May 2, 2025

Hello Rick and Maria,

As Mental Health Awareness Month begins, we want to recognize our wonderful CZT community that has found deep connections to the Zentangle Method through their own mental health journey, and who pass along the power of the Zentangle Method through teaching in their communities and beyond. They inspire others to tap into their creative abilities to soothe, heal, reignite, and empower... and they do the same themselves. We have asked some of our CZTs to share their stories this month and we thank them for their vulnerability in doing so. We hope these personal reflections remind our wider community how important it is to find a creative outlet and prioritize yourself.

Make sure to subscribe to our blog if you want to follow along with the upcoming stories. We will release them every other day until May 8th.

Today on the blog, read about CZT Laurie Chester's journey to find the "I in Me."

Don't forget to order Bijou's Be Well Bundles and follow along with us every day from May 10th to May 30th!

The purchase of these supplies directly supports the overall production of the 21 consecutive days of videos in the Bijou Be Well series. We thank you for your thoughtful contribution toward making this important series possible for our community.

Shop Bijou's Be Well Bundles here.

Bijou's Be Well Bundles contain a box of 21, 3.5" square tiles in your choice of white, Renaissance, or gray and assorted tools to tangle with for each surface. Each box also contains three NEW Bijouisms with words of wisdom from Bijou.

Be sure to select the tile color from the drop-down menu. Bijou's Be Well Bundles will be available through May 2025 only.

A thought: Each day of the series we begin our practice by putting an intention toward one of Bijou's new Bijouisms. These bits of wisdom support well-being in different ways. Read along in our daily newsletter to learn more about which one we are featuring each day.



Tile or tangling surface: In each video, we will be using a 3.5" square tile. We invite you to use your choice of a square tile or feel free to use something else. Whatever you choose, we are thrilled to have you tangling along.

Tools: We will be using a selection of pens and pencils offered in the Bijou Be Well Bundles. It is fun to see how you can stretch your creativity with a selective pallet. Play with a combination of the tools you received or use your own. Be consistent throughout or change it up each day... it is up to you!



The Audio: Each video lesson is accompanied by Native American-style flute music by Rick Roberts. With its calming effects and gentle tranquility, we think it's the perfect soundtrack for creating Zentangle art. Rick plays all the songs on flutes he carved himself.

The Videos: Each video and lesson is between 8 and 14 minutes long. They are designed to be short, simple, and full of Bijou love. The videos are not sequential so feel free to enjoy as many as you want in any order. In other words, do not sweat it if you miss one.

The 8-Steps:

1. Gratitude and Appreciation - Each tile will begin with a moment for gratitude.
2. Dots - These tiles will not have dots.
3. Border - And they will not have borders.
4. String - We will use the same pencil string on each tile.
5. Tangle - We will feature one tangle each day. The chosen tangles are basic with plenty of room for exploration.
6. Shade and enhance - Shade your tangles if you like.
7. Add your "chop" - Find somewhere to put your initials... you are the artist after all.
8. Gratitude and Appreciation - We begin and end with gratitude. Take an additional moment to appreciate your artwork.

In the Month of May, we recognize the importance of mental health and well-being. This is a time to nourish your soul with your pen - you deserve it.

For this entry, we invite you to dedicate one page in your journal to the Bijou Be Well series. Each day of the series, we will have a video guiding you through a monotangle on a square tile. After you have created your tile, use that same tangle and add it to your journal page. Maybe you choose a specific string or approach or limit yourself to specific materials. Maybe you pull out your gel pens, or a colored pencil to shade or maybe you stick to the basics - all is welcome here. And while you tangle, we encourage you to think about that day's Bijouism and what it might mean to you.



Challenge yourself to show up for a few moments of dedicated tangle time for 21 consecutive days, and at the same time allow yourself room if your expectations have to change. Know you are doing the best you can with the time and ability you have in this moment. It is probably more than you think.

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!

© 2025 Zentangle, Inc.