Embossing Project Complete

I promised photos of the finished product, so here they are!  I really love how it turned out.  Adding just a little bit of color completely changes the look, but to me it still seems to preserve the overall Zentangle idea of simplicity.  Adding black on the flat area around the design really makes the embossed portion stand out.  I think this will be the first in a series!

Diva's Challenge #18: Eggs!

Fitting for Easter week, The Diva's challenge was eggs.  I didn't get a chance to work on the challenge until Thursday this week.  I wanted to tangle an elaborate egg design, but I also didn't want the task to add more stress to my already busy week.  Simplicity won out, and I like the result.  I must be playing too much Angry Birds on my phone in my spare time, though, because my husband took one look at my tile and said it looked like something straight out of the game.  I hope to work on a more complex egg if I get some uninterrupted free time, but as we are in the middle of preparing for a big move it may not be possible!

The Fifteen Minute Challenge

This week's challenge from The Diva was to complete a Zentangle tile in 15 minutes.  The premise behind using the small 3.5" square tiles for Zentangles is to be able to complete them quickly without feeling like you have to fill up too much space.  I have never timed myself before to see how long it takes me to complete one, but after this week's challenge I do know this:  it is not 15 minutes!  After taking my first Zentangle class, I promptly went out and bought a drawing pad that was a bit larger.  After working with more space for a few weeks, I went back to the tiles and found them much easier to complete.  Now I think of larger designs as multiple tiles put together rather than making them on one large piece of paper.

That said, here is my first 15-minute tile.  Watching the clock was so stressful for me!  It is definitely not complete.  I usually leave my shading for last, and this tile has none and looks unfinished.

I'm not sure if I cheated on the next one by thinking it through a bit more before I started, but I found a few lessons learned as I went along.
-Simplify tangles and leave out any "unimportant" elements that still give the same impact (as with the Onomato lacking the second bubbly border).
-Use fewer tangles, and repeat them...or "zoom in" and enlarge a tangle or two to quickly fill space.
-Leave white space--it's okay!

 Just for kicks, here is a new project I am working on, embossing tangles on metal sheeting.  This one needs some color added to define it a bit more.  It includes Blooming Butter and Featherfall.  After I finish and mat it, I will post another photo.

Diva's Challenge #16

This week's challenge from The Diva was to use the new Zentangle pattern Mooka.  You can find the instructions for drawing the pattern here.  It is a very fun, flowy tangle to draw and a great space filler.  The best part about it is that it is really a one-step tangle.  No grids, no straight lines.  I found it taking on a mind of its own!

I found some inspiration for using Mooka in the pattern on my new, springy bag (bought to remind me that it is, in fact, spring even if it is 40 degrees outside and the trees are still without leaves!).