"It's a String Thing" #46 Tiles

It was a royal treat this week to be able to use a string line and tangles created by CZT Sue Jacobs.  I think she will be most pleased by the results, the comments and compliments on her tangles, and the applications of them to her string line.  Let's take a look ~

Lily Moon used a beautiful blend of Coil, Vigne, and Plaited ~

Shading and white hightlights shine on her Renaissance tile.  Lily also posted it here on her blog.

Carmela said that she loved the "round forms and choice of patterns" this week.  She used Sue's tangles: Vigne, Jilly, Coil and LoobyLoo.

Note the free floating Looby Loo - how fun!  Carmela also posted her tile here on her blog.

Colette Horsburgh said, "This one was fun. I looked on Sue Jacob's website and found a bunch more tangles ..."  

I spy a lovely rendering of Zhostovo Border and Ace along with Vigne.  

Cathy Cusson said that as much as she likes Jilli, it gave her "a fit."  Fit, or not, she managed lovely waves of Jilli with a touch of blue.  Add to that her aura-ed Vigne and wonderful white space, and you have a masterpiece ~

Chrissie Murphy's comments included:

Absolutely every tangle pattern I have used in this tile is a first! I have never used them before, so I was sooooo out of my comfort zone...As I was working on the tile I tried to get a sense of how Sue felt when she put the patterns together. They are concise patterns, giving you a firm starting place and a clear finish. I like that, they are very definitive. 

The dark spheres of Coil give the tangle a striking appearance.

Ragged Ray said that it was a treat to work with Sue's string and tangles.  She added that the sign of a great tangle for her is one that "takes a bit of practice."  She found Sue's patterns fit that bill.  She added:

As for my tile - I'm finding myself drawn to hooking one tangle onto another - it helps it all come together perhaps? Coil - lovely, addictive, I could draw it everywhere! And Looby Loo - so much potential for adding a bit of lightness. My Bumps isn't quite as bumpy as I'd like it to be - another area for more practice.
I think my finished tile looks like the pitch for a whole new sport - perhaps one where people have to hit those hanging diamonds? I'm not a fan of football - I wish Zentangle was our national sport instead!

So much beauty in one small space.  Those black diamonds are captivating, the tangles loop around each other, and the thought of a national sport of Zentangle is priceless.

Sal quipped that she is "still working on restraint!"

And that is simply, simply gorgeous.

K. Bish said ~

First off, what a great challenge this week. And thank you for the intro to Sue Jacob's body of Tangles... What a treat!
My tangle is called "Celebration #1"
For my tangle I chose to use the tangles listed on Sue's blog- many are not listed on the Tangle Patterns site... Under Sue's name anyway.
The patterns I chose are:
Elements of Square Dance in
Galileo
LaBel
Zhostoro
Coil
and finally... Ace.
Like I said it was a very fun tangle for me, much lighter than I usually work.
I'm going to have a lot of fun with Coil in the future.

Her Ditto in the center is beautifully shaded.  She echoes many tanglers compliments of Coil.

Jocelyne Pigeon-Bernier said that she "had a lot of fun drawing this tangle".  She added that she "let her imaginations run free" without being held to the string lines.

Ah, the magical effects of tangling!  The single Plaited pieces and the black dots of Coil are spectacular.

Cheryl Anne Day-Swallow did it again - a treasure of a tile accompanied with an original poem.
She said~

Vigne was used to create the border area
Jilli was used to create the candy
Bumps was used to create the corners of the border area 

I call this piece Candy. 

This piece of candy was sitting on the counter
Had a big problem, with a human encounter
The candy was unwrapped and put on my tongue
It tasted real good, but now its all gone.

Fortunately for us, it is still here to soak up and enjoy!

Kia said, "I found this one quite challenging because all the tangles except for Coil are new to me. Nevertheless. as well as being challenging, it was educational and enjoyable."

Kia rose to the challenge of learning the tangles as they are beautifully presented in her tile.  She also posted it here on her blog.

Caroline Moore's note brought a smile.  She said, "I made the mistake of opening this challenge just before bed the other night, and had a terrible time sleeping because I just wanted to get started!! Haha. Great challenge!"

We can all relate to that sentiment!  Caroline drew a single Looby Loo in the middle of her tile, added dots and shading to her other tangles and the result is fabulous.


Melanie R. called her piece, "Lilias Grey".  She posted it here on her blog along with the link to a random name generator that is very interesting...

She added, "Thank you again for your excellent blog and your wonderful challenges!"

It is Melanie that the word "excellent" should be associated with.  Her touch of pink adds to the lace like, feminine feel of her tile.  It is exquisite.

Lucy Banta said that she kept the "design on the light and airy side."

The auras of Looby Loo add to the lightness as does the pretty border of Vigne.  Lucy posted her tile here on her blog, too.

Sharyn Penna's note read:

Busy week...how dare life get in the way of tangling! When I finally sat down to play, I had so much fun! Sue Jacobs' Coil video was very helpful detailing the orbs and shading...I still need more practice on that. I have to say though, Plaited was easier than I thought...I didn't clench my teeth once with the straight lines. This String Thing prompt was a great way to end a challenging week. 

Note how Sharyn used rounded lines on the curves of Plaited in one area and 'v' shaped ones on another.
Vigne inside Coil - now that is a fabulous idea!

CZT Joan Delony said, "I enjoyed tangling this. The results were surprising as I was thinking of something else while working on this tile."

It proved to be a delightful distraction, for sure.  Note that her penciled border line is visible and at the same time, a natural part of her tangle.  The center line of Vigne is beautiful with Joan's added perfs, Knightsbridge, and aura.

CZT Charlotte Carpentier described her tile and a helpful tip ~

In keeping with my blue on toned tan, I submit to you what looks like a blue deft plate pattern. It kept making me laugh. Earlier this week, I biggified tangles for another piece I was working on, this one seemed to go in the opposite direction.
Something else I learned this week. You can make a really cool pearl effect by circling inside with graphite, blending it in, then using the Zenstone almost as a blending tool.

That is a "cool pearl effect", thank you for that.  All of her special touches - aura around Vigne, blue Bumps, depth of shading -  make the tangles shine.

Peggy Kohrmann

I've been on vacation and enjoyed the opportunity to learn seven new tangles!!!!! This week was fun and a party atmosphere. The airy, light borders were my favorite and that became my focus. A bit of Vigne, LaBel, and a bunch of Coil still made it open. Bump was the choice for the middle...

Love the comment about the party atmosphere as well as the light and airy description of Sue's border tanlge patterns.  Note how Peggy added the dark shading and thick line to Coil.

Sara from Switzerland called this her "4 Elements ZIA" ~

She asked, "Can you spot them? There are also Ants and Ladybugs :) This is what I like while tangling all the associations and thoughts [that come] up!"
Earth, water, air, fire...with ants and ladybugs and deep color- what a gorgeous ZIA!   Sara also posted it here on her blog.

Henrike sent her tile along with greetings from the Baltic Sea ~

And this brings the sea and its waves to mind.  The darkened Coil and the lightness of Vigne are lovely.

Jenna Wheatman wrote:

Its tennis fever over here in the UK with Wimbledon and its getting close to the Commonwealth games in Scotland which some of the girls i compete against have qualified for, so lots of fun distractions at the moment.
Here is this weeks string thing challenge. I did try plaited but could not get it to flow with the other tangles and I need much more practice. I liked bumps but decided to just use Vigne and coil.

While it may be, as Jenna says "just Vigne and Coil" - it is JUST beautiful.  The two big black balls of Coil complete with sparkle, are striking.  Her variations of Vigne , shaded just so, are gracefully rendered.

AND now, the tile selected for honors this week was created by~

Ingrid Coventon of the Netherlands~

Ingrid Coventon is another Coil and Vigne fan. She wrote~

Coil was new to me but I love it so much. I had a lot of zen"fun" learning and drawing it. And of course there was no doubt I had to draw Vigne. I so so love this tangle. It is one of my most favourite tangles, but I lost sight of it a bit. So thank you to bring it to my mind again.

Ingrid's simple, yet delightfully detailed tangles are so pleasing to the eye and the darkened Bumps and Vigne provide great contrast to her white space.  

CONGRATULATIONS, Ingrid!  I have a little something coming in the mail for you.

Many thanks to the talented tanglers who submitted their treasures this week.

Thank you to Sue Jacobs via Linda Farmer for String 040.   

And a very special thank you to Sue Jacobs for her creative cache of tangle patterns.

Stop by tomorrow for "It's a String Thing" #47 - 

a special one for the Fourth of July!