Greetings and happy Monday, my goodness the weeks are rolling by!
As for today’s tangle, Canadian tangles Cyndi Knapp shares her uber simple and pretty Y tangle with us.
Cyndi introduces Y:
The inspiration for this ribbon pattern came when I put question marks around a potential pattern I’d scribble down. The name “Y” merely echoes both the question mark and the pattern’s simplicity.
Y shares DNA with Printemps and Deluge. The combination of its rather playful swirls and squiggly lines make for a fun border or boundary for other patterns.
It’s easily varied by changing the size in Step 1, the length in Step 2 and the sequence and/or direction in Step 3 as well as auraing. Surprisingly, a combination of these variations led to the discovery that it also transforms into a background.

Since it works up so effortlessly and quickly, it leaves more time to concentrate on the more complicated patterns you might want to tangle with it.
Cyndi illustrates the step-by-step instructions for drawing Y below where she features it in a Zentangle tile with the Zentangle-original ‘Nzeppel.

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?
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