Tackling Tangling Weave

Been a little slow around the ol’ blog lately. We were getting ready for our first Spring trip to Hilton Head Island (have been going in the Fall for years, in January for years before that). In among cleaning, planning and teaching Tai Chi, I snuck in a few procrastination sessions of Zentangle.

This series I called “Tackling Weave.” Helen Williams published the stepout for Weave on her blog, A Little Lime, and I was enchanted by it. First I did Weave in a grid:

Weave on a grid

  

Then I did a gridless free-form version. Clearly, there’s a bit of a learning curve here. I love this pattern, though, and will keep practicing until I’m happy with the process. I say that because Zentangle is a process, not a result. There’s no good or bad, no happy or unhappy with the final tile, just playing.

Weave, no grid

Finally tried putting it into a tile with other tangles.

Random Weave, Akoya

Random Weave, Akoya, Flux, Amaze, Arukas, Bunzo

There will be more practicing Weave, and more tangling in general, once we reach the Island. Oh, and before we left, I ran by the Art Center and put a couple of tangled vessels (vase and a coffee mug) on the bisque shelf. I’m really anxious to see how they turn out.

Next post – Hilton Head

Ruminations on a snowy day

After a week of being held captive in the house by a winter storm, it's time to stop procrastinating and start blogging. I've been thinking for awhile now that I should start a personal blog as a kind of journal. More efficient than writing in a book, prettier, too.

It will primarily be a place to share the art that I'm passionate about (Zentangle and pottery) plus a way to record experiences and feelings about cooking, gardening, Tai Chi, knitting, and life as an almost-70-yr-old retired fat lady.

Why Reluctant Rational? A while back, my niece posted a quiz on Facebook to determine which Keirsey Personality type you are. I so desperately wanted to be an Artisan. I've longed to be an Artisan most of my adult life, even though I was raised to value making money over making art. But alas, I'm a Rational. I'm too sensible to be spontaneous and creative and artistic. My mother's art genes went to my sister; My mother's music genes went to my brother. I was gifted with my father's tight-ass, rule-following, sensible genes.

Since I haven't tangled today, here are some shots of one of my knitted shawls, Come September:

 The completed shawl.

 I made the shawl to wear on our annual September vacation on Hilton Head Island. It's from a pattern by Boo-Knits called Ocean Breeze, knitted in Lichtfaden's Pure Silk Lace and Silk Halo, colorway "Promenade." Beads were added - Miyuki 6/0 Round, Pearl Ceylon, #6-591.

Come September draped over a chair in our condo.

Detail of the lace and beads.