Tangle Art: A Meditative Drawing Kit Paperback – September 1, 2013

Worthy of 4.5 Stars, but Amazon only gives me full-star options. I like this book much better than the book in the original Zentangle kit for two reasons. Primarily because of the larger page size, this book is much easier to read. The second reason I like this book is because the explanations are better for some of the tangles. Of 25 tangles explained in this book, eight are also included in the original kit. Yes, that was a bit of a let-down. Seventeen tangles from this book are not included in the original book, though they may (at least in part) be featured on the internet somewhere. I know that's true of at least one tangle.Of the 24 tangles included in the book from the original Zentangle kit, a full half are shown in the back of the book, with no step-by-step instructions at all. That lack of steps was a disappointment when I purchased my kit several years ago. Some of those tangles are among the 8 tangles featured in the original book that are also in this book, so I'm happy about that.As to the pens, pencil, & other items rolling around on top of the book - mine don't. They stay put fairly well right now, but I just got this item today. We'll see in a year or so how that plastic box holds up; I don't expect much in that department. I do like my pencils to be long so they are easier to hold and use - such as the one included in this kit, but a pencil is a small matter around my home... As an artist specializing in graphite pencil drawings, I have several pencils of all grades within reach most of the time, except when I travel.The quality of the official Zentangle tiles is on a par with the quality of the tiles included in this kit. The tiles are one of the reasons I got this kit, since good quality paper is expensive. I have 23 official Zentangle tiles left that are unused, and, now, 20 tiles from this kit, which adds up to more tiles than the official kit started with. That makes me happy.While the eraser isn't part of the official Zentangle tenet, I may use it anyhow to clean some of my original tiles for re-use, as I don't care for the way they were working out, and thus never finished them... and no, I didn't use ink in my first ventures.This kit is recommended for beginners at Zentangle, but if you're looking for something more advanced in the area of tangles, this kit may not be for you.

This kit was a convenient introduction to tangling. When I'd first seen tangles, I loved the idea that the simple doodles I'd been making forever could be improved by learning a bunch of new doodles. This kit met my expectations by providing what I needed to sit down and get started, including materials and instructions. The meditative aspect is definitely there, and I will keep working on it. The quality of the paper tiles was nice, and the pens worked perfectly.There were a few frustrations with the booklet. There were variations shown that weren't explained; I could have used a little help. There were no instructions or hints on filling in large areas (like in the checkerboard type pattern shown in the cover art). If there were any instructions for making use of the finer-tipped pen, I missed them.Since completing the exercises I've made a few tiles,and I've spent a lot of time working on the patterns in a notebook. I've been finding more patterns by searching online. I've even got someone else hooked. Same as me, he saw the appeal of upgraded doodles!

I received this book/box just yesterday, so haven't tried out the pens yet and can't make a judgement on them - but I want to give you my first impressions.Before I say anything else, I want to emphasize I love Beckah's other book (One Zentangle a Day) and have found it inspiring and helpful. It is one of my "turn to" books. However, I have some serious concerns about this kit - please read what I say carefully; it is not an attack on Beckah or her skills - rather is addresses the target audience that I see for this kit and the reasons why I don't like it for others. I hate to give it only two stars, because I am half way between two and three, but I have to come down on the side of two stars.If you have never tried Zentangle and want to give it a go without buying an Official Zentangle Kit, then, for the money, this little kit is for you. The booklet gives a good assortment of tangles to try and some basic principles. It is strange to me that Beckah says that erasers are not part of the Zentangle experience, then one is included in the kit - one of the basic tenets of drawing tangles is that if you make a mistake, it is just another opportunity, not a reason to make a judgement and remove the error.I am not sure that this kit alone would enthuse anyone about the art of Zentangle, which is, despite what many people think, so much more than drawing simple designs on a 3.5 x 3.5 inch tile. The introduction and discussion in the booklet hint at this, but there really isn't enough to flesh out the ideas.If you have taken a class, if you are a more experienced tangler or have a greater than adequate artistic bent, then this book/kit, despite its very reasonable price, is DEFINITELY NOT for you in my opinion.I don't have my copy of One Tangle a Day with me right now, but I am pretty sure the booklet in the kit does not give new material and it would be more helpful to buy One Tangle A Day; the pens and paper are adequate; you don't need official supplies to draw tangles but if you are already into tangling, you have probably got better pens and paper already, however, if you just want to try out Zentangle these are just fine.The package all the items come wrapped in is basically a good idea, it's attractive and could have made a good travel kit. It is, however, too big to fit into your purse and unfortunately, I don't think the plastic innards will hold up for too long. In addition, the way the insides fit together gives less than 1/2" of usable space to store pens, tiles etc. To be honest, this makes it more of a gimmick than a useful take-along kit.I am not sure there are many kits like this, it is hard to visualize, but I'll try to describe the kit. The outer cover is made from a good solid cardboard, with an attractive printed design. The cover forms a box 1.5" deep, and on the right hand side a flap extends from the top and fits against the side with the aid of strong magnets. When you open the cover, like a book, there is a moulded plastic box which holds the booklet, pens, eraser, pencil sharpener, tiles and pencil. The lid of this plastic box, which holds all but the booklet, inserts into the bottom portion so that it almost touches the base.If you have listened to Kass Hall talk about her new Zentangle Untangled Workbook on her blog, then you will know there are a multitude of reasons that go into making any decisions about how a book is put together. I am sure that a lot of thought went into the design of this kit - but sadly, a great opportunity was wasted. A simple lid on the plastic box rather than the moulded plastic pen/pencil eraser holder would have made this so very much more useful. I don't see how I can re-engineer the lid to give me extra space. Perhaps, with careful handling you COULD use the plastic box without the plastic lid because the cardboard cover DOES fit tightly and the magnetic closures are pretty strong. I'm going to give that a try. However, I don't think this would stand up to heavy jostling if you were to throw it in the bottom of a beach bag for instance - but you could always use an elastic band too.Again, I want to emphasize, if you are new to Zentangle, this could be the place to start - especially if you can find a Certified Zentangle Teacher (CZT) to take a class from or you find CZT videos or blogs on line. Once you get into tangling, I think you will quickly want to invest in the official tiles etc (or at least make them from good heavy weight art paper from one of the arts and craft stores0. Still this is good value for what it is and the booklet does contain some very valuable information.

The instruction book in this kit is merely an extract fro One Zentangle A Day so don't bother buying both. Personally, I don't find the instructions to be enough to get me started. I've found the various videos on You Tube much more useful. I suspect the book would be adequate if you already had some knowledge and experience of artist techniques but the true beginner needs a bit more. Knowing what's in the box - a cheap pencil, two pens, a sharpener and a few tiles - I would have bought my own better quality supplies to use alongside One Zentangle A Day.Having said that, the kit does offer a cheap introduction to tangle art. If you buy one for a present do get a small sketch pad to go with it.

I love this little kit! It's a fantastic way to dip your toe into the world of ZentangleEverything you need is here in a lovely neat boxThe enclosed booklet is well written ,enthusiastic but overall it's fun. It's full of tips and there's lots of projects to practice withI've found a lot of books and articles on this subject a bit serious and stuffy. So this makes a refreshing changeIf you want to learn there's another more in-depth book by the same author which I have already orderedOverall I'm well pleased with this purchase

This is a great kit for a beginner like me. It provides everything you need to start tangling for a very reasonable price. The book is excellent as are the rest of the items included. I have invested in the full length version of the book One Zentangle a Day and I'm already addicted to tangling. I have found a UK seller for the tiles, as Amazon appear only to stock them from America? If you are new to tangle art I definitely recommend you purchase this fantastic kit.

Nice little kit, I bought it to get a sample of the tiles and the pens that they recommend.If you are looking for something to try I would recommend this one, it doesn't have that many tangles however it gives you the basics, if you like it you can go and buy something with more information :).I'd recommend "Joy of Zentangle" by Suzanne McNeill, another good buy.Afterwards if you want to get tiles or you want to create them on your own that is your choice ^^.

I love this kit. It started me off on my Zentangle adventure.You don't get many tiles, but if you buy a book of quality artists drawing paper suitable for ink work and use a tile as a template to draw around in pencil you an make plenty of your own tiles. I leave mine in the book rather than cutting them out.The book in the kit is a great start of a lovely form of relaxation.