This has been a VERY exciting week in my little corner of the tangling world! Why, you ask? Well, I’m thrilled to say that I have now officially taught my very first “Introduction to Zentangle” classes! Happy Tangled Tuesday indeed!
I got my feet wet by teaching the whole lesson, split out over two evenings in our dining room, to Peter. It was fun to finally pass a taste of my years-long obsession on to him, and to see him stretch himself in a new creative direction. My favourite times were when he discovered some of the little “magic tricks” that make Zentangle so appealing and had his own, “Wow, that’s cool!” moments.
Then it was time for a bigger class!
My wonderful friend Deb has very kindly offered the use of space in her diner (which is only open during the day) for my evening classes, and I couldn’t be more grateful for her generosity and support.
I arrived well before my students (none of whom had had any prior experience with Zentangle) so that I would have time to set up and make our area comfortable and appealing.
One by one they arrived, and we settled in for a couple of hours of creative learning punctuated by laughter and periods of quiet concentration. In the process of my teaching some of the fundamentals of Zentangle, the students learned seven tangle patterns and completed two tiles, and I was elated with the success of the evening.
Here are the mosaics of their lovely work.
Now can I let you in on a little secret?
I love teaching Zentangle!
You might think this would have been an obvious conclusion, given my growing love for and experience with tangling over the years – but neither teaching nor public speaking have ever been a part of my skill set, so I was somewhat nervous about standing in front of a group (however small!) and a trifle anxious about my performance.
But I am so very thankful for everything I learned at CZT (Certified Zentangle Teacher) Seminar 25, all of which gave me the confidence to “be the teacher” for the first time since playing school as a child.
Yes, I have areas in which to practice in terms of presentation, communication techniques, and so on – but instead of dreading it as an ordeal, I am excited about the opportunities in front of me and eager to continue honing my skills. I’d say that’s pretty good for someone who considers herself to be shy!
Now I’m in the process of booking dates for my next classes, and will post the details here and on my website when they are set. If any of my Alphabet Salad readers are local to Windsor, Ontario, I hope you’ll consider signing up!
New Tangles
Since my previous Tangled Tuesday post I have learned the following new-to-me tangles.
From TanglePatterns.com:
- Sparkle
- Sparkool
- Spawn
- Spoolz
- Stone Necklace
- Tringle
- Twistee
- Veezy
- Veezley
- W3
- Waft
- Warped Eggs
- Widgets
- Worms
From Lily’s Tangles (Lily Moon):
From Tickled to Tangle (Adele Bruno, CZT):
From The Creative World of Eni Oken (Eni Oken, CZT):
From Elatorium (Ela Rieger, CZT):
Work in Progress
In last week’s Tangled Tuesday post I confessed that I’d slacked off on my colouring book-to-be goal of creating one page per week, and would have to make it up in the next week. I’m happy to say that I did it – I created two more pages this week! – so my total of completed pages is now 15 of 20. I am getting so close to being ready to publish!
Challenges
Since my previous Tangled Tuesday post I have completed the following tangle challenge.

Zentangle 172 for Weekly Challenge #279: “Duotangle Meer vs Auraknot”
Now on to a new week of tangling!
P.S.
The Zentangle® Method was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas and is copyrighted. Zentangle® is a registered trademark of Zentangle, Inc. Learn more at zentangle.com.
Previous posts in this series are all tagged Tangled Tuesday.
For background on how I discovered and got involved in Zentangle, and links to further information and resources, check out my blog post For the love of tangling.
You can browse my entire tangle gallery at Ten Thousand Tangles, visit the Zentangle site to view my CZT profile, and check out my personal/small business website at Laurel Regan, CZT.
And, if you’re interested in having a little piece of my art for yourself, please visit my Ten Thousand Tangles portfolios and shops on ArtofWhere, DeviantArt, Etsy, Redbubble, Society6, Spoonflower, and Zazzle. (Pssst… links to my international Ten Thousand Tangles shops on Zazzle are on my “shop!” page – just click on the appropriate flag and you’ll get to the place you need to be!)
How have you been creative this week?
Please share!

Wow, your students’ tiles are fantastic–much better than my first efforts! You must be a good teacher. Wish I lived closer so I could take a class with you. And congrats on your progress on your coloring book. I’m looking forward to it.
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you so much, Elaine! I’d love to teach a class that includes you! 🙂
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Drawing on those Renaissancetiles gives always beautiful results, I like your tile very much and I agree with you: teaching the Zentanglemethod gives a lot of pleasure!!! Congrats with the first results of your students.
ria matheussen recently posted… Belgische zomerdagen
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you so much!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
I really like your Diva Challenge tile on the Rennisance tile! . And…Congratulations on your CZT and teaching…I too just got my CZT (22) and it was soooo much fun! Your students did a great job!!
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you so much! Congratulations to you too – being a CZT is the best!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
I am so very proud of you – congrats, sis! And as always, I’m amazed at how different people interpret what they’ve learned… Truly fascinating. Yay you!!
Dee recently posted… Live Long and Prosper
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you, seester! 🙂
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Twitter: arntrs77
August 9, 2016
Your students’ work is amazing! I have to attribute that to an amazing teacher. How wonderful that you have found your passion.
Arnitris recently posted… Year of the Butterfly Update : Final Quarter
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you so much!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Isn’t teaching just the most fun? I just came from teaching a class today and I always discover something new. I love to push my students into trying new things and expanding tangles into new dimensions. In the process, I get so thrilled when I think of something even more different. Sometimes I think I should be paying them LOL! Congrats on your first class and wishes for many more. If you are enthusiastic and love what you do, they will come! Nice work, the duotangle is lovely!
Jean Chaney recently posted… Zentangle® Auraknot and Meer, Abeko, and an Inchie
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you so much! Teaching Zentangle is SO much fun, and I can’t wait for more opportunities to learn and grow with my students.
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Gorgeous tile! It’s so elegant and warm. Congrats on your first class. It looks like fun.
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you so much!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Your Diva tile is beautiful!!!
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 11, 2016
Thank you so much!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Wonderful news. I wondered where your class was! Nice venue.
Fox:)❤️
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 13, 2016
It really does work well, and I’m so grateful for the use of the space!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
WOW! Your DC duotangle is gorgeous!
Anja recently posted… Wochenende! 🙂 DC #279
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 13, 2016
Thank you so much!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Love your Diva challenge tile! Beautiful linework, shading and highlighting. Congratulations on teaching your first class! Looks like you taught it well. the student tiles look great.
LezliB recently posted… Duotangle~ Auraknot vs. Meer and Weekly Tangles
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 13, 2016
Thank you so much! It really was enjoyable.
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Congrats on your classes, the diner looks like a fun place to hold a class. The student’s work is amazing. Your challenge piece is lovely, really enjoy the ying and yang of the organic Meer and Auraknot encased in your structured frame.
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 13, 2016
It was a lot of fun! Thank you so much. 🙂
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Your students’ success is a tribute to your newly embraced teaching skills. Congratulations!
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 14, 2016
Thank you so much!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Loved hearing about your first Zentangle class(es). It is always fun to practice teach family and friends and see in their faces when they “get” the awe when something magical happens! Thanks for sharing. I love the softness and shading of your Auraknot/Meer!
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 15, 2016
Thank you so much, Sue!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Twitter: kirisnotdrunk
August 18, 2016
That looks like a lot of fun! Your students’ work came out beautiful- a testament to their teacher!
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 18, 2016
Thank you so much! It was definitely fun. 🙂
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
Twitter: RamblinGarden
August 18, 2016
You are a great teacher. Your talents shine in your students’ art. Here’s to a successful teaching career for you – you obviously loved your initial experiences.
Alana recently posted… Throwback Thursday – How Did the Baby Boomers Get Online in 1958?
Twitter: alphabetsalad
August 19, 2016
Thank you so much, Alana!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Tangled Tuesday No. 92
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[…] I invite you to stop by Alphabet Salad to read today’s Tangled Tuesday blog post, in which I share some reflections on my first Zentangle teaching experiences. […]