One Zentangle a Day

tile overlap onto another tile and treat the areas appropriately.
    This composition was created on a prestrung geometric ensemble set.
    THIS ZIA PROJECT INVOLVES creating an ensemble. You can either use a pre-strung Zentangle tile set or create your own. To create your own, choose from three to nine tiles and lay them, sides touching, in the shape you want the finished piece to be. Using a pencil, draw one string across all the tiles. Number them on the back so you know their order and begin to apply the tangles with a Micron 01 pen. Carry the patterns over to the next tile in the areas that run across two tiles. When all the tiles have their string tangled, shade each tile. Carry the shading across the tile borders just as you did the patterns. This is a ZIA exercise, so you can choose to use color or not.

DAY 37 TECHNIQUES FOR MONO PRINTING
    MATERIALS
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Micron 01 pen
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Micron 05 pen
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2B pencil
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sketchbook
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white tile
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four white tiles or four tiles from watercolor paper
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ATCs (optional)
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Gelato opaque paint sticks, Caran d’Ache crayons, or water-soluble oil pastels
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Barron or large metal spoon
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two 3 1/2" × 3 1/2" (8.9 × 8.9 cm) pieces of acrylic Plexiglas
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sandpaper
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gum arabic
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3/4" (1.9 cm) flat paintbrush
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hair dryer (optional)
    BOLD PATTERNS DRAW OUR attention, create interest, and add weight to our artwork. One way of doing this is by going over the lines of the pattern a second time. Drawing one pattern with a larger pen nib than the others will also create a sense that the pattern is dominant. Another method is to draw the pattern larger and exaggerated, as when creating a dewdrop, or to round off or silhouette the pattern.

Daily Tangles
    Try this pattern. Warmth is a pattern that has two-thirds of the lines created with normal lines while the other lines are created with a pen with a larger nib. The larger lines are placed randomly.

    Practice this pattern in your sketchbook until it is familiar. On a white tile, create a Zentangle tile that uses today’s pattern. Add some of your own Tangleations or patterns you have created.
    The Locar Tangleation allows warmth to show through and gives the piece depth. Some patterns were gone over again to make them stand out and come forward.

Monoprinting
    Start by sanding the surface of the acrylic tile in two directions. Wash and dry the acrylic tile. Apply a coat of gum arabic to the acrylic tile and let it dry. Gum arabic is the release agent for the drawing. Once the acrylic tiles are dry, place the paper tiles or ATCs you are going to print on in water to soak. Use the water-soluble crayons of your choice to draw your tangles on the acrylic tile. Because of the size of the crayons’ tips, bold patterns work well for this project. You can create a string from a gray crayon. The first layer down will be the top layer when printed, so it is a good idea to place the basic outline of the patterns you are using first. When you are done, take the paper tile or ATCs out of the water and remove any puddles from the surface with a towel. Do not dry them too much. Place the paper right side down on the drawing you created on the tile. Use a Barron or a large metal spoon to rub circles over the entire back surface of the paper tile. Do this a few times. As you are rubbing, you are transferring the drawing to the paper. When finished, remove the paper from the tile, lay it flat, and let it dry. You can print a ghost print of the same drawing by repeating the process on another paper tile. Wash the tile when done printing. You may choose to leave as is or add more.
    It is hard to get small details to come out with this technique, so I went around the fronds with a Copic sepia pen and then retouched some of the shadows.
    The first tile is the monoprint, and the second is the ghost print. These tiles were not touched up after printing.
    Judy used a Pigma Sensei pen to add tangles after monoprinting the background.

DAY 38 TANGLED FABRIC
    MATERIALS
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Micron 01 pen
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2B pencil
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sketchbook
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white tile
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black cotton duck cloth
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bleach pen
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Tulip fabric markers
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Sensei pens
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Inktense pencils
    IN THE BEGINNING OF JUDY’S Zentangle journey, she drew densely patterned tiles, using almost every pattern she was learning at the time. She favored organic lines and geometric patterns. Now she uses restraint in the number of patterns she uses, focusing on composition and creating a focal