15 best Domestika courses in English (plus 5 in Spanish)

When it comes to creative classes online, Domestika courses are my absolute favorite. There is a wide variety of courses to choose from, and they’re all incredibly well-produced and taught by experienced professionals.

For new users though, it can be hard to know where to hop in. There are thousands of courses on the platform, but the vast majority are in Spanish with English subtitles.

The biggest problem is that there’s no way to search for the best Domestika courses in English on the platform. To help, I’ve selected 15 of my favorites below. If you’re feeling adventurous, I’ve also included five Spanish language courses that are also worth checking out.

If you’ve never used Domestika before, check out our Domestika review to learn more, or just click the button below to create a free account and get started!

Affiliate disclosure: Articles on Tiny Workshops may contain affiliate links.

Save money with course bundles

Before we get into the list itself, you should be aware that if you buy more than one course you can save some money by getting a course bundle.

The nice thing about these bundles is that you can choose which courses to buy. Some have themes like illustration, watercolor, Instagram, or crafts, but others allow you to choose from a huge list of the best courses on Domestika.

Course bundles can include 2, 3, or 6 courses for a discounted price. These can be as much as 70% off the listed price, so it’s definitely worth it. Once you buy the courses you have them forever, so you don’t have to worry about maintaining a subscription fee or anything.

If you’re already a fan of the platform (or become one after reading this article!) and an ongoing learner, signing up for a Domestika Plus subscription is another way to enjoy juicy discounts and watch a rotating library of included courses!

Check out the latest course bundles at the button below.

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Best Domestika courses in English

With that out of the way, let’s get to the list of the best Domestika courses in English. Note that these are mostly grouped by category (illustration, craft, business, etc.) and not listed in order of quality or preference.

Each one has something different to offer, and I’ve also listed a few similar courses that might interest you with each listing.

1. The Art of Sketching: Transform Your Doodles into Art

Let’s kick off the list of the best Domestika classes with one of the most popular illustration courses on the platform.

Taught by experienced illustrator Mattias Adolfsson (check out his Instagram, it’s incredible), the goal of this course is to start sketching and doodling in a way that’s both fun and productive for your art.

Rather than focusing on rigid rules for drawing, Mattias takes a much more light-hearted approach in this course. The idea is that your art doesn’t have to be perfect, and by having fun and sticking with it you’ll develop a style of your own.

Mattias has a second Domestika course called Creative Sketching: Fill Your Illustrations with Life and Detail, and it’s every bit as good. Bundle them together for a double dose of sketching goodness!

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Creative Sketching: Fill Your Illustrations with Life and Detail
• Illustrated Sketchbooking in Full Color
• Hand-Drawn Typographic Portrait

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2. Architectural Sketching with Watercolor and Ink

Shifting to slightly more realistic drawing, this course taught by artist Alex Hillkurtz is perfect for urban sketchers and fans of architecture. It blends architectural sketching and watercolor in a way that will really make your art jump off the page.

Aside from the excellent technical drawing instruction, Alex brings his experience as a storyboard artist to help you learn how to frame your images. Composing your piece before your pen hits the paper is a critical step that’s easy to forget.

If storyboarding also interests you, you can check out one of the best Domestika courses in English for storyboarding here! You can also check our lineup of the best storyboarding classes for more online learning options.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Architectural Illustration: Capture a City’s Personality
• Urban Sketching: Express Your World in a New Perspective
• Introduction to Storyboarding

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3. Artistic Watercolor Techniques for Illustrating Birds

Animals can be a difficult subject when it comes to art. Knowing where to draw the line between realism and your imagination isn’t always clear, even when working from a photograph.

This course by artist Sarah Stokes demystifies the task using one of the most unpredictable mediums there is: watercolor. She shows how to depict birds and other animals with vibrant colors, plus a few extra techniques to liven up the composition.

If you enjoy her teaching style, she has another course about watercolor animal portraits and a third about charcoal portraits. All are worth checking out and frequently on sale!

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Illustrating Nature: A Creative Exploration
• Modern Watercolor Techniques (dubbed)
• Illustrated Recipes: Making Delicious Art

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4. Adobe Photoshop for Beginners

Some of the best Domestika courses available on the platform are its popular Domestika Basics classes. These are exceptionally comprehensive courses, longer in duration, that thoroughly cover the ins and outs of a topic or theme rather than focusing on a specific project.

In this particular case, this Domestika Basics course dives deep into Adobe Photoshop to teach you everything you need to know about the renowned photo manipulation/editing software.

The course is more than 6 hours long, spread across 46 lessons. Rest assured that you will come away with a complete understanding of how to use Photoshop! And you can always go back and rewatch parts in the future since Domestika guarantees lifetime access to purchased classes.

If you want an even more in-depth course that’s aimed solely at photographers, check out Adobe Photoshop: Beginner’s Guide for Photographers, which is truly exhaustive at nearly 20 hours long.

Really though, any of the Domestika Basics series can be counted among the best Domestika courses due to the consistent quality and incredible value for the money.

More Domestika Basics courses in English:

• Adobe Photoshop: Beginner’s Guide for Photographers
• Adobe InDesign for Beginners
• Introduction to Adobe XD
• DaVinci Resolve for Beginners
• Autodesk Revit for Beginners

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5. Digital Fantasy Portraits with Photoshop

If you want to use Photoshop for illustration, you don’t necessarily need to learn everything about the software.

This course from illustrator Karmen Loh will teach you the absolute basics of the software while learning amazing techniques to create your own artwork.

Karmen shows how to breathe life into digital portrait illustrations, turning them into narrative works with story and atmosphere. She walks you through her process of pulling from creative references to push your work to the next level.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Portrait Illustration with Analog and Digital Techniques
• Creative Portrait Illustration with Procreate
• Realistic Oil Portraiture: Conveying Detail and Expression
• Chiaroscuro Creative Portrait with Pencils

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6. Lighting Principles for Digital Painting

While most Domestika courses are aimed at beginners, this one is for digital artists with a bit more experience. Visual development artist Samuel Smith covers advanced lighting techniques to give your artwork a more cinematic appeal.

And that’s one of the main applications for this course: cinema. Having the ability to create a complete scene for a storyboard is an invaluable skill for any graphic designer. If nothing else, it will help you create digital images with more depth and character.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Illustrated Character Design and World Creation
• Composition and Color for Creative Illustration
• Artistic Charcoal Portraiture: Creating Atmosphere

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7. Editorial Illustration for Magazines

Creating artwork for your own enjoyment is one thing, but creating it for clients is another entirely. If you want to maximize your chances of getting work in graphic design and illustration, you need to pick up a few additional skills.

That’s where this fantastic course from illustrator Emma Hanquist comes in. She’ll teach you how to reduce a story to its most basic elements, then capture the emotion in a way that would be impossible with a photograph.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Book Cover Illustration: Unraveling the Essence of a Story
• Graphic Visualization: Telling Complex Stories through Simple Images
• The Art of Record Covers: Illustration Meets Lettering

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8. Finding Your Creative Voice through Collage

Getting away from careers for a bit, this extremely entertaining course from Hanoch Piven is exactly what you need to have more fun while being creative. He essentially walks you through his process to create portrait collages from everyday objects around the house.

This is the perfect course to take if you’re a teacher or spend any time around kids (even if it’s just your inner child). It’s short, interactive, and a whole lot of fun for all ages.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Hand-Drawn Typographic Portrait
• Illustration Techniques to Unlock your Creativity
• Soft Toy Creation for Beginners

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9. Paper Cutting Techniques for Storytelling

We all did origami and basic paper cutting to create streamers as a kid, but this Domestika course provides a new perspective on what’s possible with paper.

Rather than simply folding paper to create new shapes, it’s all about layering paper cutouts to tell a story in a unique way. It’s perfect for those who like to work with their hands, with no drawing skills required.

For those who want to do more folding, there’s another course called Pop-Up Book Creation. It was initially recorded in Spanish, but later dubbed with English audio for international audiences.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Pop-Up Book Creation
• Paper Flower Craft Techniques

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10. Upcycling with Crochet for Beginners

Sticking with the theme of working with your hands, this next option is one of the best Domestika courses in the Crafts category.

In it, you’ll not only learn the basics of crochet (you don’t need any prior knowledge going in), but also how to apply them in new and interesting ways to your own clothing.

Taught by crochet expert Emma Friedlander-Collins (of Steel and Stitch), you’ll learn how to breath new life into old clothes and accessories. The final project is a pair of upcycled crochet slippers.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Upcycling with Embroidery
• Pom-Pom Design and Creation
• Textile Printing Techniques for Beginners

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11. Introduction to Brush Lettering

Brush lettering has come back in a huge way. Lettering artists like James Lewis (who also happens to teach this course) have amassed millions of followers on Instagram and TikTok.

What’s great about this course is that James teaches not only how to create your own brush lettering works, but also how to present and share them on social media. In the final project, you’ll replicate some of the most iconic logos of all time, but you’ll be more than prepared to create your own original designs, too.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• The Art of Record Covers: Illustration Meets Lettering
• Illustrated Digital Lettering
• Hand-Drawn Typographic Portrait

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12. Transforming Your Creative Ideas into Personal Projects

As one of the very first English options on the platform, this is still one of the best Domestika courses you can take today.

Rather than focusing on specific techniques and tools, it takes a more holistic approach to the creative process. Essentially, you’ll learn how to turn ideas into reality without getting bogged down in the process.

And who better to teach this than Ji Lee, the current creative director of Facebook and Instagram. He’s one of the most influential designers in America, working not only at big name companies but also for small, personal projects. This is an inspirational masterclass that every aspiring creative professional should take.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Brand Strategy for Online Platforms
• Art Direction for Creative Visual Branding

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13. Principles of Presentation Design

There’s nothing worse than sitting through a boring presentation — except being the one on the other side of the podium watching your audience’s interest fade.

But it doesn’t have to be like this! Effective presentations can be fun, engaging, and most importantly, persuasive.

This excellent course by Katya Kovalenko will teach you how to create engaging presentations, no matter if you’re using Keynote, PowerPoint, or any other presentation software. She’ll also leave you with some tips for when it comes time to present. Break a leg!

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Graphic Visualization: Telling Complex Stories through Simple Images
• Introduction to Illustrated Bullet Journaling

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14. Instagram Strategy for Business Growth

This is yet another very early Domestika English course that really knocked it out of the park. With social media becoming more and more important for businesses, every entrepreneur and small business owner needs to develop some savvy or be left in the dust.

Social media expert Dot Lung lays out everything you need to do to up your social game and start converting new customers. Although most of the advice is aimed at accounts with fewer than 10,000 followers, much if it can be applied at any level. Stop struggling with social media and get some help and advice from the experts!

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Copywriting for Social Media
• Building a Personal Brand on Instagram
• Community Management Fundamentals
• Social Media Strategy for Events

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15. Logo Design: From Concept to Presentation

Last up is a theory-heavy course from a well-respected graphic designer. Sagi Haviv has worked on some of the most iconic logos in the world (see some of them above), and he’s learned a lot in the process.

While there are plenty of Domestika courses to learn how to use Illustrator or Photoshop, this one will teach you the thought process behind designing a logo. In most cases this part is much more difficult to get right, so it’s extremely helpful to have such expert advice and guidance.

Similar Domestika courses in English:

• Art Direction for Creative Visual Branding
• Creative Packaging Design

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Bonus: Best Domestika courses in Spanish

I know that most people want to take online courses in their native language, but in the case of Domestika, you should really try some of the Spanish offerings. They comprise some of the best Domestika courses you’ll find on the platform!

There are over 1000 courses in Spanish from some of the most talented people around the world. Avoiding them just because you don’t want to read subtitles means missing out on some of the best courses you’ll find online — and for great value.

To give you just a taste, I’ve selected 5 of the best Domestika courses that I’ve found so far. As of 2023, most of them have actually been dubbed in English, too!

Watercolor Illustration with Japanese Influence

Of all the Domestika courses I’ve taken this is by far my favorite. Taught by the incredibly talented Argentine artist Flor Kaneshiro, it teaches the basics of watercolor with a Japanese flare that you won’t find anywhere else.

Read the interview: Illustrator Flor Kaneshiro on finding her personal style

Flor explains traditional Sumi-e techniques, which are monochromatic paintings with precise brush movements. Drawing from her other influences like Oga Kazuo and Hayao Miyazaki (of Studio Ghibli), she’ll show you how to adapt this ancient art form to create modern, colorful works of art.

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Drawing for Beginners Level -1

This fantastic course by illustrator and educator Puño is one of the most popular courses on the platform, and for good reason. It’s nominally a drawing 101 course, but the way it’s presented just about anyone can take something away from it.

Whether you think you can’t draw or never learned to enjoy it, your mind will be changed by the end of this course. Through exercises, games, and fun practice sketches, you’ll learn how to love drawing again by taking this course.

After the success of this one, Puño made a few other Domestika courses which were equally well received.

Update: This course has now been dubbed in English!

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Professional Photography for Instagram

A good photograph can make or break any social media post, especially on hugely visual platforms like Instagram. Whether you’re a designer, illustrator, small business owner, or just want to share your work on the social media giant, you’ll have to up your game if you want to get noticed.

The good news is you don’t need much. In this fantastic Domestika course by photographer Mina Barrio, you’ll learn how to stage and capture attention-grabbing photos using just your smartphone. That’s right, no professional camera or software required. What do you have to lose?

Update: This course has now been dubbed in English!

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Introduction to Macramé: Creation of a Decorative Tapestry

I’m a sucker for macrame classes and textile arts, so I was happy to learn that Domestika features many great courses to help you get started. My favorite is this one by textile artist Belen Senra, which focuses on creating modern macrame tapestries (or wall hangings).

While Belen covers the basic knots you need to know for the final project, there are a few other courses that are specifically for learning more complex knots. Still, I’d recommend starting with a course that has a specific end product in mind, like this one.

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Professional Woodworking for Beginners

There are a lot of woodworking classes out there on the web, but few of them are as focused and practical as this one. In it, furniture maker Patricio Ortega will walk you through the basic tools and skills you need.

He focuses mostly on repeatability with templates in order to scale up your work for professional woodworking. You won’t find many hand tools here, and you may want to invest in a good router table beforehand.

This is one of the few Domestika courses where your final project might look nothing like what’s made in the course. And that’s ok! The idea is that the skills learned can be employed to make many different types of furniture. Let your imagination run wild!

Update: This course has now been dubbed in English!

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That’s it for my picks for the best Domestika courses in English (and otherwise). Do you have any more recommendations? Let everyone know in the comments below!