Flurries

Winter in New England is always weather mystery.  We can have a mild winter or one that ranges from deep coldness to mountains of snow.  One day can be freezing cold; the next day might be 60 degrees.  One of the things I love about living in this area is the fluctuation and variety.  Our weather is creative!

Speaking of creative, I'm having so much fun creating these Lynn Mead-inspired snowflakes!  this one was done on a Renaissance tile.  I love how the shading and highlights make the flake pop.

Up for the Challenge

With my crazy year, I realized that it's been ages since I've enjoyed a Diva Challenge and figured that I just have to jump back in.  Sometimes I panic when I've been away from something for too long and feel like I have to pick up where I left off.  Fortunately, tangling isn't like reading a book.  I can start in the middle without getting lost in the story.  The characters are tangles, and while new ones might be added to the mix, I can always find comfort in familiar friends.  The plot may thicken, round, highlight, or even get colored in, but it's still of the choose-your-own variety.  I can start on page one, the middle, or the end and still get wrapped up in a good tangle.

I dove in to Diva Challenge 296 using the tangle Moowa by CZT Anya Ipsen.  I had seen beautiful work created with this tangle but hadn't tried it.  I was surprised because I am a huge fan of Mooka, and this looked like a flowing, wave version of the tangle.  

I picked up my 2014 Tangle-A-Day Calendar (yes, you read that date correctly) and started to practice this new-to-me tangle.  I filled a week with different attempts until I felt like I had the flow.  Why 2014?  I have several uncompleted calendars and have decided that that's okay.  In an effort to Untangle My Life, when I want to play or experiment with tangles, I pick up a calendar and use the pages as an art journal.  I add the current date and have come to accept that it's fine that it wasn't completed in chronological order.  Like my book analogy above, it's freeing to be able to start anywhere.  In the past, I would get derailed by life and not be able to keep up with the calendar and found that frustrating.  Now, I'm jumping in and finding a random page to embrace like this one from 2014:

Next I took my tangling to a tile.  I just received my first box of the new 3Z tiles and thought that Moowa looked really cool done in a spiral.  I loved how this tile came out but thought it needed something in the middle.  

I love creating zen gems and thought an onyx would look great in the center to balance out the black Tipple segments.  If only I could figure out how to create onyx.  I create a lot of gems and figured I needed a lot of black colored pencil and some highlights and went to work.  Here was one of my practice gems I created in a sketchbook.  Then it was off to fill the center of my tile!

Here's my final Moowa challenge tile:

Lost... and Found

Life can be a whirlwind. I feel like 2016 has been a crazy blur of boxes, house hunting, moving trucks, unpacking, and other craziness.  Each new adventure gives us an opportunity to succumb to the chaos or to uncover the adventure.  Sometimes we do a bit of both.

My family loves the new house and is slowly settling in.  We had such a fun summer exploring our new yard, visiting farms, going to the beach, playing with friends, and taking fun outings. Fall continued the same way with pumpkin picking and enjoying nature.  My husband kept telling me that we would unpack the house when the weather was cooler and we wouldn't want to be outdoors. His kind words helped me justify our activities and allowed me to let the other unpacking wait.  Sure, we unpacked our daughter's stuff and the things we needed on a daily basis, but both of our offices remained boxed.  While my craft supplies found their way out of the boxes, finding them in my new craft room has been a bit of a scavenger hunt.  Each time I try to find something, I end up tearing my room apart often to no avail.  This is NOT zen.

Here's a peek at my craft-room-to-be after it was painted.  I agonized about the color until I recalled how much I loved the color I had picked for the old house.  Voila!  I chose the same color for my new room.  I think my choice will be pretty popular next year with Pantone's pick of Greenery.  I'm ahead of the trend!

Fortunately, my tiles, pens, and pencils are all at easy reach.  While I might not always be able to find everything, I can always find the important stuff.  I'm thrilled that tangling supplies are small and portable.  I can bring my art anywhere with me so I can stay calm, focused, and creative even if the room around me looks like a cardboard Tetris game.

Sometimes life gets crazy, and I forget about tangling for a while.  I feel the stress creep back in and can tell when it's been too long between tangles.  Then it's time to...

Untangle My Life

The easiest way to do that is to find a tile and pencil, add four dots, and make my border and string.  When life gets out of control, it's time for me to get back to basics.

I have set a healing resolution for myself for 2017.  I am going to embrace my tangling, explore new ideas and classes, and make sure to share my journey with you.  I am embarking on an experiment to see how my immersion in my art will affect the rest of my life.  I'm hoping to watch my house unfold one box at a time as I find more peace and clarity.  I'm excited to see where this adventure will take me.

I'm going to be sharing some of the art that I've worked on this year as well as what I'm working on currently.  I've been looking through my art and realizing how little of it made it to the blog or even to Facebook.  It's show and tell time!

So I might have felt a little lost this year, but each time I allow myself to breathe and to tangle, I manage to find myself.  Now to stick with it.

Just what I needed

Where has the time gone?

This has been a big year for my family.  After many months of searching and packing, we moved into a new house.  We're still settling in (I hear this could take years), but we're finally feeling like we are home.  I have a better working office and art studio so I'm hoping to be able to share more with you too!  

Even though I haven't blogged much in a while, I've still been teaching and tangling through the stressful move.  I am so thankful to have the Zentangle® Method in my life especially during times like this.

I had the great pleasure of teaching a relaxing class at the Shrewsbury Public Library right around our move to the new house.  As you can imagine, I was a bit stressed out, and seeing boxes everywhere was not making me feel very relaxed.  I needed to teach this class and to reconnect with my passion to help me see that moving, packing, and unpacking is just like tangling.  I needed to take each task one step at a time.

We spent a relaxing and lovely class together exploring tangles for the first time.  I loved that when presented with the stunning tile mosaic, one participant was impressed by how her tile looked combined with the others.  Tangling is a lovely recipe, and each of us presents an ingredient.  

Another woman considered herself a doodler and thought that she couldn't tangle.  She was thrilled to learn that she could, in fact, create art with the Zentangle Method and incorporate tangles into her previous line art.  I'm thrilled to think of all of the creative exploration she has in her future.

I would like to personally thank this class for helping me find some relaxed focus despite the chaos I felt at home.  I was truly touched and moved that everyone shared this journey with me.

Yes!

When teaching classes, I love that the answer I can give to most of the questions is YES!

• "May I fill this part if I want to?"
• "Is it okay if I go over the line here?"
• "Can I put this pattern here?"
• "I made up my own tangle for this spot.  Is that okay?"

Yes!

I love that the Zentangle® method allows us to make our own choices as we tangle.  Our border and string can be guides to help build comfort while breaking up a possibly intimidating space.  They can provide places for tangles to sit cozily or a starting point for patterns to blossom and grow safely outside the lines.  

Whether you prefer to color inside the lines, venture outside, or play with a mixture depending on your mood, the Zentangle® method allows for all possibilities.

If you're inspired to follow a particular tangle throughout a piece or morph it into a tangleation, or variation, you're free to explore any way you choose.  This is your art and your process to enjoy.

It's so rare in life to learn something new that doesn't have a lot of limits or rules.  

I was thrilled to pass on these "rules" to two wonderful library classes this week.  Look at the stunning pieces they created:

Zendala tiles created at the Peabody Institute Library 

Tiles created at the Hamilton-Wenham Library

I Can Do This!

I recently taught a fun beginner class at the Nashua Public Library.  The excited group, of many beginners as well as a few previous tanglers, took to the practice with enthusiasm.  We shared a lot of laughter, relaxation, and a-ha moments.

One of those moments came when a new tangler expressed hesitation at the beginning of class.  She was certain she would be unable to tangle and mocked her ability.  I, and a fellow tangler, encouraged her to try and see what happens.  After completing Crescent Moon, she announced, "I can do this!"

I love how quickly doubt can wash away with a few breaths and deliberate focused lines.  The Zentangle® method allows each of us the opportunity to let our preconceived notions about our abilities go.  In our breathing exercise, I remind the group, "As you tangle, release your inner critic as you embrace your inner artist."  Each of us has that artist within.  Sometimes we just need to get past the barriers we create with our own disbelief.

"I can do this!"  Absolutely!  Look how beautiful these tiles are.  I'd say they can all do this.  :-)

I've Done This!

I love that the Zentangle® method appeals to a wide range of people.  In just about every class I teach, someone announces, "I've done this before."  Many of us have doodled on book covers in school, margins of papers during meetings, or even in previous artwork.  The Zentangle method incorporates patterns that we see around us in art, architecture, nature, and textiles.  Many of the patterns even trace back to ancient ancestors making our tangles universally ingrained.

I had the privilege of teaching a beginner class for a women's group recently.  It was lovely to learn about the group and how they gather to take different classes and attend a wide variety of events in the region.  I think it is wonderful that people have so many ways of connecting with others around shared interests ranging book groups to learning to create art.  

During class, one woman realized that she had created similar artwork in the past.  I love when people are reconnected to their past practices and passions through a class.  Tangling can help us recall our past artistic expression while combining it into something even more magical now based on our life's journey.

Look at the beautiful tiles they created!

When We Gather

I love getting together with friends or family for any occasion.  It is fun to catch up, share what's going on, and play!  I recently had the opportunity to gather with a group of CZTs in the Massachusetts area for a little meet up.  We had a great time sharing ideas and working on different projects together.

Our first fun project was this zen ball, although I've seen it referred to by about 20 different names!  It is a lot of fun to tangle paper strips and weave them into this cool 3-D ball for decorating.  

We explored some embossing techniques and played with an exciting woven variation of Rixty by Sarah Del Mastro, CZT. 

I love getting together with friends especially when they are so creative and inspiring!

What do you like to do when you gather with others?

Spring is for New Beginnings

Tangling, like spring, is an opportunity for new beginnings.  Whether it is just learning to tangle for the first time, trying a new pattern, or embarking on a new creative endeavor, our Zentangle® practice allows us to grow, to blossom, and to bring joy to ourselves and others.  

I had the honor to teach a Zentangle® Basics class for a lovely group at the Wilmington Memorial Library recently.  The group was made up of beginners as well as a few familiar tanglers.  It was lovely to see how excited people became as they learned they could create stunning artwork in a short amount of time.

At the end of the class, several people commented about how relaxed they felt and how they just may have found a new passion.  I hope their love continues to grow.

Here are the stunning tiles everyone created:

The Renaissance Reveal

I had the pleasure of teaching a fantastic Renaissance Zentangle® class recently.

We tangled our first tile with some familiar and new patterns exploring the use of black and brown Micron pens.  I asked everyone to look at the tangled tile, and I noticed they weren't quite impressed… yet.

Then the magic started to happen.  As each student applied shading, highlights, and colored contour, the tiles transported us back to the Renaissance days of chiaroscuro art.  The tiles came to life filled with vibrant texture all created by different pencils.  The room filled with oohs and aahs!  I am still in love with the Renaissance tiles for this very reason.

I think the tiles make it easier to begin to play with color in a way that is warm and comforting without needing 100 colored pencils, although that is wonderfully fun too.  I love how these tiles pop with just a little added highlight.  It becomes fun to adorn tangles and to see how dramatic the tiles can become.

Check out the amazing tiles that everyone created:

Ish

I taught a fabulously fun home party with fellow moms from a local mother's club.  Since all of the moms I know tend to have a fair amount of stress (along with lots of love, adorableness, and excitement), I thought this group could use a little zen.

Throughout the night, we giggled every time I mentioned the non-representational, handmade aspect of the Zentangle® method.  The concept was fine, but my made up word choices, "roundish," "circle-like shape," and "straightish" induced chuckles.  Laughter is always great for reducing stress!  I also think that hearing the same idea multiple times can help it to resonate.

We don't need to draw perfect circles or straight lines.  Who can without tools anyway?  I know I can't, and I'm okay with that.  I'm human.  I'm an artist.  I am not trying to be a computer or to replicate some form of perfection.  Instead, I breathe and allow my artistic process to take me on a journey--straight lines or not.

Sometimes there is comfort in knowing we don't have to be perfect.  Moms have to do everything, and lately, it seems like they are expected to do it perfectly.  Even among mothers, there are factions disagreeing about the right or wrong way to parent from feeding and diapering to discipline techniques and education.  There is a lot of pressure to be a parent (I know it's hard for dads too, but I am focusing on moms since the class was moms).  There is a lot of stress with trying to make the right choices while  keeping our kids safe and happy.

We don't have to be perfect.  Our circles can be roundish.  Our lines can be straightish.  Our kids will grow up happy even if we have a cranky day, yell occasionally, or forget to use the orange plate.  They will remember their overall childhoods rather than the few days during which we were human.  Maybe they'll learn more from those human days and see that it is okay to make mistakes.  Maybe they'll be compassionate parents who will try to do the best they can too.

There are no erasers in parenting or in Zentangle®.  We can do our best to try to relax, enjoy some quality time, and breathe.

Everything else ends up perfect-ish.

February is for Love

I had the great privilege of teaching a class at the Hamilton-Wenham Library near Valentine's Day.  It was a lovely evening of tangling.  We had the goal of finding some creativity and relaxation despite the wintery mess we have had in the area lately.  I think we did a great job accomplishing our goal.

Everyone created a stunning tile!  I am impressed by the amazing job they did.

Here is my sample piece I created on a Renaissance tile for the night:

Since the class, I have heard from six participants who professed their love for Zentangle®.  I love when people find a new passion especially when I get to be part of that discovery.  It touches my heart to help someone uncover his or her inner artist through the Zentangle method.  Each of the women has continued to learn more, seek out new books, and ask questions.  One was kind enough to share her beautiful ZIA (Zentangle-inspired artwork) of a tangled heart.  I only taught a few of these tangles in our class together.  :-)  I hope they will all continue on a wonderfully relaxing and creative journey through the Zentangle method.

Tangled heart by Linda Ashley

Insane for Renaissance

If Einstein's line about insanity (expecting different results from doing the same thing repeatedly) is true, then I am insane for Renaissance tiles.

I love the variety and depth these Zentangle® tiles provide. It is wonderfully fun to use different pens and pencils to achieve such interesting and vintage looking pieces. 

I've always been inspired by the art of Dr. Meredith Yuhas, CZT. Some of her recent Renaissance work inspired these in me:

Happy 200 to the Diva

Our beloved Diva reached a huge milestone this week--her 200th challenge!  We were invited to create a monotangle with one of our go-to tangles.

I immediately started adding Flux leaves in the center, randomly building outward. I used to not like Flux because I hadn't found my groove with it. Surprisingly, while teaching the pattern in a class, I admired how my friend and student interpreted the leafy shape. Ever since, I have created my Flux like she did--a looser, more leaf or teardrop shape than a comma shape. A new love was born. 

I especially love drawing Flux as a flower or in random spurts with a string. I enjoy letting the petals float, swim, or bloom in various directions. 

It only seemed fitting to think about inspiration for this challenge. I hope that I inspire others when I teach. I am always fascinated by how inspired I am with each of my students. 

Happy 200th, Laura!  Thank you for inspiring us all!

I couldn't stop myself after this one and created a couple of colorful Flux flower ATCs too.  I think I'll be sending these to some of my CZT friends.  

Ready for Renaissance

I think I am in love.

Okay, I know I'm in love with my husband, our daughter, tangling, and many things, but I think I have found a new love.  When Zentangle® first came out with the Renaissance tiles, I wasn't too sure about them.  I found the paper a bit less enjoyable than the white tiles and wasn't as excited about my early attempts.  Of course, that didn't stop me!

I've been playing with color and shading more, thanks to classes from fellow CZTs, and I have been enjoying trying things in different ways.  Now I am loving the Renaissance tiles.  I like how I can take patterns that I've used for years and make them look completely different with a little boost of color.  I think the combination of black, brown, and white create an interesting depth and richness in the piece.  It is fun to play with shadows and highlights through colored pencils, and I get to play with my beloved Prismacolor pencils more too!

I've added a couple of tiles I created recently to get ready for my class in January 2015.  If you're local, I hope you'll come see how fun these tiles can be.  It's a great way to start playing with color for anyone who is interested in dabbling.  

Muster Mixer

German CZT Anya Lothrop has created a new "Muster Mixer/Pattern Mixer" challenge inviting tanglers to mix two designated tangles into a piece of art.  The first assignment was to combine Rixty and Mooka in some way.

I knew I wanted to have tall, bulbous Mookas and figured the Rixty could go along for the ride on the stems.  This was a fun and simple piece to create.  I'm looking forward to future mixed up challenges.

Sand Dollars and Fireworks

Welcome back to the Diva!  It's wonderful to have Laura back blogging and inspiring us.  I wish her darling Artoo continued success in his recovery.  

The Diva has tasked us with playing with the latest Zentangle® pattern, Arukas.  I like the idea of this tangle but still haven't quite fallen in love with it yet.  I do tend to like patterns with very straight, repetitive lines, like IX, so I figured I would like this one quickly.  It is fun to create, but I think I need to explore it some more.  I haven't quite achieved the star look, but I think that many, like my Bijou tile, look like sand dollars.  

This is one of the first times I used Bronx Cheer to cover something that I deemed less than favorable.  One of the Arukas turned into a nice round shape resembling a sand dollar.  I liked it, but the other one had lines that went off the Bijou tile.  I decided that I liked the rounder look and plunked down some Bronx Cheer.  Ha!  Should I have revealed my secret, or would you have guessed anyway?  

Others remind me of fireworks or bugs or scorpions because at least one of the interior shapes always ends up looking puffy.  It's still cool because I never quite know how it's going to turn out.

I am enjoying filling in my initial spokes or rays to give a little contrast.  I like the look of that in this Bijou frame tile:

Have you been playing with Arukas?  What do you think of it so far?

So Relaxed

I recently taught a large class at the Peabody Institute Library in Danvers.  Despite my cold and raspy voice, I did my best to provide my usual energy and enthusiasm for the Zentangle® method.

At the end of the lesson, a lovely woman told me that she felt "so relaxed."  I love how this method allows people to find a few minutes in the day for themselves to reclaim some peace, sanity, or focus.  Even with a large class and my scratchy voice, the magic of the Zentangle method still showed through.  Wow.

Check out the beautiful tiles they created!

School Stress

I recently had the honor of teaching three mini classes back to back at an area high school for students and faculty as part of a wellness week celebration.  In an abridged lesson, we discussed the benefits of the Zentangle® method and played with several patterns.

This day was very interesting for me in more ways than I had expected.  I always love teaching and am impressed by how much I learn from my students each time.  This day was unusual because I had the shorter classes which took place in a bustling media center.  The room was alive with students coming and going during their lunch period, meeting with groups to discuss projects, and generally going about their day in hurriedness.

The faculty reminded me that the students had a million things they needed to be doing so many wouldn't be able to join us for the classes.  Some stopped by for the five minutes they could spare in their hectic days.

I often think about how crazy adults' lives are, but I forget about the nonstop world of high school.  Teens are swamped with assignments, tests, extracurricular activities, homework, social lives, jobs, family obligations, and more.  I flashed back to my smaller school and recalled the bells that ushered students from room to room, usually with very little time to go to the lockers for different books.  I remember rushing from place to place feeling like I had to cram every bit of knowledge into my head almost simultaneously.  

True, teens are young and energetic, but we place a lot of pressure on them to succeed and to learn a lot before entering adulthood.

I hope that I was able to offer this group a brief respite in the otherwise crazy day!  

They did a fantastic job even with only a short lesson.

Deja Vu?

This week, I had the privilege of teaching two back to back classes at the Amesbury Public Library.  The first class filled up so quickly that we decided to offer a second one on the same night.  It was fun to work with two different groups within the same community.  I'm so pleased that we could make the class work for everyone!  Check out their fantastic tiles at the end of this post.

As I've written before, I always learn so much in the classes that I teach.  I love to hear from my students and to answer their questions.  It was interesting to teach two classes because I realized how many different ways there are to say the same thing.  I taught the same patterns to each group but used different examples from my own life and art to answer questions or to share insights with the new tanglers.  Each class or tangling session is a new opportunity to see things in a new way.

I've had people take my beginner Zentangle® class at least six times.  Before you think that sounds boring, I assure you it isn't.  I try to mix up the content if I know someone is joining me for a repeat visit, but even if I taught the same exact patterns, there is always something new to learn.  Each class brings a new energy, different experiences, vibrant questions, and its own excitement.  My lesson is enhanced by what I feel from the audience.  This must be a bit like what rock stars feel on stage!  A tangler who is in a repeat class benefits from an entirely unique situation each and every time.

Teaching two classes immediately in a row with the same content showed just how different each class can be.  Both were wonderful, and it was great fun to see how each veered in different ways as topics came up or as questions were raised.  

Hmm, maybe this idea isn't true just for classes.  I will have to try to think about how I felt in these classes the next time I feel like I'm in some sort of a rut--with my art, my diet, or just the regularity of life.  If I try to find newness in the day or the task, maybe it won't seem dull or trite.  If I look at everything as a new opportunity, won't I more likely face it in a better mindset?

I'm always looking for ways to incorporate my Zentangle® philosophy into my life, and I'm constantly amazed by how easy it is to transfer my artistic experience into the rest of my days.  What a joy it is to have my life influence my art and to have my art influence my life.

Thank you to my students for giving me this great gift of flexibility, variety, and new points of view.  In exchange, I vow to keep offering fun, relaxing, and creative classes for you!  I think this is going to be a beautiful relationship.