Zen Lettering

I'm working through 2 new books...

• A Beginner's Guide: Lettering & Modern Calligraphy
• Hand-Lettering: An Interactive Guide to the Art of Drawing Letters

(You can find both on Amazon!)

I wanted to do something different with my Zentangles this year but wasn't really sure WHAT I wanted to do. I just knew that every time I started with my Zentangles, I got...stuck...

I couldn't find patterns I wanted to try and when I did find patterns, I was frustrated with the way they turned out. I need more structure and guidance to feel free to create.  

As luck would have it, I won a $100 gift card for filling out a survey for one of my professional development orgs.  I'm not sure how I stumbled across hand lettering, but I did and the next thing I knew, 2 books and a pack of markers were in my cart.  Both books arrived over the weekend, along with the markers, and my idea was hatched!

I'm looking forward to embarking on combining my zentagle designs with hand lettering. It will give me a chance to be structured, yet, create something with the patterns I've come to love.  Here's to a new chapter in Zentangling!

Cheers,

A

Exercising those muscles...

It's hard to believe it's been over 2 years since I started this blog!! What happened?? I'm not sure...I started off strong and then just got sidetracked or sideswiped...or maybe a combination of both.  Anyway, I'm back doing what I love and it feels good!

But it hurts a little...like when you start exercising again. I just started working out with a group of ladies on Saturday morning.  Man - they KILL.IT.  I feel great after I'm done but the next 2 days...ugh...my muscles are screaming at me ('Why, oh why did you do that to us?!').  I remember that I used to be a regular Y goer, attending Body Pump and other aerobic classes. I was running several times a week, too. I was a crazy, healthy person...and then, just like that, I just got busy with life - a graduate school program, 2 kids growing fast and furious, a career/job - yeah...

BOOM

It just sort of all changed and now, I'm back to square one. Working myself out and remembering those muscles. 

And that's what I needed to do with my Zentangles.  

I'm setting realistic goals, though.  Maybe not every day will I get to tangle, but I'm getting into the habit of coming into my studio and doing a few each week.  That's a good start.  

So here's to sore body and art muscles!  May I remember how the initial pain feels and keep going so I don't have to start all over again. ; )

Cheers,

A

Day 12 - Landscape with

Perspective, perspective...it's on in how we look at things.  Today I was challenged to create a Zentangle using the principles of landscape drawing - things close look big and reduce in size as you move into the distance.  Okay - I know this didn't really happen in this piece so I need to keep working.  BUT...I'm still really pleased with how the overall design looks ; )

Today I used:
Hollibaugh * Orton * Flux *

Day 11 - Auras & Rounding

This was a fun exercise on Auras and Rounding that I got a little carried away with and ended up creating my own tangleation! 

The Auras are those fun, white lines that create, well, an aura around the pattern. I liked how the book example turned out using Poke Root so I used that and then did it with Flux and Festune.

The Rounding comes when you fill in the nooks and crannies with the black ink of your pen. I did this with Festune and Poke Root, but I've also done this unknowingly on other designs I've created. I like the effect that it has on a piece.

The other new patterns I used were Onamato (between Hollibaugh and the aura of Festune) and then my tangleation using Florz (grid w/ diamonds) and Printemps (Swirls). I'm not crazy/excited about how it came into being but it was fun ; )

I was glad I got to sneak in some Fescu way at the top...that's a tricky one for me to get into my zentangles so I was happy I got to add it!

Cheers,

A

Day 10 - Shattuck & Nipa

I'm a little tired today after getting up at 4:30am!  I was stuck in no-woman's land - toss and turn and try to get to sleep or just get up...I opted for get up, work out and read the paper before the house woke up. It was actually quite peaceful,  however...now I've been ready for bed since 8pm!

So enough about my early risings...Today was about trying to create more depth and use Vega, as well as, Purk in my zentangle.  I wanted to practice some other tangle patterns that I haven't really explored: Shattuck (behind Purk) and Nipa. I'm still figuring out placement of my patterns, too.

That's all I got in me today...g'night!

Cheers,

A

Day 9 - Working with Purk

You may notice that my signature is not normally where it should be...I was looking "at the world's upness" that day! No, not really...I opened my Sketchbook upside down and didn't notice it until I had completed my design - oops!  Well, it was a happy accident and I liked it so much, I left it the way it was instead of taking the photo from the other angle.

Working with Purk is tricky.  I'm learning how to compose my patterns before starting in on the tangle. I couldn't have achieved the shape of Purk if I had started it after I did Crescent Moon and Flukes - same thing with Isodor and Tipple at the botom and Flux at the top.

So I'm learning a bit more about the complexity of zentangling each day! (And thanks to the ghost John Muir for the inspiration of looking at things in a different way ; )

Cheers,

A

Day 8 - Working Ahead w/ Vega & Purk

I realized quickly that working at my art and trying to post on the same day was really stressful! The snow and school cancellations, plus lots going on at work put a bit of a crimp in my tangling each day.

This weekend gave me a chance to work ahead and take a little pressure off my self imposed demands ☺

Today is a practice piece I worked on - Vega and Purk.  These tangles gave me some challenges with trying to make them look 3-D. I think, in the end, I got the results. You'll see more in the coming days as I really want to become more accomplished with these tangles.

Cheers,

A