Purple Potpurri

I'm always looking for colors, trying to capture the light and the smells that colors have. Purple hues.

Stuffed Koala From An Old Sweater

Materials and tools:

- An old sweater (I used an old wool dress)
- A piece of black felt for the eyes and nose
- A piece of cardboard to fill the ears
- Scissors
- Thread matching the color of your sweater
-Needle
-Pins
-Chalk to mark the template
-Polyester fill

Instructions:

1) Get an old sweater (I used a wool dress that shrank -wrong washing machine cycle-)
2) y 3) Enlarge templates to the desire size on a photocopier. My Koala is about 10 inches (25 cm) long. Cut out the templates.
4) Pin the templates to the fabric and mark them with chalk leaving 1/8 inch (1cm) seam allowance. Cut them out.
5) Stitch sides and underbelly facing inwards. Leave an opening at the head to stuff  later. Don't stitch the claws yet (they are too narrow to turn).
6) Turn right side out. Stuff with polyester fill.
7) Stitch ears placing inside a piece of cardboard to make them stiff. Stitch ears, eyes and nose onto the head. Use white thread to mark the pupils.
8) Finally, stitch the claws.

Inspired by Martha Stewart

Fresh Mint And Rosemary

These are herbs from my garden. The mint is so fresh and it smells so good that I decided to make myself a cup of tea and put a leaf in it. Mmm..so relaxing for a rainy Saturday morning. Wish you could smell it too.

Introducing Tita

Tita is my sister-in-law's cat. Tita lives in Paris.  Just as Alma -my cat- she's a very fortunate and happy cat.

My sister-in-law commissioned me to draw her, and this is just my first attempt on my sketchbook. It hasn't been easy. In my  first drawing, which I don't want to show here, poor Tita looked like Batman, her ears were too pointed, and her eyes came out a bit strange (like Batman's eyes, looking to nowhere).

In this picture, fortunately, she has a more friendly look, but  it's still not right. I need to practice a little more, so you'll be seeing more of Tita soon.

French Snail

I'm sure this snail is French because my sister-in-law, who is French, made a photo of a snail in Paris, later I saw the picture and I got inspired to draw this snail.  Honestly, I don't think it looks any different from a Spanish snail.

Flowers In My Garden

These flowers came out  in our garden at the beginning of the spring. Now they are all gone, but fortunately my son made these pics. I love their colors.

After The Rain

In the woods, after a rainy afternoon, a quiet atmosphere, the drops of rain on the leaves, the light, the colors.  Unbelievably beautiful.

Wild Flower

I love wild flowers because they grow against all odds, and still they manage to be beautiful. Don't you think? These flowers grow in the countryside very near my house.

Sunday Breakfast

I had some guests at home and decided to prepare a special breakfast. Hope you like it too.

Tulips

We have some tulips in our garden. They were brought to Spain by my Dutch father-in-law. This spring they came out and they're wonderful. This is my tribute to them.

Cherry Blossom

It's spring in Madrid. Cherry Blossoms are everywhere and I couldn't help but to make a drawing. Hope you like it.

Spring's Sun

Though we are in spring yesterday seemed to be an autumn day. I went for a walk around my son's school and I saw the sun hiding behind some tree branches. Isn't it beautiful?

How To Make A Pencil Roll From A Place Mat (Tutorial)

Ever since I saw in Florence (Italy) a wonderful leather pencil roll that was way over my budget I've been dreaming of having one. 

After I saw on Pinterest so many different pencil rolls, I got inspired and I decided to make my own using a place mat. Yes, it's not leather, but I also like it a lot.

Materials: One cotton fabric place mat (I got mine at Butlers'), thread, clear plastic film about half the size of the place mat, (to cover the inside in case your place mat is light-colored), 34 inches (1 meter) of ribbon and a sewing machine.

1. Fold the place mat at about half the length of the pencils.  Then, sew pockets for each pencil taking into account the width of the pencils.

2. My place mat is white, so I decided to cover the inside with a clear plastic film, the same type used to protect book covers.

3. This is the result after covering it with a clear plastic film on the inside.

4. Get a  piece of ribbon matching the color of your place mat. I got a meter (39 inches) and cut it into two pieces. Sew one piece of ribbon on the edge, and another on the middle to be able to wrap and tie it.

Voilà! You're done.

Green Leaves

What could I decorate with these leaves? Any ideas?

Everyday Matters

When a friend of mine saw that I had started a blog about drawing, he recommended that I buy the book you see in the picture above. Everyday Matters by Danny Gregory. He said my illustrations were similar to Danny's.

I bought the book.

Danny, his wife and their baby boy had a perfect life in New York, but his wife had an accident that left her in a wheelchair. Then, he decided to teach himself to draw and he started perceiving all beauty that there was around him. I experienced the same thing when I started to teach myself  to draw. I think it's so true; the light, the nature, the objects around us, everything is just wonderful.

The Light Paints

When I saw these pictures, which I made yesterday during a morning walk in Paracuellos de Jarama  (Madrid), I thought of the light as an impressionist painter. Those greens, those yellows on green, the light blues, the whites, the browns. Isn't like the light can paint over anything it touches?

Lavender Flowers

Last year, on our summer vacation, we went to Italy.  We drove all the way from Spain to Italy, and we spent one night in France. The most exciting part of our trip was for me to see the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d' Azur. Ever since, I've been in love with lavender flowers. Just check these pics. You'will fall in love with them too.

A Simple Fried Egg

Beauty is in the simplest things. A fried egg. Who would think fried eggs are beautiful? Yet they are.

Autumn Leaves

I could use this picture as wrapping paper. I love its colors. Hope you do too.

Doro Meets A Friend

This encounter really took place at Kensington Park, London.
I love French bulldogs.  I find them charming because they're so ugly. As they can't compete in beauty, they compete in personality. Nature is so wise.

French Vintage (2)

More drawings inspired by Anna Corba.

French Vintage (1)

Some days ago, when I was visiting the Thyssen Museum in Madrid, I felt in love with a book I saw at the bookshop. It is called "Doodling in French" by Anna Corba. When I came back home I tried to do my own French Vintage Doodling. I was SO inspired. It's incredible what images  (and books) can do.

A house in the woods

Who hasn't ever dreamed of having a house in the woods?
Colored pencils and markers.

Popcycle sticks

Lately I try not to throw anything to the garbage if it can be upcycled. I have used these popcycle sticks as herb labels.

Source of inspiration

Barley family

Yesterday, when I went for a walk in the countryside, I got some barley. I thought of it as a family.

Sunday morning walk

I went for a walk this morning and I made some pics that I wanted to share with you. It has been raining for a couple of days, and now finally we have a sunny day with fresh air.

Chagall

We went to an exhibition about Chagall in the Thyssen-Bornemiza museum yesterday. As I could not make any pictures, I decided to draw one of his paintings. It's called "Midsummer Night's Dream" (1939).
I'm fascinated by the beauty of its colors.

Chagall was a  Russian-French artist who lived part of his life in France. He's considered one of the most successful artists of the 20th century. You can read more about him here.

My Italian Easter Bread

They came in wild shapes indeed, but they sure taste good. Happy baking!
Inspired by.