Sometimes it can feel like we have too many plates to spin and we’re just craving a moment of calm or a chance to escape the hamster wheel for a while. These are the reasons Zentangle® appealed to me so much when I discovered it back in 2017. Read on to find out how you, too, can master Zentangle®.
A mindful drawing practice that uses simple, repetitive patterns to help you slow down, focus and reconnect with the present moment, Zentangle is so much more than simple doodling as some people may assume.
Whether you’re seeking stress relief, creative inspiration, or just a bit of peace in your day, Zentangle offers a soothing, meditative escape from the chaos.
In this blog post, I’ll guide you step by step through how to get started and master Zentangle®. Don’t worry — you don’t need any prior experience or artistic skills. Zentangle is all about enjoying the process, not about perfection. So, grab your pen and let’s get started!
Gather your supplies
A basic Zentangle supply kit includes:
- a paper tile
- a fineliner pen
- a pencil
- a blending stump or tortillion that you can use for shading
In the tile I’ll share with you today, I specifically used a Micron 03, a uni-ball eye micro, an HB pencil and a blending stump. I also used a white Gelly Roll 10, though this is not a requirement. Read on to see how I used it to fix a “mistake”.
Master Zentangle Method
Before we get into the various steps of the Zentangle Method, I’d like to comment on the simplicity of Zentangle. One of its many advantages is that you don’t need fancy equipment – just the basic supplies I mentioned above. And if you don’t have a blending stump, you can use a fingertip or even a cotton bud to smooth out your pencil lines.
These everyday items, often found lying around our homes, are all you need to create something meaningful. As I start tangling, I always start with gratitude: for the quiet, for the pen in my hand, and for the opportunity to find calm in the simple act of drawing – something that I enjoy so much.
I also don’t think too far ahead in terms of what my tile will look like when it’s done. Zentangle is about the present, not getting too far ahead and planning what your image will look like once it’s completed. There are no expectations or pressure to create “perfect” art when it comes to Zentangle.
Start with putting a dot in each of the four corners of your tile (or in a section of your sketch book). Then, connect these dots with a light pencil border around the tile. Try not to be too heavy-handed with your pencil lines as these will serve as a guide rather than form the basis of your patterns. Don’t overthink it.
Sometimes my students can get hung up on how straight they can make their border lines. In actual fact, though, when your lines aren’t perfectly straight, I personally think your finished tile looks better – if it’s all perfectly straight lines, it might as well have been done by computer. As I’ve said Zentangle is not about aiming for perfection. Wobbly lines -deliberate or otherwise – are very much to be encouraged.
Once your border is done, you’re now ready to draw a string – a loose line that divides your tile into sections. This string can be very curvy or formed of reasonably straight lines. Again, don’t overthink this step.
In this project, my tile started at the bottom left-hand corner, looped around towards the middle of the top line and then came back down towards the bottom right-hand corner. There are many different strings you can try.
Choose a few beginner-friendly tangles (e.g., Crescent Moon, Hollibaugh, or Tipple). Today, I used just two tangles – Pokeroot and Knightsbridge.
Start at the bottom left-hand corner of the string line and draw your Pokeroots, using the string line as a rough guide for where to put your pen. The string is there as a guideline only, not for obeying, so see where the mood and the tangle take you. Feel free to ignore the string if your practice takes you in another direction.
Once you have completed all of your Pokeroots, add Knightsbridge in any remaining spaces you wish to fill – I left the centre of the loop blank without any tangles at all.
Remember that it’s not a race. The slower that you draw each line, the more focus and calm you’ll achieve. Zentangle is about the process, not the outcome.
Do you catch yourself holding your breath? That’s perfectly fine and very normal! Try to breathe normally, though.
Sometimes people hold their breath while trying to draw a straight line. It doesn’t actually making drawing that line any easier so just breathe normally and relax, releasing any tension you may feel in your shoulders or any other area of your body.
Adding depth with shade
As much as I love the tangling part of a tile, I just can’t get over how magical the shading can be as it really transforms your tile from a flat pattern to a dimensional, interesting piece with a whole lot more depth to it.
Use your pencil slightly on its side and apply only light pressure so as not to create lines that are difficult to smooth out. It’s very easy to add more graphite but it’s not so easy to blend out an over-heavy pencil line.
In this tile, I applied a thin layer of pencil all the way around the stems and berries of the Pokeroots to make them stand out from each other and from the Knightsbridge pattern below them. It always amazes me how much of a difference a simple addition of pencil shading can make to your tile.
Add a bit of pencil onto the actual berries to give them a bit of shape, too. A small curved shape at the bottoms of the shapes will transform your Pokeroots – especially once you blend the graphite! You can embellish your tiles here and there, if you like as well. For example, I added extra bits of ink to “jaggier” areas of my Pokeroots, to smooth the pattern out a bit. It’s very subtle but it does make a difference to the finished piece.
I also sometimes, and in this case, trace over the lines I drew originally to make them a bit more cleaner and sharper. Sometimes the shading process can dull the lines a bit and it can make such a difference just drawing over the lines again.
I wanted to mention Zentangle’s No Mistakes philosophy in this blog post. The idea behind this is not that you’re not allowed to make mistakes, it just means that if you do something you’d prefer you hadn’t, you now have an opportunity to see how you can go about fixing it. It gives you a new perspective on your art and a new perspective on your life.
There are no erasers in Zentangle for this very reason – it encourages you to be bold and adventurous and fix your mistakes rather than giving up on your art and throwing it in the bin.
Anyway, while I was inking in my Knightsbridge, I lost focus for a moment and ended up beginning to fill in a square that was supposed to remain blank. You can try various things if you’ve had an “oops moment” in Zentangle. You could go with the mistake and pretend it was deliberate, repeat it so that it becomes a part of the pattern or you could use another tangle over the top of it to hide it.
Zentangle even have a tangle specifically for this very purpose. I love Bronx Cheer but in this instance I went with another option of disguising the mistake a little bit by colouring over the black ink with a white Gelly Roll. There are always ways to sort your mistakes. You can still see my accidental inking if you look for it but it’s not that noticeable. It’s always helpful to know some tips and tricks to turn to so that your tile doesn’t end up binned.
Time to add your chop
Once your tangles are complete, it’s time to add your chop. Your what?
If you go to an art gallery, you’ll notice that each artist has signed their art. Adding the so-called chop to your Zentangle art is basically just adding your own name, initial or symbol to tell the world you created this piece. Read more on the origins of the Zentangle chop here.
Lastly, hold your tile at arms’ length. Take a moment to look at your completed tile and reflect on how the process made you feel. You created that piece of art. You! Be proud of that. It looks really cool, doesn’t it?
It’s not just about the art, though. How did the tangling make you feel? Are you more relaxed, less tense and feeling more calm?
This is your first step into learning how to master Zentangle. I hope you enjoyed it. You should feel proud of what you’ve accomplished. Even better is the fact that Zentangle has wonderful benefits on your mental health and wellbeing. A fun pastime that’s also good for your brain. Winner winner!
I’d love to see your tiles if you try Zentangle after reading this blog post. Please share them with me on social media using the hashtag #tanglewithweecraftycrow.
What next? Continue practising, trying new patterns or incorporating Zentangle into your routine. Any questions? Feel free to contact me. I’m happy to help.
I have a free ebook you can download if this blog post has given you the tangling bug, and if you’re interested in having a lesson with me, visit my online lessons page or my in-person lessons page to book in your first lesson today.
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