"It's a String Thing" #168 Tiles

Happy Monday and Happy Halloween!

The results of our annual nod to the confection, Candy Corn (a.k.a. Cannie Corns in our home) just happens to fall directly on Halloween this year.  Yesterday was unofficially Candy Corn Day here in the U.S. and like most celebrations, the joy of it all is multiplied when the festivities are spread  out over a few days... To keep the spirit alive (pun intended), let's enjoy the tiles ~


The first arrived from Joan Delony, CZT (Florida) ~

I love this time of year and I love candy corn. Happy Fall!

Tangled Tidbits -
*tips of the string sections are one large Fang (that sounds funny doesn't it?!)
*Florz spider web


From Julie (North Carolina) ~

Here is my tile for this week. I hope all have a happy and safe Halloween.

 Tangled Tidbits -
*orb tipped Tira - notice the star effect created when the spaces around the center are darkened in
*Fang variation with single jagged lines


From Lori Byerly (Washington State) and here on her blog ~

I love this week's challenge because I love candy corn! :) As a kid I used to eat them one small bite at a time, carefully eating each color.Thanks again for a great challenge with a fun string and a new pattern to try.

Tangled Tidbits -

Yes!  I remember doing the same thing - totally convinced that the white tips tasted the sweetest.

*irregular curves of Tira with filled spaces and sparkles round tips

*Florz shaded around each stoke makes it look raised

*Fang shaded toward the middles

From Susan (United Kingdom) ~

I was inspired by Marla’s poem and pumpkin design a couple of weeks ago to practise folksy lettering. It seems to involve adding lots of dots to each letter. This week I found variations of Tira and Florz with dots. So I combined these and the result – a dotty piece of ZIA! Enjoy Halloween.

Tangled Tidbits -
That is sure to make Marla smile.
*dots repeat throughout
*each Tira is unique


From Renee (Tennessee) ~

Tangled Tidbits -
*fancy Florz variation
* wispy finish to Tira gems
*shading and highlights add wonderful depth


From Rebecca I (Stamford, Connecticut) ~

Sadly I have been so busy lately that it has been hard to find time to tangle. But I could not resist the "Cannie Corn" challenge! :-) Nothing like a little happy tangling to put a smile on your face. Thanks Adele.

Tangled Tidbits -
*shimmery tangles in metallic
*dots repeat in Fang and Tira


From Audrie Weisenfelder (Tucson, Arizona) and here on her blog ~

Here's my tile for this week's String Thing:

Tangled Tidbits -
*bold lined variations of Florz
*triangular and feathery variations of Tira
*happy highlights

From Ragged Ray (United Kingdom) and creator of Tira ~

...I'm excited to see what others do with my little Tira tangle - attached is my tile. Thanks for the link to the official posting about Florz, it's so wonderful to be reminded of what Maria does with these seemingly simple tangles. I've tried building on one of her variations in the middle section of my Florz. Also a couple of little gems in Candy Cane colours! And lots of shading!

Tangled Tidbits -
*Florz variations beautifully blend
*multi lined Tira curve around Candy Corn colored gems - how fun!



From Trudi (Woodview, Ontario, Canada) ~

I wasn't sure I was going to do this challenge. I didn't really like any of the tangles used but I kept trying and this didn't turn out the way I thought it would, not at all and I'm not unhappy with it thank you.

Tangled Tidbits -
...and most times, that is how we end up pleased with our tangles...
*lovely layers of Fang
*Florz rimmed and aura-ed string lines



From Gariela Garcia (Alberta, Canada) ~

Hello everyone! This challenge was such a treat ;-) I had lots of fun. "Fang" was a new pattern to me and I really enjoyed playing with it, and of course, being Halloween I had to add a spider using the pattern" Tira" ;-) Thanks Adele for another great challenge :-)

Tangled Tidbits -
*little gem of a spider on a dotted Florz
*alternating layers  and colorization of Florz and Fang



From Amy Barnickel (Florida) ~

I LOVE candy corn! My fave halloween treat. Fun to tangle these little sweeties.

Tangled Tidbits -
*sprinkling of Tira fill the background
*thick and thin lined Florz


From sra (India) ~

I wanted to send something last week, especially because I was touring Taiwan on work and I know that one of the tangles was by a CZT from there. I thought it would be a nice way of combining the trip and Zentangle and all that, but we were visiting 2-3 cities a day, sleeping late and leaving early, so I just couldn't make the time or summon the energy! I did listen to a few Buddhist chants I'd brought back from there while I was doing a part of this tile, though! Best of luck with your arts tour!

Tangled Tidbits -
...sounds like a fun and exhausting time.
*fine lined Fang
*perpendicular lines finish off Tira
*multiple angles of Florz



From Susie (St. Louis, Missouri) ~

Tangled Tidbits -
*dark lined Fang
*Tira dotted Florz
*vibrant candy corn colors



From Anita A Westin (Sweden) and here on her blog ~

Here comes my tile for IAST 168! Thank´s for a nice challenge and thank´s for introducing 2 patterns I haven´t tried Before!

Tangled Tidbits -
*three variations of Tira

*pretty line and orb border

From Jane Glotzer ( Boulder, Colorado) ~

Happy Halloween! Hope you have a ghoulishly fun holiday on Monday.
While I considered some orange-y watercolor wash for the Cannie Corns, I went back to my "usual" presentation, complete with a tucked in corner--:) for this week's challenge. Variations of Florz took over most of the spaces (love the spider web version!) and finished up with some Fang and a bunch of the very fun Tira--could draw those all day! Even some simple shading always adds so much!

Tangled Tidbits - 

*spiraled web Florz, thick lined rounded corners, and double rounded corner variations

*sparkled Fang fine lines

From Jody Genovese, CZT (New York) ~

So Fang is fun to draw… :)
As always thank you and Happy Halloween!!!

Tangled Tidbits -
*fabulous Fang details - black perfs, Printemps, reverse shading, light and dark...
*multiple sizes and variations of Tira - wonderful!




From Michele Wynne (California) ~

Thanks again for another challenging challenge. It took several attempts to get all of the patterns to play nicely in the string but once I wrangled Tira (a fun new-to-me pattern) into the ribbon, it all came together. Thanks for all you do:-D

Tangled Tidbits -
*Hollibaugh string lines filled to the brim with sparkled and highlighted tangles
*Tipple accented Fang
*three creative variations of Tira




From Sue Agnew (Tucson, Arizona) and a recent convert to our honored confection ~

I have to admit I have never understood the obsession with candy corns ... until last week at Book Group, the hostess had a bowl of little pumpkins made out of that same substance ... most of the evening I ignored them because I'm not really that much of a candy eater, but toward the end of the meeting I popped one into my mouth ... and then another, and another ...
I know that you drew the string to be asymmetrical ... and one of these days I will get out of my comfort zone ... but today it wanted to be symmetrical. I did at least make one candy corn fatter and one candy corn slimmer.
I love Florz ... reminds me of wallpaper at my grandmother's (I spent a bit of time this afternoon googling "vintage wallpaper" but haven't been able to find it). It was lines with red and black triangles, and if you unfocused your eyes a certain way you could make it three-dimensional.
I was having trouble with Tira until I noticed that the way you fill in where the U shapes join is similar to the way you make the diamonds in Florz. So I kind of did it backwards ... drawing a circle and lines emanating from the circle, and then the half-diamond shapes, and then adding more lines.
Until drawing it tonight, I never realized why Fang was called "fang." I have to admit, just now looking at my tile attached to your email, it's kind of scary looking!
Thank you! Happy Halloween!

Tangled Tidbits -
*Florz centered Tira - and a great connection about those tangles
*candy corn look to a smooth lined Fang



From Marla Mendenhall (California) ~

Two new patterns, one I've seldom used, a theme string ... who could ask for more?
In Tile One I tried to make the connects in the center Florz appear to be pyramids; not sure I accomplished it. Tile Two just sort of evolved, and I love when that happens (changing the light source from left to right helped with the shading too). And the Tile Three ZIA was JFF, with Tira morphing into spider and flies in a Florz web spun along the string line. My initial even got stuck on a strand!
Happy Festival to all who celebrate the abundance of harvest or things that go bump in the night and candy-demanding ghoulies.

Tangled Tidbits - 

 *common grid changes tangles in each string section
*fine lines repeat in the tangles

*Florz circular grid
*layered Fang, shaded definition
*three different Tira

*'buggy' Tira -  complete with bodies and wings - so fun!
*dashed and dotted lined Florz - shadow shaded



From Anna Houston, CZT 12 (British Columbia, Canada) ~

Hi Adele, I'm back! Here is my humble entry for this weeks challenge. I am officially "retired" now so have no more excuses not to participate. Thanks again for all you do.

Tangled Tidbits -
Welcome back!
*spiraled, shadow shaded Florz
*Florz string lines



From Lily Moon (Hungary) and here on her Instagram ~

Dear Adele, here is my response for your weekly challenge:

Tangled Tidbits - 

*detailed Florz sections - notice how the shading effects the look

*dark Fang lines

*superb depth in shading

From Jenny Hopkins (Australia) ~

Thank you for another interesting challenge. While I enjoyed all of the tangles this week, I think the results look like a bad nightmare. Oh well...I am looking forward to seeing everyone else's efforts.
Enjoy that Candy Corn. It sounds good.

Tangled Tidbits - 

*tangles swirl around circular Florz grid

*Tira separates rows of Florz

From Susan Theron (Velddrif, South Africa) ~

Looking forward to see what my fellow tangers did.

Tangled Tidbits - 

*corner Tira

*alternating Fang and Florz

From Felicity Strohfeldt (South Africa) and here on her blog ~

...Summer’s here and we have experienced the warmest October in years. We are definitely in for more El Nino and all that it brings this Summer.
Anyway, challenge 168 made me contemplate somewhat. Tira and Florz were new to me, but they are versatile and I enjoyed them. With Halloween in mind I went with Florz as a spiderweb in the background and Cannie Corn string shapes as the focus using Tira to fill the one shape and the second Cannie Corn filled as a more airy shape bordered by Fang, to envelop the first shape. The centres of Tira worked well as jems in Cannie Corn colours. Perhaps a bit busy in the end.
Happy week to you and all the fellow tanglers.

Tangled Tidbits - 

*Candy Corn colored gems

*two variations of a multi-lined Tira

*sparkled Fang

From Sharyn Penna (Massachusetts) ~

Iconic candy corn ... it calls us all to Halloween's tricks and treats.
And this week's prompt was such a treat! It's always fun when one tangle grows out of another. I love Ragged Ray's Tira tangle and will be using it a lot!Cheers to calorie-free tangled candy corn!

Tangled Tidbits - 

...that is a wonderful calorie-free thought and I love the frame :)

*sparkled Fang and Tira

*spiraled Florz - shaded along the spiral

And now...

the tile for honors this week...

was sent in by...

first time participant, Lisette (Switzerland) ~

I'm Lisette Hofer from Switzerland and this is my first IAST.
A big hug and thank you for all you are doing!

Tangled Tidbits -
*interlocking Fang rimmed string lines - beautiful balance of colors,shading, highlights
*web like Florz
*spidery Tiras creeping over Fang

Congratulations and welcome, Lisette!

I have a little some thing coming in the mail for you.

A huge thank you to all of the contributors to this week's challenge.
Please know that I appreciate and treasure your kindnesses and encouragements as well. 

Many thanks to the creative minds behind the tangled we used this week along with my string:

Florz by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, Zentangle® founders

Tira by Ragged Ray

Fang by Celia Norman

Check back Tuesday afternoon for "It's a String Thing" #169!

Fractivity for a Friday

It's Friday.

It's Fall.

It's time or some Fractivity!

Each year, as November nears, I begin to prepare a class on Fractals.  I choose a few patterns that lend themselves to the concept and tangle them on Renaissance tiles.

My past posts about fractals can be found if you click here and click here.  In the first, I wrote that fractals use a repeating pattern of the same initial shape - or line configuration. Each additional layer sprouts into the same pattern only on a smaller scale.

For IAST #167, CZT Nadine Roller's Winflo was featured.  The more I studied the fabulous results, the more the tangle looked as though it could morph into a fractal.

Here are the 'bare bones' step-by-step illustrations of my first Winflo fractal variation:

Begin with one large orb of the pattern with two wings and two stems:              

From each of the stems, two new orbs and sets of stems emerge, slightly smaller that the original ~

From each of these four new stems, two more branch out - again, slightly smaller than the previous ~

And so on...

Don't you love how that grows?  

The same idea can be applied to a three stemmed Winflo ~

From one large orb and set of wings, three stems branch out.  On each of these, an orb with wings will branch out into three more stems ~

And so on...

How much it grows is up to you.


When I began this tile...

...I started with a two stemmed version, but quickly realized that there was more room than I wanted in between them.  I popped in another stem and voila! - the three stemmed Winflo fractal appeared :)


Have a great time playing with this and have a wonderful weekend!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

How beautiful leaves grow old. 

How full of light and color are their last days.

                                                                                                    ~John Burrough

Fall Fractal Tanglation of Winflo (a tangle by Nadine Roller, CZT)
by Adele Bruno, CZT

"It's a String Thing" #168

It's Tuesday, your good news day!

Here we are at IAST #168 and it is time for our annual ode to Cannie Corns (a name coined by my children).

By Cannie Corns, I mean the sweet treat known as Candy Corn.  For those of you who are not familiar with this airy, sweet, marshmallow-y treat, they are not only colorful, they are very yummy, too.

For a bit of reference, here are the links to two previous Cannie Corn challenges:
2014  IAST #64
2015  IAST #116

Every October, I look forward to the new ways  images of Candy Corn are incorporated into fall merchandise.  This is my latest acquisition - a new Nora Fleming charm for this little vase and stand ~

And here are a few samplings of Candy Corn that I found on a recent shopping trip:

 ...a gift bag...

...pajama pants...

...a toddler shirt (which I promptly purchased for my granddaughter)...

...a plastic serving tray...

Just a little photographic proof that I am not alone in my obsession!


For the challenge, we begin with this string ~

IAST #168 Adele Bruno, CZT

The tangles we will use include:

Tira by Ragged Ray
My daughter, Isabella, suggested that I find a "spidery" tangle.  This new one came to mind right away.

Florz by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, Zentangle® founders
...so many possibilities here with our theme...

Fang by Celia Norman
How could we pass up a tangle with a name like that?



While the string lines resemble candy corn, your end result is not meant to look like any one thing in particular - tangles are non-representational.  
On the other hand, Zentangle Inspired Art often is representational, so please feel free to do either.

Step outs for the patterns can be found by clicking their names above and/or TanglePatterns.

Simply pencil the 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. WHEN YOU SIGN YOUR NAME, FEEL FREE TO INCLUDE YOUR STATE/COUNTRY. 
FOR EXAMPLE: ADELE BRUNO (FLORIDA)

PLEASE NOTE: It is not necessary for you to have a blog or website to participate.

If you do have a blog or website, I will add a link upon request. 
Please include the site specific URL. 

I look forward to your emails.
HAVE FUN!

"It's a String Thing" #167 Tiles

This week's IAST featured relatively new tangles from two CZTs - Damy from Taiwan and Nadine Roller from Germany.

We also welcomed two brand new contributors - applause, applause!

Thank you all for your good wishes on my upcoming show.  (Click on the yellow and green rectangle to the right of this column for more details.) I appreciate your love and support.

Now, let's take a look at this week's tiles ~


The first email arrived from Amy Barnickel (Orlando) ~

I worked hard all morning, so I rewarded myself with a little tangled afternoon.

 Tangled Tidbits -
*horizontal lines in Ponio variation make for a lovely border
*curved lines for Winflo 'stems'


From Sandra (Germany) and here on her blog ~

thanks again for a nice challenge :-) When I saw the two patterns first I just wanted to try out them and so I had a lot of fun to tangle this tile. Many greetings from a rainy germany

Tangled Tidbits -
*two beautifully shaded variations of Ponio
*free floating sparkled orbs of Winflo


From Hilary Merola (Chicago, Illinois) ~

Well, I had to decide to either follow your lovely string or not to do anything at all. I kept looking at it and nothing happened. So I just dove in and came up with my own idea.
I did this Wednesday night while watching the debate and frantically switching back and forth to the Cubs game. Zentangles are not always done in a calm atmosphere! But at least it's done.Thanks again for the opportunity. I really appreciate all your hard work.

Tangled Tidbits -
*shaded inner arcs of Ponio along the border
*light and airy Winflo features four 'wings'
Congratulations to the Cubs!


From Lily Moon (Hungary) with a "zenhug" ~

Tangled Tidbits -
*stunning shading and highlights make tangles 3-dimensional
*soft blues and burgundies illuminate the tangles
*checkered center lines of Winflo


From Renee (Tennessee) ~

Tangled Tidbits -
*sparkled and colored orbs repeat in both patterns
*shadowed shading
*curves and curls carry through both tangles


.From Lori Byerly (Washington State) and here on her blog ~

Another great challenge. Thanks so much for including new patterns. It makes the challenge that much more interesting and I grow my collection of patterns at the same time. :)

Tangled Tidbits -
*Winflo 'wings' feature detail lines, oval orbs, rounded angles, and wonderful shading
*Ponio aura flows outward in longer streams


From Val Steele (Johannesburg, South Africa) ~

I looked and looked at the string and the tangles and didn't know how they could possibly work together. Well with one stroke at a time this is what I came up with. Simple and clean.

Tangled Tidbits -
*Isn't it magical to keep that "one stroke at a time" belief and dive right in?!
*Ponio 'constellation'
*Winflo branches out from Ponio orbs and is shaded around its own center orbs



From Jonsey (St. Louis, Missouri) ~

Here's my entry for the week. I added a new - to - me tangle, St-rap, to go along with Ponio and Winflo.

Tangled Tidbits -
*tangles flow smoothly from one to the next
*inner orbs of Ponio are weighted on one side,shaded, and fade into white space
*Ponio shaded to the outside



From Simone (Germany) ~

The tile for this week`s string thing challenge I drew in my hotel room during a business trip this week after a dinner and a glass of wine with some nice colleagues.
It is so beautiful to know that you can have a calming hour also on such a trip because you need so little material for practising Zentangle in its original style...
The tangles which you chose this week for IAST#167 are new to me and I like them very much. So I had a nice evening, and now I am back home again ;-)

Tangled Tidbits -
You gave us a refreshing image of tangling, thank you Simone.
*multiple waves of Ponio, decorated and aura-ed
*Winflo flows from Ponio



From Julie (North Carolina) ~

Hello! Missed last week's challenge, I just wasn't able to finish my tile. So I'm sending you two this week! I really enjoy your challenges every week and look forward to them. Thanks for all you do teaching us new tangles. I also look forward to seeing all the other tiles that are sent in. It's amazing to see all the different ways each one is done.

Tangled Tidbits -
*detailed Winflo variation - weighted lines, darkened arcs, aura, shading
*background filled with Ponio orbs
*Ponio variation boasts triple orbs



From Jutta Gladdig ~

Thank you, Adele, for another marvellous challenge!
Having drawn the string, I turned the tile several times and the idea came to my mind to use the string's 'K' for one big 'double' winflo. Finally I added rivets and it got a slight steampunk touch...
What a cool idea of yours to mix these two tangles! It was great fun.
And from here greetings from Duisburg to Cologne, to my dear friend Nadine Roller CZT, who created this beautiful pattern winflo which is giving us wings...

Tangled Tidbits -
*a lovely compliment to Nadine, as she truly has "given us wings"
*elongated center 'wings' of large Winflo - notice the alternating black and white as well as shaded and white sections
*large sparkles in the black orbs and tiny 'rivets'


From Mariam G (Port Heuneme, California) ~

Not sure why, but I struggled with this one...in the end, simple seemed the best way to go. (I do love the little Winflo's - they just make you smile, don't they?)

Tangled Tidbits -
Yes, they do!
*center line of Ponio becomes wider as it intersects the orbs
*happy, flowing Winflo



From Trudi (Woodview, Ohio) ~

Hello Adele, once again two Tangles I was not familiar with. This is really helping me learn new Tangles. I'm now trying hard not to just replicate so after doing a fairly standard Ponio with stripes I tried to branch off and do a variation which I enjoyed then added shading. This is helping me grow :). Thank you.

Tangled Tidbits - 

That is wonderful news!

*striped and sparkled Ponio with shaded orbs

*Ponio, pretty in brown

From Karen - The Creative Miss L - (Canberra, Australia) and here on her blog ~

This tile took a few attempts to get right. I found it hard to combine two tangles that look to me like they both suit borders.

Tangled Tidbits -
*intersecting Winflo create a Fassett (tangle by Lynn Mead, CZT)
*light aura and Tipple accent Ponio


From Patricia (Switzerland) ~

Thank you for the new tangles. I especially like Ponio. I did a tangleation of Winflo (I think), making the lines curvier and added Hollibaugh.

Tangled Tidbits -
*creative idea to incorporate Hollibaugh
*dots accent Winflo



From Jennifer (Switzerland) ~

I really love Ponio so I did a monotangle and completed it with auras. As I did the Ponio, my mind was filled with beautiful black ponies swishing their glossy manes about!
Congratulations on being chosen for the Florida Arts Tour! I love the way you tangled an image of your studio and the way you added color. So looking forward to your photos as it is a little too far away for me.

Tangled Tidbits -
*Ponio shaded deeply to one side of each arc
*lovely aura with a sampling of shaded areas


A very warm welcome to Therina (Port Elizabeth, South Africa) ~

I have been following IAST for a while and love your challenges! The "reveal" every week is so exciting.
Well, this week I decided that I was going to take part - no matter what the challenge. And what a challenge it was! Not only are the tangles not ones that I would normally use, but the sting also had me stumped for most of the week. But I was not going to give up, and this morning I sat down and produced this tile. I am so glad I did, because I thoroughly enjoyed the process, the string and the tangles! Thank you for pushing me to stretch myself - I learned so much!

Tangled Tidbits -
Welcome and congratulations for plunging in and thoroughly enjoying the experience!
*interlinking Ponio with dark, sparkled orbs
*delicate, shadowed Winflo


From Gabriela Garcia (Alberta, Canada) ~

Hello everyone! I have to say that although I enjoyed the challenge I found it a little bit tricky, or maybe it is just because I was press on time since I couldn't start drawing until Saturday. I loved the patterns but they were all new to me, Ponio looks beautiful once shaded and Winflo for some reason reminded me of a wallpaper I used to have as a little girl in my bedroom, so I gave it a little twist to look more like it. Greetings from Canada :-)

 Tangled Tidbits -
*elegant pearl like centers of Ponio
*diamond grid for Winflo
*soft touches - shading, highlights, dots


From Gesine (Germany) ~

I'm sending this one from a little village in France near Taizé, where I spent a week with my family and a group of very different people attending most of the prayers at the communité. Unfortunately, we're leaving tomorrow already...

Tangled Tidbits -
...must be a very relaxing place to tangle...
*glowing white on black tangles
*Ponio in clusters along the string line



From Jane Glotzer (Boulder, Colorado) ~

Using up some of my watercolor scraps--when I make cards, it's hard to throw anything away--I went with a quick, teeny, Bijou size tile...

Whipped off the string line Winflo on Wednesday--that has a ring to it--:)--without much thought...seems obvious...fully intended to do a Ponio version, (love that pattern and all its varieties) but here it is already Saturday and I think I'll just send this quickie in...I do love how tangling on top of watercolors creates such cool shading and highlighting...added a touch of pencil shading, too. I can't wait to see what everyone (with more time!) does with all the other possibilities!

Tangled Tidbits -
*marvelous monotangle follows the shading and highlights of the watercolor
*tangle flows along the string lines



From Sue Agnew (Tucson, Arizona) ~

So glad I was able to make time to tangle this weekend! I decided while drawing Ponio that I liked it better without the dividing line (that joins the circles) ... what that meant was that I had to do one circle and then the arching lines, mentally bringing them only halfway around the circle, and then the next circle, and then the next set of lines, and so on. A little Halloween bonus (which you can't see when it's completed) is that the circles with the half-arches kind of look like spiders until they're joined up with the arches coming around the other way.
One of the variations for Ponio had little lines with beads on the ends, which were similar to those in Winflo ... so I did those and kind of a minimalist Winflo.

Tangled Tidbits -
Thank you for the illustration of a string-free Ponio - great variation!
*Ponio features Sue's signature sparkle
*Winflo orbs incorporated into Ponio


From Jody Genovese, CZT (New York) ~

Attached is my tile for challenge #167. So excited for your upcoming art adventure. I think you will be amazing!

Tangled Tidbits -
*so many happy Winflo, shadowed, arua-ed, springing from Ponio
*four fabulous variations of Ponio - note the triangular threesome!


A very warm welcome to Heather Temple (Killingworth, Connecticut) ~

I finally had time to do one! And as you will see wanted to do two. I took much liberty with your string but as I looked at it I kept seeing a giant Winflo. Then it came to me to just add more orbs like how you start Winflo and do Ponio right down the middle. Both new to me. I especially liked Ponio. First time trying some white charcoal for some highlighting. That's going to take more practice. Then after I started my tile I looked at your string again and drew out the second "tile" on a post-it while at work. No time to execute a real one but wanted you to see what I was seeing.
Thanks again for these challenges. I can't participate often but love to see the possibilities each Monday.

Tangled Tidbits -
*wonderful perspective achieved with one large Winflo
*shading and highlights create depth in the tangles

It's a butterfly!!


From Audrie Wiesenfelder (Tucson, Arizona) and here on her blog, The Purple Butterfly ~

Here I am at the 11th hour, as usual. I didn't get around to this challenge till today; but luckily, it just sort of fell into place in true Zentangle fashion. After I finished the first one (white ink on black tile), I decided to try adding color. I had seen a tile that Ria Matheussen had done using colored pencils on a white on black tile. I thought it was quite effective, and had to try it for myself. I also flipped the tile on it's side for a totally different look. I'm sending them both.

 Tangled Tidbits -
*diamond shaped centers for Ponio
*curved stems of Winflo

*vibrant colors
*totally different look achieved by rotating the string


From Marla Mendenhall (California) ~

Adele, thanks for giving my tiles a nod last week. They were great fun to produce.
I LOVE learning new patterns. Unfortunately, it sometimes takes me a while to install them into my right-brain abstract library, and this week I was pleased with the outcome of only one tile (and trust me, the string really is in there somewhere, but I can't remember where). I'll definitely be adding these patterns to my tangles in the future. As much as I didn't like my other tiles, I did enjoy playing with variations of Ponio especially. These challenges are the very best part of my week!

Tangled Tidbits -
*luscious layers of Winflo -   The pattern begins with the corner of a larger one then diminishes in size as it grows in number.
* border of Ponio - top arc of each section morphs into a Winflo silhouette



From Anita A Westin (Rättvik,Sweden) and here on her blog ~

Here come my entry for IAST 167. I love to learn about new patterns and I might not have tried these if it wasn´t for this challenge. I had fun doing it and here are more about it in my blog:
Thank you for a great challenge. It means a lot to follow this every week even if it happens I don´t participate exactly every time!

Tangled Tidbits -
*one large center Winflo and Ponio
*weight added by darkening in alternating sections of Ponio
*Winflo dots accent the border lines


From Susan Theron (Velddrif, South Africa) ~

Tangled Tidbits -
*evenly sized tangles, beautifully shaded
*two pretty versions of Winflo


From Felicity Strohfeldt (South Africa) and here on her blog ~

See that you are up to lots of exciting arrangements. I’m fascinated by the artist tour website of which you are part. So much talent in your neck of the woods. Good luck with the great plans for December.
This week’s challenge was certainly quite a challenge. Lovely Ponio by Mei Hua Teng (Damy) and Winflo by Nadine Roller. I turned your String once to the right and then what? Two tangles; one a border and the other more floral or fanlike, but no filler pattern. Anyway I persevered and low and behold, it actually turned out quite satisfactorily.
Thank you Mei Hua Teng (Damy)for your lovely Ponio and Nadine Roller for Winflo. As always Adele, thank you for your enthusiasm and the love you put into each week’s challenge.

Tangled Tidbits -
*pretty Ponio variations line the border, the string, Winflo curves
*Winflo tipped strings, a large central one, and even a touch of free floating wings


From Julie Bazuzi (Washington State) and here on her blog ~

Huge congrats on your news about the Florida Arts Tour!
I enjoyed seeing everyone's pumpkin tiles for last week's prompt. With all the variations available for Ponio, I'm excited to see what this group will create. I think I used 5 or 6 variations in this one drawing. In contrast, I used Winflo in it's most basic form. I am sure we will see some great innovations there as well.
As always, thanks for a great string adventure,

Tangled Tidbits - 

*dark centered Ponio with rounded corners

*awesome aura throughout - shades of gray add remarkable dimension

*black Winflo orbs repeat throughout

From Sharyn Penna (Massachusetts) ~

Your participation in the 'Off the Beaten Path' art studio tour sounds like a perfect way to ring in the holidays. It will be fun to trod along the path of your virtual tour in December!
This week's prompt was a tough one for me. Aura filled in for my lack of vision. I'm sooo looking forward to seeing how others make the two tangles boogie down!
Cheers to living vicariously through others!

Tangled Tidbits - 

*diamond, round, and oval sparkled centers for Ponio

*gracefully curved lines and aura, along with the softest shading, lend a silken look to Ponio

And now...

the tile for honors this week...

was sent in by...

Ragged Ray from the United Kingdom ~

I was so pleased you chose to use Ponio this week - it's one I use often. Such a pleasure to draw and so happy to blend into other tangles. I kept the tile quite simple, choosing to consider which areas to leave light and which to darken, to create contrast. And then Winflo added a little bit of movement into the quite solid surroundings. I also turned the tile so that the string seemed to form an almost Art Deco vase! Lots of shading. Lots of fun.

Tangled Tidbits -

*dark sparkled aura surrounds Ponio and pulls it into a grid

*shaded Ponio centers with a touch of highlight give off a glow

*elongated, black centers of Ponio accented with three small white dots

*precise fine lines of the grid contrast with the wispy lines that accent the vertical Ponio

*shadow shading of the long and elegant Winflo

Congratulations, Ragged Ray!

I have a little some thing coming in the mail for you.

A huge thank you to all of the contributors to this week's challenge.
Please know that I appreciate and treasure your kindnesses and encouragements. 

Many thanks to the creative minds behind the tangled we used this week along with my string:

Ponio by CZT Mei Hua Teng (Damy)

and
Winflo by Nadine Roller, CZT

Check back Tuesday afternoon for "It's a String Thing" #168!