The Diva's Weekly Zentangle Challenge #235

This week's challenge from the Diva aka Laura Marks is to draw stripes across your tile or paper to make the string.

I used my O4 Sakura Micron Pigma pen. I quite like the bold lines and it's the pen I keep returning to.

Shadow Shot Sunday - September 13, 2015

What a fabulous day for shadows today!

A while ago my landlord cleared a lot of the area outside my kitchen window. With all the space, the Jasmine plant has well and truly taken advantage of the chance to spread. It's leaves make for some great shadows.

There's a rusty old chair that the plant has latched on to,

taking the opportunity to grow in another direction.

I also spotted some great shadows near the back gate. These grow into huge trees, which are rather a nuisance but they do make for some great shadows. These plants will be gone soon. I need to get out and do some clearing. It's difficult to get motivated though, particularly with the coughs and sneezes which inevitably come at the start of Spring for me.

Tangle with S-P-C

When I saw the letters for Diane and Carolien's challenge this week, the jingle SPC Baked Beans and Spaghetti started going round and round in my head. I think maybe I was influenced by that when I chose the tangles to use. My finished tile does look slightly 'baked beans and spaghetti'ish. I chose Swarm for S, Pea-nuckle for P and Crescent Moon for C. I haven't used any of these tangles before. Pea-nuckle was particularly fun. I recommend looking it up on www.tanglepatterns.com and giving it a go!

I've been playing with colour quite a lot this week, using my Derwent Inktense pencils and enjoying them immensely but it was nice to revisit black and white and the focus on the lines.

Tangle with U-J-B

This week for Diane and Carolien's weekly challenge the letters are U, J and B. The challenge is to use tangles starting with these letters. It can be tangles only beginning with those letters or others can be added as well. I use Linda's list of original zentangle patterns (on www.tanglepatterns.com) first then if there are no patterns that I haven't already used starting with the focus letter then I look further afield.

This week I used the original tangle, Bunzo along with Undu by Daniel Lamothe and Jeewels by Livia Chua. It is the first week I've used colour in one of these challenges. I love my Derwent Inktense pencils and have just begun playing with them.

Tangle with P-I-J

P is for Paradox, I is for Ix and J is for Jambalee. Here is my entry this week in Diane and Carolien's Weekly Challenge.

Shadow Shot Sunday - August 30th, 2015

Doing the dishes this morning was a little more enjoyable with the great shadows from some dried flowers I haven't yet moved from the kitchen bench.

See other people's shadow shots at http://www.shadowshotsunday2.blogspot.com.au/.

Brianna has joined the colouring craze

I have been quite busy lately so there hasn't been a lot of opportunity to use my new colouring pens and pencils. I have enjoyed some in little pockets of down time, usually while half watching something on television. It's fun to choose the colours and I love the brightness of the Stabilo pens so have mainly been using them.

I've been without them for a few days lately as 

 

Brianna has joined the colouring craze

 
We took a special trip to the shops to get her own book and she chose 'The Little Book of Calm Colouring' by David Sinden and Victoria Kay. I love the combinations of colours she has chosen. 

 First page coloured by Brianna (14)

The one she is working on now

One of mine - nearly done!
 

This evening I began a page in The Secret Garden book. Very happy with the thick paper in this book - the colour doesn't bleed through the paper
 

Tangle with K-A-T

The challenge at Diane and Carolien's Weekly Challenge this week is to use tangles beginning with the letters K, A and T. As I usually do I chose one pattern beginning with each letter. I try to choose the tangles I will use fairly quickly and using original zentangle patterns first if there is one for a letter that I haven't already used in these challenges.

This week I chose the patterns Keeko, Ambler and Tagh. They are ones I have used before but not for this particular challenge. I'm happy with how they turned out together.

The Diva's Weekly Zentangle Challenge #231

One thing I really like about participating in the Diva's weekly challenge is the ideas that lead to me drawing something that I probably wouldn't have come up with on my own. A little structure can lead to a burst of creativity! Another thing I like is the ability to participate when I like. It's been a couple of weeks I think since I last participated and I'm glad to be back.

This week's challenge is from guest blogger Sharla Hicks and the idea is to use tangles that undulate, perhaps those with S and C curves as a base. For more detail see http://www.iamthedivaczt.blogspot.com.au/2015/08/weekly-challenge-231-guest-post-by.html.

I decided to work quickly on this week's tile which can also be great for creativity. It was also a nice change of pace after a poem I have been writing which has been taking a while.

Here's my fun tile in shaded and unshaded version -

 

Lots of fun at Science Alive

There are a number of things I could write about for Six Word Saturday as I have been quite busy lately and lots has been happening. The six words I have settled on are

Lots of fun at Science Alive!

 

 

This week is National Science Week here in Australia and there are lots of events that people can get involved in. Last weekend there was a fantastic event at the Adelaide Showgrounds - Science Alive. This event is in its tenth year and was held over two days (8 and 9 August). Brianna and I went last year and really enjoyed it. We thought my niece (8) would like it too so this year we went again along with Teya and Brianna's friend. It was fantastic again. The only complaint I have is that there were so many people there, which is really a good thing. It did make it hard to get to some of the stalls though. There were lines for many but they moved fairly quickly. I feel like we only saw a tiny amount of what was there but we all had a great time. I think we'll be back next year. It's a great event with much to appeal to different ages.

There was a mega brain to walk through

as well as a huge inftatable body to walk through. We didn't get to do this - the line was enormous when we were there.

Brianna creating a smoke ring

 

A smoke ring

 

One of the favourite activities was to build a tower with straws and masking tape.

 

 

And the day wouldn't have been complete without a photo with a Dalek (rushed at the end though so not a very good one)

 

 

A bonus for me was getting lots of great ideas for teaching. The class I taught yesterday did the straw tower challenge (to build the tallest tower that a cube can be balanced on, using 20 straws and 1/2 metre of masking tape). The highest yesterday was 109cm and all of the students seemed to enjoy it. For some it was a great lesson in persistence as they worked out how to make their tower strong enough for a cube to be balanced on it for 30 seconds. It's definitely an activity I'll be doing again. Though I didn't realise how difficult it would be to find straws that weren't the flexible ones. I  eventually found some in the fourth shop I looked in.

 

To see how others describe their week or part thereof in six words go to www.showmyface.com.