Friday, February 24, 2012

Come Zentangle with me...

For many years I've thought about doing Yoga.
Or pilates.
Excersize for the body.
To be fit, healthy and calm.
I finally did it.
Yoga that is.
For the mind.
What?
For the MIND.
I've been doodling since I was a little girl in school.
As I grew older I became much better at it.
It was a great way to look like I was taking notes in class.
So you could imagine how much of that I did back in the day.
Finished school.
Stopped doodling.
Got married.
Had children. (B"H)
Went to learning class.
Started doodling again!
I never saw anyone else doing it, so I figured it was just me and my inability to focus without scribbling.
Enter the computor age.
Now it's me and a million other people who doodle.
Except there are people who take this really seriously.
Blogs and books.
Who knew?
And I learnt a new word for it: ZENTANGLE.
Doodling is for babies!
Zentangle.
Has a sophistication to it.
The more I explored this world of Zentangle, the more intrigued I became by it.
Now I am more than just a doodler.
I am a Zentangler.
Imagine that!
Last night I did my first real zentangle.
It was so pleasant.
Just me my marker, and my music...
Now I understand why it's called 'yoga for the mind'.
I will be filling this with color at some point, but for now here it is.
Presenting - my very first authentic Zentangles.......



If I say it's easy will you believe me?
Ok. Maybe it's a little intimidating, but there are videos galore you could see.
Then try it.
White cardstock.
You can start with regular paper if you want.
Fine point marker.
You're ready.
Easy as that.
Keep at it.
The little or big artist in you will emerge.
That I promise you.
Everyone has one living deep inside of them.
Remember, there's no wrong way to do it.
Only your way!
...and here is one of my 'old' ones.



I have a feeling some of you may try this.
Here's a good place to start.
Google 'zentangle' and go!
You will see.
The quieter your mind becomes, the more you can hear.
That's enough reason for me.
What about you?






8 comments:

karen said...

Dear Faygie,
I enjoy your blog very much, even though I am more of an auditory than a visual type.
I just wanted to express some serious concern here- you might want to check with a Rav whether this does not fall into the avoda zara category, as much of yoga and Zen does
Thanks again for sharing your beautiful scrapbooks and interesting tips
have a great Shabbos!

Unknown said...

I was wondering who the first person would be to point this out to me!!! I understand that "Zen" is not kosher. what I do is DOODLE! the "Zentangle" concept was more tounge in cheek shall we say.
It is not meant to be taken seriously. Just about fun.
There are many folks out there who feel the same about Yoga. I respect that. Honestly I don't think that much into it. For me it's Exclusively for fun, rest and relaxation.
Thanx for the input. means alot to know you care enough to say it.

princessf said...

i love your doodles faygie! i love doodling [though mine aren't near as good as yours] keep it up.

Anonymous said...

I really enjoy all your posts! Thank you for sharing your wonderful gift.

Debbie said...

I'm loving your doodles, Faygie! It never occurred to me that the zen in zentangle means anything. But, if others want to think so, OK for them. I drew my first (and only, so far) zentangle a couple of weeks ago, to try it out. It is fun. Recently, a quilter in Australia gifted me with a CD that was a supplement to a local quilting magazine. On the CD a woman who is a zentangle teacher and a quilting teacher shares all her ideas and tip. She takes her zentangle designs and quilts them! Amazing!

rochelle said...

Your interpretation of zentagle is pure and ur talents r endless.
Love u

Mom said...

Faygie, is there any end to your awesome creativity??! Your blog is becoming addictive. What next, woman?!

Anonymous said...

HI Faygie,

wow these are awesome so beautiful. I will give this a try. I love to doodle, however, I'm not good or artistic in that way. But hey it's for the fun of it. I love yoga too, and I purely do it for the body and relaxation.
all the best