Zentangle Untangled (18 page)

So the other thing I think we all have to own up to (besides drawing borders around those meeting notes) is practicing our fonts and lettering in the margins. I’m not wrong here, am I? I am definitely a type geek, and I love looking at hand-drawn fonts (check out illustrator Mike Perry’s work for some inspiring hand-drawn fonts) and practicing my own.

Zentangle and fonts are numerous, but I wanted to share a few ideas on these pages. First, my favorite quote from Khalil Gibran with different tangles inside the letters. Then a more traditional approach with gold ink and an old-fashioned font. And a colored pencil interpretation of the Robert Indiana
LOVE
print.

The link between Zentangle and lettering is strong. Many calligraphers are using Zentangle in their artwork, and Zentangle was devised by the master calligrapher herself, Maria Thomas. Look at image- storing websites like Flickr; some of the work will blow your mind.

When it comes to using Zentangle in your art journals, using tangles as backgrounds for your mixed-media is a brilliant and unique look. It is also very adaptable. It might seem like a lot of work to do an entire background in Zentangle, but I’ve shown here three effective ways to do so, each being completely different in the length of time required and complexity.

The most complex background is that in
Amelia
. The original photo has my baby niece (isn’t she lovely?) laying on a quilted blanket. I decided t to create a background representing the blanket using Zentangle. It took some time to create and then color using watercolor pans. I remember showing this to my sister, and she loved the way I was able to create the background.

The
Library
background is a large-scale tangle called
Bales
. I didn’t know where this work was headed when I started, but as I colored the background, it reminded me of wallpaper from the 1970s. Something about it said “library” to me, and people have always said I should have been a librarian—my love of books rivals only my love of art supplies. It works, doesn’t it?

The final work,
Imaginaria
, began randomly as I sat at the hospital waiting for a scan. I needed something to divert my mind, and I had my Moleskine journal with me. So I started drawing and used some Zentangle concepts, varied them and waited to see what happened. I’d put some collage elements in my folder to jog my creativity (let’s face it, hospitals don’t inspire creative genius), and this was the result. It was a simple piece, easy to work on while on the road, and yet the background brings something whimsical to the piece.

Patterned paper can be a huge inspiration for Zentangle enthusiasts. The stationery trade shows, scrapbooking papers, writing notes...there is so much paper goodness around, and so many of them can be included in your Zentangle-inspired artwork! You’ll notice as you go on your Zentangle path that patterns become very noticeable—in nature, in branding, everywhere you look. Life won’t be the same again, I promise!