"It's a String Thing" #26 Tiles

Instructions for today's blog - 

     *Take a break from your busy day and read it when you have time to relax.

     *Grab a cup of tea or coffee.

     *Put your feet up

     *Proceed carefully so no detail is overlooked

Is all that really necessary?  

No, but there is just so much here to enjoy that you'll wish you did.  And besides, at the very least, you now have a smile on your face as you begin.  Gotcha!

The string used this week was heart-shaped and submissions were to include tanglers favorite patterns, the ones they loved to draw.

CZT Cheryl Rotnem said this was "so much fun to create."

She added a little color to finish it off.  Sand Swirl is lovely tucked in with Crescent Moon, isn't it?

Vicky Brison dubbed "It's a String Thing" #26 the LOVE IT challenge - great name!  And look what she did with it -

She said that the string was "most amazing" and she was so pleased with how her tile turned out, that she is using the image on gifts for Valentine's Day.  That's some wonderful love to spread, for sure - it's stunning.

Cathy Cusson said she loved the string, but was not as pleased with her version.  I'm pleased she sent it along.  It is a wonderful tile - very nautical.

She said that Betweed is one of her favorite tangles - she loves it.  It looks so nice wrapped around the circular string line.

Peggy Kohrmann is a new tangler and a friend of Sue Agnew and therefore a friend of ours :)

She chose tangles that began with the letters L-O-V-E:  Lotsadots, Onamato, Veezley (her own heart variation), and Echoism.  That was a wonderful idea and a great way to learn new patterns.

What a lovely, lovely tile.  Hat's off to you, Peggy!  

Jenna Wheatman said that her challenge this week came from having to choose which tangles to use - her favorites constantly change the more she learns.  (I think we can all relate!)

She did however, say that she thinks she may "have fallen in love with Aquafleur" and it shows - this is just breathtaking:

Jenna also sent this gorgeous tile:

Thank you, Jenna!

Cheryl Anne Day-Swallow said that this challenge was fun and her enjoyment shows:

The doves are a sweet touch and the Hollibaugh nest is very clever!

Marie-Therese Dubois said that she likes Aquafleur very much and has used it a lot in her work lately -

Oh! The red Aquafluer is stunning and the Knightsbridge back drop lends a gorgeous contrast.  

CZT Sue Jacobs' tile is a treat for several reasons.  Most notably, it is bordered with her new tangle pattern Ditto. You can find the step-out for it here on her blog.  As her "mac and cheese" she also used Bales.

Sue echoed the string line in her border - a creative touch - and added such a lovely shade of pink.

Annemarie said that she "really liked this one and enjoyed working on it."

She also added, "Accompanied with lovely music, I made it yesterday evening."  

Thank you Annemarie for that wonderful thought and a gentle reminder. Lovely music is very much a part of the experience and ceremony of the Zetangle® method.

Sue Agnew said that her absolute favorite tangle pattern is Bucky (used in the center of her heart shape).  She said, "I think because it's impossible to think about anything else while drawing it, which makes it really absorbing."

With a description as inviting as that, I think many more of us will be using Bucky in our work. She adds, "The heart is outlined in Fricle and Inapod, it's filled with Bucky, the upper right is Cubine, lower right is Dex, lower left is Flukes, and just a little bit of Footlites in the upper left."

 It's just beautiful.

Now, here is a love story for you - Robin Grosland has been teaching her husband, Bill, the basics of Zentangle and they both have really enjoyed the process.  She writes:

Since this week's challenge was somewhat Valentine's in nature, I decided to invite him -- my valentine -- to participate with me. We worked separately so we didn't influence each other's work, but we were still working on something together. We were both very excited to show each other our work. This might become a regular thing for us.

One of my favorite patterns is Widgets. I decided to add a heart-shaped one, in honor of Valentine's Day. I also added touches of green and blue (my favorite color and his). It's kind of like this tile is a blend of both of us -- very Valentine-y.

"This is my husband, Bill's, first tile. He's very proud of himself. I'm proud of him, too."

What a great story and beautiful work to show for it!

Joan Delony sent this along - 

Joan chose wispy, detailed tangles while leaving airy spaces for them to breathe - it's stunning.

Ingrid Coventon said she added a "little colour" to her entry-  

It is a lovely mix of patterns and color.  One of the patterns she chose was my new tangle LG (view the step-out here) - and with red hearts!   It's a really pretty tile. 

Brenda Urbanik said, "What a fun string!" She had a "wonderful time with some really nice tangle patterns!"

Yes, this looks like fun! The brown Micron adds a lovely touch of color and her choice of patterns makes the string line less dominant - wonderful!

Annie Taylor wrote:

 "Oh I DID enjoy this one! I used some of the tangles I love (no room to use all the ones I love) and it includes old favourites Mooka, Tipple, Onomato, Florz and Heartstrings (plus that 'leafy' one whose name I never remember...) and some newer ones like Aquafleur, a single Fasset triangle and Ditto."

She also has it posted here on her blog.  The red Mooka heart is a perfect accent!

Annie closed her note with - "Great fun! LOVED it."  It is so very elegant.

Charlotte Carpentier said that as a new tangler, she doesn't "really have any specific favorites yet."  She used the ones she learned in class and wanted to try again because she "enjoyed them!"

Charlotte darkened in the spaces of N'Zepple and created a pleasingly bold look to the pattern.  Her shading is fabulous and it lends a beautiful compliment to the pink accents.  How very pretty!  

Anna Houston sent this happy tile - 

The way her tangle patterns 'move' along her string line and reach and flow is inspiring.  Anna gave Bales an entirely different look when she added the darkened spaces - great idea!

Sherry Siercks sent in this picture.  It was out of focus, but I wanted to be sure to include it.  

She wove a nice selection of tangles together here and made them very colorful.

CZT Sindy P joined in the challenge this week - yay!

This heart is full of energy - and pretty patterns, too.  Swirls, swooshes, and shading all add up to a Valentine-y masterpiece. 

Once Audrie Weisenfelder got started with this string, she couldn't stop she said.  She first tangled this tile -

 And soon had five more completed - all with some variation of the first but with added color (s).

She left the choice up to me - and it was a difficult one, but I selected the two above.  The first because it shows her initial tile and the second because it captured her eye for adding color.

She has them posted here on her blog if you want to stop by and see them :)

Celeste Hickey - another first time participant (hooray!) - was excited to finish one for the challenge.

It is exciting to see it!  What a great tile.  She used Sue Jacob's new Ditto -(that makes three, Sue!) - along the string line and the red background is just gorgeous.

Amy Curtis described the string line as a "sweet heart string" and so it is, especially on her tile - 

She added her favorite tangles and the result is beautiful.  You can also see it posted here on her blog.

Sharyn's tile is captivating.  

Here is her explanation of how she created this fascinating tangleation -

My favorite tangle right now is a combination of Well & Mooka...I added rounding and shading then highlighted with a white Sakura gelly roll. The final design reminds me of lima bean sprouts.

(On a side note:  Sharyn might just have a new tangle pattern here.  It almost has a feel to it - like lima bean sprouts, as she said.   I am reminded more of seeds in water - the way fresh pumpkin seeds look when rinsed.   Couldn't you just reach into that tile and feel them?)

Aren't you glad you followed my advice at the beginning of the post?!  Can you even believe all of the loveliness here in these works of art?

Many thanks to the talented tanglers who sent in their works of heART!

I have a little something coming to each of you via email to show my appreciation.

Have a wonderful Valentine week and do check back tomorrow for "It's a String Thing"#27!

ZIA Valentines...Keep Sharing the Love!

Here are some more Valentine ornaments for you...

The first is one I call Simply Bales.  I set out to tangle several patterns on this heart, but after the initial Bales was complete, I liked it just the way it was -

Adele Bruno, CZT

The second feeds my fascination with Fassett :)

Adele Bruno, CZT

The third was inspired by a Vera Bradley pattern.  I used Mumsy (click here to see my earlier post about the pattern) and my tangle pattern Iza - (click here to read about Iza)

Adele Bruno, CZT

The fourth was inspired by Jenna Wheatman's submission for "It's a String Thing" #26 and her use of Aquafleur.  

Adele Bruno, CZT

Do check back on Monday when I post the tiles sent in for the challenge.  Jenna's lovely tile will be posted along with all of the other wonderful entries.  You will be inspired for Valentine's Day!

It's not too late to join in the challenge this week.  The string line is heart shaped so you could be that much further ahead on your Valentines by participating - find the details here on Tuesday's post.

Keep spreading that ZIA love!

Tips for Tangling Fassett

Lynn Mead's new tangle pattern FASSETT continues to captivate me.  

I used it in last week's challenge and taught it to a large class this past weekend. 

There is one fine point about tangling this intriguing pattern that keeps cropping up when people first use it - namely, why a 'star' or 'flower' effect is achieved when drawing the tangle and at other times it seems to go askew.

Let's take a look...

Here are the first basic steps for Fassett:

Adele Bruno, CZT

Note that the pattern begins with a triangle.  Each additional triangle shares a line and two points with the one before.
The key to this step out is that lines of neighboring triangles intersect at the same points.  
In the above example, five lines intersect at each of the two middle points -very much like five pointed stars.  When the finished lines are drawn from the center of each aura-ed triangle, the end result looks like this -

Now, if we drew Fassett and began with the same simple triangle, but drew additional ones that intersected lines as well as points - it would look something like this:

Fassett Step Out,   Adele Bruno, CZT

Note the red arrow.   The triangle below the arrow intersects the bottom line of the triangle above it, not at a point.

The step out continues in the same fashion - aura each triangle - but when the lines are drawn from the center of each of these triangles, the result is slightly different:

You can see where the 'star' effect is achieved when the triangles intersect at the same point as well as the really interesting effect that occurs when the triangles intersect at lines.

Now that you can detect the differences- just for fun, go back and look over the tiles from this week's challenge.  (click here to view)  You'll be able to see where the pattern was drawn in the two different variations.

Keep tangling!  Enjoy!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

Last Wednesday's post featured Ragged Ray's observations about Zetangle and community.  Her sentiments resonated with many readers.  While tangles can be gleaned from books,  "it's definitely an activity that benefits from practice within a community - even if that is a virtual one" as Ragged Ray noted.

Well, with those thoughts fresh in my mind, I had the honor of teaching a class on Saturday to a very wonderful and welcoming group of thirty artists.  It was a pleasure to be in their company and be surrounded by so much talent - it was palpable :)  I was fed by their good company along with their enthusiasm for Zentangle and I am grateful.  

Here is a sampling of their first completed tiles - aren't they beautiful?!

Class tiles from Adele Bruno, CZT

Class tiles from Adele Bruno, CZT

It is a privilege to be a Certified Zentangle Teacher and to be able to build a community around this wonderful art form.  

If you haven't had an opportunity to take a class - do yourself a favor and look for a CZT in your area. They may have classes available.  The Zentangle website lists teachers by country and state and you can reference it here.

If, like Ragged Ray, there isn't a teacher in your area, do join in our community of tanglers every Tuesday through "It's a String Thing" weekly challenge.  You will learn, grow, and be appreciated on your tangled journey!

"It's a String Thing" #26

Tuesday, Tuesday, your good news day!

This week we are using String 039 created by Jo Fletcher and published by Linda Farmer on Tangle Patterns.  With Linda's kind permission, here is the string -

Copyright image used with permission from TanglePatterns.com  

In honor of Jo and her heart shaped string line as Valentine's Day nears - the challenge this week is to use the tangle patterns that you LOVE - your absolute favorites - your "mac 'n cheese" as Marie Thomas calls them.  This will be a sweet way to celebrate won't it?!

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


This exercise is for beginner and seasoned tanglers alike. Use it as an excuse to keep up with your art work, take time for yourself, learn new patterns, share your talent...

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
*Work must be completed on Zentangle tiles or on your 3.5" x 3.5" paper
* Submit a photo of your tile saved as jpg or
      scan your tile (300 dpi or higher) and save as a jpg
*Email your jpg file as an attachment to - brunoadelem@gmail.com
*Entries are to be submitted by Saturday evenings.
*Photos and 'Best of Show' are posted on Mondays. 

Send in your photos - you will encourage and inspire fellow Zentangle enthusiasts all over the world.
PLEASE NOTE: I will add a link to your blog or web site with your tile photo if you wish.

I look forward to your emails.

"It's a String Thing" #25 Tiles

What do you get when 18 tanglers from around the world apply a single pattern to the same string line?  A multifaceted feast for the eyes!

Yes, that is a bit of a 'play on words' because the pattern used this week is Lynn Mead's new tangle  Fassett.  You can click here to see the step out as well as Lynn's beautiful examples on Tangle Patterns.

Charlotte Carpentier said that this pattern was a "cool one" and it "rather screamed snowflake" to her -

This is also the first black tile she completed. Congratulations to Charlotte!  It does have a wonderfully wintry feel to it, especially the dotted swirls and white shading.

CZT Brenda Urbanik completed the challenge on three of the Zentangle® tiles:  the original, black and Renaissance.  In the process, she has made it challenging to pick a favorite...

...This one is gorgeous in its simplicity - 

 The blank spaces she left create a lovely elegance.
This one is striking for her mix of highlights and shading - and again that elegant space - so yummy!

She completes her trio with this beautiful contrast of white on black - such a treat!

Brenda has more about her tiles here on her blog.  She also sent very complimentary words about this tangle pattern that echo my sentiments - 

I just want to say well done to Lynn Mead for this tangle, it's absolutely magical, just connecting the tips of the nesting triangles and this beautiful pattern evolves seemingly out of nowhere! I loved working with this tangle, thank you for selecting it this week.

Using the term "nestling triangles" is a wonderful way to describe the step out for this tangle - especially when teaching someone else how to draw it.  Thank you for that Brenda.

CZT Sue Jacobs said that this was a "fun tangle to play with..."

She thought that it would be perfect to contrast white with black, so she "colored alternating black sections in with IDenti-pen and then did the tangles with white Gelly roll pen.  The other sections are tangled as usual."

Tanglers make note of that technique!  The result is just beautiful.  Sue also features here tile here on her blog.  

Audrie Weisenfelder said that she found Fasset to be "very user-friendly."

Once she started she said that she just "zipped along."  It is so pretty and the grey paper she used makes the white highlights glow.  Audrie also features her tile here on her blog.  

Anna Houston from frigid British Columbia warms us all with this tile :)

She also had very complimentary words for this pattern.  She wrote, 

This was a very relaxing tangle to draw; it really embraces the spirit and philosophy of the Zentangle method, I think. Amazing how you just couldn't help but make stars, no matter what method you used( grid or not) I cheated a bit when I drew a couple of stars outside the lines to make it overlap the other string compartment. Once again, good fun.

In Zentangle terms - that is not cheating :)  Strings are suggestions and she worked her pattern beautifully as she pushed her pattern passed the string lines - wonderful work!

Cathy Cusson echoed the sentiments of many tanglers when she wrote, 

There are tangles you love at first glance and those that . . . . well, you know. The first thing I usually do when a new tangle is posted is add it to my massive notebook. I looked at fassett and maybe it was the exhaustion of the week or whatever, but I put it aside not even adding it in. Thinking I would get to it eventually. My brain couldn't wrap itself around the steps. Then you picked that tangle and not even with others, but a monotangle! Oh dear. I had to go back and rethink my feelings on it and give it a go. I discovered I really love it. It is not as hard as I thought and has such lovely variations. Thanks for opening this up to us. I might have missed a really lovely tangle.

Ahhh, and this tile reflects her appreciation for the pattern - lovely, elegant, serene...just beautiful!

Robin Gosland is very new to Zentangle. This is also the first time she has tangled on the suggested 3 1/2" square sized paper -

With this first tile, she "wanted to do something other than just fill in the various sections."  She built from the center out on this first tile and "soon it was a fun twisty pillar shape."  She wanted to bring out the star shaped flowers so she added some color -

For her second tile, she played with using the tangle on a grid.  She "overlaid a grid on top of the string" and really liked the pinwheel shape that emerged.  She said that she "kept everything minimal" because she
"liked the blend of the string and grid so much and wanted that to show."  It's lovely.

Robin also wrote about her tiles here on her blog.

Annemarie said that this was not very easy, but she "managed to make a tile of it."

Yes, she certainly did and a very pretty one at that!  She posted it on her blog as well.  Thank you for persisting Annemarie.

Ragged Ray also said that she noticed the natural star shape that appears in the middle of Fassett.  She said that by just "widening the lines that join the middle to the outer...magically these stars appear!" 

After filling an entire sketchbook page with variations of Fassett, she chose the ones that "complimented each other very well."

And they do - so pleasingly.  The stars really shine in her beautiful variation of the tangle.

She writes about her tile and pictures another pretty tile here on her blog.  

Annie Taylor said, "It's a wonderful and exciting new pattern..."

Annie added a pop of pink and the single tangle of Fassett provides the loveliest of compliments to the rest of her tile!

CZT Margaret Bremner said that she was "rather taken with this new tangle too."  She placed the intersection of the string lines a bit off-center and said that she "liked the top right corner where she only did 2/3 of a Fassett!"

Margaret illustrates beautifully how this tangle pattern can naturally form a border - when tangled as designed, but especially when completed the way she did hers.  Margaret playfully added circles to her darkened spaces.  Lynn, this should make you smile!

Lonett said that she liked Fassett "very much".  She found no lack of possibilities.

She adds that she can create a "static and a dynamic effect by using this tangle."  She has created the illusion of movement in her tangles.  It is lively and energetic.

Lonett posts it here on her blog as well.  

Sue Agnew said that she loves this new tangle because it behaves in a similar way to Puf.  She adds, "It's just so miraculous to join corners of concentric geometric shapes and suddenly have a third dimension appear!"

Sue has a wonderful way of making that third dimension appear in all of her tangles with her signature sparkle.  The contrast of the large and small tangles and the way her lines followed the curve of the string line make for absolutely gorgeous tiles.

The Tangling Tutor said that she was determined to "tangle in every square of Carol Ohl's 2014 Tangle-a-Day Calendar" and since there were snow days in the 'Deep South', she had time to complete her pages practicing Fassett - what fun!

She added a bit of red and incorporated Pearlz nicely to her string line and larger tangle - both beautiful additions.

Amy Curtis, in her lovely style completed this colorful tile - 

Amy writes, "I was not pleased with my first few practice attempts at doing Fassett. I thought I'd be so glad when this tile was done. But I actually ended up really enjoying it once I could get into the groove. This tangle also showed me just how much I really enjoy grid work."

We all get to enjoy the fruits of her labors with this - it's delightful.  The wavy lines are a spectacular variation, aren't they?

Jackie Becker said that she must have turned her tile "the most times ever doing this one."

That's good to hear - and a great reminder to tanglers everywhere - turn your tile often!  

Jackie also used varying sizes of the tangle for a wonderful contrast in her string sections along with great shading and balance of her light and dark sections.

Joan Delony sent in two terrific tiles - 

She varied her tangle sizes too - and look closely at her largest tangle on the right...she added a smaller Fassett in the middle - ingenious!

She added darkened circles in the middle of her tangles (above right) for another lovely variation.

A N D now....after all of those marvelous masterpieces....the tile for honors this week was sent in by

Jenna Wheatman from the UK.  

She writes - 

This was a great tangle, so many simple variations just by adding more or less triangles, and triangles! I would never have guessed this tangle was created with a few simple triangles. I had a go with small and big, more and less lines and this is my favourite attempt attached. 

It is easy to see how this could be her "favourite" one.  The tangle pattern is thick and rich and dotted and sparkled and churning and shaded a n d simply fascinating!

Thank you Jenna.  I have a little something coming in the mail for you to commemorate the day.

Many thanks to Linda Farmer at Tangle Patterns and for String 025 and very special thanks to Lynn Mead for her FABULOUS new tangle Fassett.  

Do stop in tomorrow for "It's a String Thing" #26!