Yesterday, I showed you the tiny Traveler's Journal that I made. Yesterday, I started using the first insert booklet as a tiny art journal.
I chose the theme of “seeds”. So these are my first two pages. The first is inside the cover and the right side is the “title page”.
Working this small does take some rethinking about the techniques normally used in a standard-sized book. For example, the width of a mark made by a Copic marker is much larger, in proportion, than I was normally used to.
I’ve been totally obsessed with Traveler’s Notebooks since seeing a mini one turned into an art journal on Facebook!
So I decided to try my hand at making them. I’ve made several of various sizes. But today, I wanted to show you a little tiny, mini one. Above, you can see the front and the spine.
The flower design is continued on the back.
Here is the spine, showing how two elastics were strung, and with the closing loop undone.
Army of Squirrels.
This started out being a tile that was all about Crescent Moon for a FB challenge. But, when I was looking around my studio for ideas of what to do with CM, I found Aloha drawn on something. My squirrels decided that I should add that to the tile.
After that, I figured all was lost… with the squirrels being in charge and just went with the flow.
This week’s I Am The Diva Challenge is “Orbs”. These simple spherical shapes are a fundamental of the Zentangle Method.
For this tile, I chose tangles that are created completely from orbs, with some minor ornamentation. It was really good practice, and got me back into the swing of drawing these shapes with total concentration.
The sepia color was a bit of a happy accident… I picked up what I thought was a black pen and started drawing… So I just kept on going!
This beautiful Zendala was created by Amanda Higbee, CZT. I love the way the tangles flow and transform from one to another!
Zentangle drawn on an Original Zentangle Zendala tile using a black, Micron pen. Shading done with graphite and black Kimberly watercolor pencil.
Tangles: Indyrella Umble Vermal Zander Warble
Another tile from Matt this week! I gave him a Zentangle kit for his birthday at the beginning of September. He is really enjoying it! The tangles on this tile are based on what appears on the Legend Card in the kit.
Zentangle drawn on an Official Zentangle Tile using a black, Micron pen. Shading done with graphite pencil.
Tangles: Chartz Hollibaugh Keeko Paradox Tipple Xircus
Inktober.
Are you familiar with Inktober? It is a month long challenge started by Jake Parker designed to instill in artists a daily, ink-drawing habit. You can read all about it (and get the list for this year) from the Inktober website .
There is also a tangled version of Inktober. The list of prompts for that are here .
I’m starting a new Journal Junkies Art Journal on October 1, so I’ve cheated a bit and added in my calendar and a few other pages already. I’ll be using it for several things, including whatever I do for Inktober.
Market haul.
Yes, it wasn’t that much fun, hauling freight from one planetary market to another. And this time, the products were mostly fruit and woven goods. Nothing dangerous.
But this is what pays for the adventures. It keeps the process going smoothly.
We do the necessary to experience the extraordinary!
Zentangle drawn on Strathmore Vellum Bristol using a black, Micron pen. Shading done with graphite pencil.
Tangles: Beadlines Echoism Pokeroot Vink Well
Matt sent me this tile yesterday to post here. I’m always fascinated by the unusual elements he adds to his tangles! Sometimes it is his own interpretation of a tangle, sometimes it’s a tangle that is totally new to me, and sometimes it’s just a small, added tweak that captures my attention.
Zentangle drawn on Strathmore Vellum Bristol using a black, Micron pen. Shading done with graphite pencil.
Tangles: Fescu Pokeroot Striping
She loved this place and it’s tropical feeling weather. It was nice to be in a place where she could sit on a lanai, or wander in an out without realizing it. It reminded her of the home planet… where her ancestors came from.
Zentangle drawn on Strathmore Vellum Bristol using a black, Micron pen. Shading done with graphite pencil.
Tangles: Diva Dance Florez Hollibaugh Lightning Bolt Meer Mooka Easy Trentwith
Sometimes, when I don’t have a specific direction for my tangling, I just pull tangles at random.
For this tile, I chose the section of the string first, and then the random tangle.
I wasn’t quite sure what to do, at first, when Vega came out of the tangle jar. I’m used to drawing it as a border or a ribbon, rather than a fill. But I have to say, I might use it more often after this… I really like the results.
Over the weekend, I received this picture of a tile Matthew created!I’m not sure of all the tangle names… perhaps some of them don’t even have names. But it doesn’t matter… It’s still a great tile!
Zentangle drawn on a black Official Zentangle Apprentice tile using a white Sakura Gelly Roll. Highlights done with white charcoal pencil.
Tangles: Paradox Aura Leah Tipple
All over.
Amanda (Amanda Higbee, CZT) sent me this picture on Saturday. It was something she had been working on for a few days.
Amanda says that she saw something like this on line, and wanted to give it a try. I asked her which tangle it was, and she wasn’t sure… she thinks Cyme is the closest. To me, it reminds me of Garlic Cloves, or Ravel.
But no matter what you call it, I love it! The color variations keep an all-over design from becoming boring!
No matter which tangle you choose, there are usually many different ways to draw it.
Take Hollibaugh, for example. I’ve used curved, filled, flared, “holyhollibaugh”, coffered, wrapped, auraed, woven, swerved and mummy versions, to name a few.
So I thought it might be good to have a way to keep track of these versions all in one place. That way, I would have a reference of styles to choose from.
Adaptation.
I recently had someone tell me that they never use Cadent when they are tangling. They don’t like it because they can’t get all the shapes to be “even”.
One of the the things that is great about tangling is that you can adapt whatever tangle you choose to work with your own style and ability!
So, today’s tile is a monotangle of Cadent… drawn in the “crazy” style. Meaning, there is no grid. I just drew the circles wherever I wanted and then connected them together with an “S” stroke!
Disruption.
Every time the energy returned, it disrupted the planetary patterns. She knew it was time to travel again, to take the ship out. But the energy patterns just didn’t allow for it then. She would study the patterns… perhaps there was a way.
Zentangle drawn on Strathmore Vellum Bristol using a black, Micron pen. Shading done with graphite pencil.
Tangles: Antidots Betweed Flukes Ing Printemps Static