zentangling + atcs

I love zentangling (the process and the word itself!). Today I'm working on my kids' party agenda (my business opens in six days...hooray!) and I wondered if zentangling on a full sheet of card stock to then cut into artist trading cards would be a fun idea.

Using regular cardstock and a felt-tip marker, I started with hearts, on purpose because I'm going to paint those (traditional zen tangling wouldn't start with a graphic, but I'm thinking kid-friendly).

Then I divided the page into segments. (See my pen pointing to an imperfection? It never matters...)

Next, I started filling in (doodling)...

And filling in some more...

When my shading was done, I painted in my hearts (next time, I'll use colored pencils for better texture).

I cut the page into artist trading cards (2 1/2 x 3 1/2) for someone else to finish.

Yes this was very fun! But no, I wouldn't include this in a party because it takes a really long time to complete. This would be a great project to send home with someone. It will definitely be on my list when my kids are home for the holidays. The process is indeed meditative.

Are you interested in trying it? The shading takes a bit of time, but many people zentangle with just a ball point pen and do little to no shading - check out these! Usually, when I make a zentangle, I have a much smaller piece of paper (half of a junk mail envelope for instance) where I scribble while something is cooking, or while waiting for soccer practice to end. You can make a 1 inch x 1 inch zentangle!

For artist trading cards, I'd just start with a card and keep the design small - this way it takes fewer than 10 minutes to complete. 

Ahhhhhh....there are plenty of how-to videos about zentangling on youtube. Just be careful - they can be hypnotizing. Happy Tuesday! xo