – whether it’s choosing what to do next on a tile or what to do next on your “to-do” list – moving in a different direction for the time being is okay. I have a collection of tiles that need to be finished in some way – – – that’s okay, it will happen when the time is right, I guess. Whatever will be, will be.

When I picked this tile up once again, I knew I wanted to keep it in the round, so I decided on a wonky Knightsbridge with more leaves and Sand Swirl pressed into the corners and edges. So after shading, I was happy with it. Hope this week is a good one for you – tangle on, my friends.

Round on a square

Diva’s Challenge #140

The challenge for this week is titled “Monotangle, Pointillism style!” So I am pleased with myself for doing and posting this challenge, although I am not so pleased with my attempt at meeting this challenge.

Monotangle – Twing using Pointillism

I used the tangle Twing with the tipple in it escaping throughout. My first thought was “Meh!” I considered doing another tile but differently. However, I don’t have the time or the inclination to do something that will most likely leave me with much the same feeling. I have used pointillism as shading and that looked good to me (not on this tile though). Right now I need to do something that leaves me feeling much better about my creative process. I think I’ll go do a Zendala – yep, that’s what I need – see you later.

Till then, tangle on, my friends.

Tangling in Green Lake

Last Saturday I taught a 3 hour workshop in Green Lake WI in a fabulous and fascinating place there called Town Square.

Seven people gathered in Studio B, eager to learn about and have the Zentangle experience. What a fun group it was! They were so open and friendly with me and with each other that I was sorry when the three hours were over.

Below are the mosaic of tiles they created with me – their works of art are beautiful.

Tangles used – Zander, Crescent Moon, Cubine and Keeko

Tangles used – Snail, Flux, Bales and Printemps

Other things we did in Green Lake:

Camped at Hattie Sherwood Campground (minutes from downtown) –

Walked around town –

Clock near Town Square

Saturday night concert at Thrasher Opera House –

Great performance from John Ford Coley and Terry Sylvester (former member of the Hollies) –

John Ford Coley and Terry Sylvester

John Ford Coley told wonderful stories of performing with England Dan

Terry Sylvester shared Hollies hits such as Tall Cool Woman in a Black Dress and He’s Not Heavy, He’s My Brother

We had a wonderful three day weekend in Green Lake – tangling, meeting people, shopping, eating, exploring, visiting with other campers, bird watching, singing along with JFC & TS and, of course, relaxing. It was an all around great time. I am looking forward to a return trip.

Projects

First of all, thank you to all who are following me – I appreciate your interest and hope I can hold on to it 🙂 I realize that really means I need to discipline myself to regular posts. Again, I challenge myself to accomplish timely blogging. Hang in there with me, folks.

I have been busy, busy, busy. Over the past month I have attended a CZT retreat, started a series of classes, set up a Zentangle display in a public library 175 miles away, co-taught a workshop with my sister up north, and set up future classes in two new locations. I have also completed several projects as you’ll soon see.

The rest of this post will be photos of projects I’ve finished recently and places I’ve been –  proof that I’ve been doing something besides day-dreaming and working at the bird store 🙂 I hope you enjoy this montage. Tangle on, my friends!

 

Tote bag tangled for a gift – side one

side two

 

Tote bag for library display – side one

Side two

 

CZT Michigan Jammie Retreat – Laingsburg, MI

The Jammie Retreat Group

 

 

My retreat projects

Stained glass effect project – my favorite!

Library display – Niagara Public Library

 

September Iron Mountain workshop – tile I taught – Onamato, Bales, Cubine & Hollibaugh

I.M. workshop – organic tile, my sister, Cari taught – Verdigogh, Flux & Poke Root

 

My sister, Cari (left) and I

Tangling – Poke Leaf, Onamato, Ixoris, Black Pearlz, & Bales

More tangling – Annee

Working with color ZIA – tangled leaf stencils

That’s all folks! Thanks for visiting.

 

 

 

 

 

Sharing the “Zen”

Tags

workshop, Zentangle

Last weekend brought my sister, Cari Raboin, and I together for our first ever collaborative Zentangle workshop. We staged it in Iron Mountain Michigan midway between our two places of residence. We each had to travel about 2 – 2.5 hours to get to our event. The good thing about the I.M. area is that we grew up in nearby Niagara Wisconsin and our two other sisters, who are still located there, were able to help us promote the workshop. Thanks again, Gail and Linda!

We had fourteen enthusiastic participants and Cari and I had a lot of fun sharing the Zen with them. The first tiles are pictured here. Cari taught the composition for Crescent Moon, Zander, Ennies and Ahh. They make an amazing mosaic, don’t they?

 

 

 

 

 

 

After admiring the first tiles and having a short break, I led the group through the steps of the tangles for their second tile. Snail, Beelight, Gneiss and Hollibaugh were used for the second work of art.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We so enjoyed sharing our love of all things Zentangle with this group of women that we set up a second workshop for September 21st. It will be held at the same place – Country Inn & Suites on U.S. 2 in Iron Mountain from 1:30 – 4:30. One need not have attended the first workshop in order to attend this second one. However, we did promise that new tangles would be shared along with other surprises. It was an inspiring day and we would like to continue!

Here is one more picture from that workshop – the participants during a break:

Tangle on, my friends. 🙂