" Give " - #52 - & Happy New Year!

 This is the holiday season of giving... and, thus, the Diva's Weekly Challenge is "Give".  Our mission is to create a Zentangle tile or a ZIA..... then give it away. 

I met the challenge.  Created a simple little traditional Zentangle tile, tucked it into my purse and drove off to do errands.  As I emptied my shopping cart and placed the food items onto the conveyor belt, I remembered the little 'gift' in my purse.  The cashier handed me the receipt.  I handed her the 'gift' tile and said, "This is for you.  Merry Christmas."

And since I forgot to scan the 'gift' before giving it away, I'm posting a "stand-in" ZIA.

ZIA 4"x6" Bristol; Sakura Micron Black #01 & #005; graphite shading.

And Happy New Year to you! 

ZIA - 4"x6" Bristol; Sakura Micron Black #01 & 005; graphite shading

~ "Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each New Year find you a better person."   Benjamin Franklin

~ "Your Merry Christmas may depend on what others do for you.  But your Happy New Year depends on what you do for others.  Author Unknown

~ "In the New Year, may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship, never in want."  

An Irish Toast

~ "People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas."   Author Unknown

Thank you for visiting....

...and happy tangling.

" Fife " - Weekly Challenge #51

Recently, Molly Hollibaugh (Zentangle Product Manager) created and published a new tangle - "Fife".  And The Diva has challenged us to use this tangle in a Zentangle or ZIA (Zentangle Inspired Art).  This tangle is very similar to a tangle called Versa which was created by Laura Harms a few months ago.  And as tangles go, there may soon be numerous lovely tangelations created from this inspiration.

ZIA -  5" x 5" Bristol; Sakura Micron Black #'s 01, 005; graphite shading.

Tangles:  Fife and Mssst.

Thank you for visiting....
.....and happy tangling!

" Biggify " - Weekly Challenge #50

Here's a new twist on tangling.  Biggify.  The Diva says:  "This week's challenge is to push your comfort zone and biggify your tangles.  Don't biggify your canvas, try sticking to the size you generally work on to get the full effect.  (Zentangling on a large surface is a whole other ball of wax - fun though) so if you work on tiles, biggify on a tile.  If you work in your journal, biggify in your journal.  You get it.  Have fun!  Try it a few times and see where your comfort zone lies.  Put your toe over that line and test the waters."

Hmmmmmm. Pushing the old comfort zone again.  (Well, isn't that what a 'challenge' is all about?)  I thought I would have difficulty drawing "larger than normal" tangles, but once I drew the string, I was on a roll.  This was a fun challenge.  Thanks, Laura.

Traditional Zentangle on 3.5" sq. tile - Sakura Micron Black #'s 01, 03, 05, 08; graphite shading.

Tangles: Cubine, Hibred, Rain & Snail.

Thank you for visiting.....

...and happy tangling.

" Red Thread " - Weekly Challenge #49

 "An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet regardless of time, place or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break." - Chinese proverb

And so begins the Diva's weekly challenge by guest challenger Cris Letournea, CZT.  Cris says:  "...your challenge this week is to create a traditional black and white tangle tile with a single red "thread" running through it."   The idea for this challenge comes from the work that is done by the humanitarian group called The Red Thread Promise.

As I remembered my 5th grade teacher's mantra:  "Pay attention!!!",  I realized that I was not paying attention to the instructions when I began my tile.  (But that's just the point:  I didn't use a tile!  I used a 4" x 6" bristol paper.  The challenge specifically said "tile".)    *big sigh*

But my heart was in the right place...... even if this ZIA took the wrong path.  My idea was to show how the red thread wraps itself around fragments of an idea, then joins the fragments together in a cohesive composition.  Sorta like trying to tell a story without using words.  (Okay, okay.  I'll keep practicing!!)

ZIA - Bristol; Sakura Micron Black #'s 01, 005 & Red #03; graphite shading.

Thank you for visiting..... Happy Thanksgiving....
... and happy tangling.

PS:  Happy Birthday Frankie!!

" Tri - Shapes " - Weekly Challenge #48

Our guest Challenger this week is 'the lovely and talented' Sue Clark, who says:  "Three basic shapes (circle, square, and triangle) when combined, can be used to create a string.  Just like the infinite possibilities of putting tangle patterns together, using these 3 shapes together and altering their size and placement on the tile would create infinite possibilities for a string idea.  I thought it would be fun to also 'tri' all new tangles (ones you have never tried before)."

Good one, Sue!!  And here is my attempt at this challenge.....

ZIA - Sakura Micron Black #'s 01, 02, 08; graphite shading.

Tangles:  Fish, Flux, Kandysnake, Sea Shell and.... the tangle around the triangle (which I created but have not given it a name yet).

Thank you for visiting....
.....and happy tangling.

" Lest We Forget " - Weekly Challenge #47

This week, I'm submitting my tile to this challenge..... late!  For the challenge, The Diva says:  "When you create your tile or ZIA, the challenge is to remember - what this means to you.  Remember your fallen loved ones, your long lost friend from childhood, remember when your 3 year old was once a tiny bundle in your arms, remember the feel of your aging grandmother's hand... remember laughter and tears, friends and family, fallen heroes or quiet bravery." 

Most of the wonderfully creative ZIA's and Zentangles that have been posted/submitted relate to the poem, 'In Flanders Field', where the poppies grow.  In my work, I have deviated a bit from the symbolic poppy, although the message is the same.

A few weeks ago, feeling drenched with inner spirit, I was overwhelmed by the presence of angels and spirit guides in my life.  Don't know what the heck was going on, but when my Zentangle spirit sat me down, all I could think about was angels.  So, today, on what would have been my Grandmother's 105th birthday, I remember... and submit this tile for the challenge... "Lest We Forget".

*** Traditional Zentangle 3.5" tile; Sakura Micron Black #01; graphite shading

*** Tangle inspiration is from "Totally Tangled" by Sandy Bartholomew.

Thanks for visiting.....

... and happy tangling.

Tangled Leaf

At my CZT Seminar #3 in May, 2010, each student was gifted** with a beautiful green Hawaiian leaf from two of our classmates.  Sounds like an unusual gift, but it was quite a unique idea - as this large, thick leaf from the Hawaiian   Autograph Tree  (Clusia rosea) is used to hold messages, notes and graffiti.  Of course, our Hawaiian friends/CZT's  tangle  on the leaves.... as they taught us to do at Seminar.  In time, the leaves turn a lovely brown color. 

This week, we are in Naples, Florida, enjoying a warm and relaxing vacation on the ocean.  While checking out the lovely flowering plant life, nature, scurrying geckos and shells in the sand, I was reminded of the Autograph Leaf and how lovely it looked after it was tangled.  One of the shrubs lining the perimeter of the pool area had a very familiar presence.  (Hmmm.  I wonder if these leaves are 'tangle-worthy'.)   So I scooped up a few of the leaves that had fallen on the ground... found an ink-less ballpoint pen... and tangled away!  It took a bit of practice to gauge pen pressure and leaf sturdiness, but I love the result.  Fun, too.

Betweed was drawn on the back side of the leaf... (experimenting)... and result was not quite satisfactory.  All other tangles were drawn on the front side of the leaf, resulting in crisper looking strokes.

First attempt at a monogram.  Drawn on front side of leaf... crisp strokes.

I don't know the name of this leaf/plant.  (The above leaves are about 5" diameter.)  My Google search was not successful... and the "locals" that I asked were not able to identify the leaf/plant. Do you happen to know the name of this leaf/plant?

Thank you for visiting...

... and happy tangling.

PS:  Congratulations to Laura Harms for scoring over 200, 000 hits on her blog I am the Diva!  To celebrate this milestone, she is having a fabulous "give-away" of  prizes..... or I should say, a "give-away" of THREE prizes.  Check out this blog post for details.  Hope you and I win!!!


** The leaves were shipped from Hawaii to the US mainland after being inspected and certified for shipment by Hawaii's Department of Agriculture.

" All Hallows Eve " - Weekly Challenge #46

This is a very special Happy Halloween wish to Mia, Tehya and Kai!!  I sure do wish Grampa and I could come out tonight and "Trick or Treat" with you.  Have fun... 

And Happy Halloween to everyone!  On this scary day, the Diva has posted her weekly challenge, and the theme is................. you guessed it!  Halloween!  Here is the Diva's challenge:  "Create a tile or a Zentangle Inspired piece that is haunting or spooky, maybe with things that go bump in the night - with such an open ended prompt, there's no end to things you can do with it."

I laughed through the entire process of creating this tile.  Thought a lot about my Halloween adventures as a child, and about our grandchildren who will dress-up in their costumes and go out to Trick or Treat tonight (with their parents in tow...).   What fun.

Zentangle - Tile 3.5" square; Sakura Micron Black # 01 and #1; Prismacolor pencils for eyes; graphite shading.

I can't figure out why this cat's face looks familiar.  Is it the eyes?  Is this really an owl dressed as a cat?   And who is that spider??? 

Thank you for visiting...

... and happy tangling.

" New Tangle Punzel " - Weekly Challenge #45

The Weekly Challenge from  I Am the Diva, Laura Harms, is to use the newly published tangle, Punzel, on a tile using the traditional Zentangle method or in a ZIA.  Maria Thomas revealed this new tangle two weeks ago at the CZT Seminar #7 in Providence, RI.

Oh, this is a doozie.  A formidable challenge.  An arduous task.

After I did a few quick 'test tangles', I wanted to decline and forget about this week's challenge.  But when I finally settled in to tangling-mode, I was back to that wonderful place that Zentangle has lead me to so many times in the past.  My Punzel interpretation needs a lot of tweaking, but the process of Zentangle is so familiar and comfortable and enjoyable and relaxing to me... that I am always anxious to visit my virtual tangling habitat.

Traditional Zentangle 3.5" tile; Sakura Micron Black #01 & #005; graphite shading.  (Punzel and Coil)

Subscribe to the Zentangle Newsletter for a wonderful potpourri of Zentangle information and links..... and a plain ol' happy time.

Thank you for visiting....

... and happy tangling.

  

" Tangled on the Inside " - Weekly Challelnge #44

This challenge has a great theme!  The Diva says:  "A while back Jo in NZ sent me an idea for a challenge... the idea is that you use one tangle as the 'string' and then fill in all the spaces with other tangles.  A tangle within a tangle....So, this week's challenge is to create a tile or ZIA using a tangle or tangle section as your string, then to fill in the 'blanks' with other tangles." 

And besides having a great theme, it was really fun!  When the Diva's challenge is posted on her blog each Monday morning, I read it, digest it, think about it, review my 'tangle bible', scribble a few strings on paper..... and, bottom line:  I procrastinate because ideas just don't easily bounce around in front of me and get lodged in my brain!  Ugh!!!! 

Artist block?  Perhaps.  In the words of one artist:  "In art, there are many tools to be used. But all these tools are rendered useless when you are missing the most important one: inspiration."  by *arriku

And when I read the guidelines for this challenge, I was inspired!! 

Thanks Jo and Laura.

                         "Tangled on the Inside" - 3.5" sq tile; Sakura Micron Black #01, Brown #005, graphite shading.                                     (Ennies within Mooka within Flux).

... and one more...

                           "Tangled on the Inside" - 3.5" sq tile; Sakura Micron Black #01, & #005, graphite shading.                                       (Msst & Vitruvius within Poke Root)

Thank you for visiting....
.....and happy tangling.