Play Day - Zentangle Stitching

It's been a busy week and I've gotten lots accomplished (pictures of my latest projects are at the end of this post).  So today I gave myself permission to play.  You may remember me writing about Zentangle drawing last summer, and I've been doodling on paper from time to time, practicing some designs, but hadn't yet tried stitching out the designs on fabric.  Afterall - that's what attracted me to Zentangle in the first place - the designs lend themselves so well to free-motion quilting.  So I stitched my first Zentangle quilt block.  The design is called Paradox.  This is what it looked like after stitching it...  Not bad, but look what happens...

...when you add some shading with a colored pencil...

Isn't it amazing what a difference the shading makes?  (Lighting too - the first one was taken under a fluorescent light and the second and third ones were in natural daylight - huge difference in color!)
I can really see myself having some fun with this!  Do you Zentangle?

In case you're interested, here are the "work" projects for the week.  Two custom purse orders in one week!  Woo hoo!!!  First up is a Two-Zip Hipster in Juggling Summer and lined with orange swirls.  The combination of fabrics and stabilizers in this bag is just perfect.  I wish you could feel this bag.  It has lots of body without being stiff, and feels so nice!  My customer will be picking this up later today and I can't wait to see how she likes it.

And this work-in-progress is a City Bag, at 90% of the original size.  I'm still waiting for the strap hardware to arrive in the mail, so it's not quite done yet.  I used a multi-colored batik for the top and faux leather for the bottom and the strap.  Now I get to Zentangle (aka play) while I wait for my package of hardware to arrive!

Cheers!

Summertime

Now it feels like summertime is finally here.  Our backyard is green and lush right now and the Queen Anne's Lace is popping up in my patch of Silver Beacon, but it's so pretty I don't have the heart to cut it down.  (I'm not much of a gardener, so if I've named them wrong, feel free to correct me.)

I took these pictures just before we left for the lake, and the mottled sunlight was just right.  I wonder how I can make these into a quilt... hmmm...  now there's a thought!

We had a rainy day while we were there, which left me plenty of time to experiment with my Zentangles.  I think I'm hooked!  I started out just copying some of the doodles in my books so I could get the feel of it, then I started trying to create my own.  I'm the type of person who likes to have everything planned out in advance, so it's a real challenge for me to just doodle without a plan.  But I think it's also good mental exercise for me to wander outside my comfort zone once in a while.  So I plodded along and I'm pretty happy with my first attempts.  I've got a long ways to go yet, but I'm enjoying the process.

 

I didn't realize there was a shadow across every one of these shots till after I downloaded them, but I think it was my own shadow.  Oops!  As I mentioned in my last post, hubby and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary while we were away, so of course I had to do a Zentangle to commemorate the event.

Then when I got home and picked up the mail, look what I found!

There were 4 1/2 yards of this gorgeous batik left on the bolt at the shop where I bought my first 1 1/2 yards, and they were nice enough to pop it in the mail for me.

And I also ordered this before I left...

MY VERY OWN KONA SOLID SWATCH CARD!!!!  This is the new one with their 28 new colors added.  I've seen them popping up on lots of other blogs lately, and I just HAD to have one.  Now if only I had a yard or two of every color on the card!  Right...  Dream on, Kathy!!!  But at least when I order some yardage now, I'll know exactly which color I want for each project.  I bought mine from Fat Quarter Shop, and they're less than $20.  Totally worth every penny!

Now I've got some hand-sewing to finish up, so I'm headed outdoors to sit and sew in this pretty sunshine.  It's a beautiful day in Pennsylvania!

Taking a week off...

I got LOTS of work accomplished this past week, and that's a good thing, because I'm taking the next 5 days off.  There won't be any sewing going on, but maybe a little Zentangle'ing instead.  Check my next Tasting Table Tuesday post to see where I am (assuming Blogger follows my instructions and publishes my post as scheduled).  In the meantime, here's a hint...  And yes - some days I feel like I'm as crazy as one of these...  Cheers!  And I'll be back on-line soon!

Tasting Table Tuesday - Zen Style

I won't bore you with pictures of my projects today, because I'm busy binding (ho hum) the two commission quilts you've already seen, although I'll post pics when they're completely done in a day or two.

But I do have something exciting to share with you. Have you heard about the art of Zentangle? I was recently introduced to it by my friend Diane, and I'm hooked. It's a form of doodling, but SO much more than that! When I first saw some examples, I was amazed at its similarity to free-motion quilting. I've been watching instructional YouTube videos almost every day, and even see zentangles in my dreams (and I wonder why I have trouble sleeping!).

The other day, I decided I needed a Zentangle book, and lo and behold - look what I found on Amazon! A Zentangle QUILTING book!!!


My book is on it's way, so you can bet that I'll be drawing Tangles at my Tasting Table by this Time next Tuesday. I wonder if I doodle better before, or after, that glass of wine??? Hmmm...