Mooka Madness

Mooka is a tangle pattern that I could use more practice with. I love the way Maria gets hers to move and flow and I'm not quite there yet. So for this challenge from the 'Diva' to use only Mooka, I decided to concentrate on trying to get mine to flow better.

In the first tile I used a tile I had hand colored first. I put the Mooka pattern in lightly with pencil and used it to do my LaBel pattern over the line. Mooka looks a little bumpy here but interesting. A little white colored pencil highlighted the buds.

For this tile I used a black Tombow marker and used the brush tip to see what variations I could get with thick and thin lines.

Here I used my Tombow colored markers with a watercolor technigue.

And when I went outside to photograph my tiles I saw that my crocus have FINALLY opened. So I did one more tile inspired by that.

Good luck Buckeyes!

It's fun to see how Zentangle can be used in so many ways. I saw a contest on Jerry's artarama to draw your favorite mascot, so I thought of doing something for Ohio State. My son is a freshman there now. Their team is doing well in the basketball March Madness!

This is the basic block 'O' with the buckeye plant. All of it is done using Zentangle tangles. I used a red Micron pen for the middle and a red colored pencil to shade the 'O'. (Green and brown for the buckeye plant.) The shading really helps the logo pop out. 

By the way, if you are so inclined, I'd appreciate votes on Jerry's site so I can win gift certificates for more art supplies. Copy and paste this link. https://apps.facebook.com/marchmadnesscontest/contests/311349/voteable_entries

Black and White trend

It's official, Black and White is a fashion trend. But those of us that love Zentangle already knew how fantastic black and white is. This picture was from 'The View' this morning as Brad was being interviewed about fashion trends. I simple snapped a picture of the TV screen with my phone so I apologize that the picture quality is poor.  Notice her jacket, her purse, and even the shirt that Elizabeth is wearing.

The next two pictures were from a trip to IKEA with my daughter last week.  I was also chasing after my granddaughter so I had to take these pics in a hurry. But I loved the inspiration I saw. 

Geneva Public Library

I had a wonderful visit at the Geneva Public Library last night. There were over 30 people that attended,  including several teens and men. I love seeing how Zentangle has appeal to many different groups! I took my pictures of their tiles in separate groupings so that you could click on each picture and actually see the wonderful details. Thanks Geneva!

I also want to thank Kathy Shabowski a fellow CZT who lives in Geneva. She came out on a very cold night (who says it's spring?) to help me set up, pass out materials, and pack up at the end. Thanks Kathy. You can contact her via her blog at www.creativecalm.net 

tangling outside the box

This week the 'Diva' challenged us to 'tangle outside the box'. Now I consider it a personal challenge to think outside the box on every challenge so this one really had me stumped at first. What was it I hadn't tried yet? I wandered around my house looking at everything, trying to see things in a new light. Finally, when I looked outside my window it hit me.

Our front walkway is made from blue stone. I've always loved the variety of colors and the way various pieces have different layers showing. Well this time I looked at it and thought, STRINGS! It's only 25 degrees here but I put on my warm coat, hat and gloves and out I went.

I used a chalk pencil (Yellow cause I couldn't find my white) and just went for it. The stone is pretty hard on the pencil so I had to sharpen it several times. And with the temperature being so could I decided to skip any shading. But it was fun. I wonder what my husband will say when he comes home!

Color class and new Tangled Tote class

These are the tiles that were produced by Sunday's color class at Banbury. We had a lot of fun exploring color techniques and new tangles. I love seeing how we can all learn the same tangles and interpret them differently. And, by popular demand, we have set up a new class at Banbury.

TANGLED TOTES! May 5th 2013 - Bartlett, IL

We will learn new tangles and do them on fabric totes. The class will explore techniques and materials to use when working on fabric. A small tote bag will be provided but students may bring their own bag or apron to tangle on. (White or off-white only please)

I'm teaching in Ohio this summer!

I have been selected !!! Yes, I will be teaching at a big convention in Columbus, Ohio this summer. I've been to this convention many times before as a student and I can promise you it's a well run convention with lots of classes, friendly people, and a fantastic exhibit floor with great shopping! All the dates and signup info is now online.

If you follow this address - (copy and paste if it doesn't click)   http://heartofohiotole.org/convention.html     you will be taken to a page where you can download the convention brochure. Look in the brochure on pages 17 and 23 for my classes. Take your time in looking at all the classes and check your calendar. But don't take too long! The signup begins on April 1st (no fooling!).

This picture gives you a hint of what I'll be teaching. Each class will cover the basics of Zentangle  You will do 2 or more tiles, and then we will do an actual project. Don't think by the catalog picture that we will ONLY be doing what's pictured. I intend to cover so much info that you will be inspired to go out and create on your own!

Zentangle Quest - challenge #109

Playing around with the new tangle pattern from Rick and Maria. It's a fun pattern and I'm sure I will find many more ways to use it in the future.The first tile is much too literal to be considered a zentangle. Zentangle is really more about abstract. The second tile uses it with color since I'm into an Easter egg mood lately!

Easter Egg tangles

Easter is almost here so I've started adding more tangled eggs to my tree. These are simple shapes cut out of posterboard and tangles with a white Sakura Gelly Roll pen. The shading is then done with a colored Prismacolor pencil that is a shade or two darker than the color of the posterboard.

If you want to go back to my post from last year, follow this link. 

(It's March 22, 2012 if you have trouble with the link.)

http://suejacobs.blogspot.com/2012/03/tangled-easter-egg-tree.html

Prismacolor Premier Soft Core Colored Pencils, 48 Colored Pencils (Google Affiliate Ad)

These eggs were done by my students in class last night. Didn't they do a great job!!!

Deerfield Public Library 3-9-13

Saturday was my visit to the Deerfield Public Library for a program for their patrons. They all got into Zentangle quickly and produced some beautiful tiles!

Whyz challenge

This is the latest Diva challenge so I'm trying out the tangle Whyz from Jane McKugler, CZT here. 

It's a bit of a challenge to get this tangle going at first but fun to work with. I saw the tiles that Margaret Bremner CZT posted earlier in the week with her tangleations so I had to try to keep exploring.

I started with a tile that I had previously colored with my watercolor markers using a watercolor technique. Then I used a pink Micron Pigma pen and two shades of colored pencil for shading.

Class updates McHenry, Huntley, Antioch and more

SNOW DAY!

I feel like a little kid again. I got the call early this morning that my class tonight in McHenry will be postponed. We are expecting 6-10 inches of snow. So this is a good time to sit down at the computer and tend to some housekeeping on my blog. And then later, I can do some tangling too!

New dates for classes are now available. I'll be in McHenry, Huntley, Bartlett, and S Barrington. There will also be a presentation at the Deerfield library this Saturday. Look under the tab marked  'Zentangle classes' for all the details.

And yes, I am disappointed  that the class for tonight has been postponed. But honestly, a little relieved. I had a class in Bartlett on Sunday and Antioch last night. So I will be taking a long nap this afternoon after I shovel the front walk.

This picture is from the presentation at the Antioch Public Library last night. It was a full group but the library was a wonderful place to hold classes. Such creative people there. I've gotten several new ideas from their tile! Click on the photo to enlarge it.

Zendala class at Banbury 3-3

Yesterday we had 7 ladies at Banbury for the Zendala class. It was a lot of fun going through all the different ways we can create a zendala and I swear I could see the wheels turning in their heads by the time we started putting pens to paper. These ladies have all taken classes before so I gave them a lot of creative freedom and just give input as needed. Great job!

Tangles from Carole Ohl

Today's tile shows tangles that come from the blog of Carole Ohl CZT. She is a talented tangler and beader. Carole is also the artist that created and sells the 'tangle-a-day' calendar. Her blog can be found at http://openseedarts.blogspot.com/. On her home page look in the column on the left for the section that says 'tangle steps'.

The ones I've tried here are;

Feather fall
Shard
Footlites
Lava juice

This is part of my continuing challenge to myself to use tangles by different artists (that have created multiple tangles) and to use them together in a single tile.