Non-Dominant Challenge

After taking a couple weeks off from the Diva Challenge I have been itching to get back in the fray. 
This week's challenge is to tangle with your non-dominant hand and, oh boy, it was not easy!  It was a very humbling experience to say the least and it REALLY made me appreciate how much easier it is to work with my right hand. I started another tile immediately after creating this one just because I wanted to experience the ease of doing just that.  Using my left hand was quite entertaining -- sometimes it seemed like I could make several pretty good strokes in a row then WHAMMO  the hand just wouldn't do what I told it to.  Filling in the black that I so enjoy was a real test of patience. It was all I could do not to grab the pen out of my left hand! 

On the positive side, it was eye-opening and made me appreciate the acceptance and support within the Zentangle process and community.  There are no mistakes in Zentangle!

Two Great Classes

I was fortunate enough to teach two different art classes at Middletown High School earlier this month and I am so happy to share the resulting mosaics right here.  One class was an AP art class and was just 9 --- terrific --- students.  The second class was almost 3 times that number, but even though the classroom was packed, the kids were very attentive and really took to Zentangle.  Congrats to their teacher, Susanne Suprock for being innovative and inviting me to teach.  What a pleasure!

White on Black Workshop

This week I had the privilege of teaching a Zentangle workshop featuring white on black to 18 teachers and community members at Chariho Middle School. 
I am such a fan of the striking look of white on black, and this was the first time I had a group this large for this variation.  We used official Zentangle black tiles, white Sakura gelly roll pens and white charcoal pencils.
Rick's CD Sounds made for beautiful and mesmerizing background flute music and 2 hours zipped by while the class created 2 tiles.  I just love the resulting gorgeous mosaics.

Tile 1: Flukes, Pais, Keenees, Fife

 

 

Tile 2: Vega, Tagh, Keeko, "geo-mix"*

*I am calling the grid tangle with the circles and squares inside "geo-mix" until I locate the correct name:)

CHALLENGE - Fife Tangle

The Diva challenge offered up this week is to use the new tangle, Fife, created by Molly Hollibaugh.  Its a good one, for sure, so if you haven't had a chance to try it out, the directions are here in the recent Zentangle newsletter. Fife is  a tangle that quickly gets you into the "Zentangle Zone". 

Fife and Knightsbridge

Red Thread Challenge

This week's Diva Challenge is guest-hosted by Cris Letourneau, CZT, challenging us to create a Zentangle using a single RED STRING.  This idea ties in with THE RED THREAD PROMISE, an organization dedicated to helping those in need of medical assistance.  Check out  Cris's blog if you would like to help by sending in your own tile from this challenge.  They will all be made into a poster and proceeds donated to the organization.  Cool idea.
After missing last week's challenge, I was glad to be able to jump back in and had a great time with my simple red spiral string.  Even had a chance to play with FIFE, a brand new official Zentangle pattern/tangle.
Thanks Chris and Diva for this great challenge and for generating awareness for another great cause. And Happy Thanksgiving to all in the US.

Poppies Remembrance Challenge - Lest we Forget

The Diva challenge this week is about poppies and remembrance.  I started thinking about my father.  My father served in WWII, but also sacrificed for his family every day. He's been gone a long time, but I miss his "one sentence" advice like, "Do the hardest thing first, and then everything will be easy after that."

I relied on some favorite standby tangles for this challenge like tripoli, a crescent moon variation, dex variation, and pendrills.  For the poppy I used a dual brush marker. I tried to keep it simple, like my father did.

Spooky Tangle Challenge

In keeping with the spirit of Halloween, this week's Diva Challenge is about a spooky or haunting Zentangle or ZIA.  My two offerings are kinda spooky for different reasons.  The first one is haunting because the weird colors clash so much! The second one, which I tangled on Halloween, made me imagine some sort of hole in the night sky.