Dana, Peter and Tim Costello
How do you go from being told by your high school art teacher that artistically you’d “never amount to anything”, to becoming an award-winning, internationally renowned artist?
Costello Coastal Knobs founder, Peter Costello, spent his summers on Plum Island, Massachusetts. Growing up in the “poor man’s paradise” (his Dad's nickname) he fished, surfed, and spent many hours on the beach. He also enjoyed watching the migrations of water fowl in the salt marsh.
At 7 years old, Peter’s grandfather gave him a carving knife and taught him the basics of whittling wood. Those lessons came back to Peter 25 years later while living in Vermont, hunting and fishing again. He began carving miniature ducks, then hunting decoys. Peter entered a duck decoy contest in 1976 and, to everyone’s surprise, won two first place ribbons. He soon transitioned from the medical field to a professional decoy carver.
Pete’s love of creation expressed through sculpting continued to evolve. After moving to the Space Coast of Florida, he joined a fishing club in 1980. A friend asked him to try carving a sailfish to be used as an award for their annual fishing club banquet. Peter began carving sport fish for fishing tournaments, and a new career was born. Soon his trophies were in demand at big game fishing tournaments around the world and awarded to such dignitaries as astronaut, Chuck Yeager, and also used for Governors’ Cup awards.
In the early 1990s, a local jeweler gave Peter some sculpting wax and challenged him to carve something for jewelry. The hard wax media and Pete’s wood carving experience blended easily. Peter was immediately inspired to carve many new designs for a beautiful jewelry collection. Peter’s 14 karat gold jewelry was featured at fine jewelry stores throughout the United States and Caribbean. After a few years, Peter’s Nautical Jewelry Collection was bought, and is still available today in South Florida.
Peter’s creative drive finally led him to become a designer of cabinet hardware, and Costello Coastal Knobs (previously named Sea Life Cabinet Knobs) was born in 2002. Of over 50 designs, Peter says his favorite is the Sea Turtle.
His love of creation and a carving knife forged the career path of Peter Costello and his family.
The entire Costello family invites you to “Bring creation in!” with Peter’s artwork to adorn your cabinets and enhance your home.
© 2022 Costello Coastal Knobs