ZENDALA DARE #79 & A LITTLE RAINBOW OVERLOAD

For some reason... (I mean, there has to be a reason for everything, right?)  For some reason, November has thus far been full of taking color to absolutely unreasonable distances.  By that I mean... I think I am channeling LISA FRANK!  Full on - I'm talking unicorn vomit & psychedelic tiger farts.   I managed to get it under control enough to finish The Bright Owl's Zendala Dare #79... well... that is... on my second try...

I think that a lot of people wouldn't put out for public viewing & ridicule a work that they themselves laugh at & consider a complete mess.  However, I enjoy being able to laugh at myself, as well as make others laugh with me / at me.  Now, this is all a matter of taste.  Some people, (such as my lovely 9 year old niece Hannah,) probably wouldn't look at the following zendala as an example of just how excellently carried away far beyond all reason one can get.  For me... I found myself taking a break from it, & when I came back & actually looked at it, cracked up & realized that it had been embellished by the 10 year old girl I sometimes pretend to be.

tangles used: cayke, co2, footlights, japan diamond, paradox

This started out really well... I began with Derwent Inktense pencils to create a wash around the center ovals.  It looked really cool.  Next I dove in with my brand spankin' new set of Prismacolor Premier colored pencils for the outside.  Here's how it looked:

This is how it looked after the initial application of colored pencil

After blending with a wonderful Derwent Blending Pencil







Then things started to get really crazy once I busied it up with tangles & colored pens.  I can say it has grown on me.  The more I look at it, the better I like it.  I just seem to always move towards using an entire rainbow of colors when there are 6 or more elements to something.  It just happens.

I finished this first one just for the fun of it - because once you take something a bit over the line, it's kinda fun to push it even further - I pulled on my grown up pants, & sat down for a second go.

I'm pretty happy with this one, & I think I restrained myself appropriately:

tangles used: coil, hollibaugh, por-fin

The paper I used for this is Strathmore 400 series toned gray sketch.  It's my favorite for graphite work, & besides just being beautiful - it's excellent for shading.  You can get a deep scale of gray on it with a simple 2B pencil that can be gradually enhanced for greater dimension with white graphite.  The blue is from my new set of Prismacolors.

OH- I almost forgot - big up's to Mr. Rick & Miss Maria.  Thanks!

If you made your way through reading all this meaningless text - congratulations! you get a gold star!  Know that you're real swell & I appreciate your attention to my ramblings.  Comments & Criticism are always super, so if you are thus inclined, you know what to do.

I hope everyone is having a super-fantastic-awesome day!

DIVA CHALLENGE #142 -or- THE DANGER ZONE!!

OK - this week's Diva Challenge #142 was to step outside of our comfort zones & into the DANGER ZONE.

I thought long & hard about the kinds of things I avoid, or don't like doing.  I made a list:
* I never really use organic, non-repetitive/tight patterned tangles
* I don't like to use only b&w/gray scale
* I have a hard time using strings
* I generally like to work with paper or board cut in perfect squares
* I find it difficult to throw symmetry out the window.
* I always sketch, sketch & re-sketch new tangles I'm learning before I ever put them down on paper
* I can always find a use for a ruler, compass & protractor - which is a Zentangle No-No.

I could go on further, but instead I'll just show you what I came up with.

tangles used: fern, zinger, decostar (modified into flower)

This first one is much looser & organic than anything I think I've done before.  I did this in gray-scale. Both fern & zinger are tangles I've never used.  I also have a tendency to not tangle with flowers at all (don't get me wrong, I can draw flowers for days - it's my favorite subject in any medium or style... but for some reason I just don't tangle with them.) 

next up:

tangles used: kandy ribnz, clothesline, fescu, por-fin, yew-dee, frillee, drack, asian fans, thumbprintz

First off - the paper.  This is a marbling that I did a few months back when experimenting with Mr. Sketch Scented Water Color Markers.  I know you all remember these things from when you were little.  I saw them in the store one day & snatched them up out of pure nostalgia.  Second, it's all done with black micron's.  Third (& most importantly,) each of these tangles are ones I've never even attempted before (excluding clothesline).  I didn't try them out in my sketch book on grids, I didn't use a pencil, ruler, compass, etc. to lay them out, & I started with a freehand string that I outlined in thick black lines to accentuate the use of the strings.  I really jumped in head first, & you know what, I really enjoyed doing this.  PLUS, it didn't turn out half bad!

I'd love to hear any comments, suggestions, criticisms... or anything else any of you'd like to say.

Have a happy, safe, & spooky Halloween!  I'll see you all once I'm done stuffing all the goblins back in the closet!