Class 4 ~ Stress Relief with Zentangle & Colouring

 We spent this class mostly enjoying the stress-relieving benefits of zentangle and colouring, but of course, there were the usual handouts ...

Page, one, because the next time I'll see you will be on June 14, is a June Calendar so you can plan ahead:

Next, we talked briefly about the colour wheel since knowing how to use colour will help you set the mood of your journal pages (and colouring, of course). I'm providing two versions of page 2 below for you: one is the usual black and white so you can colour in your own colour wheel in whatever medium you usually use ~ pencil crayon, felt pen, watercolour, etc. You can even do multiple versions for yourself by printing out more copies of this page.

Here's my coloured version of page 2, created with pencil crayons, if you just want a reference to work from:

Page 3 is about why colouring (and art in general) is good for you. As we were colouring in class, we had a casual discussion about why we found colouring to be so beneficial. Our responses ranged from it provides a sense of accomplishment to reminding us of our childhoods (which was a less stressful period of our lives). One of my theories is that the repetitive hand motion somehow affects our brains in positive ways, maybe by slowing our heart rate (and thereby lessening stress). I know I've tried digital colouring apps and not had the same experience. Although someone did point out to me that for people with disabilities, the digital colouring apps (where you touch an area to fill it with colour) provided the joy of creativity without the physical distress.

The next two pages were all about zentangle, with a selection of zentangle patterns to choose from. I also included a basic step by step for creating the "traditional" 3.5" square zentangle tiles. I personally find the size too small to enjoy, but for people who are looking for an easy introduction to the process, the traditional tiles work fine.

I also listed three online sources for more information about zentangle patterns:

• Tangle Patterns is the repository for a wide selection of "official" tangle patterns. The patterns are sorted alphabetically, with links to people's websites that have step by step how to draw them. A great resource!
• Lily's Tangles is a blog where Lily regularly posts her latest play with tangles. I love it because she breaks all kinds of "rules" ~ size, shape, colour ~ she makes amazing tangles, photographs the beautifully and her work is very inspiring for those of us just starting.
• Blog Zentangle is the official blog of Zentangle's creators, Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. Nothing like getting it straight from the source! They post new work and discussions they're doing and discussions about how Zentangle is growing and changing.

Next, on to colouring! Page 4 has a great doodled/zentangled turtle to colour. Although I didn't create this image, I wanted to show you that there are other ways to get your doodle on, and the simple shapes in children's colouring books have great places to play with doodling, zentangling and then (when you've done that) colouring.

I also give some great places to find adult colouring pages:

• The pages I had printed out for class came from The Togetherness Project, where you can dowload and print out for yourself their free 32-page colouring book with positive words of encouragement. 
• We also coloured some pages from Legendary Landscapes Colouring Book that was donated by its excellent creators, Carrie Wong and Witek Radomski.
• Although Hello Kids is primarily a source for children's colouring pages, they have quite a few adult pages, tool. They also have mandala pages, country pages, Indian pages, world history and energy pages ~ all perfect for us grownups. 
• Mum in the Madhouse has a great summary of other adult colouring page sites, as well as her own pages, Well worth checking out.
• I didn't mention this in the handouts, but one of my favourite ways to get free colouring pages is by signing up at Dover Books for free samples from new books. The link arrives by email, with 4-6 sample pages from each new book, many of them colouring books.

The last page of the handouts was my usual collection of positive memes I've found online for you.

Only one post this week. Hope you're enjoying this newly-arrived summer weather and having as relaxing and stress-free time as possible, Our next class will be on June 14th, with some more collage!