Zentangle® Envelope Art
Do you ever make your own envelopes? I love to leave elements hanging over the edge of a card, but those cards don’t fit in standard envelopes so I thought I’d try making one and embellishing it with Zentangle®.
If you follow me, then you may know I’m a Certified Zentangle Teacher (CZT). Zentangle, Inc. recently released their new project pack which is all about adorning photos and keepsakes with tangles. I thought it would be fun to tangle around some stamped images.
Making the Envelope
To make the envelope I followed the instructions on the We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 Punch Board. An envelope for an A2 sized card calls for cardstock trimmed to 8.25 inches square with punching and scoring at 3 5/8 inches. I’ve used Basis White cardstock for this envelope.
Align the left edge of the cardstock at 3 5/8 inches, punch, and score on the envelope scoreline. This was my first time using the board and the process was surprisingly easy! I will definitely be making more envelopes in the future.
Stamping the Envelope
This envelope was inspired by a card I made for a recent blog hop. Since I’m using Basis White in lieu of watercolor paper for the envelope, I used a watercolor stamping technique with less water.
For a loose watercolor look, smoosh your ink pads on a craft mat, pick up some pigment with a wet paintbrush and dab it onto the stamp. I used blue for the flowers and green for the leaves. Lightly mist the stamp with a Mini Mister of water and Perfect Pearls.
Stamp the paper and leave the stamp and block in place for a few seconds while the pigments absorb into the paper. The video illustrates this so well so definitely check it out. Lastly, I added some ink splatter and dried the ink with a heat tool.
Add Zentangle® Adornments
Using an Indigo Sakura Micron PN pen, I started tangling by outlining or aura-ing the stamped images. Next, I added a pattern called fescu which looks like little plant sprouts. I added some weight at the base of the fescu and drew some orbs. Then, I repeated the process twice more.
At first, I didn’t tangle the stamped areas on the side flap, but once I folded the envelope it felt incomplete, so I tangled them in the end.
Once the tangling was was complete, I used 1/8 inch Scor-Tape along the edges of the two side flaps and folded the envelop closed. Make sure your tape does not extend past the side flaps or your card will get stuck.
I hope you enjoyed this project today and feel inspired to give Zentangle® envelope art a try. Thanks so much for stopping by and I’ll see you soon with more inspiration!
Supplies
Fantastic idea to decorate up the envelope to match part of the card. I must admit I’m trying it out a lot at the moment & really enjoying doing it & the reaction from friends when they receive them. Thank you for the inspiration, hope your week goes well x
Thanks so much Andrea! Oh, I love to see their smile and wonder!! So fun! Have fun with the envelopes! I will definitely have to do more.
What a stunning technique, Amber! Love the watercolor & elegant look to this. I’ve never tried Zentangle but your envelope is very inspiring. I’m going to have to try it now!!
Oh, I hope you do Patt! It’s so enjoyable and relaxing! Thanks so much for your lovely comment and stopping by!
This is really beautiful, Amber. I’m definitely going to try this. At ZenAgain last year, they called this Marginalia. Thanks for all you share. 💜 I love this envelope!
Roseanne Sabol, CZT 17
Hi Roseanne, thanks so much! Marginalia, what a great word! Did they use that to describe the pattern or the technique of drawing on the side of the paper? I’d love to see your finished envelope! Tag me @notableink if you post it. Have a good day!
It’s a term used to describe the technique, which you’ve mastered! If you search “marginalia” on the CZT FB page, I think you’ll see examples. We used a tan opus, with a central visual piece and then worked on the margins. Look closely – many of us wrote secret messages or words in the borders. We also used white chalk pencils, You’ll love it.
I tagged you with 2 photos on insta. Hoping I did it right! @roseanne3
Yep, you got it! Those tiles were lovely with some of my favorite patterns! Dang, I wish ZenAgain was closer to SoCal!!