Watercolors From Lanzarote

My trip to Lanzarote left many reminiscences. Above, some beautiful watercolors depicting Lanzarote's landscape.

Kettle

I saw this kettle on a magazine. It talked about an exhibition on German design in the Museum of Decorative Arts, in Madrid. I wish I could go and see it. I haven't been there for ages.

At Peace

This kind of scenery gives me peace. Love, Mónica

Waste Bin

Can a waste bin blend into the landscape? I bet many of  you would say no.  But now look at the drawing above and the photo below of the same waste bin.

When we visited Cuevas  de los Verdes, I had a chance to make a picture of one of these iron waste bins that were all around the island of Lanzarote. As you can see, it's perfectly blended into the landscape. This is the work of the great artist César Manrique. Even the most neglected objects can be beautiful. Don't you think?

César Manrique

Sometimes artists change the world. This was the case of César Manrique (above), an artist who changed Lanzarote, his hometown, in an amazing way.

Location of the Canary Islands on the map.

This is his house, which was built on 5 volcanic bubbles in 1967.

Above one of the openings left by the volcano.

A corridor leading to a living room.

Lounge, very much sixties.

Studio

Views from his house

Gardens.

Couldn't agree more with what he says (picture above): "Everybody looks, but to know how to see things it's to begin to know art."

Nice swimming pool.

Gardens inside his house

The barbecue, wisely placed next to the swimming pool.

I'm Back

I'm back. I went to Lanzarote for some days to have a rest. I have made thousands of pictures and I'll be sharing them with you in the following days.

I decided to start showing you some vegetation. The palm tree above looks like a prehistoric palm tree.

Lanzarote is a volcanic island. It hardly rains, so all these plants have to be watered.

See the volcanic soil?

Cats Bookmarks DIY

My mother was very pleased when I gave her the bookmarks of her cats: Sofi and Cuca.

 I was inspired -of course- by Pinterest to make these bookmarks, but I decided to add one small twist: to make them using the drawings of our family pets. People who have pets love having their own pet in the picture.

As you'll see, the are very easy to make, and your friends, or family, are going to be very happy if you give them a personalized pet bookmark as a gift.

Here is what you have to do.

What you need:
-White card
-Colored pencils
- Markers
-A photo of your pet where you can see well your pet's head.
-Plastic film.
- A ruler.
- A pair of scissors

Instructions:
1. Cut the card about 5cm/2" wide and 20cm/7,8" long.
2. Draw the pet's head on one end of the card, using your pet's picture as a reference.
3. Decorate the rest of the card as you wish. I chose butterflies and the pet's names.
4. Cut out the shape of the head so that the ears stick out.
5. Cover the bookmark with one layer of plastic film on each side.
Tip: Cut out the plastic film leaving an edge of about 1cm/0,3" so that you can adjust to the size of the bookmark later by trimming it. Good luck!

Want to see the photos of the pets that inspired these bookmarks?

Sofi

Cuca

Alma

Sorolla

Ever since I discovered Sorolla, he has been one of my favorite painters. 

Yesterday we visited his house which was turned into a museum. The place is simply awesome.  It's a small palace from the 19th century with a beautiful garden, and a many of his paintings.

As you can see the light in his paintings is impressive, he was therefore called "The Painter Of the Light".

He was born in Valencia, a city on the Mediterranean coast of Spain, so his paintings depict Mediterranean beaches and customs.

The garden is so nice. It  clearly has Mozarabic influence.

What to see more pictures from Sorolla Museum? Check my Flickr account here.

Swimming Pool & Cows

When the temperature reaches almost 40ºC /104ºF the simple views of these pictures cools you down. This beautiful swimming pool is in La Cabrera, a town to the North of Madrid. I went there some days ago and really enjoyed the scenery, especially the mountains and cows grazing around, of course, separated by a fence.

Naïve Alma

Whoever thought of the combination of colors of Siamese cats was a genius.

Scrap Paper Bird

Inspired by Pinterest.

Wanaka

Wanaka is the name of a beautiful lake in New Zeland. It's also the name of my friend Carolina's dog, an adorable poodle.