Stars and Stripes - Bold and Beautiful

July: the month that I proudly display our US "stars and stripes."  For thousands of years, stars and stripes have adorned so many things found in the art and culture of every nation on Earth. The patterns hold intrinsic beauty and value as well as varied symbolic meaning; like our own flag. Maybe these are some of the reasons that you find so many star and stripe patterns in our world of Zentangle;^®  people love them!

When I was shopping for my season's supply of garden flowers; both annual and perennial, I spotted this attractive three-dimensional metal star in the floral boutique. What a perfect form to turn into a flower pot, I thought - and even better, one to embellish with Zentangle (ZT) patterns. So I did!
My custom star WITH strips hangs on the fence next to the gate that welcomes students to my recently opened art studio. I needed a way to mark that entrance since my ordered sign hadn't arrived in time for my studio opening. But for anyone looking for a house where Zentangle is spoken, this is a sure sign; follow the star! And this one is adorned with bold stripes in various ways.

The flag undulating in the wind makes such beautiful, serendipitous patterns. There's a tangle that I'm not even sure what it is called or who created it, but I've dubbed it "hills and valleys."It so deftly represents that undulating, wavy beauty of stripes in motion, just like those of the flag hanging on my front porch beam snapping to a fro in the Colorado breeze. I use the pattern all the time because I love the bold character and movement so much. You've seen it in my studio wall mural tree,  on my tangled mask (previous blogs), and here are some tiles from my "Tangle a Day 2015" sketchbook with "hills and valleys" but less stripy;  also note my use of black and white stripes:

Another example of bold stripes is shown here, in my "Tangle a Day 2015" series of sketches, of the aquafleur tangle by Rick and Maria :

Last, I wanted to share one of my very first ZT tiles. It's a fun idea I'm sure I copped from somewhere.The stripes or layers are filled in with different tangle patterns. (Note that my lines were not as confident at that time as I was still a beginner. I like looking back on early work; it reminds me of how much I have advanced.) 

There would be so many possibilities with this "Princess-and-the-Pea" fairytale idea. Doesn't it look like the stacked mattresses atop the pea that so irritated the princess? These are that tangles I was learning at the time. Teaching tangles with this format would actually make a really great class!

Well, I hope I've inspired you to get our your preferred pen and play with some of the stars and stripes out there in the ZT world! Have fun with the never-ending possibilities.

It's Official - Home Studio Classes have begun!

This June marked a new milestone for me and my Botangle business. After many months of preparation, I offered the first class from my home studio in Estes Park. It was a celebration to remember with lovely ladies who added sparkle to my day as well as to the beautiful gemstones they created. We started with a step out of tiny red glowing gems and moved on to the final larger gem that most didn't finish embellishing in class. That's because we enjoyed an extra long break with a Zentangle cake with ice cream and coffee and tea on the warm summer day. For me, it was the perfect start to what I hope will be my full-time focus in the near future. I've been putting up new class offering on my website, botangle.net  that you should check out. More to be added this weekend!

Thank you ladies for celebrating this special occasion with me!

Waiting for the class to arrive. This special session included Botangle door prizes.

Class working on the first exercise; tiny glowing gems.

Beautiful student results!

"Gems" with their gems.

My custom-ordered Zentangle cake.

Break time.

Back to serious work.

What incredible, diverse gems!

Two lovely gemstones embellished after class.

Botangle Home Studio Opens this Month with Gemtangles Class!

I'm very excited to announce that I've finally gotten it all together to open my home studio to classes! My announced June 11 class filled up so fast that I actually increased the class size from six to ten. But as you can see in my studio classroom photos, there is plenty of room, and the more the merrier!

I am looking forward to this opening with special door prizes, and enjoying a festive break in our Estes Park backyard with cake, coffee, tea, etc. We will have to fend off a few humming birds and butterflies! 

Sorry for missing my April post, but I was so busy trying to get all the logistics together for this milestone decision to be successful. Offering classes in my home studio had to wait for reliable weather (we had a big snowstorm in May with 31 inches) and some behind-the-scenes tasks to be completed.More exciting than the actual opening is being able to share it with some of my long-time students. I can't wait to see their progression. No better way to initiate such an occasion than with bling! We'll be creating Gemtangles like the ones shown below from a previous class.  

Since I am booked solid for my first class, I decided to offer another Gemtangles class on June 25. There is still room to sign up. As I mentioned in my original email announcement, though Estes Park might be a jaunt for you, you can make this a fun day excursion. I have scheduled class for four hours in the afternoon to give us plenty of time to finish and enjoy a break. That said, you could come to town early, have a delightful lunch, drive to Rocky Mountain National Park, or shop a bit in town. Here's a link to sign up or share:http://botangle.net/shop.html

My studio classroom waiting for you!

Studio classroom in Estes Park, CO.

One of my favorite Gemtangles on a Z3 tile. Such a blank tile is included in the classroom materials kit.

This is our model for the class. Experienced tanglers can, of course, improvise.

One of my Gemtangles.

These last two photos were taken at my last Gemtangles class held at Two Hands Paperie in Boulder, CO.

The Month of Three

We're nearly halfway into March, the third month of the year, so I'm focusing on the theme of three by posting my first drawings on the fun, three-sided Zentangle tiles called 3Z. These 3.5" x 3.5" equilateral triangles are made of die cut, deckled-edged, 100% cotton archival paper.

Six tiles placed together create just one of many possible designs.

The 3Zs  have been out for a while, but last weekend was my first chance to break mine out and play. What a delightful canvas! Because the surface area is pretty small, the results develop quickly.

I love using particularly bold tangles/patterns that create strong contrasts on the value scale, and striking compositions. What's even more fun is the way you can puzzle these tiles together with different combinations for a different look. They also snug up with a good match to the standard square Zentangle tiles.

The triangular shape of these tiles just calls for a middle focal point of some kind; here I've used gemstones, a 3-d sphere, a braid-like belt, and an inverted triangle to draw in the eye.

Flash Card Fun!

I recently taught a class at Two Hands Paperie. Because the shop has so many things that speak to my heart, my crafts, and my passions, I always buy things after I've taught my class. Not a very wise way to make money!

Anyway, on that particular Saturday after teaching, a box of manilla vintage flash cards displayed on one of the antique shop tables caught my eye. I was immediately transported back to my school days (decades ago).

Amazing how such triggers bring back memories of long ago with such clarity: memories of adding, subtracting, multiplication, and division with my grandmother who was a first grade teacher flashed through my mind. We had hours of fun together with those cards sitting on her floral-print davenport, i.e. couch! Learning with Grandma was in no way arduous. She always whipped up refreshments and special treats; we laughed and learned, and I was so proud to have a "real teacher" teaching me. She even took me to her classroom sometimes.

How could I make these cards more memorable, I thought? "Zentangle" them came to mind almost in a "flash!" So I purchased two - now I'm sad I didn't buy them all - to give it a try.

Here are the two flash cards I tangled around. Next time I'm at Two Hands, I plan on stopping by to get more. I encourage you to try "tangling" on ephemera and other unusual things you haven't thought of. I can image tangling on old letters, stationary, books, maps, stamps, etc. The possibilities are limitless as you might already know.

I hope these bring back fond memories for you too!

These were all done while watching movies, sports, or other T.V. shows.
That makes me feel as if watching T.V.  hasn't been a waste of my time. So maybe these aren't the best in terms of execution, but spontaneous they are!

Got Weather on My Mind

Today I'm getting ready for a week in Seattle where I'll be attending the American Meteorological Society's Annual meeting; a job-related trip. So I'll be immersed in panel discussions, presentations, symposia, poster sessions, etc. that focus on the science of weather and climate. That's why I've got weather on my mind!

I have been too busy to work up new drawings to show you so I decided to share tiles drawn years ago that reflect my mood. These little journal entries have the feel of swirling wind, sunshine and rays of warmth, rain and snow, and funky clouds, ala Zentangle.

It also happens to be my birthday today, and I came into this world during a major snowstorm. Schools and most of the businesses in town were closed down that year on January 21. Luckily, my parents' neighbors had some heavy car that got mom to the hospital safely. Because of that event, my Mom and Dad always called me their Snow Baby.

Here in the Rocky Mountains (though beautiful and sunny earlier) the snow has begun to fall, as if to give me another birthday present. It's been a good day!

Happy New Year and Kids Rock!

I can't believe that I let December get away without posting. I had every intention of showing you results from my December class at Two Hands Paperie on Bijou tile ornaments. But you know how it is - holidays, visitors, work, family, life just gets in the way sometime. Not that I'm complaining about any of them. We had a lot of good times in December with family and friends. I count this class among that fun. So let me show you their results.

The small, intimate class was as enthusiastic as they could be, with no fewer than three kids ages nine to twelve, if I remember correctly. Normally, the classes at Two Hands are for adults and the owner called to ask if I would allow kids under twelve in my class, and that the mother assured her girl and boy were both very "artsy." I said yes, of course. Who doesn't want to promote art in our youth?! I'm so glad that my parents always supported my interest in any type of art or craft, messy as many were; like a potter's wheel in the basement!

Kids are delightfully uninhibited - all three created beautiful ornaments and had no problems learning the tangle strokes. They just dove in! That's a refreshing reminder to all of us adults who agonize too much over this line and that dot!

Not to short shrift the adults in class. They were every bit as eager and adept as their results show. This particular ornament bedazzled us all. The student used sparkling gel pens on it, which you don't see here as well as in real life. It worked so well with the crystal dangle.

One of my New Year's resolutions is to be more active about my blog posts. I hope you all have success with your resolutions - especially if they include adding more Zentangle to your routine. Until next time, Happy Healthy New Year!