This year I’ve been running a new workshop - “Introduction to Green Sketching” - and I can’t tell you how much I’ve enjoyed spending time helping people to reconnect with their creativity and the natural world around us.

When author Amanda Roberts approached me to illustrate a map for her new historical fiction novel, Lady of the Quay, set in mid-16th Century Berwick-upon-Tweed, I had no idea it would grow into one of the most interesting projects I’ve worked on to-date. As an illustrator living and working in Berwick, and someone with a long-standing interest in history and architecture, this project felt like the perfect fit! What began as a commission to create an illustrated historical map soon evolved into a full custom book cover design.

In 2024 I was commissioned by Anne Mair-Chapman to design a Welcome Board for her business, Kypie Farm. The goal was to create a custom illustrated welcome board featuring a hand-drawn map of the farm, complete with waymarked walking routes and relevant information for farm visitors (the farm encourages educational visits from schools and also has a number of Open Farm days through the year).

As we kick-off another new financial year, I thought it would be helpful to reintroduce Coostie Illustration and Design, with a little bit of information about what I do and how you can work with me.

I'm Ali and I love illustrating British wildlife, bringing a wide range of flora and fauna to life through my drawings and paintings, where I aim to capture the spirit and form of birds, plants and animals in watercolour, pen-and-ink, or coloured pencil.

Green Sketching is a simple, pressure-free way to slow down, connect with nature, and rediscover your creativity. You don’t need to have any artistic skills, or be a nature buff able to recite the names of birds and plants. Here’s why I think you should give one of my workshops a try…

In celebration of World Whale Day (16th February 2025) I’ve created this watercolour illustration of three types of whale that can be seen off the coastline of Northumberland (as well as around the UK more widely). Here’s a little behind-the-scenes look at how I created the illustration.

The RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch is fast-approaching (24th - 26th January 2025) and I thought I’d take this moment to share with you why I love taking part in this citizen science project to observe and record the birds that visit my garden, what I do to prepare and how the activity inspires my art.

I decided that this year for the surface design side of my business that I’d respond to one design challenge each month provided by the fabric, wallpaper and home decor company, Spoonflower. Spoonflower actually release a new challenge prompt every two weeks, but I decided that it would be more manageable if I stuck to completing one challenge each month throughout 2024. This also allowed me to pick prompts that felt more applicable to my style - although I did end up creating some designs in a slightly different style.

Berwick-upon-Tweed, perched on the border between England and Scotland, is a town full of charm and history. One of its many standout features is its three impressive bridges over the River Tweed, each with its own story to tell and views to provide. If you’re visiting the town, don’t forget to add them to your itinerary!

The alternative to Black Friday/Cyber Monday is Indie Friday (29th November 2024). The idea was conceived of by the Just A Card campaign, to highlight that when you buy from a small business or independent maker, you’re getting more than ‘just’ a card (or a book, or a tea towel, etc). You’re purchasing the time and effort and creativity and community of the maker! In this spirit, I thought it might be fun to provide some suggestions for how one of my Large Square Note Cards can be more than ‘just’ a card, with a little time and a few supplies…

I'm really pleased to be able to announce that earlier this year I applied to Create Berwick for funding to support the development of some new workshops and I was awarded a grant! With thanks to Create Berwick's funders - the North East Combined Authority and Northumberland County Council.

My creative practice is fuelled by my love of the natural world, with much of my self-led illustration and design inspired by nature-based subjects. I really wanted to be able to support others to explore their creativity and help them to reconnect with nature to improve their wellbeing.

Thanks to this funding, I'm now a certified 'Green Sketching Ambassador' and I thought I'd just share a little about what exactly Green Sketching is and why everyone should give it a try.

I thought I’d showcase some of my ‘harvest’ inspired collections for you. All of my art prints and gifts are printed here in the UK and use sustainably-sourced materials. So if you buy from me, you’re not only supporting a British indie business, but also doing your bit for the environment, too!

It feels really early to be shouting about Christmas gifting at the beginning of October, but when I was doing markets in August people were confiding that the purchases that they were making were actually for Christmas presents! For some of you this post will therefore be perfectly-timed - I’ve got a lovely range of eco-friendly Christmas cards and wrapping paper already in stock, with more cards to come later this month, alongside drops of new gift sets featuring some of my best-selling designs, as well as commission slots for those looking to give something unique and bespoke!

When I started teaching myself to draw and paint as part of my mid-life career change, I seemed to unconsciously gravitate towards wildlife and nature subjects followed by a gradual focus on illustrating birds - specifically British birds - in all their variety.

The 2024 Berwick Food & Beer Festival is fast approaching (16th - 18th August) and I’m going to be attending. Whilst I’ve gone every year since we moved to Berwick and last year I even volunteered at the event, this year I’m actually going to be a stall-holder in the producers’ market!

I wanted to take a selection of my art prints and gifts that are inspired by Northumberland, but also to create some more food-based designs specifically for the occasion. I’ve therefore been beavering away on the following collections, which I’ll be launching at the event on 17th August and will then have available on my website and Folksy shop from w/c 19th August

A client recently got in touch to ask if I could produce a full-colour, ink and watercolour map, that they wanted to gift to a friend for their 30th birthday. The map was to include a mix of 10 landmarks and objects that meant something to the recipient at different stages of their life. I’ve outlined the process we went through here, to show you how easy it is to commission your own bespoke illustrated map.

This Plastic Free July, find out how I ensure that there is no plastic in my supply chain so that you can be confident that if you’re buying an art print or gift from me, it will have as limited an impact on the planet as possible.

My new British Songbird collection features some well-known garden favourites (blackbird, blue tit, robin, song thrush) as well as others that we might only see at certain times of year, or when out-and-about in different habitats.

I’ve had my Folksy shop since July 2023 and thought it would be interesting to share a bit about why I use this platform for selling my range of eco-friendly art prints and gifts.