Fall is in the air

Wednesday was the first day of fall and a full moon and the temp was 86 degrees, welcome to Michigan! It was a lovely evening. Nights that are warm and balmy make me appreciate the lovely, long days that summertime brings.

Saturday will be the autumn equinox and day and night will be equal. It speaks to me of balance and creating harmony in life. Living in Michigan allows me to appreciate the ever changing environment and colors of the seasons. I'm watching the leaves float by and it inspires my airy creation with the floating Ssss.

I'm trying to incorporate letters in my zentangles, so today is S! I've joined the flickr zentangle group which is a great place for inspiration. The little pods were inspired by Mariët Dronten's flickr post.

© Copyright, 2010, Daniele O'Brien Design

Tuesday Panic

Today was one of those days when I felt like the world is was against me. I went to go for a walk this morning, and as I grabbed for my ID realized my car keys were not in their designated area. I'd been working in the yard yesterday and was sure I had either thrown my keys into the leaf bags the city already picked up or ... knocked them into the garbage bag before I threw it out. Either way, I was sure I had thrown away my only set of car keys and fob! Panic does not make processing any easier, in fact, my brain shuts down and I can't think or see, I'm so busy running in circles!

Zentangling is the process of calming your mind and letting intuition flow... that's the path I finally took after checking out for a while. I went into my bedroom and calmly looked through the clothes I'd had on the day before, and miracle of miracles, my keys were in the old pants I'd put on yesterday to dig around in the garden. A moment of sanity and things become clearer. I called the dealership to get a replacement key made and sat down to do a zentangle.

What I learned from this experience... (1) I need a replacement backup key for my car, duh! and (2) be mindful and take the next right step. Panic gets you no where. Zentangling talks about being in the present and being mindful. Program talks about the same process, it is a gentle way to go through life and it works. Whether I'm mindful of where I put my keys or I'm aware of my daily path through life, it's all good. It's not always enjoyable, but it is living life to the fullest and being in the moment.

Lesson learned, at least for today! Zentangle - Breathe!

© Copyright, 2010, Daniele O'Brien Design

Zentangling Sunday morning

I'm continuing the zentangle process and looking for patterns in daily life. I like the simple shapes of everyday elements that lend themselves to the rhythms and shapes of zentangles. These elements create familiar rhythms in our environment.
This weekend was lovely, the leaves are still on the trees and the temperature was balmy but there was the element of fall in the air.
Here in Michigan there is a limited time to enjoy the each season, summer is so short and it makes us appreciate it all the more. Carpe Diem

Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite. Or waiting around for Friday night or waiting perhaps for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil or a better break or a string of pearls or a pair of pants or a wig with curls or another chance. Everyone is just waiting. ~Dr. Seuss

I was enjoying the sun, nature, and my eggs on Sunday morning. The salt shaker sitting on my table was just waiting to be drawn. Dr Seuss green eggs and ham came to mind, and a zentangle with salt, eggs, and leaves, oh my...

© Copyright, 2010, Daniele O'Brien Design

Zentangle Quilt Inspiration

Some people sew quilts I prefer to draw them. Zentangling squares to create a full drawing quilt is a wonderful process. I downloaded a zendoodle template design from http://www.milliande.com/Zendoodle-Zentangle-Pattern-Gallery.html. It was the perfect opportunity to work on many of the patterns listed on http://www.tanglepatterns.com/ and add my touches and modifications. I am quickly using up all my ink in the micron, staedtler pigment, and sharpie pens I've collected over the years. I'm trying to find which pens work best for my zendoodling.

I've also realized that I've got to begin making a place for zendoodling; paper, pens, pencils, references, etc. in my environment. I read Linda Farmer's blog article on organizing your patterns and got lot's of great ideas.

© Copyright, 2010, Daniele O'Brien Design

Zentangle kitty

Being into zentangles I'm always looking for inspiration. I talked to Karen, a friend of mine since high school, and we were discussing zentangles (which I do with most people I know!). She asked me to send her a couple of doodles, so she and her kitty, Kallie, are my inspiration.

I love mixing the realistic with zentangle patterns and the more organic elements resonate with me. The curves lend themselves beautifully to the featured image (Kallie). Kallie is an indoor kitty who has never experienced the joys of the outside world, this zentangle allows her to experience nature, at least in my mind!

I've incorporated shading with this zentangle which gives it more depth. I find it challenging to scan in my images and print them out without losing the pencil shading quality. It's a work in process. I love having my originals but I want to be able to scan them to archive without losing the qualities of the originals.

I like to have the option of adding colors to the scanned image in Photoshop if I choose to.

© Copyright, 2010, Daniele O'Brien Design

Birthday Bash Zentangle Creation

This weekend was a milestone birthday for my friend Suzy and we had a party which was a success. It was fun to look over old pictures and memorabilia with friends. Much laughter and merriment was had by all! This, of course, was a great opportunity for me to do some zentangling for party favors. I created table decorations incorporating the zentangle image, it was such fun!

The zentangle size and orientation was based on a dome box template that I found on About.com: rubber stamping. I recreated the template in Illustrator and used it as a basis for my party "nut cups". I used the art work that created, scanned it, then manipulated it a bit in Photoshop to make the template work.

The finals were printed in black and white on colorful cardstock, and once printed, I cut along the template outline with my exacto knife, folded the boxes, added tissue paper, nuts, and m&m's and they were good to go!


The red line shows the template cut lines for the dome box. This was a fun project!

© Copyright 2013, Daniele O'Brien Design

Summer Fun

I've found a new wonderful drawing process it's Zentangle®. It was developed by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. A friend of mine, Jeanne Kero, was my instructor into the wonderful "zen" world of zentangles. It's an addictive process. There are so many wonderul image references on the web to draw inspiration from. It's my new passion and only enhances my drawing, line skills. The great part is anyone can do it, or show someone else how to start!


When I do the a zentangle it feels like popping bubble wrap, it gives me that same satisfaction!

I've been working on my illustrations for a children's book and have gotten very stale and was losing my inspiration in the drawing process. Doing zentangles reenergized the process for me again.

Coffee cup zentangle

I was doodling away one morining and spilled some of my coffee on my paper. This was a perfect opportunity to inspire a zentangle with my coffee cup, spoon and fun little textures!