How to draw KALEIDA

Last one for April!

Today’s Kaleida tangle is from Canadian tangler Cyndi Knapp and it’s one you’ll enjoy exploring all weekend.

As Cyndi has provided lots of detail and tips for you, I’ll say no more …

Kaleida was one of those create-as-you-tangle patterns…

Wanting to try my hand at making a ZIA pendant, I purchased an inexpensive DYI craft store pendant set to give it a whirl before considering an investment in better quality jewelry making supplies.

As I started tangling on the small circular piece of paper, the pattern quickly took form. I was thrilled with the unexpected end result of a chevron cross, not unlike many crosses from around the world. And like there are different crosses, there are also different meanings for them – this one, I decided, is meant to be “paths crossing”.

While very straight forward in circular form, it wasn’t until I started drawing the Steps on the Tangle Patterns submission form that I realized the angles differ slightly in a square (as indicated in the Steps) so it would be a bit challenging to draw in grid format.

Care and concentration were needed to draw this pattern as it proved to be as hypnotic to draw as the end result looked. The hypnotic factors influenced both the name as well as the use of intense colour for the ZIA illustration. Since it made me think of a Kaleidoscope image, it was named Kaleida.

The more I tangled Kaleida in a grid, the more discoveries I made about it. It really isn’t difficult but I thought I’d pass along a few tips that helped me.

Tips for tangling Kaleida in grid format:

1. This pattern is easiest drawn either column by column or row by row.
2. Not all squares are identical – by nature, the pattern alternates every other square but after the first square is drawn, the rest fall into place.
3. Re: Step #2 in the illustration
   – These lines actually form a half triangle. If you visualize that, subsequent squares are easier to draw and will be more uniform in appearance.
   – Draw this Step in each square of the grid before starting Step #3.
   Note: All 3 of the above tips are illustrated in the photo.
4. Re: Step #3
   – These lines are drawn without a centre line.
   – Draw from the centre point outwards and try to make all 4 centre point “arrowheads” a consistent size.
   – Focus is required when drawing this Step. The grid gets busy quickly and it’s easy to lose track of which square you’re working on.

Cyndi illustrates the step-by-step instructions for drawing Kaleida below where she includes instructions for both the circular and grid versions.

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. Thank you for respecting these rights. For more information, click on the image for a discussion entitled “Artists for Respect” by several prominent artists. “Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.” ~ C.S. Lewis

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Check out the tag cyndik for more of Cyndi’s tangles on TanglePatterns.com.

Related Links

1. 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.
2. What is a Zentangle? — if you are new to the Zentangle Method, start here for the fundamentals.
3. Zentangle terminology — a glossary of terms used in this art form.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. "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." Thus 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 ?
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