A Spill of Coffee

This week's Diva Challenge was to spill coffee on tiles and use the stain(s) as the string.


well, I had a Traveling Tile from Sue Bailey ... as usual, I forgot to take a pic before starting, so here it is, after the coffee splash



I splashed a few more:

 



It is a pretty tan tile with white, the pattern Ruffel by Helen Williams, and believe me, this one was a challenge! But once I splattered it and looked, some things started to come to me.

Shading in the corners of every segment in the Ruffel, with tan tombow, and Sand Swirl all around with the same marker. I love how layering the tombow can get things so deep! Or you can go lightly with it. Well, in making the Sand Swirls, I didn't draw over the coffee stains, and then filled those in with sepia micron. Then, to make the Ruffel more dominant, I colored it all in with a white prismacolor pencil, and deepened the drop shadow "under " it. Not bad, I guess. :)


Another ATC that I finished up, wanting to send it in a letter/envie via Swap-Bot.

I call it "At the Dark Cabaret"

and, a sketchbook treat:



This is in an old sketchbook...isn't it funny how you do things and put them aside.


and that's all for now!
Blessings...


Comments are wonderful! I love comments.

UMT's, letter writing, traveling tangles

First, I wanted to share from Fleeting Time whose author I cannot remember...but visit the blog. She is one I subscribe to in my email, because of the absolutely wonderful ways in which she explores EVERY tangle. Well, wasn't I tickled to find that she had been inspired by Torsdag! And just look at what she did with it! It inspires me!


Now for the diva's challenge this week... a UMT using Frunky... a fun little tangle that is going to look good tucked wherever you put it.


Since I was working on a tile to send in a swap via Swap-bot.com (check it out, it is a way to get some good fun mail nearly every week!) well, I was in the middle of creating a tile when this challenge came along, so I added it to what I already had:

I chose a tile with color on it, and started with dreamcatcher in the bottom right, with the printemps and msst upper left, some rain and more msst...and then added the Frunky, emerging from the dreamcatcher. This tile was unique, in that I started with the dreamcatcher on top, and after adding the msst with the Printemps, it wanted to be the other way. Some Fescu, a few more Printemps, shading and highlighting. I think it looks like the fragrant mossy undergrowth in a damp temperate rainforest, with seedlings emerging and soft exhalations of dew sinking into the soil.


So, I sent this tile and one other, to a swap partner who lives in Massachusetts, along with a two page hand written letter. That was so much fun to do...write a letter? Long hand? Fold it up and put in an envelope? With a stamp? And put it in to post? Wow!


 Since I had written about myself a bit, being a zentangler, I had to include tiles. The other tile, a classic black and white on a string...I forgot to photograph before sending it! But it was cool looking.


Some sketchbook play:

One evening I was just sitting watching something on Netflix and decided I wanted to do something with Flux...and an hour or so later, this is what I ended up with. It pleases me.


Some patterns in this piece: Tropicana, Flux, Log Cabin, Fricle,  Tring, Torsdag, a tangleation on Diva Dance, Cayke, Cubine, Opus, Mooka, Domizil and some random Tipple and Printemps. This was fun and satisfying to do.


























On the Traveling Tiles front, I finished another by Sue Bailey

You can see on her start, where I caught myself right after making one straight line. This one was just delightful to finish. I tend to gravitate towards the curvy patterns, and it was loads of fun doing this with all its corners and straight edges. And it turns out looking way cool.

Kat VanRooyen sent this start. I think she has such a fine hand, her lines are so delicate and precise.


This is how I finished it:

The FINAL finished product for this one, has some blue in it. I don't know what happened to that pic, but this is where I almost stopped, and looking at it now, It's actually very nice. Didn't need the other color added.

Kate Ahrens sent this tile a few weeks ago, and I finished it:

I almost wrecked this one, but putting Buttercup in
individual motifs unified it all. I am pleased.  

Her tiles are made of paper that has the most delightful texture. They are Zentangle (TM) tiles, but the process of coloring them, or something, gives them a very fine toothy texture with quite a bit of "give"...that is, the paper is flexible and feels good in your hand. Just lovely.


And, a  little sweet treat from Kate also:

Isn't it yummy!