Diva Challenge #221 - Beads of Courage

This weeks challenge is Beads of Courage. This wonderful program awards very ill children with a beautiful bead as an award for undergoing scary proceedures during their health care. Collecting these beads displays the courage of these brave children. The beads challenge can also be used as an inspiration to create a tribute. Last year my response to the Beads of Courage were for my Son who died of Cancer, This year my Tile is to honor Artoo, the bravest little boy I know, and my wife who passed away in February. A simple clean tile for a loving wife, mother, and friend. She would have liked this tile as she commented on every Tile, Tangle, and Pattern I drew. Losing two loved ones in one year is very tough. I love Zentangles, and the Diva Challenge community. I appreciate the support and encouragement I receive in the comments and art that each of you share each week.

Patterns: Stone Necklace and Holiday Ornaments bySuzzane McNeill,
LoLo by Hsin-Ya-Hsu, Printemps, Ribbons and Auras.

Thanks to everyone for your comments on last weeks Challenge.

To see other challenge tiles for this week's Challenge and past Diva challenges, visit "IamTheDivaCZT's" Blog site.

Diva Challenge #220 - UMT - All Boxed Up

The Diva Challenge this week is "Use My Tangle." Alice Hendon has a delightful pattern that she created called "All Boxed Up." This pattern, in its original form, is designed to use straight lines. Last weeks challenge was to use straight lines. I had to go curvey and more organic to regain my balance and re-align my pens creativity. I like this pattern a lot and I hope Alice will allow me to shift from her original design. Only "All Boxed Up" was used in this Tile along with auras and some ribbons. It was a fun Tile, and I really appreciate Alice's wonderful Pattern.

Thanks to everyone for your comments on last weeks Challenge.

To see other challenge tiles for this week's Challenge and past Diva challenges, visit "IamTheDivaCZT's" Blog site.

Diva Challenge #219 - Straight Lines

This weeks "IamTheDivaCZT" Challenges, is to use only straight lines. Drawing only straight lines is not so easy, fun, sure, easy, no. Trying to make some curves out of straight lines is possible if the lines are short. I like the movement this created.

I thought I would be cute, and try to draw Printemps, using straight lines. They turned out looking like a six-sided Emingle instead. Thus, everyone gets to choose their preference for what to call them.

The other patterns I used are: Hollibaugh, Ing, Paradox, Meer, Cubine, Stripes, my pattern Putki, and Arukas,

Thanks to everyone for your comments on last weeks Challenge.

To see other challenge tiles for this week's Challenge and past Diva challenges, visit "IamTheDivaCZT's" Blog site.

Diva Challenge #218 - White on Black on Found

Laura Harms, "I am The Diva Challenge" this week is to create a Tile using a Black Tile and draw using White materials. Laura gave us a great tip to get the best results using the Sakura White Gel pens. "Draw very slowly." It worked for me. I always got dots at the beginning and ends of my lines when drawing with the Gel pen, but going a lot slower gave a nice solid line which is dot free.

I used the Official Pattern, "Striping" for this challenge. I created a string using the Zenstone, drew the Striping pattern using the Sakura Whte Gel pen, then filled in the solid areas with the General's White Charcoal Pencil. A lesson well learned using the General's white pencil....Do Not Touch the Tile with your fingers. I did, and there are several places where the Chalk Pencil would not adhere to the Tile due to my clammy paws. I started holding the tile with a paper interface between fingers and Tile. It worked perfectly. I was worried about the holding of the Tile as the pencil chalk got closer to the edges and having the chalk wear off from finger contact. The paper interface took care of that possibility also. This Tile, though very simple, turned out better than I had expected.

Thanks to everyone who commented on last weeks Challenge. It is your delightful comments that keep me going.

To see other challenge tiles for this week's Challenge and past Diva challenges, visit "IamTheDivaCZT's" Blog site.

Late night Tangling.

A fun tangle, drawn while "Listening" to one of the remaining David Letterman Shows. Patterns used are, Pokeroot, Pokeleaf, Verdigogh, Shattack, Flux, Stripes, Stipple, and Pearls.

Tile: 3.5 square, Tiepolo Stock.

Sakura .01 pens, red, black.

My Grand Daughter, Ivory, (age 7) is Tangling with me as I post this Tile. She is going to town with Crescent Moon and Mooka Patterns. Here is her Tile. This is her first shot at shading and the use of  a smoothing stump.

All Zentangle® Pattern Practice.

Just practicin'.

This Tile is created with Zentangle official Patterns only. Fracus,, Paradox, PokeRoot, Mooka, and Tipple.

Diva Challenge #217 - Duo Tangle- Dex vs Bunzo

For this "I am The Diva" Challenge, we are asked to create a Tile using only two Patterns, "Dex, and Bunzo." Dex is a grid pattern, and Bunzo is free flowing pattern. It was fun letting Bunzo play around with a distorted limited-grid version of Dex.

A very happy Birthday to Laura Harms.

Thanks to everyone for the wonderful comments left on last weeks Challenge.

To see other challenge tiles for this week's Challenge and past Diva challenges, visit "IamTheDivaCZT's" Blog site.

Diva Challenge #216 - "Brella"

It has been a while since I last posted a Challenge. Life turned upside down when my wife, Linda, passed away last February. I want to thank each and every one of you who so graciously sent your heart-felt notes of condolence. They were wonderful and meant so much to our family.

Being the first Monday of the Month, our Challenge from Laura "The Diva" is the regular feature, "UMT", use my tangle. This weeks challenge pattern is by CZT®, Bunny Wright and is called, "Brella." Monday is May 4th and is Star Wars day. "May the 4th be with you." So a Star Wars Theme element is encouraged.

Patterns used: Brella, Niuroda, Knights Bridge, Star Map, Tipple, Stripes, Lava Juice, Mssst, and Flux

Materials used - all the usual suspects.

I had the awesome opportunity to catch up with two of our wonderful fellow contributors, Suzanne Durville, and Antonine Koval at the Zentangle® #19 CZT Seminar. It was a wonderful time and everyone there had a lot of fun, and enjoyed the outstanding hospitality of Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts along with their unparalleled Staff. It was a joy meeting these warm and wonderful people. The Seminar was beautifully run and concluded way to quickly. There were 109 students in attendance and 108 of them were gifted artists and tangled up a storm. I was definitely pedaling hard to stay afloat with all of these talented ladies. The mosaics created from the many projects were very impressive. Of all those students, I was the only fellow there. I enjoyed every minute of the Seminar. 

Blessings to everyone contributing to Laura's wonderful weekly challenge. You're all very special artists.

To see other challenge tiles for this week's Challenge and past Diva challenges, visit "IamTheDivaCZT's" Blog site.

Diva Challenge #205 - Year of the Goat

It's Monday, and Canada is celebrating "Family Day." That means a three day weekend for the Harms family. The weekly challenge will be on-line tomorrow, Tuesday. So my Tangling rhythm, being all set for a Monday Challenge, fell prey to one of my own choosing. I just received some Stamping ink pads. Never having used these materials before, I pounded a tile with a variety of colors in a kind of uncontrolled barrage. Obviously I got too intense and learned to use a scrap sheet of paper to eliminate that hot blast of full-blown ink color. I had fun with this Tile, despite its, "In you face," color pallet.

I learned about making stamps out of Mars Plastic erasers from the very learned members of the Intermountain Tanglers group. I need to gather some tools to carve these stamps. A single edge Razor Blade, and a Tooth Pick carved, poked and eeked out a pattern on a brand new Mars Plastic eraser for experimental purposes. That eraser carves so nicely. With practice and some sharp tools, one could sculpt anything out of this stuff.

I'm so glad that there are no mistakes in the Zentangle® lexicon. (Even though color only exists in ZIA's.) This art form truly "Rocks."

Patterns used on this crazy tripped-out Tile:

1- Mooka

2- N'Zeppel

3- Squid

4- Button

5- Flux

6- Fescu

7- Tipple

8- Starmap

Colors: Jim Holtz Distress Inks, Wild Honey, Mowed Lawn, Seedless Preserves, Fired Brick, and Salty Ocean. ( Are these not the most creative color names ever???)

Pen: (The usual Suspect.)  Sakura Pigma Micron, .01.

Tile: 3.5 x 3.5 Fabriano Tiepolo.

That brings us to the end of Monday, 

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Now it's Tuesday, Official Diva Challenge Day. 

This Thursday is the Chinese New Year. 2015 is the Year of the Goat. This weeks challenge is to do Goats. Not only is there a goat string in my tile, but all of the patterns begin with the letters in "Goat". I also included the Chinese Character which is related to the Goat. This was an interesting Challenge.

Patterns Used.

1- Gnarly, Barbara Finwall

2- Oke, Michele B.

3- Ahh, Zentangle®

4- Aura, Zentangle®

5- Athitzi, Seven

6- Tearce, Pam Pincha

7- Tipple,Zentangle®

8- TrentWith

Pens used: Sekura Pigma Micron, Black-.005 .01 .03 .05 .08, ,Red- .01

Color: Blick Studio Colored Pencils

Tile: 3.5" square Fabriano Tiepolo Stock.

Thanks to everyone who commented on last weeks Challenge. The challenges just keep getting better and better, and the submissions are fantastic, 

To see other challenge tiles for this week's Challenge and past Diva challenges, visit "IamTheDivaCZT's" Blog site.

Zendala or Zendalette?

The Exploration of Zendala's continues. This is a very low level Zendala. Perhaps it should be called a Zendalette. All Tiles finished are great practice even if the result is not within specs. This piece was colored with Water Color Pencils, but no water was applied, as I liked the pastel look. Completing the process may have invited chaos to prevail.  Here it is, for better or worse, and is included as a sample upon which future pieces may be gauged as an improvement or advancement in technique. (Or not.)

Patterns:
1-Poser
2-Ing
3-In a Pod (version thereof.)
4-Tipple
5-Trentwith

Tile: 3.5" Fabriano Tiepolo, Pen: Sakura Pigma Micron .01: Loen-Cornell Water Color Pencils.