One Zentangle a Day

patterns.

    Poke Root was drawn after Verdigõgh and Locar in order to fill in the background area.

Introduction to Tangled Journaling
    I come from a long line of journal-keeping women. Every year at Christmas my grandmother gave me a diary, trying to impart the tradition. I started out writing in the journals, but by the end of January I was only drawing in them. Though my journaling method was not popular with the elder women of the family then, little did they know decades later we would call it visual journaling, and it would be very popular. I especially love visual journaling with tangles on a tile or in a small sketchbook. I call it “tangled journaling.” The quickness makes it doable even on hectic days. If there is an issue weighing on my mind, for instance, work I cannot turn off in my head, I will pull out a tile and in a few minutes my mind will be focused on drawing strokes. When I finish, I feel centered and ready to move. I enjoy the discreetness visual journaling provides. One person’s interpretation will be very different from another’s, and neither knows exactly what was going on in the artist’s mind. Tangled journaling gives me time to organize my thoughts, feelings, and words. Often I find my best solutions just pop in my head as I am drawing patterns. I carry a tangling kit with me everywhere I go. It contains tiles, a pen, a small sketchbook, a pencil, and a pencil sharpener.
    The first two are samples of kits you can get from a Certified Zentangle Teacher; the last is folded from a piece of Lokta paper. See the Appendix, page 124 , to learn how to fold your own ATC and Zentangle Tile Carrier.
    PUT TOGETHER A TAKE-ALONG Zentangle kit. You may want to purchase one, create your own, or repurpose something that you have. You may want to stay true to the original kit and bring just white tiles or add ATCs, black tiles, white pen, and pencil. Fold a sheet of paper into an accordion fold and create a reminder sheet of tangles to place in your kit. If you choose to tangle on the outside of the kit, use the appropriate pen for the surface of your kit.

DAY 16 ORGANIC PATTERNS
    MATERIALS
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Micron 01 pen
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pencil
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white pencil of your choice
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sketchbook
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white tile
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ATC pack of midtoned colors
    THE BEAUTY OF THE ORGANIC patterns is their ability to fit in so many odd shapes and combine easily with completely contrasting patterns.

Daily Tangles
    Try these three patterns. Today’s tangles all contain curved lines. The pattern Pepper is similar to the pattern Festune. Ynix can be used to move the eye. Slow down the pen as you draw the halo and keep the space an even width from the central shape. I think of Squid as Mysteria’s cousin. It is similar, but Squid’s center feels more grounded, and the tentacle area is airy. Pay attention to the placement of the tentacles in each step. Do not draw all the orbs identically or with drastic differences in size. A small variation holds interest and lets the components come together. Practice these patterns in your sketchbook until they feel familiar.

    When you are comfortable with these patterns, create a tangled tile using Pepper, Ynix, and Squid. Add any previously learned patterns or Tangleations you would like.
    Judy created a Tangleation of Squid by adding black semicircles to the tentacles. They create balance between the airy top of the composition and the darker, heavier bottom.

Using the Achromatic Scale on Midtoned Colored Paper
    I have always loved drawings using an achromatic value scale that have been created on colored paper. The color of the paper is the background to the art piece, so not all colors work well. You will find it is easiest to work on paper with a midtoned value, which is the focus of this exercise. This allows the graduating white of highlights as well as the graduating gray tones of the shadows to show equally. Gray, beige, and ochre papers all work for this. Blue tones will give the piece a feeling of coolness and still work for a large variety of gray tones to show. Yellow and pink are a little trickier because, even as midtoned hues, they’re brighter and can wash out highlights. When working on colored papers with a brighter background, harmony is harder to achieve. Examine the composition often by holding the piece at arm’s length. Turn the tile and look at it from every angle for possibilities before choosing the next pattern.
    Using the patterns of your choice, create an achromatic scaled