Inspiration for your Tangle Journey

Shortly after I posted last Wednesday's Words of Wisdom (click here to view) featuring Laura Harm's new pattern, I received a note from Vicky Brison who shared an appreciation for the tangle.

She had been tangling with Laura's pattern and sent this photograph of her whimsical work ~

It was just too lovely to keep to myself - so here it is for all to enjoy.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Tips for Tangling Knightsbridge

This week's "It's a String Thing" (click here for all of the delightful details) features the official Zentangle® pattern Knightsbridge in a monotangle.

There are wonderful resources here on TanglePatterns with links to even more by Sandy Bartholomew and Margaret Bremner.

These are my notes on the fabulous tangle ~

Remember to include shading, especially around the perimeter of the space tangled with Knightsbridge.

Note:  The scalloped lines can jump across as many grid lines as you wish.

Enjoy!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

Start by doing what is necessary,
then what is possible
and suddenly
you are doing the impossible.
                                                                                      ~St. Francis of Assisi

"It's a String Thing" #42

Yes, it is Tuesday, your good news day - and we are just ten challenges shy of one full year of fun.
That is a wonderful thought, is it not?

This week's challenge begins with TanglePatterns String 038 by Barbara Finwall  pictured below with Linda Farmer's kind permission ~

And here is a bit of a twist (pun intended)...  A photograph of a checkered flag waving in the wind, brought to mind the official Zentangle® pattern Knightsbridge.  This versatile tangle can twist and turn, change size, run in straight lines or warp around shapes.  Shading can have a very dramatic impact on the pattern as well.

The challenge is to create a monotangle with Knightsbridge and String 038.

Click here to see the write up about Knightsbridge on TanglePatterns.  In the article, Linda includes informative links to posts by Margaret Bremner and Sandy Bartholomew.  
I will add a few notes of my own on Thursday's post.

Simply pencil in your string line onto your tile and tangle away!

Here are the (Not so) Official Guidelines: 
* Challenges are posted on Tuesdays.
*Use the string posted for the week and patterns that begin or contain the letter(s) indicated
* Submit a photo of your tile saved as jpg or scan your tile (300 dpi or higher) and save as a jpg
*Email your jpg file as an attachment to - brunoadelem@gmail.com
*Entries are to be submitted by Saturday evenings.
*Photos and 'Best of Show' are posted on Mondays. 

Send in your photos - you will encourage and inspire fellow Zentangle® enthusiasts all over the world.

PLEASE NOTE: I will add a link to your blog or web site with your tile photo, upon request. The site specific URL must accompany your request.

I look forward to your emails.
HAVE FUN with this monotangle!

"It's a String Thing" #41 Tiles

Before posting the tiles from this week, I must mention that it is Memorial Day here in the United States - a day we remember and honor those who died while serving in our armed forces.   They gave the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms we enjoy and we are eternally grateful.

This week's challenge featured Margaret Bremner's string that resembles a cursive letter "y".  We used tangle patterns that many of the contributing artists described as free flowing.  Quite often the tangles took the lead in the dance of pen and pattern much to the surprise and delight of the tangler.  Let's take a look ~

Dorothy Allison said, "This is my second effort for this week - when I'd completed the first one I then saw mountains in the peaks of the string, and decided to use Rixty as the trees."

Rixty trees - now that is a fabulous idea especially for those of us who enjoy tangling gardens.  She added wonderfully thick dark spaces to Riverstones.


Colette Horsburgh completed her challenge on blue paper ~

Perhaps the references to water in the names of the tangles inspired her.  Her work is also posted here on her blog.

Juul Van Zenden wrote ~

Bonjour Adèle
As usual I very much liked working on this string! I took the "liberty" to use "riki tiki" allso.
J'adore ces défis hebdomadaire. (I love these weekly challenges)

Her tangles have such fluid motion.  The dark spaces compliment the white space and her added sparkle and fine lines shine.

Cheryl Anne Day-Swallow treats us again to her work, tangled and written ~

Riverstones were used in creating the water fall wall
Ripples were used to create the train tracks
Mixture of Rixities were used to create the silver snowflakes
River were used to create the tops of the mountains

The little train went down the tracks
Bringing peace, love and joy to everyone it passed
And when it was time for the train to go home
The train went real fast, to Zentangle alone.

That is grand.  First we saw Rixty trees and now, Rixty snowflakes - how fun!

Lucy Banta said that "swirls certainly made this one busy, but they were all fun tangles!"

Many swirls make for a fun tile, for sure.  It is the shading that makes her tangles stand out though - beautiful shading.

Sherrill Herron wrote, "I had a time putting these tangles together, however I made it through. I love Rixty. It has so many possibilities."

Look at all of those variations Sherrill drew for Ripples and her love for Rixty really shines through.

Sue Jacobs CZT said, "Wow - I really liked this string. It seems so simple as it looks to me like a script Y. But the string moves so nicely. Thanks!"

Sue's River runs along the string line and above her other lovely tangles, thanks to her shading.  Her patterns are accented with fine detail lines and note that her Riverstones has a new look without the darkening around each stone - just beautiful!

Cathy Cusson said, "...I really meant to work in some ripples but never saw the right place to do so."

Cathy expressed some misgivings because of that but that is actually a very positive thing about tangling - letting the patterns lead the way.  The end result is wonderful!

Sal said, "River and river stones are new to me so it was fun incorporating them."

Sal used a very large Rixty and wove Riverstones through it.  Her shading is fabulous - so many great ideas in a beautifully tangled tile.

This was sent by Lily Moon ~

Is it the white space that draws the eye to the wonderful tangles, or the wonderful tangles that lead the eye to the white space?  It is a pleasant mix of both.  Lily's details are sublime.  She also posted her tile here on her blog.

From Joan Delony ~

Joan gave Rixty a very organic feel with her added lines.  Note how she tangled Riverstones.  She drew her stones up and into the lines of the river - a great idea!


Jocelyne Pigeon-Bernier said that she called this, "Waves on the sea (Vagues sur le bord de la mer)."

It is sensational sea at that - wonderful waves of line accentuated just so with shading.  Note her pretty details in Ripples.

Ken Zotter said, "I used River and River Stones, morphing them together."

It is a terrific tangleation - somewhat reminiscent of Diva Dance - dense, dark, and delightful.  Ken also posted his tile here on his blog.

A very warm welcome to Marni Schumacher.  She sent in two tiles for her first entries ~

It is interesting that she used a large Rixty similar to Sal's.  Marni varied the thickness of her lines and that makes her tile very striking.

And speaking of striking...in this tile Marni ran Riverstones along the entire string line with a very heavy center line.  By giving the stones and Ripple equal size, they create a uniform, very pretty background.

Ragged Ray described her entry ~

A delightful choice of tangles this week. I've been drawing Rixty in curvy form for a while now, so I stuck with that on my tile, and instinct said the string should be the Rixty centre line. It's such a versatile and addictive tangle! I went for aura-overload on Ripples, and loved the effect although some of my initial S shapes in the grid got confused! And Riverstones popped up from the page with a bit of shading - looking like beautiful dry stone walling. I know I'll use all of these tangles again!

"Rixty in curvy form" - what a wonderful look.  Jem's "aura-overload" on Ripples makes the tangle look alive.  And while tangles are not intended to be representational - I would love to stroll over that bed of river rock.  It is a lovely tile.

CZT Kate Ahrens said that she "had a great time with this week's string and tile" ~

Another blue beauty - such gorgeous shades of blue.  An idea for the rest of us - Kate morphed her river into Rixty!  She posted her tile here on her blog as well.

Jane Glotzer said ~

I had thought about combining River and River Stones somewhere, but then ended up using them separately...the wonder of the zen... And I wasn't familiar with Ripples, but playing around with it, I came up with a kind of "floral" variation that I liked because it had been hard to get Helen's stripey bands to work in the yin/yang circle for me.

Yes, the wonder of 'zen' is amazing and so are the details in Jane's tile - Rixty growing from a center point along a striped line, variations of detail on Rixty, her flora Ripples, and great shading.


Robin Grosland wrote about her journey creating her tile.  I include her note because it is insightful ~

I used Riverstones without the river part. I've done it before. Maybe it's because I'm from the desert. I don't know. It just didn't seem too fit. Sometimes just the stones are enough.

But what I learned from was when I tried to do Ripples. I penciled in lines parallel to the legs of the M shape in the original string. These created diamonds. I planned to do traditional Ripples in these diamonds, but erase the lines afterward so there was no visible grid (which I did). I started putting the S shape in the diamonds. Suddenly I noticed I had done one of the S shapes backwards. At first I got frustrated. I didn't want to start over, but I also hate mistakes. In order to fix it I ended up using S shapes both directions, overlapping, in each diamond. Then I added just a single loop off the center where the two S shapes crossed and filled it black (rather than the multiple loops of varying shades). It looks very different from the original Ripples, but it's kind of a fun design. Who knows? Maybe I'll use it again sometime.

So mostly I learned to be forgiving of my mistakes and look for new options when they happen. Very Zentangle.

Very Zentangle - with marvelous results both on and off the paper :)

Eden Hunt said, "... a tough string for these tangles, and I am not entirely comfortable with the lack of obvious structure in Rixty - it is kind of like Bridgen in that way... they can get out of comtrol fast."

They can - and if you are in not in the mood to go along for the ride, it can be a bit unsettling.  Nonetheless, note how she darkened the mid line of the tangle and then shaded in the center of the triangular shape.  Eden also tangled Riverstones from opposite directions of a midpoint.  Very nice tips.
She also posted her tile here on her blog.

Brenda Urbanik said that she found this one a challenge - "to put those tangles in that string."
Here is her first tile ~

She did a wonderful job of it.  Look at her Rixty coming in and out of the page.
This is her second tile~

For this one she said that she "gave up (trying to use the string) and "just used Rixty together with River."
What a remarkable result - and a much needed reminder that string lines are merely suggestions - the enjoyment is in the process of letting that go and tangling where the tangles lead.  Thank you, Brenda :)
She also posted her tiles here on her blog.

Ingrid Coventon was the next to send a tile and her sentiments echoed Brenda's.  She thought that her tile tile was a "complete mess" but had little time and even less energy to make another ~

And that calls for a gentle reminder - that to tangle, begin with the patterns in mind, but no preconceived notion of what the finished tile might look like.  That way you are pleasantly surprised by the outcome - and there is no room for error because there are no mistakes.  There are creative opportunities and the possibilities of what a tangle can change into one stroke at a time are limitless.
Again - treasured lessons here for the rest of us, so many thanks to Ingrid for sending both her tile and her note.

Annie Taylor wrote ~

What a lovely string and set of tangles you've given us again this week.
I enjoyed doing this in the calm after lunch today. I've had a busy week and wasn't sure I'd manage to find the time to do it, so I'm very pleased that I did...and found it so relaxing.
I particularly enjoyed Helen's tangle, Ripple and Riverstones which I haven't done before and they went well together.

Annie captured the feeling of relaxation in her tile - even the colors are calming.  They also work especially well with Ripples.  Her Rixty lines run from the page and back into it like Brenda's - a really nice touch.

Sharyn Penna's note arrived and I've come to expect some addition of lovely Mooka lines in her tangles - and sure enough, she used them here in Rixty ~

How very pretty - especially where she added aura around them near her river.  The darkened areas around Ripples make that tangle pop.  Sharyn said that she was happy with the tile's outcome.  We can certainly see why.

Sue Agnew said, "I tried to combine River and River Rocks, plus a little bit of Rixty (rounded). I was really happy with how the stones looked, which I'm usually not. This one flowed out and it was a lot of fun!"

This is simply beautiful - simple yet complex.  Sue's rounded Rixty with River flowing from it is very clever.  She's rounded her stones and added shading to make them look very dimensional - very well done.

Jackie Becker said that this was very different for her because she did not "stick with the string."

She went with the flow of Rixty and it took her to some wonderful places.  She added dots and shading, aura too!

Bobby Johnson wrote, "What a fun challenge! This one pushed me to be more light & fluid in keeping with the water theme of several of the tangle patterns.

This is delightful.  He features Ripples sans grid with thin and thick lines, light and dark spaces.  His scrolls are, as he said, "light and fluid" and contrast nicely with Riverstones.  You can also see this beautiful tile here on his blog.


Annemarie said that she enjoyed this challenge ~

Her tangles look layered as she drew them here in Hollibaugh fashion.  Shading in some of the aura-ed lines is an idea for the rest of us to use.  
Annemarie also posted her tile here on her blog.


Anna Houston sent along this detailed tile ~

There is so much to see here in her work - Rixty in a row and also tangles in a fractal manner with darkened space around it, River with rows and rows of aura, two variations of Ripples, and inviting Riverstones - it is a beautiful tile.

AND now, the tile for honors this week was submitted by - none other than the string's creator herself -
CZT Margaret Bremner  from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.  (Don't ask me to spell that again!)

She wrote, "...I rather like this 'y' string and appreciate the chance to try some tangles I haven't used a lot. River and Riverstones go so nicely with the curviness of Ripples."

The entire tile is curvy - one pattern playing off the next.  Even the edges of Rixty are rounded.  Margaret also added sparkle to Ripples and River and created great depth with her shading.  She is a master teacher and there is much to soak up and learn from in her tile.  Her tile is also posted here on her beautiful blog.

Congratulations, Margaret, I have a little something coming in the mail for you.

Many thanks to the talented tanglers who sent in their artwork for the rest of us to learn from and enjoy.

Special thanks to the creative minds behind the challenge this week -

TanglePatterns String 026 by CZT Margaret Bremner via Linda Farmer
River  by Suzanne McNeill, CZT 
Riverstones  by Lori Howe
Rixty  an official Zentangle® pattern 
and Ripples by Helen Williams

Stop back tomorrow for "It's a String Thing" #42!

How to Make My Day

Our daughter Isabella has been working on a project in her high school art class - a belated Mother's Day gift for me she said.  Today she brought it home and what a gift it is!   Let me explain...

Last month this photograph of hers won a ribbon in the Spring Art Show ~

Photograph by Isabella Bruno

She snapped the picture in the side view mirror of my car on the drive home from school one day.  She edited it so that only the image in the mirror was in color.

I just love it - the composition, the splash of color, the fact that we were in my car, and that Isabella edited it just so.  She captured the quirkiness of the corner building, the contrast in architectural features, the round and angular shaped subjects, and so on...

Fast forward to this afternoon and this is the precious gift she gave me ~

Original painting by Isabella Bruno

She recreated her photograph as a painting and incorporated tangle patterns into the background.  Isn't that amazing?

What a fabulous Mother's Day gift from my budding artist, Isabella.  She really made my day!

Tips for Tangling Riverstones

This week's "It's a String Thing" features four fabulous tangle patterns - click here for all the happy details - including Lori Howe's Riverstones.

Here are my notes on her wonderful pattern ~

I have to admit that I tangled Riverstone several times before taking the time to read Lori's step out.

Initially I added the stones before the scalloped line.  The tangle works much better using Lori's directive to make the scalloped lines first - imagine!

Riverstone is a wonderful tangle.  Give it a try by participating in the challenge this week ;)

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

Adele Bruno, CZT - a tangled page from Real Life Strings by Sindy P

Perseverance
is not a long race,
it is many short races one after another.    
~Walter Elliott




Project particulars:
This is what the page of Sindy P's Real Life Strings (click here to view) looked like when I began tangling:

It is a picture of a textured wall in a
restaurant with just a bit of a chair showing.

I tangled each raised circle to resemble the top of a screw.  Then I connected the circles using Laura Harm's new tangle. (Click here for the step out.)

I added some aura, shading, and a few dots in black and white.

"It's a String Thing" #41

It's Tuesday, your good news day!

Today's challenge begins with TanglePatterns String 026 by CZT Margaret Bremner, AKA The Enthusiastic Artist.  (Click here to see her fabulous blog.)

Copyrighted image used with permission by TanglePatterns

 In honor of Margaret, we will use four tangles that begin with the letter 'R' for the four 'R's' in her name -

River  by Suzanne McNeill, CZT
River Stones  by Lori Howe
Rixty  an official Zentangle® pattern
and to add a grid based pattern to the mix,  Ripples by Helen Williams


The step out and links to these tangles can be found here on TanglePatterns.
This promises to be great fun!

Remember to use as few or as many of these tangles as you wish.

Simply pencil in your string line onto your tile and tangle away!

Here are the (Not so) Official Guidelines: 
* Challenges are posted on Tuesdays.
*Use the string posted for the week and patterns that begin or contain the letter(s) indicated
* Submit a photo of your tile saved as jpg or scan your tile (300 dpi or higher) and save as a jpg
*Email your jpg file as an attachment to - brunoadelem@gmail.com
*Entries are to be submitted by Saturday evenings.
*Photos and 'Best of Show' are posted on Mondays. 

Send in your photos - you will encourage and inspire fellow Zentangle® enthusiasts all over the world.

PLEASE NOTE: I will add a link to your blog or web site with your tile photo, upon request. The site specific URL must accompany your request.

I look forward to your emails.
HAVE FUN!!

"It's a String Thing" #40 Tiles

This week's challenge was prompted by a comment from Ragged Ray in the results of "It's a String Thing" #39 - that of a tile within a tile.  Inspired by Zentangle co-founder Maria Thomas' elegant work, we gave it a try.  Here are the fabulous results...


The first tile arrived from Sal.  She wrote, "From the centre, mine are beez-wacks and berries (sounding like a perfumed candle), followed by beanstalk and beadlines. I really enjoyed the symmetry for this one!"

Can't you just smell that perfumed candle?!  Sal used a Zendala tile for her string line and her tangles are light and elegant.  Of note is her Beadlines used as a circular border - so pretty.

Lily Moon took a very different approach and left the inner space blank..

That is very dramatic!  Love those curled Beadline lines, too.

Cathy Cusson wrote, "Love the string! Love the tangles! Particularly love betweed! What great choices this week."

Cathy divided the inner space of the string line into thirds and ran a Beeline border - wonderful touches.

A very warm welcome to Betsy Huffman.  This is the first time she submitted a tile for a challenge - very exciting -

Betsy combined Beeline and Beelight beautifully and use Beadlines like tassels.  That is very clever.

Another very warm welcome to my fellow CZT, Caren Mlot.  She said that she has been "lurking in the background watching for a while..."

She added that "although my Betweed turned out to be a slight tangleation, purely by accident the first time and on purpose for the rest."  That was definitely creative!  You can also see Caren's pretty tile here on her blog.


Jocelyne Pigeon-Bernier returned with this beautiful tile ~

Of note are the varied widths of her lines in Beeline that give the tangle a surprising lightness.  Her shading makes Betweed float off the background of the other tangles.


Jane Glotzer wrote -

This one came together so quickly...and I was able to use all four suggested tangles...I think for the very first time. When I first saw the list, I wondered how all those very pattern heavy tangles would fit together, but, voila! It'll be very interesting to see what everyone else does...those triangular spaces were crying out for Betweed for me, and once I did that, it was clear the cool, 3d, optical illusion Beeline would have to take center stage. I then filled in the edges with a touch of Beelight and even an aura of Beadline (not the kind of tangle I'm normally drawn to.) The whole shading thing is starting to come together for me, so I'm having a blast playing with that. Not exactly the tile within a tile idea, but I tried to get my "tile" to float on the page of the sketchbook.

Her words say it best.  Just lovely work!

Manja alternated her tangle patterns ~

and she was very happy with result.  It is grand, especially with the way she shaded a shadowy Beadline.  You can view this tile and other wonderful work of Manja's here on her blog.

Joan Delony completed two similar tiles and observed, "...it is amazing how little tweaks make them look entirely different."

Amazing and FUN to see the differences - both with beautiful results.  Joan also varied the width of her lines in Beelight and added wonderful dimension.

Angela Carstensen wrote:

This week I had two big sources of inspiration. First of all your comments on how the string looked as if aksing for a "tile within a tile" and also a new method of drawing grinds that appear to spiral outwards. At first I wanted to make the 5 blackenen swirls going through the grid into Beadline, but then they were so heavy already that I left them alone and just dottet some beads around the circumference. I am quite pleased with the overall effect. Thank you for putting this brilliant idea into my head :)...
Thank you so much! Doing these challenges and meeting all these talented and warm hearted people and connecting with them over something so pleasant and beautiful as tangling is such a lovely gift!

Oh, this is so pretty!  A very brilliant idea that Angela can claim to be all her own :)


CZT Cheryl Rotnem said that "this was a really fun one to do." 

She added, "...I did metallic outline pen on my black tile. shading w/white charcoal pencil."  That made for a gorgeous, glowing tile.

Dorothy Allison submitted this colorful tile ~

With color and varied lines and perfs, Dorothy created quilt like feel to her lovely piece.


Sharyn Penna wrote ~

I had to let this prompt sit for a couple days before the approach came to me. In the end, all the tangles are present. Beelight and Beeline morphed into one with Beadlines accenting the auras of Beelight. 

That percolating of ideas yielded a fabulous tile.  See how she incorporated three tangles into one in her middle section?  That was brilliant.

Brenda Urbanik completed two wonderful tiles ~

She featured one Beelight in each of the outer corners, added sparkle and aura and look how amazing that is!

Then she used a Renaissance tile and made her tangles shine with white Gelly Roll pen and pretty details.  Brenda also posted them here on her beautiful blog.


Audrie Wiesenfelder said that this string is one of her "absolute favorites."  

She added, "In true Zentangle fashion, once I put pen to paper, it just about drew itself..."  That is a wonderful description of the Zentangle experience and the result speaks happily for itself.
You can also see Audrie's tile posted here on her pretty purple blog.


Annemarie wrote, "I LOVED your String Thing this week, Thank you for making me have some real 'zen' time."

The experience is catchy!  Annemarie's tangles flow and reflect her smooth experience tangling it.  That is so encouraging to the rest of us, isn't it?
She also posted her lovely work here on her blog.


Jenna Wheatman described her process and her tile this way ~

Here is this weeks challenge. It was my first go at using beeline and although I like the effect it gives I'm not sure its one I would use, it works well on its own but is very hard to make it flow with other tangles. We have had some nice warm weather here in the UK and the garden is full of colour so maybe that is why I have a flower design. I used beeline and beelight for the centre and betweed for the petals. Beadlines fitted well in the corners.

What loveliness...Betweed looks stunning in the petal shapes and the little Beelight/Beeline center is like the cherry on top of a delicious dish of ice cream!

Lucy Banta said that this was a "fun assortment of tangles..."

Lucy has three distinct sections to her tile and they compliment each other nicely.  Beelight in a small grid without the detail lines is a great variation of the tangle.


Victoria said that with this challenge, she "learned to draw 2 new zentangle pattern - BEELIGHT and BEELINE. Good geometric shapes and contrasting!"

This is a treat to behold - the angle, shading, sparkle, line detail - all anchored with Beadline.  It is just beautiful.  Victoria also posted her tile here on her blog - stop by and learn a bit of Russian.

Judy Wanner sent in her wonderful tile with a sentiment that we can all appreciate ~

During several busy and stress filled days this week, it was so great being able to take time to tangle. Now why did I not do that before digging into some junk food?! In addition to learning some neat tangles....thank you very much.....I learned one can not get a hand in a candy box while holding a Sakura!!

Zetangle® is associated with many personal benefits - weight management just may have to be added to the list, thanks to Judy :)
Note how her Beeline fades out at the top of her tile and how she added just a touch of Beelight to the tips of Betweed - so very well done.


Cheryl Anne Day-Swallow said ~

I call this tangle challenge The Little Zentangle Spider
Sunrays created using Beadlines
Corners of spider web created using Betweed
Inner web area created using Beeline and Beelite

That is colorful and creative and - speaking of creative - Cheryl again sent along a poem with her tile:

The Little Zentangle Spider, was traveling around the trees
He came to Florida, and made a web, so that everyone could see
The sun came up, and made the web shine
He made his home here, and left everything behind.

Another very warm welcome to first-timer and my fellow CZT, Kate Ahrens who sent in two tiles ~

The first is a monotangle with a beautiful array of Betweed.  She alternated the shading in the outer sections and the outline shading resulted in a dramatic layering effect.

This is just pure fun!  Kate alternated the tangles in her center section and 'strung' Beadline like Christmas lights on a tree - just lovely.
She also posted her tiles here on her tangled blog.


Ingrid Coventon said that two of the tangles were new to her and this "was fun to do."

She gave Betweed a star burst effect by tangling from the center and corners of the center section.  She added line detail along with shading to Beelight for a wonderful take on the tangle.

Annie Taylor wrote,"What a wonderful challenge it was this week! I really enjoyed it. Always love Betweed and get such a kick out of seeing Beeline suddenly turn 3D!"

Just like the 3D effect she described - this whole tile of Annie's packs that same kind of magic.  Look at the way she pegged the lines of Betweed into the tile - an idea we are indebted to her for - it is a wonderful detail.  Annie also posted her terrific tile here on her blog.

Juul said of this tile, "C'était un plaisir!"  And her tile is a pleasure to see!

She tangled a rich background of Beelight.  Juul also used a unique approach with Beadline.  She tangled three lines from each corner of the center section, added aura and fine detail lines - just brilliant!

Robin Grosland's note, in part, chronicles her process through the initial learning of Beelight to the using and appreciation of it are inspiring ~

I had ideas running through my mind on this one for days, but I didn't feel well enough to draw. I finally forced myself to do it last night at two in the morning, blurry vision and all.
When I first started Zentangle I copied patterns into my book for reference. I remember drawing Beelight into my book and then disregarding it. It felt too boring to me. I'm glad I gave it another try.
In the center square I used just one big Beelight. I purposely made the dark corner off-center and worked from there. That changed it up enough for me to enjoy it. Adding beads to the auras to make them Beadlines added some texture (which made it more interesting to me). And it was pure accident that the shape of the string meant I was using it in diamonds instead of squares. Again just enough difference to make it appealing to me.
I still have several other variations on the original Beelight floating around in my head. I don't find it boring anymore. Thanks for making me take a second look.

In addition to all of those good thoughts - Robin's use of Beadline for the detail lines of Beelight is a stellar idea!

CZT Sue Jocabs is just back after a busy time away ~

There are so many niceties in Sue's tile - Betweed corners of Beelight, deep shading, and Beadline string lines.

Eden Hunt has a really nice take on the string ~

She tangled her center section with the most delicate tangles varying the size of her beads and shading just so.  Eden also posted this here on her blog.


Deanna Spence has some delicious details in her tile ~

~ Beadline to anchor Between and a tiny grid to darken Beelight.  That is fabulous!

Rachel Godbee also used Beadline for her string lines ~

It sets her tangled spaces off just beautifully.


Jackie Becker asked, "Did you ever have a week where on the last day you are thinking simple sounds really good? That is how I felt when I did this one."

This does illustrate the beauty in simplicity.  Jackie's intersecting Beadlines are elegant.


Melissa Lemmons wrote, "I like the 3D effect I was able to achieve with Betweed center bursting out of the Beelines square."

That was perfectly described - and very 3D!  An idea we can all use with many thanks to Melissa.

Sue Agnew sent in two tiles ~

 She centered Beelight and along with her signature sparkle, she varied the orientation of the darkened corners of the grid spaces.

In this one, Sue cleverly tucked Beadline along Betweed and Beelight is darkened with lines - lovely!

And now, the tile set aside for honors this week was submitted by the tangler whose comments inspired this "It's a String Thing", the UK's 

Ragged Ray ~

Along with her masterpiece she wrote this note:

I kept it simple this week - and although it came out a little smaller than I intended I like it. I popped Beelite onto Beeline which worked well - although the shading magic is lost a little in the photo - why can't a lens work quite like our eyes?! And the other aspects just fell into place around it.
The finished tile reminds me of all those little ideas we have, the ones we only jot down on scraps of tatty paper - but how we must tuck them somewhere safe as they might just turn out to be our best ideas! I fill my notebook covers with a hearty feathering of post-it notes! They used to be just writing related - but now ones for tangle ideas creep in there too!

Ragged Ray's tile is magical - she included some very lovely details in her work, each glance brings out yet another.  Hightlights include the Beadline string that weaves her overlapping tiles together and Beelight bedecked with Beeline is ingenious.  Not only does it overlap, but Beeline wraps around the corners of Beelight.

Congratulations, I have a little something coming in the mail for you.

Many thanks to the talented tanglers who sent in their artwork for the rest of us to learn from and enjoy.

Special thanks to the creative minds behind the challenge this week -

Beth Snoderly for TanglePatterns String 043 

Beadlines by CZT Margaret Bremner
and three official Zentangle® patterns -
Beelight
Beeline and
Betweed 

Stop back tomorrow for "It's a String Thing" #41!