Friday, May 29, 2015

Tips for Tangling Jasmin

This week's "It's a String Thing" #94 (click here for all of the delightful details) includes the beautiful tangle, Jasmin by Simone Bishoff.  
Here are a few of my Tips for Tangling it that you may find helpful ~


Have a wonderful weekend!






Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

...and another pop of paisley


Paisley by Adele Bruno, CZT

      We sleep, but the loom of life never stops,
      and the pattern which was weaving 
      when the sun went down is weaving
      when it comes up in the morning.                   
                                                                                                                 ~Henry W. Beecher







Tuesday, May 26, 2015

"It's a String Thing" #94

It is Tuesday, your good news day!

The "merry merry month of May" comes to a close this week, (where did that time go?!)
Many things are celebrated in May, not the least of which are the blooming flowers brought on by April showers.

We will use some flower inspired tangles this week along with TanglePatterns String 094 by CZT Linda Fine ~
Copyrighted image used with permission by TanglePatterns.com
The 'bouquet' of tangles include:

Wist by CZT Michelle Beauchamp

Jasmin by Simone Bischoff

Sooflowers by Livia Chua

Fleuri by CZT Geneviève Crabe

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

Use as many or as few as you'd like.

Simply pencil the string line onto your tile and tangle away!  Keep in mind that string lines are suggestions and let the patterns lead the way.

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: 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!






Monday, May 25, 2015

"It's a String Thing" #93 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 hold dear.  May God grant them eternal peace.

This week we used a curvy string line and three tangles that were knew to most participants.  Let's take a look ~

The first tile arrived from Cathy Cusson ~
...I loved this string. I used two of the tangles and added a bit of color. I need to work on gottago , so I didn’t use it. Something just never looks quite right.
 Tangled Tidbits -
*great variation in sizes of 4Mom
*nicely shaded white spaces
*alternating blue and withe lines for JJ

From Carmela ~
This one was a real challenge for me.
I used the patterns ones in my tangle agenda, and i found them nice, but all together is very busy.
And not so easy to fit all the straight patterns in the curvy string.
Further made a mistake in the Gottago pattern bij the connection by the slanting lines, so I made a variation
On my Blog 
Tangled Tidbits - 
*a creative opportunity with great results!
*combination of two 4Mom variations
*two large JJ

From Sarah Antoinette ~
This was a great string to test my skills. It felt like good exercise! And I paid attention to using the string pretty well for myself that is! Good tangles that required thinking!
[my blog]


Tangled Tidbits -
*accurate description of these tangles!
*super shading of JJ
*thick dark centers for Gattago


From Brie Zobel ~
This week's challenge was a challenge. String 93 is all curvy lines (kind of reminds me of an elephant head actually). The tangles are mostly angular and gridded (and new to me). Normally the string and tangles have something in common that gives me a starting point. This week I wasn't sure where to start.

As two of the patterns were both gridded, I played around with scale, something I have a hard time doing. Gottago looks great on a small scale. I did, however, underestimate how many tiny little lines there were in it! :) 4MOM was the easiest to warp and therefore made a good top border. Individuals JJs look great strung in the open spaces left.
Super pleased with the final. I wasn't sure I would get something to come together that wasn't chaotic. (The less chaotic they are, the more relaxed I am on finishing them.)
The tile is also shown on my blog 

Tangled Tidbits -
*admirable small grid for Gottago
*4Mom string line
*JJ jems on a string - very clever!

From Sidney Kapinos and here on her blog ~

Tangled Tidbits - 
*swirls in 4Mom
*nice thick centers of Gottago
*JJ string lines

From Ilse Lukken ~
Voilà, my entry for this week ;-)
It's always nice to learn new tangles, this time Gottago (at the bottom, right and middle) was my favorite one, although I didn't fill much space with it. I'll surely use it again some other time!
You can find my tile on my blog as well.

Tangled Tidbits - 
*black tips of 4Mom
*solid scallops of JJ
*delicate lines in GG

From Beth Gaughan ~
I really enjoyed this week's challenge. It felt intuitive to put the tile together, and it almost drew itself. Since the three patterns were grid-based, I also added two of my favorite grid patterns to the tile - Kiss and Cadent.

Tangled Tidbits - 
*a beautiful blend of tangles
*stacked 4Mom
*single arced row of JJ 

From Ragged Ray ~
Here is my tile for this week's challenge. I learned many little lessons while working on it -

- Tangles that look like they won't work with the string can still produce pleasing results.
- A string can be altered to your desire (I know this is a basic principle but I always forget!)
- If a tangle feels uncontrollable at a certain size change it (I like 4MOM when I draw it smaller as the circles don't get the better of me!)
- Wobbly grid lines give a tangle more character!
- Shading doesn't have to be logical (falling where light would fall) - it can be used both sides of a band make it stand out more.
Thanks for the opportunity to learn a bit more about this crazy pastime!
Tangled Tidbits -
*truisms of tangling in a nutshell and so very wonderfully worded
*black sparkled orbs of 4Mom
*JJ trimmed 4Mom

From Sandra ~
thank you for your new challenge :-) At first I wanted to tangle all three patterns but I didn't like the tile that I began and than I decided to start a new one with only Gottago. A wonderful pattern with so much variations :-) I didn't know this tangle before but I'm sure it will become one of my favourites!
In my blog you can find the tile here


Tangled Tidbits -
*marvelous monotangle
*one continuous grid with pattern changes at the string lines
*superb shading


From Anna Mega ~
this challenge was perfect.
Τhis is the tile that I mαde.
I did not have much time but I tried!

Tangled Tidbits -
*aura-ed orbs of 4Mom
*great variation of 4Mom in lower left loop
*beautifully shaded and highlighted orbs - notice the white dots


From CZT Joan Delony ~
... I haven't tried a new pattern since "Uncorked" which I use so often, I didn't feel the need to explore further. Enjoyed the challenge and the learning.

Tangled Tidbits -
*large center swirl of JJ complete with sparkle
*JJ scallops along the string line
*single, curved 4Mom

From Delores Brushcreek ~
Here’s my submission. Somehow I went a little crazy with this one!

Tangled Tidbits -
*Gottago along curves
*a 4Mom face!
*background of JJ


From Jeanine Berry ~
Thanks for another challenging tangle. These were all new to me and I ended up tweaking Mom a bit. As you can probably tell, I am just starting with zentangle, but I love seeing the patterns emerge.

Tangled Tidbits -
*triangle aura-ed tips of 4Mom
*JJ shaded on one side of the scallops
*lovely line work on Gottago


From Jane Glotzer ~
Gotta love Gottago and I started there, creating the background/frame...next came the hammock like deconstructed version of JJ...then I zigzagged my way around with 4MOM and filled in only the top circles and some striping...added my other variation of JJ along another part of the string and there was something about the overall sparseness I really liked. Shading added some depth..I found this challenge so interesting because I approached it in an entirely different way than I typically work, deconstructing and using just pieces of some tangles and leaving many areas of the string unfilled...I really love how it turned out...so cool, so fun, so zentangle!

Tangled Tidbits -
*aura-ed circles of 4Mom
*string line of JJ
*harmonious white space

With "groetjes" from Efie ~

 Tangled Tidbits -
*three variations of 4Mom
*interspersed JJ and Gottago
*soft shading of the center circle

From Sally Sheldon ~
I could not get away from seeing a large circle at the center of the string with 4M and JJ working together. So here's what happened!

Tangled Tidbits -
*great combination of patterns
*4Mom along JJ lines
*JJ in 4Mom orbs

A very warm welcome to Alexandra Henrich who sent her tile with "Kind regards from Germany" ~
here comes my entry for this week - my first one ever! I'm still quite new to zentangle, but totally hooked on it, as it allows me to be creative in a way I never thought possible. I simply love the way one gets carried away while tangling and how the patterns sometimes seem to develop a life of their own. The patterns were all new to me, but I must admit that JJ turned into something like a favorite. Thanks for offering this great opportunity ;-)

Tangled Tidbits -
*aura-ed sections of Gottago
*wavy lines in 4Mom variation
*chain link look for JJ


From Betsy Gentry ~
This was a fascinating combination of string and tangles and I enjoyed putting them together. Thank you for posting your tips for JJ, very helpful and I love your concept of drawing continual lines. Very calming to draw like that. 
Tangled Tidbits -
*large, sparkled Gottago
*jumbo JJ
*striped aura for 4Mom

From Ingrid Coventon ~
Usually I like when the stringline disappears when drawing the tangle patterns. But not this time. I emphasized the stringline, because otherwise it would be too busy and there would be no focuspoint in the tile. I hope it worked that way.
I liked all the tanglepatterns especially 4 MOM. It is so versatile.

Tangled Tidbits -
*JJ and 4 Mom combination
*string loops of JJ
*terrific shading

From Deb Jacob ~
Thank you for once again putting out a challenging challenge! I really enjoyed these new to me tangles. I still have to figure out how not to get lost in those grids, but it's a journey. Gotta love the journey and the beauty & truth that unfold along the road. Have a blessed & safe Memorial day. Please stop somewhere along the way to offer a silent (or spoken) thanks to all of our brave service men & women who have given so much for us.
 Tangled Tidbits -
*pretty center of JJ
*tippled 4Mom
*tangled string line

From Christina Luis ~
Thank you for such a fun set of tangles. I really enjoyed them this week. I hope you have had a wonderful week...the link to my blog

Tangled Tidbits -
*three variations of Gottago
*wonderful highlights and shading
*aura-ed and striped string line



From Joanne Hawes ~
Thanks for this one I love 4mom and all the different ways that you can use it. It's a fun one. The string reminded me of an elephant ( but I'm not to sure why??! Anyone else?) I struggled with gottago so I left it off. JJ was a little hard for me too but I'm pleased with how it came out in the end. I also have it on my blog ( which is brand new)

Tangled Tidbits -
*sparkled and striped 4Mom
*Knightsbridge  trimmed JJ
*gorgeous 4Mom

From Tabitha Barnett ~
Well, that was fun! I just love that string. I must say, I struggled with gottago....I kept confusing myself. I definitely had fun playing with variations on 4MOM. I think I'll be using that pattern alot. [also here on flickr]

Tangled Tidbits - 
*yummy JJ, shaded and curved
*4Mom, shaded, tippled, and aura-ed
*elongated orbs in 4Mom

From Mary (in Baltimore, Maryland) ~
Thanks for highlighting these 3 newer tangles. I'm not sure that my combination is all that pleasing, but I enjoyed the process so that's good enough for me. I think OM kind of gets lost in JJ; maybe I should have added some emphasis to it.

Tangled Tidbits - 
*tear shaped white space mirrored in 4Mom
*alternating line direction in Gottago
*dark scallops of JJ

From Susan Szathmary with a smile ~


Tangled Tidbits - 
*an elegant swan!
*rows and rows of 4Mom
*great depth with shading


From Becky Welty ~


Tangled Tidbits - 
*clever 4Mom
*uniform tangle sizes with pleasing bold black and white balance

From Susan Theron ~
This was a difficult one deciding where to put what...........
Also on my blog

Tangled Tidbits -
*Gottago on both straight and curved grid
*sparkle!
*dark angles of 4Mom

From Kylie Dinning ~
Thanks for another great challenge. I love Gottago and combined it with 4mom ( my first time using).

Tangled Tidbits -
*4Mom - sharp bold angles and soft white circles
*alternating detail lines of Gottago
*shaded string lines


From Emily Shelton ~
This is also on my blog -
In addition to 4MOM, Gottago and JJ, I also used
Crescent Moon (Z(r) )
Footlites by Carol Ohl
CO2 by Antonine Magger and
Fans by Suzanne McNeil
Lots of elements with circles and lots with prominent fans/triangles
I've turned it around and around and can't figure out which way I like it best.
 Tangled Tidbits -
*tippled 4Mom
*4Mom and JJ combined
*a happy combination of tangles


And now, the tile for honors this week was sent in by Sue Agnew from Arizona!

Sue wrote ~
The tangles were all new to me, and it was fun to mess around with them and see what they wanted to do. I found Gottago the hardest so just kept it basic ... I think I would like it better on a regular grid rather than a distorted one, because the distortion (skewedness?) inherent in the pattern itself didn't really come through. My Moms ended up more like Mooos, oh well.
Sue's tile was elegantly simple and captured the essence of each of the tangles ~

Tangled Tidbits -
*amazing arc of Gottago
*sparkled JJ
*multiple circles in 4Mom


Congratulations, Sue!

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

Thank you all for sharing your work so generously with the rest of the tangling community.

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

TanglePatterns String 093 by Sabrina Croft
4MOM by Jane Eileen Maone, CZT

Gottago by Lianne Woods, CZT

JJ by Joy Taylor, CZT

Check back Tuesday afternoon for "It's a String Thing" #94!



























Thursday, May 21, 2015

Tips for Tangling JJ

This week's "It's a String Thing" features the tangle JJ by CZT Joy Taylor.  It is a lovely pattern and I have enjoyed getting to know it.

Armed with my penchant for tangling with continuous lines, I experimented with ways to combine steps along the diagonal lines and across the grid.  My goal was to find a rhythmic and relaxing way to draw the tangle, which resulted in my Tips for Tangling JJ.  I hope you find them helpful ~


Tips for Tangling JJ (by Joy Taylor, CZT) by Adele Bruno, CZT

Some additional notes ~

In Step 1 -
As Joy states in her description on TanglePatterns, the dots are not necessary, but you may find them helpful.  I exaggerated them here so they can be seen, but they will be small dots on your grid.  
The other option is to just imagine those line segments divided into thirds, as I did in steps 2 and 3.

In Step 2 -
The long 'S' curve line crisscrosses over the diagonal line at the dots and through the square grid line intersections.



ENJOY!




Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

We keep moving forward,
opening new doors,
and doing new things,
because we're curious and
curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.

~ Walt Disney


This quote caught my eye because in the past week I taught two classes of "curious" tanglers who took an adventure "down a new path" as we spent a few relaxing hours tangling paisleys.  We used apprentice and regular Zentangle® tiles.  Here is a sampling of my students' work - some completed  and others still in progress - 

Class tiles - Adele Bruno, CZT
Aren't they just beautiful?
Many thanks to Juliane, Maria, Mary, Katie, Kathy, and Michael, for such a delightful class.





Tuesday, May 19, 2015

"It's a String Thing" #93

It's Tuesday, your good news day!

We begin our adventure this week with TanglePatterns String 093 by Sabrina Croft.

Copyrighted image used with permission by TanglePatterns.com


Then, I thought we would take this week to get caught up with some of the newer tangles.
They include~

4MOM by Jane Eileen Maone, CZT
Gottago by Lianne Woods, CZT
JJ by Joy Taylor, CZT

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

Use as many or as few as you'd like.

Simply pencil the string line onto your tile and tangle away!  Keep in mind that string lines are suggestions and let the patterns lead the way.

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: 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!

Monday, May 18, 2015

"It's a String Thing" #92 Tiles

This week's delicious challenge produced some really yummy tiles.  We used a swirled string line and tangles with some very sweet names.  Let's take a look ~


This first tile arrived from Joanne Hawes ~
It's a very colourful one this week, I was channeling my inner ledenzer colouring technique of layering coloured pencils ( not up to her standards yet ;) ). All these tangles were new to me but I really like Kandi ribnz ( I'd kind of skipped over it before as a tangle glad I got to try it out!:) ). I couldn't work out where to put butter so the curly bits ended up on my cayke and so I thought it then looked a bit like a peacock feather. No peacock coloured pencils hence why the layering started I'm happy with that section and the ribnz not so much the other bit of cayke it seems to crowded there.... Or something.
Tangled Tidbits -
*dainty Kandy Ribnz
*clever morphing of the tangles
*just a bit of sparkle to add a pretty shine

From Sarah Antoinette ~
I must apologize for not getting this in sooner as I've had a terrible allergy season thus far. It was a hard challenge, but I learned some great tangles and played with gradation. It's not my strongest neatest piece, but being sick I am happy I was able to complete it. Always a great time! [my blog]
Tangled Tidbits - 
* kudos to you for making time to tangle - get well soon!
*inclusion of both shading and highlighting
*depth shown through various sizes of the patterns


From Brie Zobel ~
All of these tangle were new to me. I tried this challenge twice. I was unhappy with my first tangle, as it felt crowded, chaotic and flat. I was too same in scale size. I like my second version much better.
Chocobox reminds me a double cartoon dinosaur head. It was fun to do - there are couple black sheep chocoboxes who wanted to start life as figure 8s. I stumbled upon a very minimal version of it while learning it that I really like. I also had no idea that my Cayke tangle took on a life of it's own until I started looking up how to shade it when I completed the second tile.
There is something very airy and floating about this Zentangle. And I felt happy at the end, so I guess it was a great bit of relaxation.
Both this Zentangle and the Chaotic version are shown on my blog.

Tangled Tidbits -
*such a sweet reflection of the process
*curves of Cayke
*deep dark back drop for Butter


With "many greetings from Germany" Kersitn wrote ~
I loved the string you`ve chosen for us.
I think it was not so easy to combine the four patterns, but I´ve tried my very best and had a lot of fun this morning.
What do you think about the little color-accents to the choco-box? Furthermore I have added one more bubble sometimes...
Tangled Tidbits -
*very pretty patterns and lovely "little color-accents"
*weighted outline of Kandy Ribnz
*free floating Choco Box over the tangles


From Beth Broadway ~
Wonderful challenge. This one was special to me as my dad loved Christmas ribbon candy. In honor of him, I have a Christmas ribbon candy tattoo. My Kandy Ribnz tangle reflects the colors in this tattoo. As I tangled this tile, my thoughts natural drifted to memories of my father. Thank you.


Tangled Tidbits - 
*very sweet memories
*bold black and sparkled Choco Box contrast with smaller shaded ones
*ZIA of Christmas color


With "kind regards" from Ilse Lukken ~
My entry for this week is not as nice as I had hoped, but it gave the relaxed feeling I needed.
You can find it at my blog as well.
Tangled Tidbits -
*larger simply superb tangles
*shading along string lines
*bold stripe for Kandy Ribnz


With "warm greets" from Carmela ~
Thanks for this great challenge.
i loved the string and had much pleasure to fill in the sweet patterns.
On my blog.
Tangled Tidbits -  
*Choco Box corner
*arua-ed and darkened spaces of Kandy Ribnz
*layers of Cayke

From Sue Jacobs ~
Fun tangle patterns this week! I simply had to add color for this theme!
On my blog 
Tangled Tidbits -
*sweet tangles of beautiful color
*curls to finish Kandy Ribonz
*pleasing balance of black and white space

From Kylie Dinning ~
Happy to be back again this week. I really enjoyed these patterns. When finished I turned the tile 'upside down' and prefer it that way.


Tangled Tidbits -
*wonderful example of how tiles are meant to be viewed from all angles
*super shading
*heavier outer lines of the tangles

With "hugs" from Lily Moon ~

Tangled Tidbits - 
*simply gorgeous tangles
*aura-ed Choco Box transforms the pattern
*sublime highlights and shading 



With "groetjes" from Efie and on her blog ~

Tangled Tidbits - 
*centers of Cayke continue upward
*Kandy Ribnz in Kandy Ribnz
*checkerboard of Butter


From Becky Welty~

Tangled Tidbits - 
*yummy shading
*two sizes of Butter
*horizontal dark Butter area is a lovely compliment to the diagonal lighter side of the tile

From HeidiSue ~
Here is my entry for this week's string thing challenge. I sure do like that string. I'm going to play with it some more.
For this one, chocobox was a completely new tangle for me, and I loved learning it and playing with it. When I got done with the tile, it was so girly and confectionary (just as you knew it would be, right?) I had to put pink in there. This was a really fun tile to do.
Tangled Tidbits -
*pretty pink accents
*lovely details for Cayke
*cascade of Cayke 'dusted' Choco Box


From Beth Graughan ~
Here is my entry for this week. This one was a challenge. I liked each pattern but had trouble fitting them together. I think the result looks like Christmas decorations.

Tangled Tidbits - 
*Cayke brings wedding cake to mind
*extra curls for Kandy Ribnz
*embellished single Butter


From Tabby Barnett ~
Thanks for the fun challenge again. I really enjoyed learning these patterns. All but 1 were new to me! Looking forward to the next challenge!
Tangled Tidbits -
*elegant layers of Cayke
*super shading
*graceful Kandy Ribnz


From Rhonda Roy ~
Thanks for the challenge! All four of these tangles were new to me, so I enjoyed learning them this week.
Here’s my version using all four tangles on String 098.

Tangled Tidbits -
*aura and stipple for Kandy Ribnz
*splendid balance of shaded, black, and white spaces
*splashes of sparkle


With "many greetings from Germany" Sandra wrote ~
thank you again that you chose my tile last week - I was really very happy about that :-)))
I liked the new challenge because I only knew Cayke and had fun to try new patterns :-)
I also like the string and I probably will use it again!
In my blog you can find the tile here:

Tangled Tidbits -
*bold dark spaces show off the tangles
*alternating accents for Butter
*black dots and loops added to Kandy Ribnz


From Ingrid Coventon ~
What a yummy challenge and I hope my tile is yummy too. I had to laugh out loud when I read the names of the suggested tangle patterns. LOL. All things tasty and I love them. Maybe I drew the chocobox a little too small, but it's ok.

Tangled Tidbits - 
*Yes, it is a very yummy tile!
*details, details, and more pretty details
*shading on the inside points of Kandy Ribnz and Cayke


A very warm welcome to Sally Sheldon ~
Zentangle came into my life about a year and a half ago. Often it has been free flowing without the use of a string within a square. But six weeks ago I discovered "It's a String Thing" and the challenge to stay within the square using strings and new patterns has been such fun! I have only shared my Zentange with family and friends so sending a challenge design to share with so many people is a big step for me. This turned out a little busier than expected but it seems to be a happy design. I look forward to many more challenges. Thank you.
Tangled Tidbits -
*Congratulations on taking that "big step" and welcome!
*string lines with a double serving of Cayke
*Butter sprials added to Kandy Ribnz



From Annie Taylor ~
How the weeks fly by!! By a strange coincidence, I drew this week's challenge whilst sitting in an ice-cream parlour - a new one that's just opened in our town. My daughter's friend had a birthday party and all the kids were invited for an ice cream after they'd spent a hectic few hours at the sports centre.
I thought it looked better rotated 90 degrees to the left and in the end, it doesn't looks so 'ice-creamy' but it was fun to do!
Tangled Tidbits -
*such a happy coincidence to tangle sweets in a a sweet shop
*curved grid for Butter with delightful details
*shaded sections of the tangles are sensational



With "cheers" from Sharyn Penna ~
Anticipating the string delayed me ... until I realized I was over thinking. I just took a breath and began tangling. All the tangles were new to my hand but have familiar feel and were such a blast to shade. Your prompts are truly a treat! 

Tangled Tidbits -
*a great reminder to breathe and trust the process - look what Sharyn has to show for it!
*Cayke follows the curves of Kandy Ribnz and shares its little loops
*Kandy Ribnz end in Butter


With "greetings from Germany" Joya wrote ~
here's my contribution for the String Thing-challenge. I didn't have much time in the last few weeks so I couldn't tangle the challenges during the challenge-time, but this time I made it :)
Tangled Tidbits -
*perf accented Kandy Ribnz
*sparkle for Cayke
*crisp lines and deep dark spaces

From Daniel ~
Super fun as always!
Tangled Tidbits -
*light Butter
*aura-ed Choco Box
*striped arcs of Cayke


With "sunny greetings from the Baltic Sea" Henrike Bratz wrote ~
this one wasn’t easy. I struggled with”butter” which refused to work out the way it was supposed to. So I had to change it quite a lot. But when I then tangled
“kandy ribnz” I thought of Lily Moon. I think she’s a master of highlighting, which gives her work a very special and unique touch. So I tried to kind of imitate her style – first with “kandy ribnz” and then I tried to give all the other tangles a little sparkling touch as well, even the “butter”. This was fun.
Tangled Tidbits - 
*I am tickled that you took the time to write about Lily's influence on your work.  She is a master at highlighting and shading and continues to inspire all of us from week to week.  It is an incredible gift to be able to glean from other artists who submit their work.  "Imitation is the best form of flattery"  and when it comes to tangling, it can be the best way to learn.
*spectacular sparkle
*weighted down curves of Butter
*multiple sparkled stripes of Kandy Ribnz


A very warm welcome to Anna Megalakakis from Athens, Greece.  She wrote ~
...I love tangling, it is entertaining and relaxing.
I learned about your challenge from facebook (Zentangle® group) and I
participate for the first time.
thanks and let's tangle.....
FacebookGoogle+ 
Tangled Tidbits - 
*delicately detailed tangles
*zigzag embellishment for Kandy Ribnz
*neatly lined back drop for Choco Box


From Mary in Baltimore, MD ~
Here is my second time to enter your It's a String Thing challenge. I found this one to be a fun string to use, and was charmed by all 4 of the tangles, which are all new to me. I did start out drawing this right side up, but once Kandy Ribnz was in, it wanted to be turned sideways, so I did that before adding the Cayke and Butter patterns.

Tangled Tidbits - 
*a string line of Choco Box 
*elongated loops of Kandy Ribnz
*pretty shading

From Deb Jacobs ~
... Here in the Midwest we have yet another flock of rainy days. Guess that's ok - spring showers should bring lots of flowers. Kandy Ribbon was a true challenge for me. Practiced and practiced this week, I still just don't get the hang of the loops - but Echoism is the same way for me. I'll keep at it. I didn't use it initially - had about 3 false starts and ditched them. The colored tile was the first I finished and as you can see there's no hint of Kandy Ribbon in it. I'm really not an over-achiever - just working on color and shading as well. So here are my submissions. My quest will be to continue to work on the super challenging to me tangles - like Echoism and Kandy Ribbons. Thanks for your blog, challenge and many inspirations.
Tangled Tidbits -
*Your diligence resulted in beautiful tiles.  Remember "there are no mistakes in Zentangle®, so once a tile is begun, move forward one stroke at a time and follow through.  The outcome will be  pleasant surprise!
*lovely layers of tangles
*Butter in both rounded and elongated loops gives wonderful perspective



From Michele Wynne ~
This was a fun challenge. I loved all of the patterns and was determined to use them all, but just tried to let it flow. I started by filling the areas of the string with Kandy Ribnz leaving some space in the center for what ever wanted to fill it. The string eventually disappeared. I love when that happens.
Tangled Tidbits -
*a joyful way to describe tangling
*a delicious mix of black and grays
*Choco Box in Kandy Ribnz


From Donna with "cheers" ~
Thanks for another great challenge! I enjoyed both the form of the string and the energy of the new tangles.They seemed to want to fill in all the space and keep going.
Tangled Tidbits -
*your description is a treat
*Kandy Ribnz ends swirl into Butter
*very nice shading


From Christina Luis ~
Thank you for such a fun challenge this week. I really had a lot of fun with these tangles. It was nice to learn new things, here is my entry.....it's also on my blog
Tangled Tidbits - 
*lacy loops of Kandy Ribnz
*Cayke sprouts from Kandy Ribnz
*a sweet variety of Choco Box shapes and sizes


From Portia Hyde ~
I did three versions of this one and each one was very different from the others. I find it interesting that not only do interpretations vary from person to person, but also minute to minute with the same person.
Tangled Tidbits - 
* an excellent observation - tangles do capture moments.
*Cayke centers of Kandy Ribnz
*wavy grid for Butter yeilds a fabulous warping

From Emily Shelton ~
 I spent 3x as much time figuring out a basic idea than I did in actually doing it….probably looks like it, too. Seriously though, this stretched my creativity and was great fun.

Tangled Tidbits -
*corners of Cayke
*Butter along a string line
*sparkled bands of Kandy Ribnz


From Susan Theron and on her blog ~

Tangled Tidbits - 
*dense to light concentration of tangles
*cascading Cayke
*sweet shading



From Audrie Weisenfelder ~
Hope all is well, and you're enjoying some Spring weather. We've run the gamut from the 90's down to down to the 60's, and had some rain as well.
As for the challenge; once I laid out Kandy Ribnz, I really loved the flow of it, and just couldn't see it improved by adding any of the other patterns.


So I laid it aside, and started over. This time I added a little Cayke to it:


I was going to add more, but decided to quit while I was ahead, (I have a tendency to overdo when left to my own devices). Except for Cayke, or adding layers of Aura all around, which I decided against; I really couldn't come up with anything that I felt would enhance the tile. So there you have it: Kandy Ribnz with, or without Cayke. They are both featured on my blog:Purple Butterfly
Tangled Tidbits -
*absolutely wonderful thoughts about the process
*simple and elegant mono and duo tangles
*rich shading


From Cathy Cusson ~
One of my favorite tangles is Kandy ribnz. I can get lost in the swirly movement of this tangle. I also used butter, which I think could have looked better and cayke. Both are okay, but I really should have just played with kandy ribnz...

Tangled Tidbits - 
*colorful mix of patterns
*Kandy Ribnz center
*light and lovely Cayke


From Felicity Strohfeldt with wishes for a "brilliant week" ~
... “Sweet” challenge I thought at first sight, next the tangle patterns sound like confectionery delights and one look at the string reminded me of being a little girl visiting the shopkeeper with my Mom. After the shopkeeper had made up her order, he would invite me to choose my own sweet pick from a row of glass, sweet containers, while he twisted a paper cone as a container.
Now it was “choice,choices” once again for me. KR, ChocoBox, C, Butter, KR OR C, KR, KR, Choco Box, Butter...? Decision,decisions. Eventually three “Sweet Cones”swirled up the tile. Kandy Ribnz flanked Cayke with Buttery butterflies flying out in honour of the young artist, Danae, creator of Butter, all this accompanied by a spill of chocos from ChocoBox. Deconstruct of all the patterns to use to decorate the cones of ideas. Perfs and shading were the final touches. Hope its “sweet” enough. Also on my blog
Tangled Tidbits -
*a sweet stroll down memory lane
*beautiful Butter butterflies - and some with just two swirls
*playful pieces of the tangles floating about


And now, the tile for honors this week was sent in by

Tabitha Bedoukian of Montreal, Quebec, Canada ~
Turns out that I struggle with Cayke, so I gave up and took the centre element "off-grid". :)


Tangled Tidbits - 
*Cayke infused Kandy Ribnz
*free floating Cayke loops
*spirals from Butter fill in the background for the tangle
*Kandy Ribnz and Butter ara-ed and sparkled following the curve of the patterns

Congratulations, Tabitha! 

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

This was such a sweet challenge - each tile more delicious to behold than the next.  Thank you all for sharing your work so generously with the rest of the tangling community.

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

TanglePatterns String 098 by Beth Snoderly 
ChocoBox  by Didier Gervy
Cayke by Rose Brown
Butter by Danae Triantafyllopoulou
Kandy Ribnz by Cheryl Wilson


Check back Tuesday afternoon for "It's a String Thing" #93!