At 3 years old with a paintbrush in hand a basket full of fabric scrapsthanks to my grandmothers, I was ready to start creating. Those supplies and many opportunities to play, explore and learn filled my youth with the creative spirit that still drives me today.

I attended art school to learn the rules of creating and came to realize that it’s the process of creating where the joy happens. In the process I can connect with my ideas and emotions, follow my imagination with shape and colour, or simply get lost in the brush and pen strokes to ground myself and bring calm to the daily chaos of life. 

In 2013 I became a Certified Zentangle teacher. The experience in Rhode Island, USA with the Founders Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas opened a whole new method of creating and paired with my other art practices became a way I could easily share the creative process with others through workshops. 

In 2017 I suffered a brain injurywhich left me with s peech, vision, and motor skill impairments. It was total uncertainty and chaos for me, there was a point in time where I couldn’t read or see straight but oddly, I could still draw beautiful and intricate images with the Zentangle method.I was encouraged by my team of therapists to include this art form into my daily schedule because they noticed a difference in my ability to cope, regulate my emotions, and my endurance to get through tasks. Essentially drawing or tangling in this case brought calm to the chaos and it was exactly what my brain needed to get better!

Zentangle now has two benefits for me:

1) It’s a way to be creative anywhere, anytime 

2) It’s a self-reliant self-care method I can use to calm the chaos when I need to focus or de-stress

I am never without my Zentangle tools…a pen, pencil, and a square piece of paper. My creative spirit finds ways to express itself in the process of each pen stroke and my brain finds a quite space to focus on myself.

I invite you to put pen to paper or dip a brush in colour and find the calm in the creative process.

Join me in a workshop or let’s work together to curate an event for you

Get in touch with me here

My gratitude for joining me on this tangled journey.

Yvonne 

Ps. I consider the dessert menu required reading and SNOW is my favourite season!