"It's a String Thing" #64 Tiles

This week we celebrated Halloween with a string line that resembled candy corn - or cannie corns as my children dubbed them in their toddler days.  We also used four tangles that began with the first letters in the word corn:  Charlie, Owlz, Roxi, and  N'Zeppel.

Readers who had never heard of the confection did a little research and tangled along - what fun!

Let's take a look ~

The first tile arrived from Cheryl Stocks in Arizona.  She wrote:

I tackled this one right away! It was time to walk away from the computer for a few and get jiggy with it. The lines on this one seem jiggy and really lent themselves to harness their inner spideyness.
So, here ya go!
NO, I won't be Spiderman/woman for Hallowe'en.
Amazingly, the image is posted on my blog.
and on my Flickr .
WOW.
Have a brilliant day!

Cheryl might not have been Spiderwoman for Halloween, but her spider looks scary enough.  Her tangles are superb and her energy is contagious.


Carmela wrote~

I like this string and the pyramids and i filled them with Roxi and Nzeppel.
For the background I used Charlie, because i used Owlz before. Afterwards wen I saw the result i regret it, because its to much and seems restless, but anyway, this is what it is.

Yes, it is what it is and it is a wonderful piece.  Three variations of Charlie make for a striking background.  Notice, too how she used N'Zeppel in the larger string space and then repeated it in a smaller section with a large section of the tangle - very nice.
It is also posted here on her blog.

Heike said ~

Thanks for this interesting challenge.
Many things/candy are unknown to me, thus also candy corn, because in Germany Halloween plays a role only during the last years. So I have looked first for candy corn. And then I created this tile.
Also I posted on pinterest. 

The detail in this is lovely - Owlz and Charlie together, N'Zeppel and Rocks with an elegant N'Zeppel back drop.  She finished it off with beautiful shading, too.


Also from Germany, Sandra wrote ~

I directly liked the new string and the patterns, although all the patterns were new to me...
But it was a great fun to try all of them, so in my zentangle all four patterns can be found ;-)
...I posted my image on my blog too  :-)

She tangled each string section with a different pattern and managed to create a pleasing balance of light and dark, especially against the lighter grey tangles behind them.

Kathryn White said that she couldn't resist "playing with the Copics and fall colors" with the candy corn string ~

The tangles and fall colors are just gorgeous - and that blue streak is so striking.  Owlz looks particularly festive in those gold tones.  She also posted it here on her blog

From Karla Smith~

...while not a lover of candy corn I did enjoy this challenge. I so enjoyed making friends with NZeppel and Roxi. Owlz and I are working on it. Charlie was just plain fun but I was unable to find a spot it.

It shows that Karla made friends with N'Zeppel and Roxi - what a beautiful tile.  Notice how she shaded every other intersection of N'Zeppel even in the smaller grid.  That gives the tangle more interest.  She also darkened in the spaces between Roxi.


Joya wrote ~

Thank you very much for let[ting] me be the honor of the last week again, I'm happy :) I'm so glad for being a part of this creative and affectionate group of tanglers!
I don't know candy corn, it's not available in germany, but I like the round forms and the colors very much :)

This is truly a wonderful group and the creativity is unparalleled as evidenced by Joya's tile.  Even though candy corn is not available in Germany, it is fun to see the appreciation for the color and shape and inspiration for this challenge.
Joya used an eye-popping tanglation of Owlz and cleverly added Roxi along the edges of her border.


Sue Jacobs CZT wrote ~

This string certainly has the shapes of candy corn so it's perfect for this season. I took a few liberties with String 95 for this challenge #64. The string that's pictured on Tanglepatterns.com has the lines from the shapes crossing each other and making additional smaller shapes. I decided to break each shape out separately and tangle them simply. That way I could concentrate on the shading of the shapes to get more of a 3D look.
Pictured on my blog...

Four tangles in four section of her string with the most elegant of white spaces surrounding them - that is a sensational piece.

Lori Byerly said ~

...I love your "sweet" challenge this week. I remember fondly those little goodies in my candy bag. They were a favorite of my children's as well.
My tile is also posted here.

Simple and sweet and just a bit spooky and all topped off with superb shading - a perfect combination for this challenge!

Lily Moon chose a Renaissance tile ~

The depth she achieved with shading and highlighting is remarkable.  She created and outstanding tanglation of Owlz.  Her balance of tangles and color is just fabulous.


From Ilse Lukke ~

Challenging string! I thought it would look a bit 'busy' if I filled up every part of the string, so I decided to leave one part in white. The tile being finished, I'm not sure if it's a bit boring this way, but this is what I chose to do, so I'll stick to the idea ;-)
I published the tile on my blog as well.

It is not boring because it is what you chose to do!  Besides, what could possibly be boring about Zentangle®? :)  The white space is captivating and plays along side the neighboring tangles very nicely.  The random lined N'Zeppel is splendid.


Annemarie said, "And again a nice challenge, I enjoyed working on it. Something I did not expect when I first saw the string, because it has so many little 'boxes'."

She doubled her string lines, overlapping and intersecting as she tangled.  This gave her many spaces in which to play.  She added perfs to her border lines and a bit of color to the tile.  Annemarie  also posted it here on her blog.  

Kirsten Bish wrote ~

Enclosed please find my newest Tangle,
"All Hallows Eve".
This was a really fun one as I am not into scary Halloween stuff but rather fun, riddle, type stuff.
I had used Charlie before, and had forgotten how cool it looks.
Owls didn't appeal to me at all and at first debated using it at all but as they say a little bit of a good thing...
Rocks is a new favorite. I just love the way they look, reminds me of the beach her on the west coast of Lake Michigan.
Nzeppel is also one of my favorites. I knew I wanted it in the background.
Have a happy and safe Halloween to all.

Very Halloween in black, isn't it?  Notice the work 'Boo!' that she added - so much fun!

Congratulations to one of the newest CZTs - Lucy Banta.  Upon her return from the seminar, she managed to send in a tile.  She wrote ~

Happy Halloween!
What a treat to tangle this candy corn string! I used just two of the tangles: N'Zeppel and Roxi. After the teacher training program, N'Zeppel is one of my favorites!
Attached is the tile, and here's the link to my blog: 

Roxi made a great border and the string lines disappeared into N'Zeppel.

Kelly Rickert said that she "particularly" liked N'Zeppel.  She created a monotangle and was very pleased with the result ~

It is a marvelous monotangle. Notice how Kelly used various sized of the pattern in each section, some appear curved, some flat, and all are shaded beautifully.


Ingrid Coventon wrote a note as sweet as candy corn itself ~

This is my tile for String Ting #64.
It has become a kind of picture puzzle.
I had never seen in my life a candy corn, let alone eaten. We don't know this candy in The Netherlands
I have searched the Internet for images.
Except for N'zeppel and Charlie, the other two tangle patterns were new to me.
Again I had some good time for this week with your challenge. Thank you so much.

The inside tangles are crisp and lovely in their stark black and white contrast.   N'Zeppel makes a beautiful background.  

Sue Agnew wrote ~

It was fun doing this challenge with a "cannie corn" string. I suspect that it would be fun to tangle it with something different in each "compartment" and end up with sort of a big starfish shape, but once you pointed out the resemblance to candy corn, the corn shapes were all I could see while tangling.
This may be the first time I used all the prescribed tangles. Practicing with Roxi reminded me a lot of one of my favorite patterns, Cockles 'n' Mussels, and then so did N'Zeppel, and then I learned that Margaret Bremner's starting point for Cockles 'n' Mussels was a "random N'Zeppel." So ... you learn something every day. I used lines rather than solid black on Charlie because I like a less stark contrast. And I used to always use grey Pitt pens for shading because I didn't like the smudginess of pencil, but I shaded with pencil today and liked the subtler effects you can achieve.

What a treat to follow Sue's creative thoughts - and to see the results.  It is a fabulous tile.


Jane Glotzer walked us through her process too ~

Happy Halloween! Hope yours was sweet and chocolatey!!
Well...there's a lot I don't like about my Cannie Corns, (but I love that your kids called them that) and in the Zentangle spirit, I will focus on the good...I am sending this in because I didn't want to break my participatory "streak" :)
...I started with N'zeppel and thought I might do a different version than I've done in the past, but in the end, I still liked my light touch on that...moved on to Charlie crossing the three large overlapping areas...those Owlz really are adorable (at a local restaurant we ate at last night, the staff had a costume contest and we voted for the greatest homemade owl costume the hostess was wearing, so there's another one of those funny coincidences!)...and I finished with some Roxi here and there...considered more but what I really love is how those "ghost" shapes appear when I erase any string lines I don't use, so I left those in honor of the spirit of the holiday!

Oooo!  Those ghost shapes are perfect for the occasion.  Notice how Jane shaded Owlz and the curved look she achieved.  

Sharyn Penna wrote ~

While Nzeppel is a tangle I love and use often, the other tangles this week are unfamiliar to my hand. It's always good to expand beyond the familiar safety zone.

Notice how Sharyn tangled her patterns in and out and through the neighboring spaces created by the string.  Each pattern compliments the next in color, line, and light and dark.


A very warm welcome to Portia Hyde of Michigan.  She said, " It was fun but harder than I thought it would be and I am not real satisfied but it will probably look better to me tomorrow."

Spoken like a veteran tangler, it is very true that some times you have to put your work away for another day to appreciate what you have created.  This is a very pretty tile - and Portia's shading is splendid.

Peggy Kohrmann wrote ~

This week I took the time to make two tiles, one in the Renaissance color. I had to follow my choices for the tangles but enjoyed coloring them with Derwent Inktense 12 pencils.
I added Beadlines to the edge because it looked a bit unfinished. I'll be excited to see the other tiles.
I hope you had a fun Halloween-- loved the tile of Candy Corn.

Notice the sheer section in the middle where N'Zeppel fades - that is very creative.  

Two terrific tiles filled with thoughtful details, candy corn color, and fun!


Ragged Ray wrote ~

I had fun! N'zeppel is as charming as ever, I could draw it all day and never tire! And I couldn't resist turning a couple of the Roxi into eyes! Boo!
Looking forward to seeing what others have done with the string and tangles.

The touch of orange is fabulous.  Notice how she tangled N'Zeppel free from the string line.  It gives great dimension to the pattern.  How very clever to have Roxi as a pair of eyes as well as letters.


CZT Joan Delony wrote ~

Fun patterns! I did a traditional tile first, but decided it was too stilted for the occasion, so I created a 2nd tile that was more
"spooky". I love seeing what everyone does every week. The creativity and talent are amazing! 

This has a great Halloween feel to it - and those eyes are spooky!
Joan also posted it here on her blog.

Marita said ~

I practised all tangles but decided to go for a monotangle this time. I choose Charlie. I didn't like it very much while practising, so that was quite a challenge...
But I liked the end result quite a bit!
thanks for your inspiration!!!

Charlie makes for a marvelous monotangle.  Notice how Marita was able to use the string line with the long lines of Charlie to create the black and white spaces.

And now, the tile for honors this week goes to 

Tonya Marie White Barlow !

Kathryn White (her tile is included in this post) sent this email along with Tonya's tile.  It read~

Adele,
I'd like to introduce to you my daughter, Tonya Marie White Barlow. She has been drawing line art since she could hold a pencil and crayon. The first Zentangle book I purchased was intended for her, but it hooked me as well. We hope to attend the April 19th Zentangle Training together. I'm watching like a hawk for the opening of the sign up period since we will need space for two of us.

This was a triple Halloween treat.   First to have Kathryn's daughter contribute, then to know they plan to be CZTs together, and then to behold this fabulous tile - that is a triple dose of tangle goodness.

Tonya gave shape and depth to her corn shaped string sections.  The web and spider are perfect for the Halloween theme.
Kathryn also posted her daughter's tile here on her blog.

A very warm welcome to you Tanya and congratulations!

 I have a little something coming in the mail to you.


Thank you to everyone who sent in a tile for the rest of us to enjoy and learn from.

Many thanks to the creative minds behind the string and tangles used this week ~

TanglePatterns String 095 by Sandra Hart

Charlie by CZT Erin Olson of Zendala Dare
Owlz and
Roxi both by Beth Snoderly
N'Zeppel by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas

Stop by Tuesday afternoon for "It's a String Thing" #65!