One thing I have always liked is Talavera pottery. Besides being beautiful, I think Talavera is very whimsical. I did some research on it for a unit I began teaching in my Spanish classes several years ago. You can find information about this fascinating artwork by clicking here.

After drawing outlines for my students to use while creating their own “Talavera-inspired” artwork, I decided to try drawing and coloring some with my favorite gel pens. Some of the first ones I did were lizards, birds, fish, and turtles.

Fish and other sea life proved to be fun and relatively simple to do.

Here you can see a small version of a butterfly along with a larger version. The small one is done with gel pens, and the large one is done with colored pencils.

 

I always admire Talavera flower pots when I see them, and think how cute that would look in my “whimsical garden”, but one thing I don’t admire is the not-so-whimsical price!

And since I don’t live close enough to Mexico to just go down and get some from there, I decided to make my own.

The first thing I did was bring in two old flower pots that I had painted white and blue for another project that didn’t turn out. I drew a design onto the first pot with a Sharpie marker. The picture on the right goes to show that you don’t have to be super artistic or precise with your drawing. You can always paint over it if necessary.

Along with my trusty assistant Foster, I began to paint the first pot. I put a different flower design on each side.

(We won’t even go into how Foster stepped in a blob of yellow paint and had to have his foot washed off in the bathroom sink!)

Then, being the eternal optimist when it comes to crafts, I decided to do my version of a peacock feather design I saw on…you guessed it…Pinterest.

I know, don’t laugh… remember I said it was my version of the design!

So that’s the story behind my recent Talavera adventure…so far the plants are doing fine (just planted them yesterday). And not to be outdone, I even have some  “Talavera-inspired” items in my Zazzle store. Click here to see magnets, mugs, postcards, and more!