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Away from home in this very cold midwinter week, I've been doing just a little tangling. And watching a good friend do her weaving. While yet another good friend sent me a wonderful photograph. Below are my latest tangles, my friend's weaving, and my other friend's photo. Enjoy.  An experiment on a Strathmore tile. Both tangles are entirely new to me. The border is Qua-Sahnt by HKTangler; the center tangle is Spikor3 by CZT Jutta Gladnigg of Germany. Micron 01, graphite, white chalk.  Another experiment with the XLNT tangle by Jody Genovese, CZT. Done on a Strathmore tile with Micron 01, graphite, chalk. Below is my friend's weaving--two "mug rugs" for my coffee cups. Love the patterns and subtle colors she chose, and I feel lucky to have these gifts!   Finally, this wonderful Currier & Ives-type photo taken by a good friend who was out on a walk during a snow squall near our homes last week. Is this not beautiful?  "Silence is true wisdom's best reply."
--Euripides  This nearly qualifies as what's known as an "inchie," a tiny drawing. But in fact, it's more like a "two-inchie," since I did it on a Bijou tile (2x2") with a gold gellyroll and shaded it with a Prismacolor yellow pencil. It's done for the Zenuari2019 project, day 16, "tiny tangle." I'm away from home again and thus haven't tangled in two days. Or done anything except knit. Starting to feel a withdrawal. I certainly hope I can get to do some textile work or some more Zentangle® today or tomorrow. "We first make our habits, and then our habits make us."
--Dryden  Micron 01 and white chalk, graphite. This is another Zenuary2019 tile, made for day 15. The theme was "donut." Somehow my donut ended up with a pearl in the center. Fine with me, since I am not a fan of eating donuts. "The pearl principle: no inner irritation, no pearl." Surya Das In the style of one of my idols, Mori Yuzan, a Japanese artist who lived in the late 19th and early 20th century:  Gold gellyroll on a black tile.  Gold gellyroll pen and blue chalk pencil on a black tile. Yuzan's work has always been irresistible to me because of the linework. Wave after wave. and so many tangles (not that he would have thought of them that way). Both of the above tiles are nearly copies - if not outright copies - of his spectacular work, which fortunately is now int he public domain. So relaxing to draw these and hopefully learn a bit from him.
Both were done for Zenuari2019 day 14, "idol tangle." I think I'll be doing a lot more idol tangles!  tWhat is the use of seeking advice if one doesn't listen? This was my card for Monday (I love these cards, more info below). But did I listen? No. Instead of cocooning after a tiring week away, I spent the day in 5 degree Farenheit weather running around from event to event. Now, all the events were good ones. I'm just lucky, though, that my good friends were able to put up with my grumpy self. Because trust me, I was grumpy. Overtired, overscheduled, and grumpy. Very bad planning on my part. Good thing I have long-suffering friends. The cards (these are not tarot cards, just wonderful little cardboard coaches):  In case you'd like to get yourself some.  Experimenting with Mimi Lempart's tangle Mi2, using a thin gold pen (sorry, don't know the name) a friend gave me, plus Pokeroot and Pokeleaf tangles. Colored with Generals Chalk pencils on a black Zentangle® tile. I hope to do more of these experiments when I have time.
Just got back from a week away and we are having our first serious storm of the winter; it's just begun.  Micron 01 in black, White Gellyroll Pen #10, and graphite. Ugh...whatever I ate last night here at the hotel must not have been kind to me; I'm having an "unhappy-camper" stomach experience today. Nothing awful, just uncomfortable, so it's all ginger ale all the time. Blecch. The tile on the left was done for Zenuari2019 day 12, and the instructions were, "Grid tangles only," so I used the tangles Stricle and Demi and threw in other random lines.  Done for Zenuari2019 day 11, "Use an unusual string." So I traced around my pencil sharpener to create the string. Tangle on the lower left and upper right is Demi. The central tangle is just made randomly. Brown Micron 01, General's green and white chalk pencils. On a Renaissance tile. The day is bright, sunny, and chllly but I am sleepy anyway. I'm away from home helping a friend who truly doesn't need much help We've been having fun tangling. I did the tile above earlier while she was working on something much larger. Lovely to have a companion in art. When I find myself fading, I close my eyes and realize my friends are my energy. --Anonymous
I have been slowly exhausting my stash of Strathmore tiles, thinking I'd use them for tangle practice because I didn't like them. But they are growing on me. I may have to get more after I finish my current supply. They are a very different surface from the traditional Zentangle® tiles (Fabriano Tiepolo printmaking paper), which I truly love. Much smoother and in a way less forgiving than the Fabriano ones, but I'm learning to like them anyway.  Done for Zenuari2019, "Nametangles," day 10. Meaning, pick your or someone else's initials and then find a tangle for each letter. I chose D and R and picked D'eneh and Roscoe, two tangles I'd never heard of before and never tried--this is my maiden effort. Lots of errors but I don't care...Black Micron01 and graphite on a Strathmore tile. This tile captures so many reasons why I love tangling:
Two more tangle experiments today. I am saving the textile work for next week when I think I will have more time to focus on it. What I love about both Zentangle® and textile art is the deep inner silence I experience when doing either. Both are highly meditative. Today I went into that silence with joy and relief. One of the wonders of Zentangle is that it doesn't matter what the outcome is, bad or good, because the process of creating is where the gift lies, and that in itself is enough. Often the outcome is wonderful--a bonus.  Done for the Zenuari2019 project, day 9. "Do a tangle that's new to you." Tangle: Ratoon. I'm not familiar with this one, having done it only once previously. Here is my second try--including errors--done as both a central tangle and as a border. Black Micron 01 and graphite on a Strathmore 3.5" tile.  Done for the Zenuari2019 Project day 7. "Make a duotangle" (use 2 colors only). Tangles are Knase and Raddox. Blue and Brown Micron 01 pens, blue and brown Prismacolor pencils, General's White Chalk pencil on a Strathmore 3.5" tile. Tiles from today's work on the Zenuari2019 Project.  Zenuari2019 Project, day 4, "Biggify." (Take a tangle & enlarge it) Tangle is Shattuck done with a black Micron 01 and a General's white chalk pencil plus graphite on a Strathmore 3.5" tile.  Zenuari2019 Project, day 5, "A Hint of a Tint." Tangle is a variation of Printemps, done very large. Micron 01 and graphite; the tint comes from rolling my Rainbow Lead Pencil's lead slowly over the surface.  Zenuari2019 Project, day 6, "Use a Blind String" (a string you draw with your eyes closed). Micron 01, graphite, General's white chalk pencil. There is no purple on this tile--I ran it through a filter on this website and that's what created the tint. The original tile is black and white with gray graphite. I titled this post "What Falls Out of the Pen" because whether I like the results or not, what ends up on my tiles always surprises me. As all three of these tiles did.
For a variety of reasons, today was a hard one for me. Really, really hard. I put aside other things and spent the time tangling. A good night's sleep tonight should help as well.  Tangles: Squill and Ahh  Tangle: Ennyshou, with auras.  Tangles: Rixty and Sedgling. By the time I got to this one, I was truly exhausted. It shows. But that's ok. Practice is always helpful so I'm glad I kept on. “Sometimes, only one person is missing, and the whole world seems depopulated.” –Alphonse de Lamartine, Méditations Poétiques Looks as though the start of 2019 will be choppy for me--I'll be doing some traveling and having visitors when I'm home. Needing something simple and portable to work on, I spotted another Zentangle® challenge run by CZT Anoeska in Holland called "Zenuari" (there is a private Facebook Group with this information) and thought that might do it. I won't be trying to complete every day, given how choppy my schedule is going to be, but I'l join in when I can to keep creative juices flowing. Here is my first entry, for Day 2, with a "star" theme. I'm playing around with the same tangle from the December 28th post.  Tangle is Prillium by Barb Mayo. Black Micron 01 and graphite on a Strathmore tile. |
ABOUT ME I'm a textile artist (traditional rug hooking, punch needle rug hooking, and other textile arts), a long-time meditator, a certified meditation teacher and coach, and focused on learning about the interplay of art, creativity, and mindfulness every day. 
Certified, 2021
Certified Unified Mindfulness Coach Level I, 2024
Certified Zentangle® Teacher, 2013
Certified by AmyOxford.com at The Oxford Rug Hooking School, 2016
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