Cadent as a String in Blue

This is the third "Cadent as a string” picture I create since Zentangle, Inc released their Project Pack #07 last December. Although this is the third one, I still had yet to try the version show on Day 8, using the beautiful gray tiles supplied by Zentangle.

I used the two blue inking pens supplied with the kit, and tangled over the gorgeous gray tiles. I really like the coarseness of these papers, they grip on to the pen very nicely and allow a lot of great control.

After tangling, I used watercolor pencils to shade and colorize the picture. My favorite watercolor pencils are from the Albrecht Durer by Faber Castell, which have the same great pigment of the Faber Castell Polychromos, but produce a very beautiful dark blended coloring after wet with a simple waterbrush. (Note that this link above takes you to Amazon and is an affiliate link). If you prefer to get the pencils a-la-carte, I recommend starting with the darker colors first.

Here is a little step-out of the process:

Notice how, instead of continuing the auras on the outside, I added some Echolines instead, which I think give the focal center a bit more dimensionality and depth. I also didn't use too much of gold pen on the inside of the Cadent, to avoid flattening out the shapes.

I really like the results and I can see that I will work on more of these, the flowing ribbons offer so many possibilities! If you would like to see a lesson on how to create and shade this Cadent as a String project, send me email here to vote for a lesson.

Here are a couple of pictures for you to share or pin if you feel like it: