Tag Archives: zentangle

On My Way to CHA

January 6, 2015 Suzanne McNeill

View a YouTube, follow this easy process to weave a beautiful Zentangle® card.

Being creative and developing new patterns and projects is my passion… nearly anything is inspiring. CHA (Craft and Hobby Association) comes once a year. This is where art and craft shops find out all about new products and techniques.

At the January 2015 convention in California, I love meeting up with long-time friends, taking classes, seeing everything new, and demonstrating new ideas. This year I will do demos and make&take projects on four of my favorite things… Zentangle® tags and accordions, Gelli Arts® printing, handmade Visual Journal books, and Reactive metal paints.

If you come to CHA, please come visit me at the Design Originals – Fox Chapel Publishing booth #1421. My demos are on Sunday 12:00-1:30 and on Monday 9:00-12:00. The dates for CHA this year are January 10th thru the 13th.

In 2014, I authored a few NEW books. I love designing books and am fascinated by new techniques. Come and see these books… as always, I like to pack my books with tons of information and inspiration. I’ll have them with me in California – or you can check them out on Amazon.com.

Zentangle Pattern, enjoy and create!!

Zentangle #145

T.J. Johnmartin CZT

Cross Section

The Zentangle® art form and method was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas and is copyrighted. Zentangle® is a registered trademark of Zentangle, Inc. and is used with permission. Learn more at zentangle.com.

Gourds and Zentangle® in New Mexico

December 10, 2014 Suzanne McNeill

View a YouTube, draw and tangle a fanciful rooster on Clayboard. A wonderful, smooth surface that needs no frame.

October in New Mexico is filled with leaves turning yellow, gold and red. Beautiful colors filled the mountain valleys….especially close to the streams and rivers where statuesque Cottonwood trees prepare for winter.

Albuquerque, NM hosted the Gourd Festival and I was lucky enough to attend. A wonderful show of gourds featured spectacular new gourd designs by artist Robert Rivera.

My sister Amy and I took classes with marvelous teachers – Tono-Spirit-Drum with Karen Phillips, Desert Dweller Masks with Kitty Riordan, Spirits and Sprites with Dar Stone, and artwork by Lona Warne.

Gourds are really inspiring to me. They have a natural shape and can have a wonderful smooth surface which is perfect for painting, decorating and Zentangle®.

Zentangle Pattern, create and enjoy!!

Zentangle #144

Blades

Holiday Zentangle® and Gelli print T-shirts.

November 25, 2014 Suzanne McNeill

View a YouTube, add touches of the holidays all through the house with these easy-to-do Zentangle Trees.

Gelli Printing is one of my favorite painting techniques and it is so much FUN! I love to demo and teach with my Gelli Arts® plate.

Teresa Shanahan and her fabulous gelli t-shirt

Recently I was doing a short demo to a group of friends at an art retreat and got a BIG SURPRISE! When I mentioned that Gelli printing worked equally well on paper and fabric, Teresa’s eyes lit up. “Could I do it on my plain t-shirt?”, she asked. With my answer of “sure” – Teresa took off her shirt (it was an all women’s retreat), chose her colors and textures, positioned her shirt on the Gelli plate and Walla! – we printed her shirt. Look for Teresa around San Diego, CA. You’ll recognize her by the shirt!

I love to print colorful textures and pages as the ‘starts’ for pages in my Art Journal. Then I add favorite quotes with a bit of simple collage or stencil illustrations. See some of my favorite quotes above.

Check out my book on ‘Gelli Printing’. Half of the book is how-to-do-it and the other half is what-to-do-with-your-prints.

Zentangle Pattern, enjoy and create!!

Zentangle #143

Helix

Painting Trip to Ghost Ranch

November 21, 2014 Suzanne McNeill

View a YouTube, easy to make – perfect for the season, wooden Zentangle® ornaments.

Recently I returned from a special trip to Ghost Ranch, a magical place which inspires artists, writers and other visitors year long. It was Georgia Okeefe’s favorite place to paint… how joyful to be able to trace her footsteps and surround myself with fellow artists, visions of majestic mountains, cliffs, wildflowers and nature.

The rustic setting took me back in time to camps I attended as a child, and camp counseling in Colorado when I was in college. It was the second time I had the opportunity to participate in Darla Bostick’s Art Workshop, held each year at Ghost Ranch.

I spent the entire week painting, my palette is filled with my favorite watercolors… QoR from Golden paints. I LOVE these paints. They stay moist and re-wet with just a quick spray of water. Best of all, the colors are luscious and keep their vibrancy even when dry (unlike many other brands which lighten as they dry). I loved recording the vision of cottonwood tree leaves turning yellow gold, the purple and blue hues that appear on the mountains, and the colorful gardens of nature.

If you are yearning to spend time in the great outdoors I recommend a trip to Ghost Ranch. It is a safe and welcoming atmosphere, helps you get back to basics and realize how little you really need to be happy.

Zentangle Pattern, enjoy and create!!

Zentangle #142

BEST Craft Book of 2014

October 24, 2014 Suzanne McNeill

View a YouTube video, a fabulous and original way to use the Zentangle® Bijou tiles to tangle a colorful butterfly.

NEWS BULLETIN by Cindy Shepard CZT…

“The top-selling book ‘Zentangle 1 – Basics’ has been nominated for The Best Craft Book of 2014. The Craft Awards are in their tenth year, a very prestigious award within the craft industry. ‘Zentangle 1 – Basics’ the expanded workbook addition by Suzanne McNeill CZT is currently in the running.

Zentangle books have been translated and published in countries around the world. It is so much fun to look through the books authored by Suzanne McNeill, Sandy Steen Bartholomew and Marie Browning that have been translated into other languages. It is certainly the first time I have seen a craft book published in Lithuanian. These popular books have also been translated into Dutch, Chinese, Japanese and German.”

Zentangle pattern, enjoy and create!!

Zentangle # 141

Wild Lettuce