March Madness, just not basketball

In Utah, March Madness is the whimsy of the weather.  Of course, it snowed again this weekend, the first of Spring.  Two weeks ago, we had the biggest storm of the season, (above) and the ski resorts are reporting 140 inches of snow pack.  
When cabin fever sets in, to keep from going "stark raving", we turn to hobbies, arts and crafts.
John has put his collection of tools and skills to work in the garage, building another sea kayak.
She's blond this time.

I've been making some books and practicing my calligraphy.  
This year, UCA has chosen the theme of "Uncial-ity with Personality", and they're giving prizes away for people who practice.  Translated, that means they give us homework with incentives.
Our assignment was to use a Speedball nib C-0 with a one line quote which we turned into an accordion fold book.  

The unabridged quote is "Put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard."  Anne Sexton
I found it on Jill Badonsky's Muse Letter, and I like it.  We colored the quotes with pencils.  The lettering looks warped, but that's the accordion fold distorting the image.
My friend, Judy, teaches bookbinding, so I learned the "Sweet Binding" with French Link Stitch.  The great thing about an exposed binding is that the book lays flat when opened.

Then I painted pages for a journal, and sewed them together with the link stitch.  I'm not sure what kind of cover yet, but I'm thinking of some tie dyed fabric.

 And finally, with a new grandson coming along next month, I'd better get the blankets going.
Here's a sneak peek.

Now it's time to clean up.  Which may take until summer.
Happy Springing, everyone.

A Bevy of Tanglers

Utah Calligraphic Artists have a gallery exhibit this month at the Covey Center in Provo.  There are amazingly lovely pieces hanging, representing every form of art.  Since I taught them zentangles, I was especially pleased to see some representatives hanging there, so I thought I'd show a few.  The first is a beautiful shell designed by Nancy Ostergar, the current president of UCA.  This piece is about 7 x 10 inches.  (sorry about the glare...the windows were beautiful, but glare reduction was not possible in my limited experience.)

This next one is the traditional zentangle size of 3.5 inches square, designed by Jane Hales.

Both of these pieces have gold leaf added.

Jane had fun creating a whole zentangle alphabet.

In addition, when I went to the monthly UCA play day, many people shared their anecdotes about tangling with their families.   Margene has made it her M.O. and is sending everyone birthday cards this year with her zentangles.  Her family is buying her black and white outfits and jewelry to add to her fun.

She has made an accordion fold book with beautiful letters.  Here are a few of them.

For my part, I was asked to design a CD cover for the monthly prize offered as a bribe to those who practice during the month.  Everyone who brought evidence of practicing got a music CD for background peace of mind.

We played "Where's Waldo" in trying to find out where I signed it....I'm still a bit humble about my creations and don't want to mess them up with a signature, but people say I have to.  The beauty of this design is that it's non-directional.  In fact, the lettering artist put it upside down from this view, and labeled it  U-Tunes, standing for Utah Calligraphic Artists, studying Uncial this year.
The Valentines are in the mail.   Come back tomorrow or Monday to view some happy hearts.
Love to all.