Tree of Life WIP

Tree of Life (WIP)

I thought I would share the stages of the zentangled/doodleart Tree of Life I've been working on.  It's not exactly a step-out so to speak, but the pictures should provide a general idea on how this piece came to be.

Below is the picture of the first stage, no color or finished work here, but I'm loving her just the same. 

Stay tuned for more Tree of Life pics as the project progresses.

Tree of Life WIP part 1

Sharpies on Porcelain Christmas Presents

Sharpies on Porcelain Christmas Presents

I made some presents with sharpies on porcelain for Christmas. Here are the basics with pics to follow.

#1 – Yes this can be done on glazed porcelain! No prep required (edit: I now wipe down the pots with rubbing alcohol to prevent paint cracking while cooking)

#2 – Your microns will not work.  Regular sharpies will NOT work. 

#3 – You must must MUST use OIL BASED SHARPIES. (read below for more on this.

#4 – Once your design is done, cook in oven at 350 for 40 mins.  Let the piece heat up and cool in the oven to prevent cracking.

#5 – Use a soft sponge to wash once cooked. Do not wash or wet or wipe BEFORE cooking (more on this below).  Add a gift tag or write on the bottom of the piece instructions to WASH GENTLY WITH A SOFT SPONGE.

Check out this video that got me through the tough spots. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jxdyBlhQZg

Oil based sharpies.  Okay so these run a little more pricy than regular sharpies.  I’m in Canada and they are just under 10$ each at Michael’s. Regular sharpies WILL wash off.  Micron Pens WILL wipe off! Oil based sharpies are the only way to go. (that I’ve found so far anyhow)

Here is a finished plant pot.  Cooked and all.  Pretty neat present as it comes with a plant bulb to grow later in the year.  This is completed and cooked and worked out.  YAY! Only about 10 hours to do each one (with drying time included because the paint can run with your hand movements if it’s not completely dry)

 

Kinda blurry - photo taken with cellphone.

The plates, oh how I love the plates! Warning: one of my paint sharpies exploded on the first one just as I was adding so finishing touches.  Luckily the design was “busy” enough to be able to save it.

And this is what happens when you try to wipe the pieces down before cooking them.  Ruined 2 pots this way, goodbye 20 hours… Not only does the paint “peel” off but it re-adheres itself to other parts of the piece.  Unsalvageable.

Finally, if you put the piece in the oven… and let’s just say you heated up some pizza in the oven the night before and a piece of cheese and mushroom and green pepper landed on the burner and you didn’t notice… and therefore it caught fire while your pieces are cooking, rendering them full of black soot… (yes, this is my life) they can be salvaged! After trying alcohol, soap and water, nail polish remover and bleach – (all carefully so as not to wreck the pattern) I found success with a simple baking soda and water paste.  

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask!



Zentangle Canadian Flag

Zentangle Inspired Art Part 16

Canadian Flag

            Wacky Zentangle’s facebook page put up a challenge to tangle your country’s flag.  Once I got the hang of the maple leaf (barely, and after many many MANY attempts) I was able to proudly do this piece.  

Note: I still haven't gotten the better quality pencil crayons.  Looking forward to having a few extra bucks to spend on the high quality ones. 

Flower Tips

Zentangle Inspired Art Part 15

Flower Tips

            The facebook page “Wacky Zentangle” put up a weekly challenge for a flower inspired zentangle.  I remembered a beautiful piece by Pysanky Pittsburgh that had caught my eye.  I went back and searched it, (you can find it here) and used it for inspiration to create my own piece, though hers is far better (so you should really check it out). 

            Note to self: Use higher quality pencil crayons.

Cadent Circles

Zentangle Inspired Art Part 14

Cadent Circles (Monotangle)

            The facebook page “Wacky Zentagle” put up a weekly challenge for a monotangle.  Which means I probably shouldn’t have used the circles since the tangle I chose was Cadent.  Ah well, there are no mistakes in zentangling, right?

            This was the first piece where I really used colour.  I felt like a kid again, with better, more expensive crayons (or in this case, pencil crayons) and paper… I booboo’ed by using marker to fill in the whole circle (second to last one) but other than that, I think it turned out fairly well.

Screwed-Up Circles

Zentangle Inspired Art Part 10

Screwed-Up Circles

            So this is one of the ZIA’s I screwed up, but I finished it anyway.  It did not turn out at all like it was supposed to.  I shouldn't have used the coiled rope design on the strings going through the circles, but I liked how well they turned out on the border so much that I wanted to keep using them.  It did NOT give the effect I was hoping for.  But… live and learn.

            Also I tried my hand at the Zendala and that didn't exactly turn out either.

 I attempted to do a sort of paisley yin-yang symbol with the top left circle and though it looks pretty cool, I don’t think anyone would guess that it’s a yin-yang sign.  I’ll be trying that again on a larger piece in the future.

The good news is, I got myself some real micro pens (no more dollar store cheapies), a shading stick and some coloured micro pens.  I'm excited to start using them, they should allow for more intricate designs.  

Cigarette Style

Zentangle Part 8

Cigarette Style

            I’ve officially botched two of my Zentangles to the point where I won’t be finishing them.  That’s tough for me, since one of the things I love about tangling is the feeling of completion. I never start one Zentangle before I’m done another.  Regardless, I trudge on. 

            I started “Cigarette Style” the same way I was inspired to put a clock in the mushroom in Zentangle Part 2.  I looked around my room, my eyes set on the object, and a Zentangle was created.  Because I’m new to Zentangles, I always want to try out new patterns, but found it hard to work those new patterns into the swirls in this piece.  So it was a challenge, but I do love the end result.