More “Fassetts” of My Life

April 9, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 5 Comments

This has been a really nice week for my budding little business venture. I’ve had some new students, and some old friends, and sometimes both together, which is REALLY fun.

This week’s Diva Challenge was a Use My Tangle (UMT) from Lynn Mead, CZT, from Washington State. Her tangle, Fassett, is really quite cool, and you can do so much with it. I taught it in my class this week on Black Tiles (Beyond the Basics: Black Tiles) and we had some fun with it in gold Gelly Roll Metallics.

We had a really fun class last Saturday, with Nancy Dawes and her family visiting from Vancouver Island. Everyone folded and worked on their origami.

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Nancy caught me in action!

And she posted her finished ball on her FaceBook page (Crafting Passions.) You can also check out her blog here – http://craftingpassions.blogspot.com. She does some awesome things!

I finished the one I started in class too, but only just this morning!

I tend to get a bit…carried away. I like to say I never do anything half-assed…I do it full assed! The scattered gold pebbles in my Tipple are reminiscent of the beach sand by the Hotel Del Coronado, which we visited on Monday with our guests!

So pretty!

ok…I have a million loads of laundry to finish, journals to work on, quilts to cut bits for…I know…get back to work! Next week, look for journal pics. I am really excited to finally be putting my “stash” to use (thanks for the push into the glue, Nancy!)

Stay Crazy My Friends!

Sorting Stacks

March 30, 2016March 30, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 10 Comments

First off, I hope everyone had a

As typical, mine was quiet, as Mike was at work. I did get a lot done, and the house got cleaned!

This week’s Diva Challenge (#261) was issued by guest blogger Jan Reiter, CZT, who challenged us to Stack Bijou. Now, I have to tell you, I was a little intimidated by this. That seemed like a lot of work! And we know how famous I am lately for not finishing anything. So…I rummaged through all my “pretty paper” collection that isn’t particularly good for tangling on in great quantity, and cut up 6 “stacks” and a Bijou-sized (2×2 inch) tile. And I stared at it for a little while. Then I went to town…and I tangled them from the biggest to the smallest. It went a lot faster than I thought it would, but then I always make things more complicated than they need to be!

This was a lot of fun. And believe it or not, the Bijou-sized tile and the far outer frame are from the same paper! Since brown was my “theme” I went with a sepia Micron too, so that was nice, and a copper Gelly Roll on the accents.

UPDATE: I realized while I was filing this weeks photos after I posted the blog that this Diva Challenge marked 100 & 101 consecutive challenges!

So you know I haven’t been slacking, I have been busy with shop models for upcoming classes. I know you want to join us this Saturday when Origami meets Zentangle! The project is based on a design from Hans Werner Guth, called “Jump” and tangle inspired by Dorian Eng, CZT.

To sign up, head on over to the Class Schedule Page!

I have been participating in a Round-Robin tangle with 3 other CZT’s and received my tiles back yesterday (and I’m sending the next batch out today, I promise!) I think they came out really cool, and it was a lot of fun working with everyone on this. We all have really different styles, and that melded together very well.

And…So you don’t think I missed last week’s Diva Challenge (#260), I did that in my journal in church this week. Yes…I listened to the talk…and yes…this helps me concentrate on it rather than making my grocery list in my head or thinking about what I am cooking for lunch. I love Shattuck, it is such a versatile tangle!

And, for everyone that knows me, no week is complete without a little rock n’ roll! We headed to Las Vegas last week to see Billy Idol at the House of Blues. I was deaf in my right ear for a good while since we were next to the speaker, but what a show, and what great seats! It is hard to believe he is 60! (hubba hubba!)

Back to packing for TangleU! Here’s a sneak peek at what you will be able to score at CharKat’s after I get back…

Tangle them…Color them…Embellish them! Wear Your Art!

Stay Crazy My Friends!

That Green Time of Year

March 15, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 8 Comments

Yep, that’s right…it’s March! I love the month of March. Not only is it the month of my birth, but the weather starts being nice again, the sun is out, the grass is green…and…we all get to be Irish for a day.

We had a couple of really fun Celtic themed classes over the weekend, so that led right into this week’s Diva Challenge (#259) “A Touch of the Irish.” This was one of those pieces I was particularly proud of when I finished it. I have not forged into the ZenGems craze because I did all this stuff 20 years ago when I was designing jewelry, but I broke out my Prismacolor Premier pencils and some luscious hand-made Garza Papel (from Spain) and pulled this off.

I know…huh? I keep looking at it..lol.

If you want to see the steps I took for the gems, check this out…

I didn’t get a blog up last week, it was my birthday…I joked to one of my students who is a professional cake decorator that she should bring me a birthday cupcake (since I am watching my girlish figure) and she arrived with this:

That is one HUGE cupcake…and it was really tasty too.

I did get the Diva Challenge (#258 UMT Rautyflex) done too, although I just did it in my Tangle Journal.

There was some unusually beautiful skies here this week, with pretty vapor trails. I loved how they made a pretty perfect X there…

I will have the April Schedule up by the end of the week. I am working on a sample for a class, so be sure to save the date (April 2) if you are in the area. Origami meets Zentangle, and it is so fun to fold!

That is all for now…Stay Crazy My Friends!

Heavy Metal!

March 2, 2016March 2, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 6 Comments

Of course, most of you know I am a HUGE fan of rock…hard rock…heavy metal!

And I have worked with metals a lot longer than I have been tangling, so to be able to combine tangles with metal was pretty awesome. Guest Diva, Amy Ridge Brody, CZT, said to make it “Ohh Shiny” and that is exactly what I shot for in The Diva’s #257 Challenge.

I have lots of metal do-dads leftover from a plethora of projects, and odds and ends…so this was really fun. Silver and blue metallic Gelly Roll, and a Blue Stardust Gelly Roll, with General’s Multi Pastels for shading.

And since I was a little behind, Diva #256, which was a Duo-Tangle of The Diva’s tangles Boo*Kee and Artoo. I was in a red mood…

While I was working on this, I noticed my new page tabs looked like Artoo was looking at me (he is such a cutie.)

Have a few other cuties I worked up this week:

Also, I will be teaching a ZIA (Zentangle Inspired Art) Easter project at La Rebelde Winery in Lake Elsinore on March 25th. It will be something along this line:

La Rebelde is at 530 Crane Street, Lake Elsinore, and the class will be from 6 till they kick us out! $35 per person includes all materials, snacks AND a glass of wine!

The Color Me Crazy T-shirts are at the printers as we speak, so they will be available online and at the shop AFTER TangleU…2 different designs, that you tangle and color yourself! What a great alternative to coloring books, and you can wear your art!

Ok…back to work for me. Finishing up the examples for the March Monthly Specials – Found and Tangled (Irish Authors Edition) and Celtic Tangles with ZenGems!

Namas’ cray! Stay crazy my friends.

Ghosts…

February 17, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 6 Comments

Have you ever felt haunted by your past? I think our past is a part of our journey in life, and shapes us into the people we become. You can either learn from it and grow from it, or let it drag you down. This week, Diva (challenge #255) asked us to revisit a tile/tangle from our past, to see how we have grown. I have only been tangling about 3 years, but I have everything I did in my first year in a book, to show my students MY learning process. While I did have a smallish art background, I like them to see how much I have learned and what practicing has done to my art. For this quest, I went back to my very first tile, pre-class with a CZT, learning out of One Zentangle a Day.

That first one was done on card stock from my limited scrapbooking stash. I never realized how small I worked until I tried to re-do it! (I think this is a trend I’ve noticed with most of the CZT’s that have posted…all our early work was tiny, and now it is much bigger!)

So here is the “new” version. See the style I have developed into!

And to bring up another ghost, I didn’t get this finished in time for Diva #252: Using a Tangle as a String. I used a giant Cadent.

Pretty things have been made at the shop this week! We had an awesome group for a Zentangle 101 class, and I threw in a little Valentine, too. What prodigies!

And on Saturday, we made Valentine cards and frames, based on Joanne Fink’s Zendangles. Here are the ones I did:

And my Valentangle for Diva #254 that I couldn’t post because it was Mike’s present!

And a thank you card for Mike’s mom, who has been bestowing her stash of all her calligraphy and card making supplies. My faux calligraphy skills still need some work!

I am working on the schedule for March, and it should be fun! I should have it posted by the end of the week.

Found and Tangled Poetry, the Irish Poets Edition in time for St. Patrick’s Day. And some exploration of Celtic Knots and Tangles. (This is just an ATC I did with some ColorBursts…pretty backgrounds!)

Tangle Journals, from January, will make a repeat appearance. This will be an ongoing class, you can join in any time, or whatever you like. First time attendees will need to buy the Journal Kit, returning students can buy refills if they need them. Every other month we will explore a new set of tangles.

And I will add a Sunday afternoon Alcohol Ink class, working on ceramics. They make lovely decorations and gifts. I finished this one today.

Whew…I didn’t realize I had done so much work this week! (I guess it was really 2 weeks, since I didn’t post anything last week.)

Namas’ cray my friends…stay crazy and make stuff!

I’m Not Gone…I’m Molygon!

February 4, 2016February 4, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 5 Comments

Whew…you would think taking some time to work on stuff would be more productive! But…I feel like I haven’t gotten much done. And I still need to do my taxes!

So, a couple of weeks ago, I started giving a class where we do these step outs and then use the tangle, so you have a visual reference and a neat-o mini binder to keep them all in. So, what better way to knock out my Diva Challenge (#253) for the new tangle, Molygon, from Zentangle HQ. Not only did I practice it real well by doing the step out, I was able to make a cool reference tile, right on the page.

And, the bonus is that it is on my “to-do” list to complete at least one page a week for my reference. Ta-done!

I also worked up this cute frame for the Valentangle class. Based on Joanne Fink’s Zendangles, it will be one of two options for the class on the 13th. Register here, pick your option for either the card or the frame. I need to prep the frames, so preregistration is a must!

Got a major UFO (unfinished object) out of my studio this week, and hung for use. I like to up-cycle things that may no longer seem “fresh” and make them useful again. This ugly dart board case was just that object. Mike swears he bought it about 30 years ago, and it definitely had seen better days.

Some Chalk Paint and trim pieces later, with a little Zentangle magic sprinkled in, and viola! It is now presentable!

One important takeaway from this project. Gorilla Wood Glue does NOT dry clear…I may eventually touch up the paint where you can see the glue, but I was just so darn happy to have it off my workbench I didn’t even care!

Lastly, I have a sneak peek at my prototype for some t-shirts you will be able to buy online or at the shop. Color them yourself…way cool. (this is a finished one, tangled a little and colored.) I just finished my “wash test” to make sure everything worked fine, so next it’s off to the printers to get them made.

Looking forward to seeing people at the shop!

Namas’cray…stay crazy my friends!

Happiness is…a Smile

January 20, 2016January 20, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 8 Comments

But..what if you can’t smile? What if your facial expression cannot change?

1-2 children in every 1,000,000 children are born with a rare congenital nerve disorder called Moebius Syndrome. While it can result in a spectrum of issues, most notably in those affected are the cranial VI and VII nerves controlling the lateral movement of the face. There is not a lot known about this, and it is pretty rare, but our dear Diva has a son that was born with it. So with that, as we do every January, we recognize Moebius Syndrome Awareness Day on Sunday, January 24th.(#MSAD2016).

Here is my contribution (#251):

In part of my effort to “Finish What I Started” this year, I picked up a piece of watercolor paper that I had used up some sparkly paint water to wash a background, and actually tangled it….the cool part that doesn’t really show up in the scan is that the mica sparkle from the Twinkling H2O paint shows through the pen, and gives a really intense beauty to this piece. I am really rather a harsh critic of my own work, but I really like this one.

The February Schedule is up on the Class and Kumi pages. We have been having an awful lot of fun, so you really should consider joining us!

I am working on the sample for the February Valentangle, and will have that up here with the next posting. It is a “sweetheart” of a card!

I am also working up some samples of t-shirt designs that you can tangle and color and make your own…wear your art!

I know for those of us who love music and good movies, this has been a rough last 2 weeks. I mourn the loss of several people who have had a huge influence on my life…

David Bowie made it ok for me to be weird and change a lot.

Alan Rickman showed me that the appearance of darkness does not always mean bad things.

And my dear Glenn Frey taught me to take it easy.

Namas’cray my friends! Make stuff…you will feel better!

Back to Basics

January 13, 2016January 13, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 4 Comments

Zentangle is an awesome art form. So often, once we get familiar with everything, we tend to dive off into the realm of Zentangle Inspired Art (ZIA) and forget what the roots are and why we started this in the first place. I am guilty of it, but find that being a Certified Zentangle Teacher (CZT) that I have to intentionally pull myself back to teach the basics.

So it was quite appropriate for what I have been working on this week to get pulled Back to Basics for The Diva’s 250th Challenge. I’ve started a Tangle Journal with a class for a few of my students, to break down the tangles we use, and find “tangleations” of them. And in this weeks San Deigo/Temecula Zentangle Friendship group, we did a page in a spiral bound tangle journal that pulled together 4 very random tangles and a string from tanglepatterns.com to make that most basic of black ink on white paper, original Zentangle.

So that was fun…Here is a picture that Jan took of us all working diligently…

And here are some of the pages from my other Journal Project, which are basically mono-tangles.

I have just started Mandala Magic 2016 with Julie Gibbons. I’m quite excited, as I have been so drawn to round things lately (really, since I started my foray into the art world) and this is already quite an eye-opening experience. I did a little warm up exercise in a “self portrait” to put in my journal for this project. I am not much for drawing anything that actually looks like real life (yet) so I stamped the eyes and nose with a cute little stamp I have, and tangled in the rest. I know…looks just like me!

So, this weeks’ blog is being produced on my iPad Pro, trying out the new keyboard, trying to make sure that I can “take my show on the road” successfully and still stay connected. Hopefully, it looks better on the browser window than it does here!

Names’ cray my friends, keep making stuff…crazy is better!

New Year’s Renewal

January 4, 2016January 4, 2016 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 13 Comments

I would like to think of every January 1st as a time to review and renew my goals from the previous year. Goals are a good thing. They give you a road map to follow. But sometimes, that road changes.

My road took a sharp left turn last summer when I decided to open CharKat’s Creative Insanity. I never in my wildest dreams thought I would ever be in business. It has been a challenge, that’s for sure. I love what I do, and I know that will spread out and bring more people in this year!

There is also renewal in this week’s Diva Challenge (#249). This is the 5th Anniversary of the challenge, and we have been tasked to a DuoTangle of Diva Dance and Auraknot. I already had this tile with a star on it, that I had sprayed with Shimmer Spray…so I thought it was particularly festive for this auspicious occasion!

I know the holiday’s got away from me, and this is my first post of the new year. I have, however, been pretty busy on tangly-type stuff!

First up, this cute little cactus. I was experimenting with stitching on the tile. Cumbersome! You have to poke the holes first….

Then, another one of Dorian Eng’s cute ornaments that she did a video for Sakura on. This time on Renaissance Tan, with blues.

And then this nifty 8×8 scratch board piece.

I did a little coloring to see what that was all about.

I also had some kids over to the studio, and we had some fun making tangle journals and learning tangles. These are mine. The glue was drying on their decorations, so I didn’t get photos of theirs.

And in keeping with this year’s mantra (Finish What You Started) I pulled a few tiles out of the UFO bin and put some new spin on them:

This one is on Fabriano Medioevalis paper…it has such a nice feel to it. I used Ann E. Grasso’s 8n1 Stencil for this.

And Diva #247: African Artist by Swiss CZT Tina Hunker:

So be sure to check the schedule, lots of fun classes coming up.

Namas’cray – stay crazy in the new year!

The Giving Season

December 19, 2015 ~ CharkatTangles ~ 4 Comments

Whew…pardon my absence…it has been a hectic last couple of weeks.

I have managed to get the January schedule up, so classes are posted. Changing a few things up, so check it out!

I did miss Diva #247, but I will go back and make it up this week, like I usually do. I started on #167, and have not missed one, but they have occasionally been late.

I did, however, kill two birds this week with Diva #248. I needed a gift for my brother and sister-in-law, and they really don’t want anything, so I made them a cool dreamcatcher. I am framing it tonite, and will have it in the mail on Tuesday. Better late than never, the Gift of Zentangle! It is about 8 x 10, on Charcoal paper. Microns, Silver Gelly Roll, and Prismacolor Premier Pencils.

I have not been completely slacking this past 2 weeks. I did this neat mandala in my purse journal at church, week before last. It is a lot smaller than it looks…my journal is a 4 x 6.

And I also discovered that the Garage Brewing Co. has coasters with tangle spots! Left this one for the barkeep…(I guess that qualifies as the gift of Zentangle too!)

Oh, and last but not least, I hosted the San Diego/Temecula Zentangle Friendship Group at the shop for our December meeting. Pot luck, gift exchange (all tangly!), and we did Dorian Eng’s pretty ornament.

So the trees are up, the decorating is all done. (Finally, Opus is back! I have had this for years!)

Between the shop and classes and the holiday season, I’ve been a bit wiped out. We’ve had our first Christmas party/celebration with the kids coming out from Texas, and getting together with friends and family for a nice meal and spending time with our grandson. This year, he is all about Batman. So Batman it was!

Having a chill out day today, but got a lot of business-y type stuff done. Still have some presents to wrap for 2nd Christmas (on the real day) and mail (they will be happy to get it, even if its late, I’m sure.)

And now, off to finish my framing, and draft the samples for upcoming classes!

Namas’cray my friends!