Finding One's Way

A labyrinth can be defined as a maze or passages through which it's hard to find one's way.  It was easy to find my way walking the labyrinth at Kripalu, and it reminded me of the comfort of the Zentangle® method.  With each step of the path, I was invited to relax, breathe, meditate, be pensive, or enjoy the sounds of nature around me.  I had no expectations about where I was heading.  As the path wound around and in or out, I didn't worry about which way to go.  I trusted the path to guide me knowing that I could leave the path and return to the entrance at any time.  The labyrinth, like a string while tangling, gave me choices of staying inside or outside the lines.  There's something truly magical, comforting, and freeing in the simplicity of our Zentangle strings.  

It was a special moment to be able to feel that connection between art, nature, and the world around me while being physically grounded to the earth.  I was mesmerized by the tranquility I felt as I calmly paced the narrow path that many others had visited before me.  I felt a strong sense of community, kinship, and a collective heart as I followed the coil into the center and back out again.  

I highly recommend locating a meditation labyrinth or creating your own path for a unique experience.  Fortunately, we can meditate with a version of a labyrinth on each tile with a simple pencil line, a string.

Mammo Crux

This week's Diva challenge invited us to play with Crux by Henrike Bratz.  At first, my hand immediately tried to create Bales.  I had to consciously and deliberately think about each line or each stroke as I worked on the diagonals.  This pattern was an interesting reminder about taking a pattern one line at a time.  I found this pattern quite interesting to put together and to watch it work in the end.  Fun!  I will have to play with this one some more soon.

My piece was created in my 2014 Tangle-A-Day Calendar by Carole Ohl, CZT.  I love working in the book, but I can rarely get it to scan well enough.  I think too much light gets in when I scan it.  When I try to edit, the shading gets too washed out.  Oh well, it's a sunnier version than in person.  That can't be a bad thing, right?

I created this piece in the imaging waiting room before having my first routine mammogram.  Joy.  I felt inspired by breasts (gee, I wonder why).  I pencilled a breast-inspired string similar to this:

The string is basically three concentric circles.  Keep in mind they don't have to be perfectly straight or central!  No two breasts are alike or perfectly round, right?  The string I created in the calendar reminded me of a fried egg, to be perfectly honest.  

I love how strings, like our tangles, don't have to be perfect.  They don't even have to be used at all.  Strings can help guide us along our tangling way or merely give us a starting off point.  We can follow the lines, carefully staying with, or we can venture out on a tangling adventure.  

If I were drawing my string after the exam, I think the circles would all be flattened.  Ouch!  

It's Never Too Late

When tangling, do you ever start a tile, think "meh," and then put it back down?

This has happened to me in the past.  I would start a piece and feel unmotivated to finish it for some reason.  Maybe I got hung up on a pattern or didn't like my initial string.  Maybe I just couldn't focus and enjoy the process enough.  Whatever the reason, I think I did the right thing by putting the tile down.

I'm a librarian by day, and I've never believed that we have to finish books we don't like (with the exception of school assignments, I guess).  There are so many wonderful books out there to explore.  Granted, I do try to get through them even if I'm struggling.  I try to find a character or plot that is interesting enough to keep me going, but if I can't find anything redeeming, back to the library it goes.

I have the same philosophy about tangling.  I love learning new patterns, trying challenges, and experimenting with new ways of creating my Zentangle® art.  I'm not at all ashamed to admit that I get frustrated sometimes especially when trying something new.  I try not to beat myself up about it and move on to something else.  If a pattern is causing me to get frustrated, that's the signal for me to put it down until another time.  If I try again and still get frustrated, I don't force the issue.  Instead I pick a pattern that I love or one that comes easily to me.  Challenges have to stay fun for me to stick with them; if I feel like I'm forcing myself in some way, I lose my zen.

For this week's Diva challenge, we were tasked with creating a 2-pencil string.  I had done this ages ago for her second ever challenge back in my earlier tangling days.

I found a tile that I had started in 2010 after I took the challenge the first time (see below).  I had done the 2-pencil string but never tangled the tile.  I remember being frustrated about how the lines came out and feeling unsure about where to go from there.  When I found the tile this time, I immediately wanted to tangle it!  I am in a different place with my art and my approach to tangling.  The other good news is I didn't throw out the tile.  I always try to keep pieces even if I don't like them.  There's always the chance to work on it again in the future or to find something I do like about it when I'm in a better head space.

I saw my 2010 string and knew I wanted to tangle just the inner areas leaving plenty of white space.  Here is my 2013 entry for this week's challenge:

Here is the tile I created back in 2010 in response to this challenge.  I even used some of the same patterns without knowing it!  I love to see how my tangling has evolved over the years!