Needlework Tuesday - Learning to Tangle with Zentangles

Needlework Tuesday is a regular weekly post where I share the progress of my various needlework projects over the past week. I enjoy the encouragement that I receive from my readers and in return visit their blogs and cheer them on with theirs. You are welcome to grab the cute little mouse and create your own Needlework Tuesday post. Leave a comment with a link and I'll be sure to visit with you.

 

Before I get to this week's needlework, I wanted to share a different craft, cupcake decorating.  It didn't involve needles, but I did pull threads of frosting.  Visit this link for the hair styled cupcakes that my son, his girlfriend and I created.

Week 4 of my little mystery is now sewn.  The instructions didn't tell me to sew the units together, so I have left them as shown. It is pretty obvious the next step, but I don't want to jump the gun, so to speak.  I have heard from others who enjoy mysteries an am looking to compile a list of where to find some current ones. 

Deanna at Wedding Dress Blue has just started one called Super Stars Quilt Along.  She will be posting step 2 tomorrow.

Bonnie Hunter at Quiltville frequently has mysteries which are proving to be very popular.  I haven't sewn any of them, but my mother has and she finds them fun. Scroll down the page and way down, on the left you'll find links to some mysteries.

Now for something completely different.  Zentangles.  Let me say this first, you don't have to be an artist to do this, you do need to be able to hold a pen and to draw a line.  That's it. 

I discovered Zentangles over a year ago and was fascinated, but a bit intimidated, so I didn't try them.  When my father was in his last weeks, I needed something to do that would totally distract me.  I found a Zentangle page, got an old sketch book, and started drawing lines.  I was so absorbed, that hours would pass in the evening.  After dad passed, I showed my mom and got her started.  It was fun watching her with a thick green marker drawing her lines.  She used any scarp of paper she could find until I brought her a sketch book. 

This past week, we both took a class with Brenda Shaver at Creative Sisters quilt shop in Kitchener. I thought it was a bit expensive, but signed up any way.  I wanted to learn those things that never quite seem to be covered in an online site.  We got to work right away and I soon realized that the cost of the class was a real bargain.  I gained so much from being there.



There were 10 ladies in our class and about half of us had dabbled with tangles before.  The tiles shown measure 3 1/2 inches and are of good quality drawing paper, card stock weight.  You can use whatever paper you are happy with. You don't want your marker to bleed.  The motto of the company is "Anything is possible one stroke at a time!"  It truly is.

We finished this second tile before lunch time.  We were using Sakura Pigma Micron pens, black size 01

After lunch we started with one of the more difficult tangles, Paradox.  It is made all with straight lines.  Great effect, I love this one.  Lots of effects can be achieved depending on whether you start to the left or the right.

In the upper right, you can see a variation of paradox.  Because it is all straight lines, it is one that can be sewn on the machine.  In fact, many of the tangles can be machine stitched.  There are books about quilting and Zentangle.

Our final tangle of the afternoon was selected to show us that you can work right to the edge.  

 

 

This full page tangle is one that I have been working on for quite a while.  Each time I learn a new tangle, I add a section here.  Slowly it is filling in.  This page is about 8 x 11 inches.

This final photo shows a typical page from my sketch book.  I draw  3 inch squares and then practice in them.Some I repeat multiple times in different sizes and variations.  all fun, no stressing about doing it right, there are no Zentangle Police.


If you would like to take a class with a CZT (certified Zentangle Teacher), check this list to see who is nearby.  It is well worth the drive if your teacher is a distance away, or get a group together and see if the teacher will come to you.


Have you tried Zentangles?  What did you think?  

Rikki at Rikki's Teleidoscope has posted some terrific photos of Guerilla Crocheting.