iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

It looks like I’ll be illustrating another picture book in the coming months and I want to dive deeper into drawing and painting actual humans rather than anthropomorphic insects, vegetables or random normally inanimate objects. Weird I know! 😂 #kidlit #art

Watercolour illustration of a picture of a young lady in a frame hanging on a wall.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Happy #kidlitpostcard day! I’m Marit, a freelance illustrator based in the UK. I work in traditional and digital media, often a combination of both. I particularly like illustrating history and fairytales. Mixed media illustration from The Sad Tale of Navy Cherry by Vicky Roden. #art #kidlit

Mixed media illustration of a big fish with an anthropomorphic cherry having a temper tantrum in its belly.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Sketching with ink and watercolour is still one of my favourites. I just start drawing with ink in one place and work outward without much of a plan, fill in the background last. I know the perspective doesn’t really make sense in this, but I love the textures and limited colour palette. 😆 #art

Ink and wash illustration of a girl drinking tea, looking out a window.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

I’m gradually finding an easier and more playful way of creating artwork. I’m painting with traditional gouache in an A3 sketchbook. Less stress, more joy. 😊 #art

Gouache illustration of different kinds of blue flowers in brown vases.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

This is what happens when I relax and have fun, this artwork feels free and easy to me. I didn't overthink it, I had fun doing it. #gouachepainting #freelanceillustrator #cutecats #art

Gouache illustration of cats popping their head out of flowerpots surrounded by gardening tools.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Nothing lasts for ever, sometimes we just need to take a deep breath and focus on the light at the end of the tunnel… #art

Illustration of a bunch of flowers in a ceramic jar.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

Reimagining an illustration that I did for Laura Formentini’s ‘Twentyone Olive Trees’ in 2021. When there’s a tight deadline you don’t really have a choice but to work digitally, but in an ideal world I would love to redo all the work in traditional media! This is ink and gouache on hot press. #art

Ink and gouache illustration on hot press watercolour paper.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Maybe not so much a finished illustration as a test run. I’m sorting out my workflow from sketch to finished watercolour illustration. My goal is to work predominantly in traditional media. #art #kidlit

Watercolour illustration of a school class.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

This morning I’m inking an illustration. Please note the alternative use of a kneadable eraser to support the light box at an angle! 🤓 I love my job! 😆 #childrensillustrator #watercolorillustration #picturebookillustration #kidlit #art

Ink and watercolour illustration in progress.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Happy #kidlitpostcard day! I'm Marit, a freelance illustrator based in the UK. I work in traditional and digital media, sometimes a combination of both. I particularly like illustrating history and fairytales with #kidlitartist #picturebooks #childrensillustration #art

Digital watercolour illustration of dragon and kids with a brown dog.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

Happy New Year! ✨ As we head into the new year, I’m open to picture book illustration work and excited about new collaborations. I specialize in a traditional, hand-crafted aesthetic and love working with authors, editors, and publishers to bring heartfelt children’s stories to life. #kidlitpostcard

KidLit postcard featuring a pirate doing embroidery with a cat at his feet.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

In spite of everything that’s going on I feel strangely optimistic about this one! 😁

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 19/11/2025

“Look!” said Mushroom Mama, pointing out into the dark garden that was beginning to look like a wet swamp. “The snails can’t swim. They like damp but they drown if there’s too much water. I wish the rains would wash them away once and for all!” #art

Illustration of anthropomorphic vegetables fighting off snails in a rainstorm.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 19/11/2025

The following day Strawberry made his way down to the old root cellar at the bottom of the garden. “Hello! Is there anyone down there!?” He shouted. He waited a while as the sound of his voice echoed back, but there came no answer.”We could sure use some help up here…” he added softly. #art

Illustration of anthropomorphic vegetables.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

✨ “We can’t keep going like this,” said Strawberry “we need help!” “What about the Oooold Potato?” someone whispered. “The legend says that he will return to help when things look bleak and the vegetables are facing their greatest threat…” Was there help to be found in the old root cellar? ✨ #art

Folktale week - Night - Illustration of a group of vegetables defending themselves from snails.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 27/10/2025

🎃I’m telling you, these anthropomorphic vegetables are getting out of hand! Actually, this one would probably qualify as more of a “gallusomorphic” creature.🙄 I don’t even know what’s going on with those fangs?!! 😂 Watercolour in my sketchbook. #art

Watercolour painting in my sketchbook of a potato with chicken legs and fangs.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 02/10/2025

🍂 Happy October! This one kind of snuck up on me… or maybe I just wasn’t ready to let go of September. As you are enjoying your pumpkin-spiced everything 🎃, I hope this season brings you focus and fulfilment. #HelloOctober #art

Gouache painting of yellow apples from my sketchbook.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 28/09/2025

🍐There are probably a gazillion things I could be painting, and should be painting, but they all require brain power and I’ve run out of that commodity… hope you’re having a nice restful Sunday. ☺️ #art

Sketchbook page with gouache painting of pears and blackberries.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 01/09/2025

I’m tired, I can’t use my words right now. Happy to have arrived in my favourite month of the year, worried because there’s so little left of 2025 and I’m not feeling like I know where I’m going yet. Here’s to spiced lattes and apple pie! #kidlit #art #September

Grumpy Pear with a kundalini-way too excited-worm sticking out of his third eye shouting Happy September!!

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 19/07/2025

Am I the only one who, when planning a new project, immediately heads over to their favourite online art materials shop and starts browsing? Repeat after me: “I do not NEED any MORE tubes of PAINT at THIS time.” Got it, got it? Good. Now carry on as you were. #procrastination #evasivemaneuvers

A plethora of paint tubes scattered across a wooden table.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 21/06/2025

Indulging my obsession with anthropomorphic fruit and veg. There’s something so nice and tactile about cutting them out. 😆 #kidlit #picturebookillustrator #watercolour #art #childrensillustration

Cut outs of watercolour illustrations depicting anthropomorphic strawberries and a potential turnip?

Cut outs of watercolour illustrations depicting anthropomorphic strawberries and a potential turnip? Scissors and coloured pencils in the margins.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 31/05/2025

The things we find lying around the house! 😂 This was sitting in a cabinet in the garden shed. It’s a set of weights for “oldyworldy” scientific scales. Comes complete with a pair of tweezers for the tiny weights (under the glass lid).

Old fashioned brass weights in a custom made wooden box.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

Spent time with my grandson yesterday and inspiration struck! Good thing I’d brought my sketchbook! 😂 I’m definitely using those Brussels sprouts in a project. #kidlitart #freelanceillustrator #picturebookillustrator

Illustration of characters dressed up as vegetables.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 28/04/2025

Here's a picture of a mockup from Patternbank with a floral design I just uploaded. :-) #surfacepatterndesigner #textiledesigner #patternbank

Mockup of a journal from Patternbank with a floral pattern by Marit Cooper.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

I had a piece of work in a local art exhibition. The technique is a little different to the way I normally work, mixed media with collage. I used gelli printed papers and gold leaf. It was a lot of fun to make and I definitely want to do some more in this style.

Collage painting with a character holding up a mask to their face.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

HUMAN ARTISTS, use only one piece to convince people to follow you. (I’m new at this so forgive me if I’m doing it wrong!🫣) [ #ArtShare ]

Watercolour illustration of insects and vegetation.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

A recent trip to Lapworth Museum coalesced into a pattern on Patterbank! #textiledesign #surfacepatterndesign @patternbank.bsky.social patternbank.com/Undaunted-De...

Picture of a curtain with a pattern of seashells and fossils.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

This how I deal with anxiety… because I can’t paint and think about world politics at the same time! 😆🙌 #workinprogress #surfacepatterndesign #fossils

Sketchbook page with watercolour painting with seashells, fossils and ginkgo leaves.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

Took a bit more effort to ensure a decent repeat. So many layers! Do we think this would work for a nursery? www.spoonflower.com/en/fabric/18... #surfacepatterndesign #fabricdesigner #freelanceillustrator

Throw pillow with a busy floral pattern featuring a small assortment of insects with googly eyes on a pink background.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

Another pattern inspired by the sketches I did recently. A bit more on the chaotic side… #surfacepatterndesign #illustration #patterndesigner

A complex detailed floral pattern with insects.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

Four colour ways and counting... www.spoonflower.com/profiles/und...

Wallpaper design in orange on tangerine mousse.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

So obviously I had to turn some of those elements in my sketchbook into a pattern and upload it to Spoonflower. 😂

Wallpaper design in peach on light brown/tan.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

Second page of my new (very expensive gift) sketchbook. I’m not sure about the introduction of the red, what do you think? #sketchbook #studiolife #insects #watercolor #experiments

Sketchbook page with drawings of insects and plants.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

I felt brave and started making art in my new sketchbook. 🫣 When in doubt, draw a bug. 🐛 😂 #sketchbook #insects #nature #freelanceillustrator

Sketchbook page with ink and watercolour drawings of flowers and insects .

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

This is the video I wanted to upload for new years but it didn’t seem to work. I just wanted to check if it worked now! 🙄😂

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 24/01/2025

Art materials and related things are possibly my only addiction. It was our wedding anniversary a few days ago and my husband bought me a present. The only problem with a sketchbook this posh is that you feel like every drawing has to be a masterpiece! 🥺

A beautiful sketch pad from L Cornelissen & Son in London, watercolour tin from Schmincke & Co, ceramic palette from Glitter Thread Mud Etsy https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/840124600/handmade-ceramic-paint-palette

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 21/01/2025

One thing that I absolutely adore is medieval and renaissance illumination, it’s a constant source of inspiration. ☺️ #kidlitart #freelanceillustrator #medieval

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 20/01/2025

Procrastination at its finest… curating my colour palette 🎨 🙄 #creativeblock #procrastination #kidlitart #studiolife

A picture of watercolour palettes, crayons and swatches.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

Henry VIII Crest Am I the only one who gets carried away with the decorative elements? #kidlitart #picturebookillustrator #procreate

Picture book illustration- Henry VIII’s crest and decorative borders.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 12/01/2025

When I went over to visit my daughter after Christmas this cheerful face greeted me on the Christmas tree! It’s the “Christmassy number four” that my grandson made me draw last year. Looks like I inadvertently created a family heirloom… 🤣

Anthropomorphic Christmas tree in the shape of a number four drawn with children’s marker pens on copy paper, cut out with kids decorative edge scissors.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

This book was a huge comfort to me when I was in my teens, it was just so cozy! Helped me through some sad times.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

So having established the direction I want to take my characters in I asked myself “what would a house look like in this world?”. As per usual I went a bit over the top with details and rendering. Simplify, simplify, simplify!! 😞 #sketchbook #worldbuilding

Illustration of a spooky little house on the forest.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 05/01/2025

Congratulations on your success, definitely well earned! 🙌😁

Sketchbook page, picture book illustration, anthropomorphic animals and a worried pear.

Picture book illustration of an angry Cherry in a paper hat stomping her feet inside a fish’s belly.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 05/01/2025

I am thoroughly enjoying my sketchbook practice now, this is so much fun! 😆 #sketchbookart #kidlitillustration #childrensillustrator #randomsketches

A sketchbook page with anthropomorphic animals and fruit.

Illustration of a brown furry anthropomorphic animal carrying its child on its back.

Illustration of an anthropomorphic crustacean wearing eye glasses.

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 04/01/2025

Re-Draw dragon. I’ve spent well over a year experimenting with techniques and materials trying to overcome the weird sort of creative fatigue I’ve been experiencing. I feel like I’m beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel now.😊 #kidlitart #picturebookillustration

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Marit Cooper @maritcooper.bsky.social · 01/01/2025

First sketchbook exercise of 2025. I do enjoy these first lazy days of the year when everything feels fresh and possible. How do I keep this positive outlook when things start to get hectic? #sketchbook #artforfun #pastel

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