Beckah's New Book - And I'm In It!

I know my post title may sound a bit presumptuous, but I am so excited that Beckah Krahula decided to include my art in her new book!
500 Tangled Artworks, A Showcase of Inspired Illustrated Designs does just that. It showcases the creative work of many exceptional artists - worldwide. I am so thrilled to be a part of this new book, which you can purchase here.  No shame. 

There are ten pieces of my work in the book. Here are a few of them.

This was drawn on Strathmore's Toned Grey paper.

I drew this awhile back for Erin Koetz Olson's

Zendala Dare.

There are so many beautiful pieces of art. You could just sit for hours and admire the pages, study how the pieces were created, drool over the beautiful colors, be amazed by the collective creative genius, well.  You get the picture. And I know you could - - - because I have!
I just want to thank Beckah Krahula publicly, here on my blog. Thank you for curating this awesomely, fantastical, inspiring, so much fun! book. You pretty much rock!
Now, go order your copy. You'll be glad you did!

I Am Featured in a New Book

This new book was just released and I am a spotlight artist! So exciting! That little blue swirl of ferns and all the little insects are mine. I have art on the back cover as well.

The book is chock full of artistic inspiration. Yes, they use the word "doodle" in the title and description. And yes, there are a bunch of zentangle® folks shaking their heads, but I figured this was a good opportunity for me to introduce some people to zentangle that might not get around to it otherwise. 

In fact, I kick off the featured artist section with some fun, brightly colored ZIAs. And no, I did not write the questions. If I had, my tools wouldn't be called Zen Doodle materials. Not that I have a problem with 'doodling' in and of itself, because I do not. But, I did want to bring some interest in zentangle to the project and I believe they wonderfully afforded me that opportunity.

I totally want to sing big thanks to Meredith Yuhas, one of our CZTs. The garden scene in this picture - as well as the underwater scene in the one before it - are based on techniques I learned in a couple of Meredith's classes. 

Here is a little bit more of the questions and answers.

I was pleased that they didn't greatly change my answers, or wording on these two pages.

Originally I had three pieces of art accepted for the book. 

Then they asked me to submit four additional art pieces for the spotlight artist section.

This is one of my favorite pieces that I've ever drawn. So simple, but fun. For the book I called it Eye Spy. The challenge is given to see what critters and people the reader can find in the drawing. I see at least two people and three critters. Hahaha! I was so glad they chose this piece for the book - and a bit surprised because of how simple it is.

I was so excited and pleased to see the editors closed out the book with another one of my tiles and an explanation of Zentangle®. So many times this gets left out.
Happy, happy, happy with my copy that came in the mail yesterday! It is so rewarding to share my work with others and be able to introduce them to zentangle in a setting other than a class. 
If you are interested in getting a copy of the book, you can see it here in the Interweave Store, or on Amazon.

Pattern Play is Here!

Exciting news!!! Certified Zentangle Teachers Cris Letourneau and Sonya Yencer have released their new book Pattern Play: A Zentangle Creativity Booster! As a contributing artist to the book, I received my copy this weekend and I love it!

Pattern Play walks you through 21 meditative tangle patterns, including 126+ tangleations and 80+ idea starters to help you step up your tangle game. And - - - yay!!! they included one of my patterns, complete with the step-out and six tangleations. 

They even used some of my original artwork showcasing veez! Thank you, ladies! I am beyond excited!

And on another page, they used some of my art to demonstrate the tangle they were teaching. (This is actually part of the first dragon I ever drew!)

Pattern Play is formatted to be a workbook of sorts, with lots of space for you to practice these tangles and tangleations. It offers encouragement for you to develop your own spin on the patterns and make them unique and specific to your own style. Beginning tangler? Or experienced tangler? It makes no difference. There is something for everyone in Pattern Play!
Pattern Play is available for purchase on CreateSpace right now! Click on this link and use coupon 3GGG4FMT to get 15% off!  I believe they are holding a copy with your name on it!

Excitement in My Mail Box!

The UPS man brought some magic in the mail today! I went outside to check on the crying kitten and found this package on the porch.

Of course, I knew what it contained and I couldn't wait to rip the package open - carefully rip - because I knew this brand newbook of zentangle was enclosed!

I have been waiting patiently for the book to arrive because on page 58, you can find my steampunk wall! This is the design I use on my business cards and on my About.Me page. It was the first drawing I used color on. (And on page 166 they included my pattern Blox.)

Design Originals did an amazing job pulling all the art together for this book. The colors are wonderful, the crispness of the black and white spot on.

And they included this pretty awesome certificate! This is just a portion of it, but check out those couple sentences - - - especially that last line! Whoot! Whoot!

This is my third time being published, but the first time in color. The entire book is amazing, full of beautiful, wonderful art!

I can not even begin to tell you how amazing it is to be a part of the overall presentation. Well, maybe you can tell - - - just a little bit!

'The Beauty of Zentangle' Coming Soon - And I Am in the Book!

From Design Originals, new book The Beauty of Zentangle  is set to be released in September. 
Zentangle® is a relaxing and fun way to create beautiful artwork by simply drawing structured patterns - one stroke at a time. (This comprises the largest part of the art you see on my blog.) 
Quoting from the  publisher's web page: 
This invitation-only collection of the very best Zentangle-inspired art includes stunning masterpieces from breakthrough artists and CZTs. (Check it out. They called me a 'breakthrough artist".) Their inventive tangles are at the forefront of a new wave of creative expression and personal freedom. 
Artists from around the world will be featured, including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Peru, South Africa, Taiwan, the United States, and the United Kingdom. I can not even tell you how honored I am that Suzanne McNeill and Cindy Shepard invited me to join in on this project! Humbled and honored. 
Below is a preview of what to expect in the book, including a list of all the artists. (Double click image to go to full-screen.)
I can not wait to see the book in person! You can pre-order your copy here. Design Originals, Suzanne, Cindy, thank you so much!