Zentangle and Zen are two different things. However, there are overlaps and similarities between the philosophies and perspectives of the two ideologies. We were drawn to this list because it reminds us of the approach we take when teaching the Zentangle Method. We were especially enamored by the idea and overall theme of “letting go.” As artists, when we are able to let go, our creative process takes control. The resulting journey takes us on a path that is nurturing, supportive, and often leads to side effects such as uncontrollable smiling and, in some instances, belly laughs. Here is our...

Thiele writes... We often talk about gratitude in the Zentangle practice. Once we have our space and our supplies ready, we take a moment to touch our paper and be grateful for the surface that we will soon fill with tangles. “But what about our pens,” Maria recently thought. Our gratitude should certainly be directed to where our ink flows from, too!When Maria was in art school, about 57 years ago, she had what they called a Rapidograph. It was the first modern, technical drawing pen, and while it required less maintenance than a quill, you still had to fill...

In May of this year, we honored Mental Health Awareness Month with our annual Bijou Be Well Series. For 21 straight days, we tangled one tangle a day, putting pen to paper for just 10-15 minutes, giving ourselves the gift of creativity and calm. Our surface was a Zentangle Opus tile, the largest tile in the Zentangle collection. Its generous size can feel a little intimidating at first, but there was comfort in that we were all filling these tiles together, one tangle at a time. I have finished Opus tiles before, and I was excited to start a new...