Monday, October 7, 2013

Cruze - A New Pattern

"The whole is more than the sum of its parts."   Aristotle

Last month my husband and I went on a cruise to Norway. We've been on several cruises in the past, so I knew that the ship would be a mecca of patterns, and I wasn't disappointed. Patterns on walls, floors, furniture, lights. In other words, everywhere you looked there were patterns, even on the water in the North Sea. Walking through the ship taking pictures of walls and floors and furniture....I can only imagine what the other passengers must have thought! It took a few weeks, but finally I got around to deconstructing some of those patterns to come up with the step-outs for new tangle patterns.

But before I get to that, I wanted to share a few of the patterns I saw that I did not try to pick apart. This first one is a light hanging from the ceiling of one of the lounges. Does anyone else see Mooka in there?



Here are two more - the one on the left was on a wall, and the one on the right was a floor which reminds me of Dex. 



This one is an etched glass door with a wall of different colored lights behind it. Zendala?



The next one was a fabric covered wall (with metal strips dividing it into a grid, just like a tangle pattern).



These two were taken in a store in the town of Bergen.



When I took the following photo I wasn't really focusing on the water, but once I put it on my computer I was immediately drawn to the pattern that the water made in the wake of the boat going by.

And I couldn't resist taking a picture of the roof on this building next to where our ship docked in Eidfjord.


Last, but not least, is this photo of a tiled border going around the pool deck on the ship. This is the first one that I have deconstructed (at least a part of it). 

 

I have named the pattern "Cruze" in honor of where it came from. 
You start with "blocks" of 5 lines forming a diagonal. At first I tried very hard to get the lines to form a square block, but realized it really doesn't matter if they are squares or rectangles, or whether each one is the same size as the next one. Once you get the flow of the curved lines connecting those blocks, it really isn't hard. You go down one side (step 4) then turn and go back up the other side (step 5). On the last step you cap off the two ends. 

I enjoyed playing around with this pattern, but got really excited about it when I created the following variation. If you place the blocks of lines in a skewed manner like shown below, you get a really interesting variation that has a lot of movement. The top section is unshaded and the bottom one is shaded. 



On the following Zentangle I used the original pattern, but added a little bit of black fill, and really think it makes the pattern pop. I turned the picture 45 degrees to post it here because as I was looking at it I tilted my head and liked what I saw. It looks to me like a hanging basket of flowers.
Then I used the Cruze variation to design the following piece. I just LOVE the way this one turned out. This is definitely one of my favorite Zentangles ever.


Stay tuned for more new patterns coming soon. Maybe one will be called Norway.



60 comments:

  1. this is really pretty, caren! especially mixed with phicops. can't wait to try it out!

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    1. Thanks Alice. I'd love to see what you do with it.

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  2. Love the patterns, LOVE the new tangle, love this post, Caren! Can't wait to try Cruz, and your Phicops is wonderful.

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    1. Thanks Ann. I have to say that Phicops is one I haven't used more than a couple of times, but love it here.

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  3. This is great, Caren - so many cool possibilities! Thanks for sharing it.

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  4. Caren, I have to admit. When I first saw the finished tangle I thought "This doesnt qualify as a tangle because it must use grids or erasable pencil lines or be woven" but now that I see your step out all I can say is WOW! This is truly brilliant. I cant wait to try it out. I think I have found a new favorite. Thanks so much for sharing it!

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    1. Thanks so much Erin! I must admit that it turned out much better than I ever expected.

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  5. I love this patterns for the rounded edges, the woven look, and the feeling of movement. It has a classic look. I'll practice this one. Thanks, Caren!!

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    1. Thanks Celia! Hope you have as much fun with it as I did.

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  6. Great pattern! I just know we'll be seeing this all over. Thanks

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  7. Thanks for sharing I can't wait to try it out.

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  8. Wonderful pattern, I am looking forward to trying it out. I love all the pictures you have taken, someone like me who takes pictures of random items because of the patterns.

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    1. Thanks Chrissie! Always taking pictures of patterns wherever I go.

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  9. This is BRILLIANT! It is the perfect pattern, looks so intricate but easily done, once you understand the steps. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Thanks Janet! It's really not hard once you practice it a couple of times.

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  10. O M G! Looks great - looks hard but you broke the steps out so well.

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    1. Thanks Sue! Once you get the feel of it it's easy.

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  11. Caren, I'm LOVING this!!!!!!! I can not wait to show it to the tanglers at my monthly Zentangle club this month.

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  12. Caren, this tangle is fabulous!!! The comments above reflect my thoughts as well...there's a aura of awesomeness exuding from Cruze...and your impressive deconstruction...and your artwork. THANK YOU! :-D

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  13. Fantastic photos and a lovely new pattern!

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  14. I love this new pattern and I am looking forward to playing with it!

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  15. Wonderful, Caren!! So inspiring to see how you turned a vacation into a fun pattern-hunt!! :)

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    1. Thanks Sampada! Every place I go I am pattern hunting.

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  16. Yup! Pretty darn cleaver! I have recently learned to "draw" celtic knots -- not easy! But this will do for what I what the pattern for much more easily! Thanks

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  17. Fantastic step-out can't wait to try it out. Thanks

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  18. WOW! I just loved this pattern. It took me a little bit to figure it out, but I think I got it and can't wait to try it.

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  19. Gorgeous pattern, thank you so much for sharing. Off to try it now!

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  20. It's 23:39 here in The Netherlands, while I'm admiring your genious new tangle pattern.... But I must try it before I'll go to sleep!!

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  21. Awesome! You've tamed a bit of the mystery of a Celtic knot, Love it! Thanks for sharing, can't wait to try this. And I LOVE LOVE LOVE it with Phicops.

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  22. Can't wait to try this one!

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  23. Just found your site, Caren. Love it! Beautiful tangles and clear instructions. Will add it to my blog roll on my newly created blog. Tried the Cruz tangle, much easier than it looks.

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    1. Thanks Chrystel! The pattern really isn't as hard as it may look. Have fun with it.

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  24. Very interesting and so attractive. Thank you.

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  25. Ooooh, can't wait to try this one. The combination with Phicops is incredible!

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  26. This is brilliant. I loved it. I am definitely going to try it. :) BTW, I came here from tanglepatterns.com

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  27. Gonna try this one... YESSS!!!! Diva's challenge this week is with your pattern!

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  28. you made this complex pattern so easy to draw thank you. I was amazed at how smoothly it goes.

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  29. This was a great tangle. Thank you Caren!
    I love the randomness of Cruze in your last tile.

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  30. What a beautiful tangle, Caren... like a Celtic knot without the drawing pain. lol I especially love it with the dark rib, and the combination with your gorgeous Phicops... LOVE!

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  31. I have to admit I didn't like this one at first (I don't do well with utter symmetry...). However, after I let go and let Cruze wander a bit, I quickly grew to love it. I can't stop trying different twists and tweaks. And I agree with you; the tangle with Cruze backed by Phicops is absolutely stunning.

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  32. Thank you for sharing your photos and inspirations.

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  33. Interesting way to draw this cruze, like it. Have you read up on George Bain -Father of or Father of Celtic Art Studies? He uses a different method to create the patterns. :D

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  34. Thank you so much for sharing! I'm really looking forward to trying this one!

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  35. I'm too damn high for this or not high enough, that's it, and nothing.

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