Several people who have taken my Introduction to Zentangle® class have expressed interest in how to continue from where the class ended. They are finding that the online resources are vast—and somewhat overwhelming and have asked me to provide some guidance for next steps to grow their own practices. Beginning today, and for the next 12 Fridays I will post a practice opportunity for anyone who is interested. Friday seems like the best day since it is the gateway to the weekend and a day, that for me, often seems a bit lighter and more open to possibility.

If you choose to participate, please take a picture of your finished tile and email it to me at turningtruestudios@gmail.com. I will build a mosaic of the photographs and include them in the following Friday blog post.

I have chosen the name ZenVocation because vocation means calling…I hope that developing a practice of Zentangle is calling you—and that you will answer by participating in the weekly opportunities presented here or on other sites.

Week 1 (of 12)
In the class, we completed a tile using the letter ‘Z’ as our string. Since this opportunity marks the next step in your journey with Zentangle, use an ’N’ as your string. Yes…an N and a Z are related for sure, but, they will feel different when you make them!

We used 4 basic tangles when completing that first tile: Crescent Moon, Hollibaugh, Printemps, and Bales.
Choose three of those to use in your tile and then try the tangle Patena. Like Bales, Patena is a grid tangle—but because of the diagonals, you end up with triangular shapes within the squares. Use the ‘step out’ below as a guide.

Remember to take a moment for that foundational first step of appreciating the time that you set aside to create!
***All tangles and step outs are official Zentangle-original tangles that can be found at zentangle.com as well as through links at tanglepatterns.com