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ribbon ring

It's been cold here - frost for the last 4 or 5 mornings. It takes a bit of motivation to get up and milk the cow, I can tell you!

I sketched this one up last night and finished it up today - a LOT of shading work - which always kills my neck/back. Being short-sighted, I find it easier to do detail work without my glasses and subconsciously move closer and closer until I'm hunched over, about 5cm away from the page! So, I was very, very glad when I was ready to declare it complete!

Neutral shading tones for this one. The ribbons are double-sided, so the pattern changes back and forth as they twist.
Here's a progression of linework/(some) shading/final product:
Hope you're having a fabulous weekend - I think I have worn myself out drawing over the past few days.
hx
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Comments

Susan said…
Oh WOW, this is wonderful! You have tremendous patience, along with your talent, to complete such an intricate piece. Beautiful!
June 23, 2013 at 12:46 AM
Ellen Wolters said…
Such a fine linework land amazing shading. Chapeau!!! We are waiting for summer over here in the netherlands, top much train land coldness in the spring.
June 23, 2013 at 1:01 AM
Sue Jacobs CZT said…
Love - love this piece - and I appreciate that you took the pictures of the work in progress!
June 23, 2013 at 1:44 AM
Carol said…
I am new to Zentangle and I absolutely love this design, but how do you go about drawing the ribbons in the first place!!
June 24, 2013 at 4:42 AM
Helen said…
Hi Carol, thank you! Most of my drawings are ZIA's (zentangle inspired artwork), so I don't follow the rules for drawing in the zentangle method. This design was drafted up in pencil first, then inked in before filling with shading & patterns.
hx
June 24, 2013 at 7:25 AM
Cyndi said…
Your work is phenomenal. I've been subscribing to your blog for several months now and have been so inspired. I immediately grabbed some paper and tried out some ribbons when I saw this one.
June 24, 2013 at 3:51 PM
Cynthia Lee said…
Ok, I am SO glad that I am not the one that prefers to work without glasses. My vision cannot be corrected enough for me to see details well with glasses so I do the same that you do.

Your work is lovely, just astoundingly lovely.
June 24, 2013 at 7:47 PM
Shelly Beauch said…
Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous!
June 27, 2013 at 9:38 AM
Unknown said…
I JUST LOVE the way you draw ribbons. And thank you the "progression of linework" picture. Best regards Tine from Denmark
June 28, 2013 at 8:55 PM
Helen said…
Thanks, Cyndi! Hope you had fun playing with ribbons - I love them :)
June 29, 2013 at 8:33 AM
Fiona D said…
Wow as ever Helen this is fantastic, so much work has gone into this and it was worth it.
July 1, 2013 at 7:34 AM
Unknown said…
Helen ,I love this and would love to try and draw some ribbons if its OK with you. There is something so fun in this. Did you use a micron or what type of pen and did you use an HB or softer pencil ? What size is it? It looks very big. No wonder you were killing yourself by the time you got it done lol. :-) It is just beautiful. You are an expert on shading and hand control. Thank you for the blog and your post on FB, Lynne :-)
July 12, 2013 at 8:15 PM
Helen said…
Hi Lynne :) Thanks!

You should definitely give them a go - ribbons are a lot of fun to draw :) I used a micron 01 for most of it with an 005 for some of the more detailed patterns. I work in A4 art journals - this one takes up most of the page length.

Have fun :)
hx
July 13, 2013 at 8:49 AM
Unknown said…
I really love your work Helen. I discovered "tangling" at the beginning of 2012, thanks to a friend. I can't live without it now, your ZIA is so elegant..........I see you are in the Yarra Valley, I used to live at Montrose years ago, then went 'home' to Adelaide and now I am in Townsville and tangling!
January 17, 2014 at 6:22 PM
Helen said…
Thank you, Sue! Montrose is a beautiful area - about 30 minutes closer in to the city than we are. After spending a year in Singapore, I don't think I could live in Townsville, though I hope to visit someday! hx
January 31, 2014 at 1:28 PM
Unknown said…
When you do, do it in the winter! AND contact me..... I and my friend Rae who also loves your work, would love to have coffee and meet you ! x@ (The @ is 'grandson-speak' for a "hug".... because it wraps around you!)
February 7, 2014 at 4:31 PM
Helen said…
haha very cute! :)
February 7, 2014 at 5:13 PM
Debbie said…
I hope you will consider putting out a book of your artwork someday. I'd certainly love to have one. Even if you just pubished your blog in a downloadable book form - I'd buy it in a heartbeat! And I know how much effort any endeavor takes and that your opening a new chapter. Just sayin' - I love your work!
January 18, 2020 at 5:09 AM
Debbie said…
I hope you will consider putting out a book of your artwork someday. I'd certainly love to have one. Even if you just pubished your blog in a downloadable book form - I'd buy it in a heartbeat! And I know how much effort any endeavor takes and that your opening a new chapter. Just sayin' - I love your work!
January 18, 2020 at 5:09 AM
Helen said…
Hi Debbie. Thank you for the suggestion. It is something I have thought about from time to time, but the amount of work involved is pretty staggering and I find I just can't sit in front of the computer screen much anymore - so I never say never, but it's unlikely. Thanks for the well-wishes :) Helen
January 18, 2020 at 10:22 AM

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