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Greetings!
Welcome to Day 21 of the 2026 Bijou Be Well series!
Each year, in support of Mental Health Awareness Month, we share our Bijou Be Well series. This is a 21-day Zentangle challenge designed to encourage you to pause, breathe, and make space for yourself through small, meaningful moments of creativity.
In this year's series, alongside a daily reminder to tangle, we will share a collection of studies, articles, and stories that explore creativity and its benefits for mental well-being.
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As the 2026 Bijou Be Well series comes to an end, we hope that these past 21 days have reminded you to pause, breathe, and care for yourself, one stroke at a time. Together, we explored the connection between creativity and well-being, filled our Opus tiles with tangles, and strengthened the bonds that weave the Zentangle Community together. We hope the lessons, reflections, and moments of creativity continue to inspire you long after this month has ended.
Creativity is always there for you, an unexpected tool for focus, comfort, connection, and joy. From all of us at Zentangle, and from Bijou, thank you for tangling along.
You can revisit each day of this series on our website, here.
| | Bijou Be Well Series 2026 - Day 21 Step-Out | | |
In true Zentangle fashion, the tangle arukas evolves unpredictably. Starting with a simple orb, or other shape that strikes your fancy, add radiating parallel lines. From there, you begin a beautiful rhythm: aura the orb, aura the lines, rotate your tile, and repeat. This layering of strokes gradually fills a space of your choosing, ultimately revealing curious details. This tangle was discovered by Molly during a particularly long phone call with her treasured mentor, Peter O. He worked for many years at Sakura of America, and playfully, Sakura spelled backwards is arukas!
Tangle Tip: You can also try arukas with multiple orbs to start. First, connect the orbs with parallel lines, then start your auras, one "sprocket" shape at a time.
Once you have added arukas to your tile, join Molly and Julie in the 2026 Bijou Be Well wrap-up video. First, Molly will guide you through adding some love to your Opus tile, and then she and Julie will take a look at the Opus tiles created here at Zentangle HQ!
| | 2026 Bijou Be Well - Wrap Up | | Today, we share the last progress photos of the Opus tiles created by different members of Zentangle HQ. We hope you have taken your own progress photos so that you can look back and admire your journey! | | Share your tiles on the Zentangle Mosaic App and other social Media sites with the hashtags #BijouBeWell2026 and #BijouBeWell2026Day21. | | If you are just joining us... | | |
This year, we encourage you to step away from your screen, ground yourself in your space, and create without expectation.
We began this series with an introductory video to help you get organized and familiar with the process. Each day that followed, we released simple instructions and a step-out of a tangle to guide you as you built your Opus tile... one tangle at a time. We also provided a video of each tangle from some of our previous Bijou Be Well series (we are in a Time Machine this year, after all!).
You can find all of the daily prompts on our website, here!
| | Make sure to use the dropdown menu to select which deck you would like to purchase. | | Zentangle Journal Project | | |
In the wrap-up video, Molly and Julie talked about how tangles can help us untangle our minds, anxieties, and worries.
This month, we invite you to look back at the 21 tangles we explored together and choose one that stands out to you. Perhaps it is your favorite tangle, or maybe it is one you struggled with at first but now see in a new light. Maybe there was a tangle that felt especially relaxing, or perhaps the story shared that day resonated deeply with you.
Once you have chosen your tangle, open your journal and use it as a monotangle. You can draw it once or repeat it many times across the page.
As you tangle, take a moment to reflect on this past month. What did you learn? How did you feel throughout the journey? What would you like to explore more deeply? Record your thoughts, reflections, and discoveries in your journal as part of your creative practice.
Learn more about the Zentangle Journal Project.
| | Take Bijou and his gentle reminders with you with our collection of custom Bijou apparel. | | There is more Bijou apparel at the Zentangle Store. Take a look! | | This apparel is made specifically for you as soon as you place an order, so they will ship separately from any other Zentangle products and are not returnable. Making products on demand instead of in bulk helps reduce overproduction, so thank you for making thoughtful purchasing decisions! | | |
The Zentangle Foundation is a non-profit organization. Due to the community's generosity, the Foundation can provide monetary support to organizations and individuals to share the Zentangle Method in their communities, support research studies to evaluate and quantify the benefits of the Zentangle Method, and support people in becoming Certified Zentangle Teachers by providing scholarships. The work to spread the Zentangle Method is essential to our recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month.
If you would like to learn more, and consider a gift, please visit the Foundation's website. Donations to The Zentangle Foundation may also be made on YouTube by clicking on the Donate button located on each video page. We thank you for your support!
| | Learn more about our upcoming events here! | | |
With Gratitude and Appreciation,
Rick, Maria, Martha, Molly, and everyone at Zentangle HQ
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