Saturday, November 10, 2012

Socc Rocks!

The tangle Socc was offered to the Zentangle world by CZT Erin Olson almost a year ago. You can find instructions and read her blog entry about it about it here, including the meaning of its name, which has nothing to do with foot apparel! Erin offers a weekly Zendala Dare on her blog, The Bright Owl; I encourage you to check it out!

I bring this up because Erin's tangle Socc is the focus of the Diva's Weekly Challenge (#94). I'm really grateful that Socc was selected for this month's UMT challenge (the first Monday of every month has a "Use My Tangle" theme, with tangles submitted by readers selected by a random number generator). This tangle proved to be inviting and fun...and it nudged me back into the Diva Challenge world, which also makes me sit down at the ol' S&K to write a blog entry. :-)

It's not that I haven't been engaging in Zentangle...quite the opposite! You can read about one of my recent Zentangle adventures here on the Zentangle for Kidz blog. I had a truly wonderful time teaching a delightful group of students and parents who came for six after-school sessions of tangling together.
Featuring Socc and Mooka with a little Tipple thrown in.

But back to Socc! Here's what I came up with today, a beautiful autumn day here in east Tennessee. 


Unfortunately, this beautiful day found me sniffling, sneezing, coughing, and aching. I stayed home all day (in bed 'til noon!), but the day was too pretty not to sit outside for a few minutes in my favorite tangling spot: my own front yard, which was transformed earlier this fall by Steve Rhule and his son Nick and their BeeGreener crew.

I'm so excited about the outdoor space they created for me, er, for our family. I think I love it more than any of us because I now have an amazing, custom-made sculptural bench that I can sit on to tangle as I enjoy the gurgling of the fountain. I sit on it sideways, with my back against what looks like the armrest, bend my knees, and put my feet up. The fountain is such a neat feature; I'm actually going to try something new: uploading a little video, just so I can share it with you. If you see a blank space at the bottom of the post, give it a little time; I have found that it takes the video a few minutes to upload.

My view from the bench as I tangled today. The light was beautiful!
One of our front trees...brilliant crimson today!
This is another view from my bench!








7 comments:

  1. Your tile is beautiful! So is the spot where you can sit outside and the view from it. Hope you feel better now.

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    1. Thank you, Anne. I've been meaning to post about my tangle spot ever since it was completed. It is such a transformation...our front yard was an eyesore prior to this landscaping.
      I'm starting to feel better...can't wait to get back to "normal."

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  2. This tile is great, love how Socc nestles in between Mooka and Tipple. Nice job.

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  3. Thank you, Daniele! I completed the Socc portion first, and then faced the challenge of how to fill the remaining space...I love how Mooka can fit itself into areas...and Tipple has become my new go-to tangle. When in doubt, just add Tipple! Awkward voids? Tipple! Does a tangle need a partner? Tipple!

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  4. Amy, I am so glad you are back, and with your talent it is a joy to see your tile!

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    1. Thank you, LeeAnn...you have no idea how much your words mean to me! I have missed the challenges...especially since I hate to look at other tangler's challenge work until I've finished the challenge myself. I'm starting to "lift that restriction" as it really gets in the way of enjoying so much artwork...but then, when it (my self-imposed restriction) does its job and motivates me to finish a challenge and get it posted, I am grateful. And I enjoy everyone elses' work so much more when I know that I, too, have met the challenge in my own way.

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  5. I LOVE LOVE LOVE what you've done with Socc - it's not one of my favourite tangles by a long shot but you've shown me that it can look beautiful.
    As for that crimson tree, OH.MY.GOODNESS!!!

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