MADRID’S BEST SOUVENIR
This family-run, hand-crafted pottery store is a charming, vibrant treasure chest in Spain’s capital city
You know that feeling when you’re travelling and you stumble upon a lowkey, easily-ignorable shop that you decide to enter for one reason or another and it turns out to be a treasure chest of beautiful artifacts and the starting point of a new obsession?
That’s the feeling I got when I entered Morueco Cerámicas in Madrid a few weeks ago. The shop, which was located on a tranquil street in the Las Letras neighborhood, was bursting with a rainbow of hand-crafted and hand-painted ceramic pieces. Having grown up in southern California, I was drawn to the shop for the semblance the pieces had with Talavera pottery.
As I perused the visual splendor, I told my boyfriend that I was just looking. We had been in Europe for 3 weeks and each of our four suitcases were flirting with becoming overweight. (It’s only right that as we stuff our mouths with the culinary splendors of France & Spain, so too should we stuff our suitcases with the clothes, beauty products, and home pieces available across the Atlantic). That is, naturally, when I spotted the most incredible blue and white ceramic horse on the shelf.
For those who follow the lunar calendar out there, you might be aware that this is the Year of the Fire Horse. Both my mother and my boyfriend’s dad are horses, so this piece instantly made me think of them. My boyfriend knows the look that swept across my face all too well; he reminded me that toting around another 5 pounds was unwise (especially considering we had another week in Europe to go). I agreed that it was unwise to purchase anything so heavy.
I, therefore, picked up an equally gorgeous blue and white candelabra, which is listed on the shop’s website as ‘Candelabro 3 brazos Flowers - Azul.’ (You should note that it was significantly lighter in weight compared to the horse). Originally priced at 165 Euros, the shopkeeper offered me a 15% discount if I were to pay with cash. The final total came out to about $160 USD. A secure layer of bubble wrap later, we were on our way.
As any woman would predict, I ended up going back to the shop a couple days later to pick up the horse. What can I say? It was galloping through my mind and I couldn’t bear the idea of leaving Madrid without it! The horse was a touch more expensive, priced at 225 Euros. I was offered the same 15% cash discount. This time, the shopkeeper was an older woman.
I put my (long dormant) Spanish language skills to use and told her how I had purchased the candelabra a few days ago and regretted not buying the horse. She revealed that the shop was started by her son, Sete Morueco, and is a family-run business. Additionally, all of the pieces are uniquely hand-crafted and hand-painted in Madrid. Proud icon that she was, she then showed me all of the pieces she has on display in her own home.
I took a brief tour of all the homeware products that are offered: dishes, vases, cups, decorative objects, and Christmas ornaments. While most of the products are designed by Mr. Moreuco, the shop also sells ceramic pieces from about 20 international ceramic artists.
Since the website is used solely as a catalog, the best way to patronize the collection is in-store at one of the two locations in Madrid. While it is slightly heartbreaking that I cannot currently purchase more of these beautiful accouterments for my home with the click of a button, it does make the experience of going to the shop even more special!
You can shop Morueco Cerámicas Monday to Friday from 10 AM to 8 PM, Saturday from 11 AM to 7 PM, and Sunday from 11 AM to 3:30 PM at the following location:
C. de Moratín, 42, Centro, 28014 Madrid, Spain
*Note that from Monday to Friday, there is a siesta period when the shop is closed between 2 PM to 5 PM*
If you would like to inquire about any products, you can email moruecoceramicas@gmail.com.