Monday, November 17, 2014

#194 - Embracing The Yuck - Feel Like a Kid Again

Elisa Murphy, a "newly minted" CZT,  is the guest blogger on our Diva's website.  She has challenged us to embrace our imperfections by using our non-dominant hand to create our tangles this week.   For anyone with obsessive tendencies (and who doesn't have a few of those?), this is a truly humbling experience.

Lately, however, that going-back-to-kindergarten feeling is very familiar to me.  I have always loved the beautiful lettering done over the centuries by monks and scribes, lovely handwritten notes by proper ladies in the Edwardian age, and even fanciful lettering in advertising. 




 
I enrolled in a beginning calligraphy class, and am just loving it.  I was not prepared, however, to feel like a five-year-old with a fat pencil on that blue-lined paper.  But that is exactly what happened.  Each week, I dutifully produced my homework pages for review by my instructor, who critiqued the shape of my "bowls", the straightness of my ascenders, the curve of my descenders, and ALWAYS the angle of my pen.  I'm shaky, crooked, uneven, and need to keep practicing.  But I will!
 

 
For my "Yucky" tile, I chose a string that resembles a calligraphic A (my initial, after all) to remind me of the parallel between these two learning experiences.  My left-handed version of this string was not so flowing and smooth.
 
 
 
In true kindergarten fashion, I used my fat tipped 05 pen.  I chose some tried and true, simple patterns.  N'zepple should have been pretty easy, but turned out REALLY shaky looking.  Oh well, I chalk that up the same way I did when I painted the columns at Pompeii leaning over.  In reality, they are straight and tall, but in my painting, not so much.  But, hey, who will know - they are ruins, after all.  Kinda like crookedy N'zepple.
 
I added Purk in the center, which turned out not so bad.  I added easy peasy Pillows, and figured good old Knightsbridge and Hollibaugh should be a snap.  Not so fast. The line part was good, but the coloring in part was unexpectedly difficult.  On the Knightsbridge, I even colored in a wrong square, probably because I felt so off-kilter with my lighting, hand position, and trying to think "backwards". 
 
I fancied up with Queen's Crown, which I left blank because I was just too tired from all that coloring in.  Remember when you were five, and you got really tired from all that coloring and printing?  That's how I felt. 
 
Finally, the shading was blessedly healing to this effort.  Somehow, it all smoothed out in the end.
 
But, here it is in all its no-so-much glory:
 
 
 
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In other news...
 
The Square One focus posted on Friday was hurry.  I haven't used it before, but found it pretty fun.  The challenge is to make it play well with others, I think.  Kind of like a hyperactive kid, I guess (back to that theme).  Here is what I came up with.  The first is not exactly executed correctly, but I like how it turned out anyway.  I combined with Mi2.  The second one struck me as a play on words first, which I then executed on the tile.  Backwards from the usual flow, I guess.  I call it "Hurry, Mary, We're Leafing" 
 

 
 
And, last but not least, I am including one final tile using Swarm and Whirlee from the previous focus.  I have no idea how my mind was working when I did this.  One person commented "Mind blown!".  Yeah, mine too!
 
 

15 comments:

  1. Woah! The last three tiles are amazing. Hurry is a difficult one to get to "play well", but boy did you get it to work. And I really like your off-hand tile. The Nzeppel has a peculiar beauty to it, especially. Starting to learn calligraphy - if you are having trouble with pen angle, try adjusting the paper angle? See if that helps? Stick at it, you'll be scooting along in no time.

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  2. This was my first reaction: Wow! Your Hurry tiles are awesome! expressive swarm - I like your unleashed mind. ;-)

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  3. Thank you for sharing your internal process through all of this. Your challenge tile turned out great. I avoided the fill in tangles because I don't have the fine motor skills needed to stay in the lines. When I try to do that my hand tends to get spastic. I like your Square One tiles, the last one the most.

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  4. Your challenge Tile turned out beautifully. As tough as this challenge was, there is a strange satisfaction in doing it. Love your post. All three of your "Other News" Tiles are awesome. Every one of them are so well done, clean and beautifully designed. The third tile is very creative. Love them all. Keep up the good work with the Calligraphy. That is such a wonderful skill to have.

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  5. I had to laugh, not at you, at your teacher responses to your work. It brought back memories of my high school French teacher. All I remember of that class is her saying, "No, no, no, mademoiselle!!!" I'm looking forward to seeing your calligraphy one of these days. I enjoyed your "wobbly" tile and the others are amazing, especially the first Hurry one.

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  6. All beautiful tiles with great designs. A agree with above: you really found how to make "hurry" play well with others.

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  7. Hi, Antonine! Thank you for taking on the challenge! You did a fabulous tile and I adore how you allowed yourself to "go back to kindergarten". I've been reading a book about how we put so much pressure on ourselves and wouldn't it be wonderful to just be a beginner again. There would be no expectations because we're beginners.....just like in kindergarten!
    And for your other tiles, seriously? They are amazing!

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  8. Your work is lovely...all of it! N Zeppel is my fave on your diva challenge tile...the "loose ends" look like they were meant to be on that one, almost like it could unravel in places. I like Hurry...i haven't tried that one yet yours is inspiring!

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  9. Thank you for sharing your journey working on Elisa's challenge. I also found it very humbling and thought provoking. The perfection of your Hurry tiles are a good contrast.

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  10. How fun to be learning calligraphy! I will look forward to seeing more! Your tiles are great!

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  11. All your tiles are great. Your diva challenge is very well done with your "big" pen. I also went bigger with my pen on this one. Your other tiles are fabulous! I love the last one in particular, since I just found that tangle and am starting to learn to use it. Hurry is one that I have never used, but in looking at your beautiful tiles, I may have to look it up and give it a try too. Good luck on your calligraphy too. I'm sure you will master that as well!

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  12. All the work is so beautiful! Thanks for letting us be inspired by it!!!

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  13. I think your wobbly 'nzeppel looks like glass blocks! Lovely! The other tiles are super! The last makes me want to try a new tangle! But, I gotta love Hurry Mary we're leafing! :-)

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