Zendala Dare 2

Find the Zendala Dare at The Bright Owl  Just enough time this week to finish one of the templates for the Zendala Dare - and experiment with another framing option at PicMonkey

Zendala Dare #2

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Diva Challenge #66 - Laura's Auras

 The challenge this week - read about it here - is to play with the Zentangle embellisment Auras, using either tangles that incorporate auras or to use auras to enhance your Zentangle.  As an added challenge for myself I wanted to use tangles that do not have auras as part of the design and I wanted a tangle that would have a straight line aura.  I started out with BB as the main tangle - I kept trying to keep it small but after a few attempts I just let it grow however it wanted and then filled in with a bit of Keeko.  Considering the size of BB this one might have worked better for the Biggify Challenge a few weeks ago!

Laura's Auras

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A note about the framing - no I didn't actually frame it with a matte.  I use an online photo editor (no interest in Photoshop) to clean up my scans and to resize them.  I had used Picnik for years and was very disappointed when Google (who purchased it about a year ago) decided to shut it down.  I've been testing out a few alternatives - most were OK but none as good as Picnik - until recently that is.   Seems a few of the former Picnik folks have started a new endeavor called PicMonkey  It's still in beta- more features to come. It's free and I'm sold but I will gladly pay for it if they offer a premium version.   That's a long explanation for how I came to frame this challenge tile.

One of the features is the ability to add frames - I usually just add a simple thin black frame and round the corners but today I wasn't liking the way it looked - with  BB being so prominent it just seemed very harsh.  I played with the different frame options - while BB is still large using the Museum Matte frame option seems to tone it down a bit.

Zendala Dare

A fellow CZT Erin announced on her blog a new weekly project - Zendala Dare. The short version - every Friday she will post a new Dare with guidelines and a set of templates - one suitable for a Zentangle tile, one for the new round Zendala tiles and one for full sheet 8 1/2" x 11". Similar to the Diva Challenge you will be able to add a link to your creations. To kick off the first dare she's also giving away a set of the new Zendala tiles. Read the full details for the Dare and how to enter the giveaway here on her blog The Bright Owl

Zendala Dare #1

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For some reason both scans are a bit tilted - not sure if it's operator error or something about the scanner. Will tackle that another day.

Diva Challenge #65 UMT v.III

The first Monday of the month challenge is UMT (use my tangle). The Diva selects a tangle created by another zentangle enthusiast. This week's tangle is Huggy Bear from JJ LaBarbera. Instructions for the tangle are located here.

Huggy Bear Sampler

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I have not used this specific pattern before however it's based on the official tangle pattern Huggins which I do enjoy using so laying out the grid was not a problem. The real challenge was in deciding what to do next. So may different possibilities it was hard to pick just one - so I didn't - created a sampler instead.