Mixer: Winter 2026

It's for interior design professionals and the artisans, makers, suppliers and service providers they rely on to bring projects to life. It exists to build a stronger creative network that can, in turn, strengthen the North East economy.

If your world touches interiors, you’ll fit.

• If you design homes, commercial spaces or workplaces and want to find a clearer route to trusted makers, this is the room where it happens.
• If you’re a supplier who wants decision makers to understand not just what you sell but how you think, Mixer makes space for that.
• If you’re a furniture maker, an artisan, a fabricator who wants to see how designers choose materials or why tiny details matter, you’ll find those answers here.

Mixer is for the people shaping how the North East looks and feels, from style updates in twentieth century houses to major refurbishments inside old industrial shells. It brings the region’s talent under one roof so the conversations that matter have somewhere solid to land. It’s a place to share, learn and stitch our design community a little tighter.

Mixer is a non-profit event organised by SPELK and supported by Design Network North.

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9.00-10.00: Welcome.

Doors open for coffee and pastries (sponsored by Stanhope Green).

Arrive whenever suits you.

10.00-12.00: Talks.

Four fantastic speakers share their knowledge.

12.00-13.00: Discussion.

Another opportunity to compare notes, swap contacts, sketch out possibilities.

Introduction by Kelly Smith (SPELK ) and Terry McStea (Design Network North).

Speaker 1: Joanna Feeley, Chief Executive at TrendBible

Topic: TBC.

Speaker 2: Graeme Smith, Creative Director at SPELK Studio.

Topic: Kitchen design and the human approach.

Speaker 3: TBC

Speaker 4: TBC

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Northern Design Centre, Abbots Hill, Gateshead, United Kingdom

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.

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