Coostie Design Studio

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United Kingdom
Berwick-upon-Tweed
Coostie Design Studio

Illustrator and designer, inspired by nature and the North. Commissions taken for original illustration, art or design for your home or business.

Range of eco-friendly art prints and gifts also available. See my website for more.

30/09/2026

We gathered around the big wooden table at .gallery again this month to enjoy more crafting, company and cake.

This month I introduced the group to using dip pen and ink calligraphy, starting from how to hold the pen, the foundation of light upstroke and heavy downstroke and lots of formation practice before we worked on some autumn-inspired phrases with a bit of decoration to take away.

Our next session is on Tuesday 27th October (6.30pm - 8.30pm) when we're working with paper again to create these little origami pumpkin decorations.

Absolutely no art experience required - just have some fun doing something with your hands in the company of others!

Booking via my website | £15pp | All materials, tea and cake included

Let us put the kettle on. There's making to be done.

29/09/2026

Best weekend! 🏡✨ First ever Berwick Open Studios and although I ended up on the edge of the map (here be dragons?) — that didn't stop over 50 of you braving the wilds to visit Venue 1.

So many lovely conversations, and this little hedgehog in coloured pencil and ink found himself a new home 🦔 Thank you to everyone who came by!

Next weekend I'm doing the visiting instead — heading round the other studios and making my own sketchbook at Pith. As if I needed another one 😅

24/09/2026

The first weekend of Berwick Open Studios is just 2 days away and I've been busy getting ready to take part:

- tidying the studio (with my unhelpful helper)
- getting the signage ready to direct you in
- sorting through my ridiculous stash of art materials and creating a 'fab freebies' basket that you can help yourself from!
- making displays and setting out prints, cards and gifts

My sketchbooks are ready for flipping through and I'll be working on some real commissions over the weekend that we can chat about.

Find me at venue 1 on the Berwick Open Studios map, this weekend only!

Open Studios

18/09/2026

I had a pretty amazing time on a Heritage Open Days Construction Tour of Berwick Barracks earlier this week! We got to go up the scaffolding and enjoy the view that usually only birds get as well as finding out a lot about how the different teams are adapting the building for its new use, whilst retaining features and elements that are the reason for its listed status - and arguably, what gives the building its character! A huge job, but you can really see it starting to come together.

Plus I got a sneaky peek at where my illustrations might be going in the Medieval Berwick exhibition space once the Museum reopens next autumn.

17/09/2026

You chose the coast — and it did not disappoint! 🌊

Introducing A Year on the British Coast, my 2027 Calendar Tea Towel! A whole year of hand-painted coastal wildlife wrapped around the shape of the British Isles: puffins, seals, whales, oystercatchers, sea thrift, mermaid's purses and more, each one paired with a bit of info about the best time of year to spot it.

Pre-orders are open now — link in bio 🐚
£15 + £2.85 tracked postage

Thank you to everyone who voted for this theme back in the summer — you picked well! 💙

14/09/2026

I’m attending my last Art at Paxton event of the year tomorrow, Tuesday 15th September, at the beautiful Paxton House, just outside Berwick.

I’ll be bringing a number of original pieces as well as a range of art prints and cards, all made using eco-friendly materials and printed in the UK. I'll also have print copies of my 'Drawing Birds' booklet for anyone who'd like to have a go at creating their own bird-inspired sketches.

There’s lots of other lovely makers and artists coming too, so if you’re looking for prints, cards, jewellery, ceramics, leather bags and more, all made by hand, then don’t forget to pop along!

And I hope you'll join me back at Paxton in October for one of my last outdoor workshops of the season on Friday 23rd, 10.30am - 12.30pm, where we'll be looking at how to capture autumn colour in our sketchbooks. Booking via my website.

The Tin Shed Paxton House

12/09/2026

Rare day off and I'm spending it in a museum, drawing rocks and learning all about the rock cycle with the amazing Vojta Hybl

nationalmuseumsscotland

11/09/2026

I'm getting pretty excited now for the first ever Berwick Open Studios, as last week I got my stack of the printed route maps and here I am at Venue 1, opening my home studio on Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th September!

Don’t forget that the Open Studios are a completely free event, with more than 60 artists and designer-makers spread across 25 venues in Berwick-upon-Tweed. The Map tells you which weekends venues are open (some artists are doing one or the other, some are doing both), as well as other key information about access, dog/child-friendly, parking, etc.

If you're around in North Northumberland on the weekend of 26th-27th September, it would be lovely to see you. And don't forget that Berwick is a station on the East Coast mainline, if you fancy a day trip!

Full information about the Berwick Open Studios event, including all the participating creatives and venues, can be found at https://createberwick.co.uk/berwickopenstudios/

10/09/2026

🍂✨ Autumn/Winter 2026 Workshops ✨❄️

If you’ve ever wanted to have a go at sketching then do have a look at my Autumn/Winter workshops. I'm planning to run a mix of returning favourites + some brand-new sessions to keep us inspired through the colder months when sketching outdoors becomes more challenging.

🔹 Drawn to Nature | Full-day sketching on the Hepple Estate | Rothbury
📅 Saturday 31st Oct | ⏰ 10:30–3:30 | 💷 £70

The date for this one has changed a couple of times, but we’re holding firm now for Saturday 31st October and hoping for a lot of amazing fungi and other autumnal flora and fauna to get us inspired!

🔹 Green Sketch Club – Autumn Colour – Paxton House
📅 Friday 23rd Oct | ⏰ 10:30–12:30 | 💷 £25

A couple of hours sketching in the lovely grounds of Paxton House, including some guided tutorials and then plenty of time for some unstructured play in a small, friendly group.

✨ Drawing for Nature Sketching - Berwick
📅 Jan/Feb date tbc | ⏰ 10:30 - 13:30 | 💷 £55
If you’d like to feel more confident in your sketching — especially when it comes to capturing natural forms — this 3-hour indoor workshop is for you. Booking opens soon.

👉 Bookings open or opening soon (link in bio!)

08/09/2026

Don't forget that there's an Art at Etal event on tomorrow, Wednesday 9th September, in Etal Village Hall in the heart of the estate here in North Northumberland. I'll be there again with some fabulous artists, designers and makers, so come and say hello.

I’ll be bringing a number of original coloured pencil wildlife drawings, as well as a range of art prints and cards, all made using eco-friendly materials and printed in the UK. I'll also have print copies of my 'Drawing Birds' booklet for anyone who'd like to have a go at creating their own bird-inspired sketches.

Address

Berwick

Website

http://www.coostie.co.uk/, https://drawntonature.substack.com/

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