Hello again my tangling friends! Lovely of you to keep me company once more.
Thanks so much for your emails, comments and kind thoughts in celebration of TanglePatterns’ 15th Tangleversary yesterday. Humbling and heartwarming, I’m very, VERY grateful 🙂
In yesterday’s post you’ll have seen Canadian tangler Cyndi Knapp’s lovely handmade card commemorating this special occasion and the card’s background layer features today’s Lightning tangle.
Lightning is not difficult but I think it can remind us that Zentangle® is about slowing down and focusing on the line your pen is making on the tile. And NOT holding your breath! 😉 As Rick and Maria like to remind us, tangling is not about a race to get the tangle/tile completed but savoring the moment, being present and being mindful.
Cyndi introduces Lightning and gives some tips for tangling it:
The inspiration for this continuous line pattern is a favourite piece of Pueblo pottery I bought years ago. I’m merely presenting a most awesome traditional Puebloan pattern called “Lightning”.
Once deconstructed, this pattern wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. I tangled it both in a continuous line and step by step but the former was by far the easiest and quickest method plus it gave the most control and fluidity. Lightning does take concentration and a bit of practice. But once you get the hang of its flow, it’s really fun to tangle, not to mention, mesmerizing to look at.
Lightning makes a great border or background for Zentangles/cards and integrates well with other patterns. It can be tangled with just two opposing lines as illustrated in the ZIAs but it’s most dazzling with more lines as shown in the photos.
Surprisingly, Lightning is quite versatile with its ability to accept different fills and to morph into a striking notan. Auras are used to achieve the “white lightning” effect (second card from left) and would make it possible for excellent TranZending in black (third card from left).
Tips:
1. Whether you’re tangling it vertically or horizontally, you may find it helpful to think of each line as an angled line of “M’s” (or “W’s”).
2. Auraing is probably best done as you tangle but can be done afterwards if you leave enough space between the lines.
In spite of its simplicity I found Lightning a bit of a challenge to tangle in a continuous line fashion, so I followed Cyndi’s alternative and that helped get into the rhythm and the angles. I think once you’ve done it that way a couple of times, the continuous line version will come quickly. Turning the tile also helps in a big way. After I’d done my example with the Micron 01, I contemplated adding auras but wasn’t sure there was enough space. So instead I went over/restated the lines with the Micron 10 and that gave it a nice bold look – and decided not to tinker with it further.
Cyndi illustrates the step-by-step instructions for drawing Lightning below where her ZIA features “Hatch shading and Fluxated leaves”. Unless I’m mistaken, the Flux leaves form a pattern known in free-motion quilting circles as Feathers. I also spy some Cadent-style connected orbs in Cyndi’s lovely ZIA.
Image copyright the artist and used with permission, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. These images are for your personal offline reference only. Please feel free to refer to the images to recreate this tangle in your personal Zentangles and ZIAs. However the artist and TanglePatterns.com reserve all rights to the images and they must not be publicly pinned, altered, reproduced or republished. (Small side note: if you look at the legalese in Pinterest, you are legally responsible for obtaining permission to post every photo that gets ‘Pinned’. Giving credit or sharing the source link doesn’t count.) Thank you for respecting these rights. Click the image for an article explaining what copyright means in plain English. “Always let your conscience be your guide.” ~ Jiminy Cricket
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Check out the tag cyndik for more of Cyndi’s tangles on TanglePatterns.com.
Related Links
- Looking for tangles by Artist or Type? For details visit the ABOUT > HOW TO FIND TANGLES BY ARTIST OR TYPE page on the top menu bar of any page on the site.
- What is a Zentangle? — if you are new to the Zentangle Method, start here for the fundamentals.
- Zentangle terminology — a glossary of terms used in this art form.
- How to use the site — an excellent free video tutorial showing how to use the site as well as pointing out lots of useful features you might have missed.
- Linda's List of Zentangle-Original Patterns — here is the complete list of original tangles (aka "official tangles") created and introduced by founders Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, including those not published online. If you are new to the Zentangle Method I highly recommend learning a few of the published Zentangle classics first.
- "A Zentangle has no up or down and is not a picture of something, so you have no worries about whether you can draw a hand, or a duck. You always succeed in creating a Zentangle." Patterns that are drawings of a recognizable naturalistic or actual object, figure, or scene, are not tangles. A pattern is not always a tangle — here's what makes a tangle. TIP: tangles never start with pencil planning.
- Un motif n’est pas toujours un tangle — Qu’est-ce qu’un tangle ?
- Un diseño no es siempre un tangle — ¿Qué es un tangle?
- How to submit your pattern deconstruction to TanglePatterns
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May 5, 2025 | 
More like this: 
Such a wonderfully dramatic and easy tangle! I do love it in the round. 🙂 Thanks for sharing so many amazing tangles, Cyndi!!