If you’re looking for a way to go camping in style, or need some extra space for wedding guests, a tepee could be the perfect solution

Emma Hall-Craggs has always loved camping in the lovely wild countryside of the North-East that she is proud to call home.

She wanted something a bit different to the usual bell tents, though, and after finding nothing to suit her family’s camping needs, she decided to design her own, and the family-run Northern Star Tepees was born.

Inspired by an 1800s American military tent, her canvas, single-pole tepees are sturdy, practical, and hardy, yet high-quality, luxurious, and stylish, with some much-needed modern adjustments.

“We’ve made a few adjustments that suit the modern traditional camper, but it is essentially the same bit of kit,” says Emma. “Tried and tested over the years by some of the world’s most intrepid explorers, this tent design is rugged, practical and super cool!”

What’s more, she says, they have even solved some of the worst aspects of camping. If you’re fed of waking up in puddles of water, the tepees come equipped with a heavy duty zipped in ground sheet with a waterproof zipper and PVC water flap.

Reflective guy ropes mean you are not constantly tripping over at night; roomy zip-up canvas bags means you don’t have to spend ages stuffing the tent into a sack bag; roll-up/peg-out fly-screened zipped windows allow different levels of privacy but mean you can flood your living space with light.

“Finally, with just a single central pole, tepees take half the time to pitch than normal tents,” says Emma. “You’ll be the envy of every campsite.”

Northern Star Tepees’s tepees are available to buy or to rent, and the company does private hire for events such as boutique festivals, parties, and graduations, fully furnished or not.

Their speciality, however, is weddings. Their wedding tepees provide great accommodation for any shabby chic, boho, or vintage-style weddings – anything rustic, down-to-earth, and back to nature.

The company’s number one aim is to ensure the wedding is as stress free as possible, says Emma, so they will personally pitch and dismantle their tepees in the couple’s chosen location, and will then fully furnish them with handpicked decorations such as bunting, chandeliers, floral garlands, wicker baskets, log burners, and fire pits, and, most importantly, a single, double, or king-size bed with a memory foam mattress.

Northern Star Tepees consult with the couple as to how they want to add their own personal touches and as a special wedding gift, the company will throw in a free three-metre ‘dressing’ tent for every couple who chooses the larder bridal tent.

Northern Star Tepees are also the only UK supplier of three-metre children’s tents, which are not only great for solo camping, kid’s parties, and permanent pitches in your garden for a wedding, but also make a great kids’ zone for younger guests to relax while the older ones enjoy the party.

“And with tepees pitched on site, there’s no need to taxi your guests to their hotels at the end of the night,” says Emma. “Which means only one thing... the party can go on for longer!”

Northern Star Tepees also sell other glamping products, including 285gsm and 350gsm walkabout dining tents, traditional, UK-made, hand forged cooking bowls, woks, traditional Indian kadai sets, swing grills, fire pits, and Falcon enamelware in a variety of colours.