Here is my response to this week's challenge. It was done in a bit of haste so I am not very happy with .
the result. Hope you like it
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the result. Hope you like it
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zentangle challenge # 118
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zentangle challenge #119
When I saw this week's challenge , I was tempted to do some "Op-Art " stuff...which gives a nice mix of black and white....However I have been wanting to try Margaret Bremmer's tangle "Yoga" for quite some time.
So here is my response ... a tile using " Yoga" !
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So here is my response ... a tile using " Yoga" !
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Zentangle challenge # 119 ...second entry
It's "Yoga" time again ! I created the tile shown below on my flight today , from Mumbai to Bengalore ( my home town) ! My co-passenger on the flight got curious and I gave her a " 10 minutes class" on Zentangle and links to Rick & Maria's website and to a few other blogs.
Here is my second entry to this week's challenge !
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Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
Here is my second entry to this week's challenge !
Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
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World Environment day 2013
The United Nation Environment Program ( UNEP) celebrated 5th June of every yeat as the World Environment Day .... and this year's theme is "Think . Eat . Save "This campaign is an anti-food waste that encourages each of us to be aware of the foods we consume , the amount of food we waste and it's impact on our
planet ... and gives us an opportunity to rethink our life style.... like selecting food that have less environmental impact , choosing foods that are grown locally and organically using natural fertilisers ( compost ) and pesticides.
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), every year 1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted the world over .... and at the same time 1 in every 7 people in the world go to bed hungry and more than 20,000 children under the age of 5 die daily from hunger.
Food waste is an enormous drain on natural resources and a contributor to negative environmental impacts....Any food that is wasted means that all the resources and inputs ( like fossil fuels / water )used in the production and transportation of the food are also lost.
The global food production is responsible for 70% of fresh water consumption, 80% of deforestation, and 30% of greenhouse gas emissions. It is the largest single driver of biodiversity loss and land-use change.
In India 21 million tonnes of wheat ( wheat equivalent to the entire production of Australia ) a year are destroyed / wasted due to rotting/ pest infestation because of inadequate storage and distribution
"The average urban household in India wastes 100 kg of food per person even as millions go to bed hungry. A big part of the wastage is to be blamed on modern lifestyles and the almost unnoticeable tendency to hoard." say the article Thoda Khao, Thoda Phenko (in Tehelka Magazine, Volume 10 Issue 23,by Avalok Langer. ) bba
Do you "THINK" you are a conscious consumer? .... not just of food , but also other resources like water , electricity , fuel ?
Do you "EAT" mindfully ? Shop for food mindfully? ... and dispose the waste ( if any) mindfully
Do you "SAVE" water , electricity , fuel?
Here is a lovel video about how the "Dabbawalas of Mumbai" and their " Customers" and " Volunteers" join hands to feed the poor street children of Mumbai
I'm sure that there must be many such "angels" in many of our cities / towns ....i.e NGOs who collect wasted (excess and thrown away) food from marriage halls, townships, apartment complexes, restauramts etc. and redistribute. Would be nice if some vistor to this blog throws more light on such organisations.
The "WED booklet" by UNEP can be downloaded freely at this site which give you many insights on how to reduce your "Food-Footprint" I have posted here a few pages from this booklet which gives you "A to Z tips on what an individual can do "
Note: Some of the picture above are taken from the internet and used only for education and inspiration . If I have violated any copyright issues , please send me comments and I will remove the associated picture.
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Tangle samplers-1
Here are two sets of sampler I had created in the past and found them when I was organizing my art material. These were created some time in the year 2011.
Thought I'll post them for fun :-)
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Thought I'll post them for fun :-)
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World Environment Day celebrations at RRNagar , Bengaluru.
" Wake Up , Clean Up Bengaluru " or " ಬನ್ನಿ ನೋಡಿ ಮಾಡಿ " was a clarion call given by Kalpana Kar , Member, B.PAC in Feb 2013 for bringing the four primary stake holders on to a common platform.
The 4 primary stakeholders are .....the Waste generators - individuals, organizations, communities ;.... .the Solution Providers who have technologies, services and solutions to manage a wide range of waste;... the Government who is today playing the role of a service provider in this ecosystem but should ideally be an active regulator; & ... the Informal Sector - including the rag pickers and pourakarmikas -who are responsible for collecting, sorting, selling and scavenging waste.
The Wake Up Clean Up (WUCU) is not just an eveny , she says , but a movement which needs to be taken to different zones in the city, to industry campuses, to schools to ensure that we cover the last mile and engage every citizen.
"Wake Up Clean Up RRnagar " was the second stop of this movement on 5th June , World Environment Day . BBMP invited members from all stakeholders to brainstorm what needs to be done to clean up RRnagar as a team .
Mindtree , Global Village hosted the event at their premises and there were a number of eminent speakers from various organisations. The session opened with an inspiring video about a small country Estonia in eastern Europe which took an initiative at grassroot level and cleaned by their country in just one day. ( see link below)
Ms Veena Rajappa , GM , Mindtree informed how the residents of RRNagar joined hands with Mindtree Green community and decided to take action for waste segregation at source. Mr. JogaRao , VP ITC who talked about ITC involvement and committed to help BBMP manage the dry waste., Dr. Manoj of Pelican Eco stores talked about decentralized composting by bulk generator is a very viable and extremely cost effective / eco friendly solution, Mr. Vijay Kumar from BBMP expressed the difficulties in their functioning due to in-efficient contractor and Mr. Ramachandra , Corporator promised that the system would be streamed in the near future. Mr. Ramesh of the NGO Concern assured the citizens that shortly a centralized Biogas composting unit would be installed in RRNagar which would ease the woes of the residents to some extent . Dilip Patel , a trustee member of NGO RRNagar-I Care was the Master of Ceremonies for the session
Mr Ramakanth , a very inspiring citizen is spearheading this movement to take it to various localities within Bengaluru
The Project " Greening RRNagar"was inaugurated by planting five tree saplings in Mindtree campus by RRNagar's Corporator Mr. Ramachandra.
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Zentangle Challenge # 123
This challenge was a breeze ! I loved it.. I just went with the flow and used simple strokes / shapes and it was over in no time .
I was inspired by the doodle artwork of Miriam Badyrka at this blog ...... So here is my response :-)
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Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
I was inspired by the doodle artwork of Miriam Badyrka at this blog ...... So here is my response :-)
Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
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Zentangle Challenge #124
Laura reported that the Canadian city of of Calgary has been devastated due to flooding by two rivers effecting thousands of people in Calgary.
Here in India ... in the the northern hill state of Uttarakhand due to flooding of two rivers Alakananda and Bhagarithi ....the situation is catastrophic. Lakhs of people have been effected , more than 5000 persons feared dead , people’s houses and animals have been washed away and many roads have simply disappeared. In Rudraprayag, a thousand-year old Siva temple Kedarnath temple has been badly damaged by a landslide and nearly 75,000 pilgrims are stranded .
Let us pray that God gives strength and courage to the people affected by these flood in the two countries . Here is my ZIA which I dedicate to these brave people .
Below is a picture of a statue of Lord Shiva ( god of destruction) ,calmly meditating, even as he is being battered by the Himalayan Tsunami!
Below is a picture of the same statue which I had photographed during my visit to Rishkesh in Feb 2011.
The Gangotri Glacier after the heavy rains in Uttarakhand
Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
Note: The pictures / video above are taken from the internet and used only for education and inspiration . If I have violated any copyright issues , please send me comments and I will remove the associated picture.
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Zentangle challenge # 124- Second entry
The flood situation in Uttarkhand , India still remains grim with the number of deaths on the rise.
"Large scale deforestation and massive construction projects, especially large dams and hydro-power projects, have weakened the ecosystem of the region and the accompanying effects of climate change is further galvanizing the destruction.........with no forest left to hold the earth, the threat of major landslides looms large,” says Sehjo Singh, Director, Programme & Policy, ActionAid India..... but have we learn't the lesson that unbridled economic growth and progress with no attention to environmental concerns can lead to more disasters in the future?
This beautiful prayer from Brhadaranyaka Upanisad , India's ancient scripture says it all ...
ॐअसतोमासद्गमय।
तमसोमाज्योतिर्गमय।
मृत्योर्माअमृतंगमय।
ॐशान्तिःशान्तिःशान्तिः॥
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"Large scale deforestation and massive construction projects, especially large dams and hydro-power projects, have weakened the ecosystem of the region and the accompanying effects of climate change is further galvanizing the destruction.........with no forest left to hold the earth, the threat of major landslides looms large,” says Sehjo Singh, Director, Programme & Policy, ActionAid India..... but have we learn't the lesson that unbridled economic growth and progress with no attention to environmental concerns can lead to more disasters in the future?
This beautiful prayer from Brhadaranyaka Upanisad , India's ancient scripture says it all ...
ॐअसतोमासद्गमय।
तमसोमाज्योतिर्गमय।
मृत्योर्माअमृतंगमय।
ॐशान्तिःशान्तिःशान्तिः॥
- Om asato mā sad gamaya
- tamaso mā jyotir gamaya
- Om mṛtyor mā amṛtaṁ gamaya
- Om , From ignorance lead me to truth
From darkness lead me to light
From death lead me to immortality - Om , Peace , Peace , Peace
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Zentangle Challenge #125 & Z-inspiration #1 - Gratitude
Here is a two in one response.... using the " Birdie" tangle forLaura's weekly challenges #125and using tangles Gloven and Girdy forDilip's Z-inspiration#1using the value word... "Gratitude"
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| "A new Dawn" |
When I was creating the ZIA keeping my focus on the word Gratitude , one beautiful quotation came to my mind
" For all that has been, thanks For all that shall be, yes" by Dag Hammarskjold who was the second Sectretary-General of the United Nation who was awarded awarded a posthumous Nobel Peace prize.....the first half of the quotation expresses gratitude for the good , the bad and the ugly incidents in our lives! It's easy for us to express gratitude when good things happen to us , but having an " attitude of gratitude " even when things go terribly wrong , is really difficult.The next half is even more amazing .... it expresses a a sense of surrender and acceptance of what ever the future has to offer.
How can this attitude be cultivated ?in times of great difficulties ? sorrow ?
A poem by Kalidasa (4th century AD) who is widely regarded as the greatest poet and dramatist in the Sanskrit language , sums it all beautifully.
Look to this day:
For it is life, the very life of life.
In its brief course
Lie all the verities and realities of your existence.
The bliss of growth,
The glory of action,
The splendour of achievement
Are but experiences of time.
For yesterday is but a dream
And tomorrow is only a vision;
And today well-lived, makes
Yesterday a dream of happiness
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well therefore to this day;
Such is the salutation to the ever-new dawn!
My ZIA above depicts that "ever new dawn"
For it is life, the very life of life.
In its brief course
Lie all the verities and realities of your existence.
The bliss of growth,
The glory of action,
The splendour of achievement
Are but experiences of time.
For yesterday is but a dream
And tomorrow is only a vision;
And today well-lived, makes
Yesterday a dream of happiness
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well therefore to this day;
Such is the salutation to the ever-new dawn!
My ZIA above depicts that "ever new dawn"
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Organic Gardening - White pumpkin ( Ash gourd)
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| The lone Survivor! |
Out of the three ~ 2" diameter baby pumpkins which appeared on my vine , two were eaten up by the rodents and only one survived :-(
I now have an 15" diameter pumpkin hanging down from my terrace , which I will harvest in a couple of weeks.
Mind you , this plant has grown in the planter in the retainer wall of my terrace. and has a depth of about 8" and a width of about 6" ! So I am quite pleased with the result :-)
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| Two bees busy at their job in their beautiful workplace! |
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| Fuzzy baby pumpkins |
White pumpkins are used for making both sweet dishes and savoury ones. Here are a few links to site that have easy recipes and gorgeous photographs
http://www.divinetaste.com/archives/ash-gourd-white-pumpkin-halva/
http://www.akshayapaatram.com/2010/12/ash-gourdboodida-gumadikaya-pala-kootu.html
http://sailajasrecipes.blogspot.in/2011/10/winter-melon-boodida-gummadikaya.html
A few tit-bits about this plant / vegetables:
- The White pumpkin / Ash gourd, is called ಬೂದಕುಮ್ಬಲಕೈ (boodkumbalkai) in Kannada and सफेद्कद्दु (Safed Kaddu) in Hindi. It is a a creeper grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature. . The fruit is fuzzy when young. and loses its hairs and develops a waxy coating as it matures.
- In India, the ash-gourd is offered to the gods in religious ceremonies ( as an alternate to animal sacrifice) . It is said to ward off evil spirits / eye -- hence it's hung outside newly constructed homes and buildings.
- It is rich in dietary fiber, anti-oxidants,vitamins like folates, niacin, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin and pantothenic acid.It is also rich source of minerals like copper, calcium, potassium and phosphorus and is said to have an effect in controlling cholesterol.
- It is one of the vegetables in the Cucurbitaceae family featuring highest levels of vitamin-A, Vitamin A is a powerful natural anti-oxidant and is required by the body for maintaining the integrity of skin and mucus membranes and is vital for good visual sight. Research studies suggest that natural foods rich in vitamin A help a body protects against lung and oral cancers.
- It contains Zea-xanthin is a natural anti-oxidant which has UV (ultra-violet) rays filtering actions in the macula lutea in retina of the eyes and it helps protect from "age-related macular disease" in the elderly.
- It has a cooling and neutralizing effect on stomach acids and as such used effectively for treating digestive ailments like acidity and ulcers . It's juice ( drunk early morning on an empty stomach) is also used to treat diabetes and urinary diseases like kidney stones.
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zentangle Challenge #126
Laura's challenged us to use stencils for this week's challenge ....but alas , I had no stencils :-(
I had a few flowers & leaf punches ...so using these and a few coloured card stocks I made myself some " DIY stencils " !
Here is my ZIA for the #126 challenge!
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Here are a few " DIY stencils".
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I picked up one which caught my fancy , cut around it with a scissors having "serrated design" to create an interesting edge , and tangled on it. I next used it to create the flowers' outlines on white paper , tangled and shaded it .
I stuck the stencil on the white paper and ...voila!.... I had my ZIA.
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I had a few flowers & leaf punches ...so using these and a few coloured card stocks I made myself some " DIY stencils " !
Here is my ZIA for the #126 challenge!
Here are a few " DIY stencils".
I picked up one which caught my fancy , cut around it with a scissors having "serrated design" to create an interesting edge , and tangled on it. I next used it to create the flowers' outlines on white paper , tangled and shaded it .
I stuck the stencil on the white paper and ...voila!.... I had my ZIA.
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Zentangle Challenge # 127
This week's challenge is a Duo-angle one where we are expected to use the two challenge Cirquital and Opus. I found both the tangles a little challenging though I have used Cirquital in the past .
So here is my response ....
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Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
So here is my response ....
Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
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Trees in my neighbourhood - African Tulip tree
The African Tulip tree is one of the most gorgeous trees and I have one right next to my house (in a vacant site) . I have been observing this tree for several years...and it is now more than 20' tall with lush glossy deep green pinnate leaves ( i.e leaves arranged like veins of a feather on one leaf stem) , and large reddish-orange flowers ! The open flowers are cup-shaped and hold rainwater and dew, making them attractive to many species of birds. Though I can hear a number of birds twittering in it's foliage at dawn, I have not been successful in photographing them.
It's botonical name is Spathodea campanulata and in India , this tree is commonly known as the Flame of the Forest ( thought two other trees... Gulmohur ( Delonix regia) and Palash ( Butea monosperma ) ) are also called Flame of the Forest !.
The names of this tree in some of our local languages are rugtoora (रगतूरा in Hindi) , neerukayi mara (ನೀರುಕಾಯಿ ಮರ in Kannada ) Pichkari ( पिचकारी in Marathi ).
This tree is native to Uganda , Africa but found abundantly in the tropics and is has been nominated as among 100 of the "World's Worst invaders".
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The velvety olive flower buds are beak shaped and appear in upturned whorls at the branch tips
They contain water , and I remember that as children we played with it to squirt the water on our friends.( much to their annoyance !)
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The blooming period is followed by a period where the tree has greenish brown finger-like pods ( of about 5-10 inches long) and each of these pods contains hundreds of white tissue-like papery seeds which are easily dispersed by the wind..
It's botonical name is Spathodea campanulata and in India , this tree is commonly known as the Flame of the Forest ( thought two other trees... Gulmohur ( Delonix regia) and Palash ( Butea monosperma ) ) are also called Flame of the Forest !.
The names of this tree in some of our local languages are rugtoora (रगतूरा in Hindi) , neerukayi mara (ನೀರುಕಾಯಿ ಮರ in Kannada ) Pichkari ( पिचकारी in Marathi ).
This tree is native to Uganda , Africa but found abundantly in the tropics and is has been nominated as among 100 of the "World's Worst invaders".
They contain water , and I remember that as children we played with it to squirt the water on our friends.( much to their annoyance !)
The blooming period is followed by a period where the tree has greenish brown finger-like pods ( of about 5-10 inches long) and each of these pods contains hundreds of white tissue-like papery seeds which are easily dispersed by the wind..
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| The African tulip tree in full bloom on a street in RRNagar , Bangalore , India. |
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Fun with Mathematics -Zentangled Inspired Tangrams
Some months back I was teaching geometry to a bunch of 6 grade children in a Government school when it struck me that I could use the Tangram puzzle to let the children have fun while they were learning about polygons.
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I taught them how to make a Tangram set for themselves using thick card. I used a 4" X 4" square which was neither too large or too small .
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As I was browsing the internet for information I came across some pictures of intricately carved Tangram pieces.
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So I decided I would teach the children how to "decorate" their tangram using a few tangles/ patterns . The tangling was done on each shape before cutting them up into individual pieces.
You can visit http://tanglepatterns.com/ for hundreds of patterns.
I used these pieces to teach them ..... about the different polygon and their names/ properties ....about similar / congruent polygons ... about fractions and ratio.
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They also played around with the shapes to create shapes of animals, birds, people and things
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So make yourself a " Zentangle Inspired Tangram " to play with , or for your children or as a small gift for your friends. You can stick them on cardboard to make them stiff and easy to handle.
Here are some pictures of creative bookshelves I found on the internet which are constructed in the shape of the seven Tangram pieces.
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I have given links to websites which give additional reading material, videos on Tangram.
I taught them how to make a Tangram set for themselves using thick card. I used a 4" X 4" square which was neither too large or too small .
As I was browsing the internet for information I came across some pictures of intricately carved Tangram pieces.
So I decided I would teach the children how to "decorate" their tangram using a few tangles/ patterns . The tangling was done on each shape before cutting them up into individual pieces.
You can visit http://tanglepatterns.com/ for hundreds of patterns.
I used these pieces to teach them ..... about the different polygon and their names/ properties ....about similar / congruent polygons ... about fractions and ratio.
They also played around with the shapes to create shapes of animals, birds, people and things
So make yourself a " Zentangle Inspired Tangram " to play with , or for your children or as a small gift for your friends. You can stick them on cardboard to make them stiff and easy to handle.
Here are some pictures of creative bookshelves I found on the internet which are constructed in the shape of the seven Tangram pieces.
I have given links to websites which give additional reading material, videos on Tangram.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tangram
- http://tangrams.ca/
- http://losstt-in-math.dm.unipi.it/bp/TangramInMathematics.htm
- http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/resources/puzzles/default.htm
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVUy058_JNE
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Zentangle Challenge # 128
Here is my response to this week's " Two pencil string " challenge !
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Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
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Z-inspiration # 2 Mindful
My response to the Z-inspiration value word - MINDFUL ....I used all letters of the word for selecting the specific tangles.
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Zentangle Challenge # 129
Here is my response to Laura's challenge no: 129 using String no: 4
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Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
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Tangle - Kameez
Last Sunday , we were out in our community planting trees as part of our group's RRNagar - I Care activities of creating a clean and green locality in our city of Bangalore. I saw my friend's wife wearing a a salwar kameez with a very interesting print on it. I though it would make a nice tangle so I took a picture of her kameez .
I deconstructed the pattern and here is my tangle "Kameez"
.....and a few variations of this tangle.
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| Interesting textile print |
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| Pattern deconstructed ! |
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| Variations of Tangle-Kameez. |
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Zentangle Challenge # 130
This week's challenge is to use the tangle "Henna drum" and here is my response to this challenge
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Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
Don't forget to visit http://iamthedivaczt.blogspot.in/ to see the responses of other's to this week's challenge
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