Zentangle spiral string

Today's creative was to complete the Diva's challenge #210. I like when I get to these, especially when I get to them early and they don't get lost in the shuffle of my week. It's a great way to start my creative plans off for the week.
This morning I saw we were to use spirals as our string.. one of my favorite challenges from her.
I adore spirals and it makes me realize how far I've come, because one of my very first challenges was to use a spiral.

Here is this weeks.

And this was my "then" tile.. I don't remember which number challenge this was, but I still like this one too!

I might do another one later in the week and use some Zendala tiles to do it.

What are you working on today? How many of you spend your Mondays on the diva challenge?

Happy Groundhogs Day!

So.. the groundhog saw his shadow.
That means 6 more weeks of winter. Blah. Double BLAH. I am tired of snow.
We are getting quite a bit of the lovely white stuff at the moment, so I guess I'll prepare to hibernate for the next 6 weeks.
(Here in Western NY it's more like another 3 months of winter)

Let's perk things up!
I promised a prize would go out to someone who joined in and here we go!

These sweet little Bijou tiles are going to go to JLJohnson!
Please send me your address via email  so I can get these out to you! Lots more little treats will be coming in the upcoming months!

I have a secret package that will be going out as well in the next couple days too! The winner of my "Use the good stuff" bonus is Heather (who mainly posts for the challenge over on Instagram) but made sure to post on that post for us! Heather, please send me your mailing info so that I can send our your package too!

Today I caught up on Laura's challenges over on I am a Diva with 201 and 202 as well as got my Square One challenge too. 

202- Chebucto vs Copada
Not a fan of Chebucto, no matter how many times I practice it, I just don't love it. 

203- UMT-Athitzi was the challenge. I really liked it! I think this will become a go to
I combined it with Quandry for the Square One challenge as well. 

The first of the month is always a UMT so I always try to dive into those. I like learning something new! 

I'm having a hard time fitting all the things in that I want to be doing into my daily posts, so I think I'll try and do some more combining.

I love the language of Zentangle. 

Speak in tangles

That's how I first started "speaking" with Rick and Maria. Tangles and patterns are universal . . . literally. Take a look at my shell. Now, look at a galaxy. See a pattern?

Moebius Syndrome Awareness

Laura Harms over at I am the Diva hosts a weekly challenge. I mentioned this earlier this week. Her challenge this week is to help raise awareness for Moebius Syndrome.

I said that I wanted it to be really special, so I was waiting til I had a little more time, but.... life is chaos sometimes. She has put up other challenges that were close to my heart that I set aside because I wanted to "Do them justice" and then sadly, never got to them.

So, although it isn't all super fancy, I wanted to participate. That's the thing about awareness... you just need to pay attention. You just start.
So I used the awareness ribbon and I used purple and I dove in.

So for Laura and her family, in honor of Artoo and other individuals, let's learn more and pass it on.

If you haven't visited Laura's blog, please do so. I am the diva. 

Today is my favorite of all the Bijouisms. 

Appreciate

Wow, this is such a big word! But it's a big idea, too. It seems like the more I appreciate something, the more things I get to appreciate! I used to take a lot of stuff for granted, like the warm springtime in Paris. But ever since I hitched that ride in Rick and Maria's luggage (it was COLD on that trip), I've treasured everything on this wonderful adventure. Now, when I'm tangling, I really focus on and appreciate each and every "stroke" I make.

Work in progress pic for me today

Normally on Monday, I post later so that I can find, read and complete the Diva challenge before I post. Today hers is a big deal. It's about Weekly Challenge #201: "Moebius Syndrome Awareness Day 2015" and I think it deserves a really focused effort. Today I have some stuff going on and just can't devote the focus to that piece that it deserves so I'm going to show you a work in progress instead and really encourage you to go check out Laura's challenge today, even if you've never done one before. It's worth it. I will share my Moebius Syndrom Awareness tile when I get it done this week. I hope to see lots of yours shared as well. Here's my snowflake picture,

 I'm still working on it... this journal page is an event I tell you!

Monday Tangling!

Today is Monday.. .YAY MONDAY! (never thought I'd say that!!!! but now that I am focused on my art pretty much full time, I like Mondays!)

Today's piece of creativity was Laura Harm's 200th Diva challenge! WOW!
Use your favorite tangle to do a monotangle with no edges, your Mac and Cheese tangle shining center stage. Mmmm Mac and Cheese. I love Mac and Cheese... wait.. I'm getting distracted again.

Anyway, my go to tangle is Flux. I went back and forth between that and Cadent, which is another I use a lot but I really LOVE Flux, so I thought that would be my stand out today. I love it. :) I always love tangles that are done with Flux.

I'm going to do it in my calendar today too I think.

Do you participate in Laura's weekly challenges? If not you really should! I know she's hoping to get 200 people to participate this week in honor of her 200th challenge.
It counts here too if you post it!
If you've been waiting to try, today's a great day to do so :D

Whew... Ok! Monday Jan.5, Day 5!

Ok, so the headache is finally (knocks on wood) better!

Here is what I have going on, because I was out of it, I missed the fact that yesterday I wanted to direct you to visit Suzy over at her blog SuzyMosh Creations because on Sundays she is running a "That's new to me" weekly challenge.  This week was to use a Tangle that was new to you that started with the letter T.
Since I wasn't feeling so hot, I decided to combine some of my challenges into 1 tile. :) Of course that means for the rest of the week, I'll be coming up with lots of stuff on my own, but I've got stuff I have to do, so that's good!

So anyway, my T tangle, the other day I used Twing for the first time... and struggled iwth it a lot. So I decided that since it's really new to me, that would be my T tangle.
Then, Laura over at the I am the Diva  posted her weekly challenge (seriously, check these out. These are such great ways to learn new things and to be creative even when you thought maybe you weren't feeling it)
Hers was to use Hitch by HeidiSue which tied in GREAT with Twing... Ok, I'm on a roll here!

My CZT group is back to doing challenges and this week was Vega, more diamonds! WOOOHOOO.....

and since I was all in at this point, why not add the Square One:Purely Zentangle focus tangle in too? That one was XYP! Wow, apparently diamond based tangles were the thing this week!
So... I put them all in together.

And I got this...

Twing, XYP, Vega, Hitch

I don't really love it, but I did learn a lot about each of those tangles as I did them. That's the point of challenges right? Push past your limits? Try something new?

Anyway, so those are some of the challenges I really like... you should try them if you want. They are open to everyone!

I also started planning a new class, it's top secret for now... and I've been practicing for it and I've recruited a few victims   eer.... volunteers who are going to be testing my lesson plan for me before I make that live. Here's a sneak peek of that, just some playing with scrap paper.

And then... finally, I did my Tangle a day calendar yesterday and today.
I reserve the right to add to these 2, I don't love either of them, but I'm not at the top of my game either yet.

Maybe I need chocolate. :)

Anyway... so show me what you've got going on friends! I can't wait to see!

I love Fall!!!

I truly think that fall is my favorite season. The colors are beautiful and vibrant, the world seems to be doing it's very best to decorate itself and there is pumpkin and apple flavored EVERYTHING here.
We are lucky enough to have an exchange student visiting and I've gotten to spend time with some of my best friends lately which has kept me busy, but I've also been VERY busy on the creativity front.
I saw a picture of these on the internet, and was reminded that my Gram had taught me to make a version years and years ago... so here are mine.
I'm out of practice, but they're SO pretty!!

 


And then... I made this for me because I really wanted to have my stuff organized and handy and at my fingertips. I was SO happy with how it turned out and I am still just giddy when I look at it!
When I showed it on facebook, so many people wanted one I decided to make them and put them in my etsy shop. (They're only $35 and include the pens for right now if you are interested, you can check it out at www.whimsybykelly.com)
And then I promptly got a ton of orders! YAY!

I also had several orders come in for custom converse and some cute geeky earrings. :)

So, I've been busy working on all of that.

I've done a few other things including this mini-mandala

And then I got to participate in this weeks Diva Challenge 189 which was UMT Yuma. This was my first attempt at this tangle and I struggled with it a little, but I love the idea of them feeding off the leaves, so I used green to add to it. I rarely use color but it seems to fit on this one!

I'm behind one, 188, which is one that I'm actually excited to work on, it's a LGBT alliance tile and I haven't skipped it, I just was short on time last week and didn't want to rush it, so I'll get back to that asap!

In the meantime, everyone have a great week and I'll check in when I can! Now, I'm off to go have some apple crisp or a pumpkin muffin! 

Stuff I've been working on this week

First, I have to say it is ABSOLUTELY gorgeous this week. Makes it hard to be productive. :)
My facebook contest ends tomorrow, so if you haven't liked my page and a post or two that's really all you have to do for a chance to win a free pair of custom Converse.

Here's my Diva Challenge...
I love how it always forces me to think outside the box.

My Powerpuff girls in progress... 

And I've been hard at work on my blocks for the Art *O* mat project. I've got about half of my 50 done now... so that's coming along nicely!

Diva Challenge 186- String theory Leaves, leaves leaves!

I love fall so much. It's my favorite season. I love the warmth of summer, the promise of spring (especially after my arctic winters of endless snow) but the color and breathtaking beauty of fall make it my favorite. I love the crispness of the days that alternate with warm days that feel like presents!
I live in NY so.... I associate fall with warm cozy sweaters, new boots, POT ROAST!!!! and new school supplies, freshly sharpened pencils and blank notebooks...
So.. ALL MY FAVORITE THINGS!

Today's Diva Challenge  was leaves.
Ok.

Here's what I came up with and I had so much fun doing this. I used brown, a dark green and red from my heritage color pen set and then coordinating pencils from my inktense set.

Loved it. Might even do more of this one.

Well I feel productive! (and a new challenge template!)

Ok, I said the other day that I needed to get busy and catch up with challenges... and so I did.
I competed a bunch of the challenges put out weekly by Laura Harms over at I am the Diva (If you don't follow her or participate you totally should!)
But I was behind since.. sometime in early summer. So in the last few days I completed... not 1, 2, or even 3, but 8 of hers!
177-185
Wow. Really, she's up to 185, and now I am too! (I still haven't posted all the first ones that I went back and did, I should make that a project this fall!)

So without further babbling...
177- Truffle. I like the way this one turned out so organic. It makes me feel like I fell into Alice in Wonderland or the garden or something!

177- Use the Tangle Truffle

 178- Duotangle by the letters, using tangles with the first letters of your name.
So, K & B
Two of my favorites Krli-Q and Bales!

178-Duotangle by the letters

 179- Be like Bijou, Tiny tiles! This isn't actually a tiny tile, or "twinchie" because I don't have any. I actually ended up doing this in the corning of my Marketing homework!

                   179-Be like Bijou

 180- This is a UMT- (Use my Tangle) This one is called MacDee, and I love it, cause it's PLAID! I love PLAID!!!

180-UMT MacDee

181- Water.
I am not sure about this, but my daughter loves it. It's to use water as an inspiration. This is different than many of my other pieces but it's kinda fun and hey... COLOR!

181- Water

182- Stripes. A fun opportunity to use a bunch of tangles!

182- Stripes

183- UMT- X-Did. I don't think I "did" this one right, but I am happy with the result. It was new to me, so you know what that means right? PRACTICE!

183- UMT X-Did

184- New Tangle by Molly. I like it. I'll use it a lot, another one to practice though!

184 New Tangle by Molly

185- Duotangle Phicops & Diva Dance. Not sure about this one but it DOES have a lot of movement to it.

185- Phicops and Diva Dance

AND I'm CAUGHT UP on those!
but...
I also fell off the alphabet wagon. :( Cheryl over at Artful Creations had a cool alphabet challenge going, for Tackle it Tuesday I stopped somewhere around K I think. (I'll have to check) I want to finish that but I'm not sure when... but the fates aligned and the day before  I looked to see how behind I was... she had launched a NEW CHALLENGE! So I am throwing myself in and encourage you to do so too! This week was to use Tangles that started with S, E and P.
Here's mine.
I used Peaknuckle, which I love but never feel like I have quite perfected, Sand Swirls which is a favorite and EEZ.
I'm very happy with this one actually.

So then there's one more thing...
I've been posting challenges here and there for a while, mostly there since my 30 day (Which I WILL be running again in the future!!) but I promised you a new template for fun. So....
We "Grew a Garden"
We "Built Houses"
Now... Let's "Make the Bed"
(Can you tell I have too much housework to get done these days?)
But I think it'll be fun and I actually have something that's been in my head since I was a little girl and read the Princess and the pea for mine.

So here's your template.

I know they don't look like much but it's really the prompt and giving you a few things to work around to make it a challenge... so, what are you waiting for?

DOWNLOAD IT HERE
Please play along and you can share too!

Diva challenges 175& 176

I was a couple weeks behind on these, but I'm caught up now. 

175 was to use Cruz.

The UMT's usually (Use my tangles) are always a true challenge for me, but I always learn something new.

For this one I decided to go with all grid style patterns and then use a thicker than usual line to kind of unify it. I like how it turned out, but it doesn't feel like anything special. 

The next one is 176, and was a challenge by her guest blogger, Amy. It was to "BYOB" and stain your paper with your beverage.
YAY! TEA!
So I dripped tea on it, it made some cool splashes and I liked that part all by itself! Then I tangled on it using my sepia pens and then to continue with the "something different" theme I added a quote.
One of my all time FAVORITE quotes actually.

I am in love with this one. I know it's messy and not even and I could do a much better version, but I love it. (Is it ok to be in love with your own work?)

Here it is. 

We did it! Day 30! (And Diva #174!)

So I finished off the 30 day challenge with a weekly challenge piece from The Diva, #174 which was string over a string. Lots of fun to do! (I really like more intricate strings!)

I've had a lot of fun, forced myself out of the box a few times and tried some new stuff. I hope you enjoyed it.
I'll announce all prizes tomorow night. (If you want a doodle together membership put ENTER ME! in the comments today as well. I have a total of 3 of those to give away! 2 are gone, 1 still to go!)

What kind of challenges would you like to see next? I hope everyone had fun! 

Music again and my diva challenge #173 (redux)

This feels a little anti-climactic after doing the actual guitar. LOL

Art prompt- revisit a project you did way back when. The diva's was to revisit a tangle and I'd like to expand on that.

For me, I had tangled musical instrument shapes right when I first started and now it was time to revisit, I included some of my favorite tangles as well.

Something blue Day 18

This is one of the past Diva challenges that I never did. It was the 12th and it was called something blue.
I needed a simple one sitting, no thinking, pen on paper project for today.
This was perfect for that. I did it while drinking my cup of tea and listening to the rain on the windows.

Today's art prompt for you is to do something basic, something that doesn't take a lot of prep time, clean up time or to force yourself in any particular direction. Make it a "take it easy" kind of day.

18 days in a row so far! 12 more to go!

I'm thinking about next month and the weekly challenge I may start. There are several paths I can take with this, and I'm trying to decide which one, so I'm going to ask for your opinions.
It will obviously have more structure but would you rather I post a theme/idea weekly, or a string or template?

Also would you rather I posted the challenge during the week or on the weekend?

The guitar- or... what I did last week. :)

So here is my Diva challenge for last week first... #171, she talked about Beads of courage which is an amazing program and one I firmly believe in. Go check it out. Get involved.
Anyway, this is actually a program I really believe in so when she talked about it and incorporated that into the challenge I knew it wasn't one I wanted to skip. I used my watercolors to add some bright splashes and I like it even if it isn't my "normal" style.

 And because it's Monday again and I didn't want to fall behind and I've been awake since 5.
Here is a duotangle for the Diva's Challenge #172, Auraknot and Mooka. I mssed up my auraknot but I like it enough to keep it!

Ok, and now... The guitar. 

This was a Father's Day gift for my dad.

Here are some completed shots and then I'll add in a ton of wip pics too. 

(not all photos are even worth looking at but I wanted them for my own reference in the future)

Here it is all displayed after I gave it to him.

And here is a better shot of it all completed. 

There is meaning in every stroke on that guitar, from the little dipper that you won't notice behind the tree branches to the stars over the moon, which my dad taught me to draw, sitting on his lap at my Grandparents house as a little girl. 

There is a campfire and the song around the edges is the music from Country Roads by John Denver, which was my favorite song to listen to him play when I was a little girl. I called it my camping song. There are dandelions for wishes and a quote that says everything.

I'm a lucky girl. I have the best Dad, and I am glad that I could give him a gift that he told me he'll always treasure. 

Here's a few WIP pics. I'm a messy artist. :D

Ok, so today is day 16.
Create something that reminds you of your childhood!