Strings

Choosing a String Resource

In Zentangle® a string, a light pencil guideline, creates spaces to be filled with Zentangle® patterns. The string got its name from Rick’s childhood experience of watching his grandmother drop strings into sugar water and pulling out beautiful rock candy. The string is a foundation for the placement of tangles in Zentangle® art. The string removes the blank paper which scares many artists. The string sits quietly in the background as a guideline. It’s not a wall thus may be ignored by the tangler if so inspired.

Both the tangles used and the resulting completed tiles are intended to be unplanned. Not knowing the outcome is an important and unique aspect of Zentangle®. But like choosing a pattern to draw, deciding on the string also tends to throw the tangler into planning mode. Thinking about the space and the patterns to use removes the Zen from this art.

To find a string and get the left-brain out-of-the-way go to TanglePatterns or purchase a string guide  (scroll down). Then use a random number generator to choose a number between 1 and the last string number listed in the guide to find a string number to draw.

If drawing any string seems complicated to you, print out the string and with soft lead pencil blacken the back of the print-out. Then center it on your tile and with your pencil trace the transfer directly onto the tile.

OR

Close your eyes and, with a pencil, blindly draw a string with a scribble on your tile.

OR

Purchase Prestrung Zentangle® tiles from me or at https://www.zentangle.com/product/zentangle-tiles-pre-strung.

OR

Candleholder
top and bottom traced

Use CZT Margaret Bremner’s idea of “Using tangles as strings,” an enlarged and “perhaps simplified,” tangle as a string. Margaret has many other string ideas. My favorites are:

• “Superimposed strings,”
• Using a number as in her “‘2014’ Diva challenge” post,
• Tracing an object as in her “Key string” and “Traced object string challenge” posts (see photos below),
• From designs on objects as in her “Cookie tin string” post and
• “News flash! Looped border creates its own string!”

OR

my traced object string

Make Alphabet strings as in CZT Sandy Hunter’s “trash/treasure” post.  Click on any image to open and download.

OR

Try CZT Michele Beauchamp’s “A Zentangle Spiral Guide”  for a string.

My rendering of the above string
Ing + Ing variation, Yincut, Inaura, Tripoli and Mooka

KEEP YOUR ZEN AND HAVE FUN!!!

One Simple Stroke…One Simple Change

Those of you familiar with Zentangle®, know it is not about drawing something. It is not about the repetition of a drawing. It’s about the repetition of  “One simple stroke.”

The Zentangle trademarked tag line is "You Can Do Anything, One Stroke at a Time."

Make that the philosophy of your life and you can’t go wrong.

EXPERIENCE EATING MINDFULLY

What I love the most about writing this blog is that it allows me to share the two things I’m passionate about: being mindful and healthy eating. Mindfulness means intentionally paying attention and experiencing the present moment. And one of the best things about Zentangle® is it gives us permission to stop all the mental chatter and practice focused attention. If this is one of the reasons you love Zentangle®, why not take mindfulness to another level? Try mindful eating which is another "simple way to experience focused attention."

At the recent Juice Plus+® Conference they introduced a new campaign: "One Simple Change." 

My Juice Plus+® website states: Most of us strive to live a healthier lifestyle. Finding the right place to start is a challenge. Eating right, exercising regularly, and still making time for family, friends and our own needs can seem like overwhelming goals. Instead of attempting to conquer our health all at once, what if you started by setting more manageable goals? Making small changes today can lead to great health benefits down the road.

The website stresses eating more whole foods, getting more exercise, drinking more water, and sleeping more and stressing less. In future postings, I'll introduce ways you can incorporate each of these topics. We all can get health benefits by making small changes, one at a time. One way we can stress less is by slowing down. I have always been a fast eater. As I was growing up my mother was a nurse and had been a Navy nurse, thus it was her habit to eat fast. In high school, I had 27 minutes to get from a class to the cafeteria, stand in the food line, eat my lunch and get to my next class. Then as a mother, much of my mealtime was jumping up to serve my family thus I gulped bites in between the bounds from my chair to the stove or refrigerator. Sound familiar? I don’t think I ever tasted my food. The habit became ingrained and I never stopped. I am now working at changing this habit into a practice of mindful eating. I invite you to join me. Please comment below about your experience.

Mindful eating encourages us to slow down and be present throughout our meals. That means devoting attention to our food throughout the meal. 

• Taking a mindful approach to eating begins by asking yourself if you are truly hungry.

• Turn off distractions: TV and devices. Ignore the phone and don’t multi-task.

• Sit down and be present. 

• Look at the food you are about to eat. Reflect on its source: how is was grown and prepared. 

• Feel gratitude. 

• Notice how you are feeling. 

• When you place the food in your mouth, chew each bite slowly and carefully. What does it feel like? Notice the flavors.

• When you swallow, try to see how far you can feel the food in your body.

• Focus on your food, smile and appreciate each bite.  

• By slowing down you give your stomach a chance to signal to your brain that you are full. This leads to eating less, thus consuming fewer calories and, over time, to weight loss. Savor your meals.

A Mindful Eating Revolution

In the April 2015 issue of Mindful magazine, Editor-in-Chief Barry Boyce states, Eating a raisin, or a grape, an apple or a pear—slowly with attention—has become a standard part of many mindfulness programs. It’s no surprise. The first thing we usually put our attention on in meditation is our breath, because without that, well, we’re dead. But the next most obvious thing to put attention on is eating, because without that, well, we’re dead. 

See the full article.

Try this Mindfulness Exercise - Eating a Raisin

I first read about the Raisin Consciousness exercise many years ago in a newsletter from Dr. Andrew Weil. It is an exercise Jon Kabat Zinn uses with his clients as a first meditation. For this exercise, you’ll need about 5 minutes and one raisin. A raisin is best, but you can substitute any small food item such as a piece of fruit or a nut.

There is one rule: whenever you find your mind wandering from the task at hand, just gently return your attention to the raisin. 

• Begin by placing the raisin in the palm of your hand. Spend a few moments examining it. Really look at it with a sense of curiosity and imagine it as it might have been in nature. Notice it’s shape, texture, color, size. 

• Gently pick up the raisin with your thumb and index finger and roll it between them. What does the raisin feel like? What are its textures? Is it hard or soft. Is it wrinkly or smooth? Is it light or heavy?

• Close your eyes. Sniff the raisin. What does it smell like?

• Gently place the raisin on your tongue, but don't chew. Just let it sit on your tongue for a few moments and notice how it feels. Roll it around in your mouth.

• When you’re ready, slowly begin chewing. First, just bite the raisin, next chew a couple of times, then stop. What does the raisin feel like between your teeth? Notice the texture, taste and smell.

• If you feel the urge to swallow the raisin right away, just notice that urge, and slowly chew the raisin for a minute or so, without swallowing.

• Finally, swallow it. Sit quietly. Breathe.

2015 Dietary Guidelines

In February, the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee issued its newest recommendations on what Americans should be eating. It says: the U.S. population should be encouraged and guided to consume dietary patterns that are rich in vegetables, fruit, whole grains, seafood, legumes, and nuts; moderate in low- and non-fat dairy products and alcohol (among adults); lower in red and processed meat; and low in sugar-sweetened foods and beverages and refined grains.…Additionally, these characteristics align with recommendations from other groups, including the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) and the American Heart Association (AHA).  Read more of the guidelines summary.


Juice Plus+ provides 26 fruits, vegetables, berries and grains with well over 13,000 phytonutrients. If, daily, you already eat 9-13 servings of a wide variety of fruits and vegetables then you probably don't need Juice Plus+®. According to the USDA ninety-eight percent of Americans do not consume that many unless they juice (no fiber, messy and expensive) or blend smoothies with lots of fruits and veggies. Otherwise you would have to be a cow because you would be chewing for much of the day. If you are among those that do not eat 9-13 servings each day, you should use Juice Plus+®. For the price of a Starbucks coffee you can get the benefits of eating 26 fruits, vegetables and grains every day. The more than 25 published clinical research studies examining its impact on a variety of biomarkers of good health has made Juice Plus+® the number one research health product in the world. That's why Juice Plus+® is marketed as the "next best thing to fruits and vegetables."

All the more reason you should let Juice Plus+® help you make "One Simple Change."

New Tangling Ideas

Zentangle 11

It was my plan to write, for this blog, about Suzanne McNeill's new book in her numbered Zentangle® series. We've had this book in stock since mid-March so thought I'd write about it after the release date of April 1. However, Linda Farmer posted it immediately on TanglePatterns.com. So why re-invent the wheel? Here's what Linda posted:

Zentangle 11 – Lettering, Quotes & Inspirational Sayings, CZT Suzanne McNeill’s latest in her Zentangle®-inspired crafts series is now available.

From the publisher’s description:
“Discover how to tangle with quotes, sentiments, and uplifting words. Give your drawings a voice by combining letters with inspirational Zentangle art. Text-inspired tangling can be anything you want it to be, from classic tiles to expressive shapes and words. You can make your letters fun and casual, or formal and flowery, with messages that are personal, social, reverential, or whimsical. Use them to create motivating and meaningful note cards, bookmarks, gifts, fine art, and more. You don t need to be a calligrapher to create awesome art with the elegant letters and 28 original new tangles inside. Use the bonus workbook to explore sample alphabets, learn new techniques, and practice tangling.”
From the back cover:
“Zentangle can free your mind to soar! Discover how to tangle with quotes, sentiments, and uplifting words. Give your drawings a voice by combining letters with inspirational Zentangle art.
Text-inspired tangling can be anything you want it to be, from classic tiles to expressive shapes and words. You can make your letters fun and casual, or formal and flowery, with messages that are personal, social, reverential, or whimsical. Use them to create motivating and meaningful note cards, bookmarks, gifts, fine art, and more.
You don’t need to be a calligrapher to create awesome art with the elegant letters and 28 original new tangles inside. Use the bonus workbook to explore sample alphabets, learn new techniques, and practice tangling.”
Kitchy and craft-oriented, Suzanne’s booklets are inexpensive and very popular.

As usual. Suzanne has included new Zentangle patterns. This book has some new fun ideas for those scrapbooking,  journaling and card-making.

Weekly Tangles

If you are new to Zentangle® and are interested in possibly learning a new tangle each week, join Square One on Facebook. Each Friday a pattern and a link to the step-out is posted. This is a good way to guarantee a weekly appointment with your pen and tile.

Another way to ensure that you regularly tangle is to join these challenges:

• “It’s a String Thing” (link in the sidebar) is hosted by CZT Adele Bruno. Each Tuesday, Adele posts a string and a few tangles to be used. Many of the results people submit are stunning. While you’re on her site, check out her many helpful tutorials.

• “the Diva’s weekly Challenge” (link in the sidebar) is hosted by CZT Laura Harms. Laura posts every Monday. It’s now in week #214! The tangle Diva Dance was created by Maria Thomas in honor of the Diva’s 100th challenge. Maria writes, “She has created an arena for people to share, encourage and admire Zentangle art from around the world. She not only challenged us to do things we might never have thought of, but then asked us to get up the courage to exhibit them on her site for all to see.”

• If it’s Zendalas you enjoy drawing, try “The Zendala Dare” (link in the sidebar). Just finishing the 100th Dare, CZT Erin Goetz Olson produces a weekly challenge “that incorporates the principles of mandalas with the techniques used to create a Zentangle® inspired piece of art.” New templates are posted on Tuesdays.

Paradox & Juice Plus+® Conference

Zendala tile by Ed Gucker
Paradox

Paradox, once mastered might become your Mac ’N Cheese

In Zentangle® lingo Mac ’N Cheese means your go-to tangle. Paradox is drawn with straight lines that end up creating “beautiful spirals.” For Instruction, Tips and Inspiration, check these out:

How to Draw a Paradox  

Paradox challenge

Paradox - Q&A

Paradox Re-Defined

Paradox and then some

Have Fun!

Very Zen-like Paradox Video

Want to be mesmerized? Watch this Paradox video. It’s very meditative because unlike other Zentangle videos it’s not supported by verbal instruction or music, just simply the sound of the pen on the paper. It’s very soothing to just watch the artist’s hand moving in a continuous line as the ink flows from her pen. For many people, Paradox is their go-to tangle because of the unlimited ways one can make gorgeous drawings. 

Juice Juice+® Spring Leadership Conference

Saturday’s Two Main Stage Speakers

Nicolas Come is the 10-year old inventor of the Nicolas’ Garden mobile app and website. I wrote about him in my April 5 blog post.
Visit:

Nicolas’ Garden app

Nicolas' Garden on Facebook

Nicolas' wonderful website

Kids can make a difference!

Stephen Ritz, a South Bronx educator/administrator and founder of the Green Bronx Machine, has motivated and taught generations of students, leading them to academic success. With Stephen’s guidance, his students and the community have grown more than 30,000 pounds of vegetables, routinely producing enough to feed healthy meals to 450 students.

His Bronx classroom featured the first indoor edible wall in New York City Department of Education.  His students, have improved their school attendance from 40 percent to 93 percent daily and he has helped creat 2,200 youth jobs. He was recently named a Top Ten Finalist for the Global Teacher Prize. Stephen's accolades include a 2014 Greenius Award, 2014 Green Difference Award, 2013 Latin Trends Award, ABC Above and Beyond Award, Chevrolet / General Motors National Green Educator Award, USS Intrepid Hometown Hero Award, NYC Chancellor's Award and various others.

He has been identified as one of the top fifty teachers in America, been recognized by the National Association of Secondary School Principals, was invited  to Vatican City and met with Pope Francis and his fourth and fifth grade students received a personal invitation to the White House. He has been featured in dozens of magazines and TV programs.

Tower Gardens® at the Green Bronx Machine

The Green Bronx Machine is an "Apron Project" sponsored by Progressive Insurance. In this video clip, Tower Gardens® are used by students to grow fresh, healthy food, while Stephen Ritz explains the organization's mission.

For more about Stephen Ritz and the Green Bronx Machine visit:

Stephen Ritz Harvesting Hope

Stephen Ritz: Grow Something Greater
Green Bronx Machine

Finding a pattern to draw and New Tangle

Finding a pattern to draw

Zentangle® tiles are intended to be unplanned, abstract and non-objective creations that grow organically. One of the many wonderful things about the Zentangle® method is it has been intentionally designed to eliminate the thinking, the planning and the decision-making that often blocks our creativity; it was designed to help you to trust your instincts. Beginner classes use black ink on a white 3.5-inch piece of artist paper called a tile which eliminates having to choose a color. We begin by drawing a border or frame and a string in pencil which provides a foundation and a gentle guide for our drawings, which eliminates the need to make a decision about composition. The Zentangle® kit sold at www.zentangle.com includes a legend and icosahedron (20-sided) die which eliminates needing to decide what pattern to draw next.

For many new to Zentangle® finding and deciding on what pattern to draw gets in the way of their Zen. If you don’t have a Zentangle® kit, you can make you own legend with patterns you have already learned and using regular dice. My husband Ed keeps a journal with patterns he has already drawn. He numbers his tangle patterns 1-20, then numbers each group of 20 up to 20 groups, which will give him 400 patterns for his legend. He hasn’t reached there yet. Then he uses his icosahedron die, the first roll is for the group and the second roll is for the pattern in that group. Thus he can shut down his left brain, the thinking part, and allow his Zen to happen. You can do it using a regular die and numbering 1-6. You will be surprised how your intuition will kick in when you get your left brain out of the way.

Linda Farmer at Tangle Patterns makes several suggestions for finding a pattern to draw which include using the letters of your name [or that of a loved one] or numbering the patterns in her annual ebook then using a random number generator to choose a pattern. I keep Sandy Steen Bartholomew’s AlphaTangle: A Truly Tangled Alphabet!  or her app Tangle Library handy at all time. Both the book and the Alpha Tangle app add on are portable and lend themselves perfectly for the letter game. 

 NEW APP: As I was writing this article, I came across a new app with tangle step-outs and pattern generator all in one package. Tangle Patterns Galore by Andre Diamond. Tangle Patterns Galore features 240 tangle patterns with links to online step-by-step instructions. You can search tangles by name and save your favorite patterns to always have them available. Available at http://itunes.apple.com for the iPhone and Pad.

New Tangle!

Ed, my husband and tangling buddy, has deconstructed a pattern, a design on the upholstery at a local Panera and named it Acrosstick. On February 23 it was published on TanglePatterns.com. Be among the first to draw it.

Zendala Stencil

ZENDALA STENCIL

Cadent variation, Bales, Swarm

Ed and I are in the seventh week of teaching an eight-week Zentangle® course, "Zentangle® For Everybody," through our school district’s continuing education program. So far they've learned the basics, beyond the basics, tangleation, and drawing on both black and tan tiles. Get a glimpse of their efforts below. This week and next, the class will be tangling  Zendalas, both tangling on a pre-strung Zendala tile and drawing their own on a blank Zendala tile. If time allows we’ll show them examples of several stencil Zendala methods: here’s one we won’t be showing.

On February 26, Sue Jacobs posted on her blog Sue’s tangle trips,  “Zendala Tool — Free,” how she uses a Healthy Choice Steamers® basket for a tool to draw a Zendala on a regular 3.5-inch square tile. I challenge you to do it her way then see what you can create on your own using her method.

My experience: This was a fun project but purchasing a Healthy Choice Steamer entree is NOT part of my usual habit. I do not buy convenience foods so this purchase was purely for this project. My Simply Lemon Herb Chicken entree was pretty bad; I'll stick with home-cooking. Have fun!

Zentangle® For Everybody— an eight-week course

The first six weeks

Welcome to Nourish Your Mind & Body

In  this blog I will share my and my husband Ed’s (who also is a CZT) Zentangle® art, show new tangle patterns, share Zentangle® videos and post our Zentangle® class schedule and offerings. I will also share Juice Plus+® articles, videos and webinars, post Juice Plus+® events, discuss good eating habits and share healthy recipes. I’m writing this because I wanted to share with you the joys of doing Zentangle® and I want you to be in control of your health with the most scientifically researched nutraceutical product on the market — Juice Plus+®.

Today, I’m posting about Zentangle®. Next week, I’ll post about Juice Plus+® and Tower Garden®. The following week, my first email newsletter will be sent which will link back to these blog entries. Sign up for my newsletter (at the right) and you will be notified on a monthly basis about any entries that have been made here.

Zentangle® reduces mental stress and Juice Plus+® reduces stress at the cellular level. Together they Nourish Your Mind and Body. Sign up for my newsletter and learn “Healthy Habits One Step at a Time.”

Zentangle® for Mindfulness

Zentangle® is an easy-to-learn, mindful method of drawing, creating abstract art through the use of structured patterns. It provides relief from stress through relaxation while you create a piece of art. Zentangle® patterns are easy to draw with simple repetitive elemental and deliberate strokes. If you can write your name or draw a stick figure, you can do Zentangle®. It’s a fascinating art form that is fun and relaxing. It increases focus and creativity. It provides artistic satisfaction and increases a sense of personal well being. Zentangle® is enjoyed by people of all ages. 

Zentangle® was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. Rick, the Zen of the team, has been a cab driver, musician, photographer, printer, and flute maker. He also lived as a monk for 17 years. Maria, the Tangle of the team, is a renowned lettering artist and operates a stationery design and production company. To learn more about them go to: www.zentangle.com

Although Zentangle® can be done on any paper or surface, it is taught using a black pen on 3.5-inch square watercolor paper, called a tile. Tangles or patterns generally are created by 2 or 3 simple or elemental strokes done in a series of steps. Doing Zentangle® or tangling looks deceptively like doodling, but it’s not doodling. While doodling has its useful purposes, it is something one does with their hands when their mind is elsewhere. In contrast, doing Zentangle® is very focused; your attention is on the pen, the paper and on each pen stroke. Zentangle® is about being mindful. Often Zentangle® is referred to as “yoga for the brain”.

In Zentangle® the "relaxed and deliberate focus" aspect of meditation is emphasized. Today, everything is so instant, result oriented, competitive and fast. The stimulus people receive in the form of texts, Facebook, TV, emails, demands on our time and more are something that has never been experienced in the history of mankind. Never before have we experienced such constant stimuli from so many directions. Never have we had so much information at our fingertips. Never have we had so many choices to make. There is simply too much going on in our brains! 

Over the past decade meditation and mindfulness practices have gone mainstream. Yet, many are unable to sit still long enough to do these practices. I, for one, need be be doing something; sitting still is hard for me. Zentangle® calms the mind. It increases focus, creativity, and relaxation, provides artistic satisfaction and increases a sense of personal well-being. Zentangle reduces stress and enhances creativity in people of all ages. It is a gift to oneself; in the end, Zentangle art is the prize.

'Kindness Curriculum' Teaches Mindfulness to Pre-K

Since I became a CZT my radar is up for anything to do with mindfulness. Click on the 'Kindness Curriculum' link above to read about a 12- week research study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center involving prekindergarten students. Four- and five-year olds in the Madison Metropolitan School District, while learning their ABCs, were taught how to be more aware of themselves through mindfulness practices. Although they were not doing Zentangle art, the focus was much the same: attention, breath, compassion and gratitude.

Tips for families include:
• Create a quiet space.
• Pay attention with purpose and curiosity.
• Pause and notice your breath.
• Practice caring and compassion for ourselves and others.
• Practice gratitude.

Upcoming Zentangle® Course