Something different.
I decided to try the current challenge in Eni Oken ’s Shading Zentangle Facebook group. This challenge was to imitate the stunning artwork style used by Jo Flaherty . Her work is amazingly beautiful!
I tried to keep the tangling simple, with larger shapes and no details. Then I began by drawing a simple line of color with the marker and applying water.
I had some issues controlling the color, but I did get the base tones in place.
Then I switched to rubbing the marker on a white plastic palette, and picking it up with just a bit of water and applying it. Basicaly, I switched to a water color technique, and found that applying color in a way I was familiar with worked better for me.
After I got the color down, I wanted to add some color “accents” and lines to the image. This turned into a major challenge because I had very few colored pens with waterproof ink that drew a fine enough line. As a result, the lines in the shells feel too thick to me.
Finally, I used my handy Sharpie paint pens. I love these pens. Mine are water-based, so I have to use them last, but the paint is very opaque and flows very nicely. I added some white accents to the round circles and dots to the shell in the center.
Over all, I like the way it came out for a first attempt, and I think I will probably try the technique again in the future!
Zentangle drawn on Strathmore Vellum Bristol using a black, Micron pen. Coloring was done with Tombow, Zig and Distress markers. Accents were done with Sharpie water-based paint pens.