Swindon Open Studio has finished now for 2025 but don’t worry, we’ll be back next year, bigger and better than ever. Here are a few highlights from the 2025 event.

Podpadstudios presented – The Scale of Things – A unique opportunity to see 1:6 scale models not displayed at Swindon Open Studios before.

Created by Podpadstudios, and produced for film, TV and exhibitions.

Zozo Thomas returned to textiles with Bags of Art, a fusion of function and artistry.

Zozo Thomas

Spellbound Arts and Bakes delighted everyone with their spooky makes and delicious bakes.

Spellbound Arts & Bakes

Jan and Geoff Arts fascinated us with their unique sculptures and atmospheric paintings

Jan & Geoff Arts 

Visiting exhibitors included Theresa Dowdeswell, Stuart Malaure and Lisa Mullan of Dinky Amigos.

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More images

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A morning of pure joy at Waterstones Swindon! I had a blast reading my book “Flit and Flutter By” to the children who came to meet me. We sang, danced and coloured in together. Their laughter and creativity filled the air, reminding me of the magic of storytelling and childhood imagination.

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In late 2019, the Artswords Literature Development Project put out a call for short written works for an anthology titled Swindon Writing.
Writers in Swindon rose to the challenge, and, in 2020, Swindon Writing was published, and in 2022, Swindon Writing II.
Artswords is now seeking submissions for Swindon Writing III from anyone living in or near Swindon or with a significant connection to the town.
This time, Artswords is also looking for artworks relating to Swindon to be published alongside the writing.
Ideally, the artworks should illustrate an aspect of Swindon. They can be in any medium and genre, including landscape, still life, cartoon, pattern, or a photograph of a sculpture or textile.
Artswords is also looking for an artwork or design to be used specifically for the cover of Swindon Writing III.
Artists whose work is used will receive full credit and can submit an artist statement to be published alongside their work.
Note. The book is likely to be A5 size in portrait orientation, so please bear this in mind when planning your work. See
There is no fee for submission or publication.
Profits from the sale of Swindon Writing III will be used to fund the activities of Artswords in Swindon.

Matt Holland, [Artswords Worker], said: “Even though Artswords is primarily dedicated to literature development, we realise that this is also an ideal opportunity to showcase work by artists from Swindon. We are looking for interesting, insightful, and thought-provoking artworks to feature alongside the writing.”

Swindon-based author and illustrator, Zoe Thomas, co-editor of Swindon Writing III said: “I would encourage everyone to submit an image, even if they are nervous about doing so. The editors are kind and, if needed, will be on hand to help with artist statements.”

Guidelines for artwork submissions

Please read the submission guidelines below.

We are looking for a variety of artistic styles and especially encourage themes that convey a strong sense of Swindon.
Entrance is free. There is no submission or publication fee.
Copyright remains with the artist. Artswords reserves the right to use any successful submission in Swindon Writing III and any publicity material relating to it, but the artist may also publish the work themselves or submit it elsewhere.
All work must be original work by the artist, plagiarized or copied content is not acceptable.
Artists may submit one or two pieces
All submissions should be accompanied by an artist statement of no more than 300 words. This should include details about the artist along with an explanation of the artwork and how it might relate to Swindon. It may also include links to websites or methods of contacting the artist.
Submissions must be in the form of a high resolution (300 dpi or higher) image. Do not send original artworks.
The book is likely to be printed as A5 size and portrait format. Landscape orientation images may be accepted but will not be eligible to be used on the front cover.
There is no age limit, however, submissions from under 18s must be accompanied by permission from the parent or guardian for the work and the artist’s name to be published.
The submission deadline is 31 December 2023.
Submit your finished pieces by or before then then to swindonwritingproject@outlook.com
The editors are Katie Sullivan, Zoe Thomas, and Matt Holland. It is they who will choose successful submissions for Swindon Writing III.
If you have any questions, please send them to swindonwritingproject@outlook.com.

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Every Word Counts.

In late 2019, the Swindon Artswords Literature Development Project put out a call for short written works for an anthology titled Swindon Writing.
Writers in Swindon rose to the challenge, and, in 2020, Swindon Writing was published; followed by Swindon Writing II in 2022.

Artswords is now seeking submissions for Swindon Writing III from anyone living in or near Swindon or with a significant connection to the town.
Whether you are a powerful poet, a novice novelist, a promising playwright, a confident composer, or a bashful beginner, we welcome your work.
Any piece of writing or illustration will be considered.

• Each author may submit one or two pieces of no more than 1,000 words in each.
• Submissions should be accompanied by a biography of no more than 50 words.
• Deadline for submissions is 31st December ’23

Matt Holland, [Artswords Literature Development Worker ], said: “Swindon Artswords is dedicated to literature development. The Swindon Writing series aims to encourage this. We are looking for interesting, insightful, entertaining, and thought-provoking submissions. We know that there are many talented and dedicated writers in Swindon, and Artswords wants to help them develop and showcase their work.”

Katie Sullivan, Co-Editor of the Swindon Writing series said: “Writers should not be put off submitting their work if they are inexperienced or lack confidence. There is a wealth of support available for budding writers in Swindon. Artswords provides writing groups and a mentoring service and there are also plenty of websites that provide spelling and grammatical support.”

Guidelines for submission

• The editors are looking for interesting, insightful, entertaining, and thought-provoking work.
• Any genre will be considered – including poetry, prose fiction or prose fact in the shape of short story, play, essay, memoir, or dialogue, and cartoons too – from anyone living in or near Swindon or with a significant connection to the town.
• Swindon Writing III will include an ‘About the Authors’ section. So, along with your submission, please send us a brief introduction to yourself, in 50 words or fewer.
• All work must be by the author. Plagiarized, copied content, or AI generated material will not be accepted.
• Illustrations are welcomed.
• There is no age limit but submissions from under 18s must be accompanied by permission from the parent or guardian for the work and the author’s name to be published.
• There is no fee for submission or publication.
• Submission is no guarantee of inclusion in Swindon Writing III. That decision rests with the editors.
• Copyright remains with the author. Swindon Artswords reserves the right to use any successful submission in Swindon Writing III and any publicity material relating to it, but the author may also publish the work themselves or submit it elsewhere.
• All submissions should be sent as Microsoft Word Documents. Any pictures/cartoons must be submitted as PDF document. If you have any difficulty with either of these methods of sending, please let us know.
• The submission deadline is 31 December 2023.
• Please send your finished pieces by or before then to swindonwritingproject@outlook.com

Profits from the sale of Swindon Writing III will be used to fund the activities of Artswords in Swindon.

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We were pleased to welcome so many of you to the first ever Mulberry Gathering open studios in June 2023.

Writer Zozo Thomas launched her new children’s book, Flit and Flutter By, we saw some fab props by Podpadstudios – think dragons and giant robots, and we heard about the healing power of herbs from SM Herbal. Lots of you took a tour around the magical Mulberry Gardens, guided by Niki and G from Back to the Goodlife, and then relaxed with a cuppa and a slice of delicious cake baked by Kristyna of Spellbound Arts and Bakes as well as viewing artwork from Kristyna, Stuart and Zoe. We’re looking forward to welcoming you again in September 2023 as part of Swindon Open Studios. 

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The pdf files that we sell at Thomzo Designs, are available for instant download once you have checked out your purchase. The best way to buy something is to add the product to your basket:
Buying this way, allows you to add any discount voucher codes at the checkout.

Once you have successfully checked out your purchase, you will see a download button appear on the checkout screen:

Click that button to download your file. Depending on your operating system, the file might be automatically saved in your downloads folder, or you might have to specify where you want to save it.

If you lose your file, or accidentally delete it, don’t worry. You will also receive a thank you e-mail which will give you a link to where you can download the file again. Once you have purchased it, you can download it as many times as you wish.

If you would like to send it to someone else as a present, just insert the file into an e-mail as an attachment. If you are doing that, don’t forget to purchase another copy for yourself.

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For a limited time, you can watch the full video on the BBC Wiltshire Radio Upload website: BBC Radio Wiltshire – Upload on BBC Radio Wiltshire, Sunny. This is the short version of Sunny, that appears in the book Swindon Writing. For the full download or the paperback version, have a look at my shop: Shop – Thomzo Designs.

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A. You have a couple of options. Some of my stories are available as paperback books on Amazon. Just look for the Tales from Mulberry Garden series on Amazon or follow the links from the products page.

Another option is to use photo-editing software to colour the file on your computer. That saves paper and ink, and you don’t need to buy special pens or pencils.

I use the free software, Snipping Tool, to capture the section of file that I wish to colour:

Then save the image onto your computer.

Once you have saved the image, you can open it in your favourite photo-editing or drawing app. Try to find one that has a fill tool, which allows you to fill the areas surrounded by a line.

One of the great things about colouring on the computer is that you can zoom in to get right into the detail. The lines might look a bit grainy at high magnification, but when you take it back to its normal size, they should be fine.

Don’t forget to let me see how well you can colour by sending your picture to zoe@thomzodesigns.co.uk or by posting on social media using #thomzodesigns.

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