How a Graphic Designer Teaches His Two-Year Old the ABCs

We recently partnered with Bounty to support emerging artists and designers in a national design competition. The ask? Design a graphic for a new Brit + Co and Bounty paper towel collection themed A Clean Fresh Start, which launches this month. In this creator spotlight series, we are featuring the winners of that competition to learn more about their inspirations, their design process, and their winning Bounty design. Read on to meet…

Sarah Ziegler, @sarahziegler, Minneapolis, MN

What are your design inspirations? I get lots of inspiration from fellow creatives. I am very lucky to have so many talented and creative people in my life — I am always inspired by and learn from them. I am also inspired by goofy, younger me, always learning and creating. That quirky, playfulness still comes across in my work and I’m glad she is still a part of me.

Tell us about your design process: The first thing I do when starting a new design is explore different color palettes. Bold color is such a huge part of my work and I like to let that dictate the direction a piece will go. I then use my favorite tool, my sketchbook, to try out different layouts and designs. Once I land on a sketch I’m happy with, I use my tablet to digitize it. I got my first Wacom tablet a few years ago and it totally changed the game for my illustrations. My tablet, and now iPad, make it so easy to create and share my artwork. Instagram and Dribble are my favorite platforms to share and gain inspiration from.

How did you get into illustration? I have been drawing ever since I was a little kid in my first art class. I was mainly a fine artist growing up, which was a really good foundation for when I went to college for graphic design. I began focusing more on my illustrations when I started working on children’s books for I See Me! I got to start working with so many talented illustrators and it really pushed me to start creating more of my own illustrations.

What are three IG accounts you love?

@womenoftype - Features beautiful lettering by women & non-binary creatives

@peopleiveloved - Browse when you’re feeling confused and alone

@asahinagata - Very fun vintage/retro design and illustration

How do you know when a piece of art, including your Bounty Paper Towel design, is “finished”? I really try not to overthink this. I definitely believe that done is better than perfect when it comes to my art. In general, I’ll feel a piece is finished when everything I do to it makes it look worse. If I feel the piece is communicating what I want it to, I don’t really worry if it’s “perfectly finished” or not.

What will it be like for you to see your design on a Bounty Paper Towel at your local store? Seeing my designs on Bounty paper towels will be such a big accomplishment. My work has never been showcased on a scale like this, so I could not be more excited for these to hit the shelf!

Be sure to look out for Sarah’s winning design wherever Bounty Paper Towels are sold!

Those with a creative eye know firsthand that inspiration is all around us. Whether you're energized by the earth tones of nature, a color-filled walk through a local farmer's market, or even by a quick scroll through Instagram, you never know what might spark a new creative project.

In the spirit of inspiring your next masterpiece, we're excited to partner with Bounty to fuel the next generation of artists and designers forward by launching a national design competition. We're calling on graphic designers to apply for a chance to see their work featured on a new Brit + Co and Bounty paper towel collection, set to launch in 2022.

Aside from the incredible exposure of having your illustrations on paper towels that'll be in stores across America next year, you'll also receive $5,000 for your art; a scholarship for Selfmade, our 10-week entrepreneurship accelerator to take your design career to the next level (valued at $2,000); and a stand alone feature on Brit + Co spotlighting your artistry as a creator.

The Creatively You Design Competition launches Friday, May 21, 2021 and will be accepting submissions through Monday, June 7, 2021.

APPLY NOW

Who Should Apply: Women-identifying graphic designers and illustrators. (Due to medium limitations, we're not currently accepting design submissions from photographers or painters.)

What We're Looking For: Digital print and pattern designs that reflect your design aesthetic. Think optimistic, hopeful, bright — something you'd want to see inside your home.

How To Enter:Apply here, where you'll be asked to submit 2x original design files you own the rights to for consideration. Acceptable file formats include: .PNG, .JPG, .GIF, .SVG, .PSD, and .TIFF. Max file size 5GB. We'll also ask about your design inspiration and your personal info so we can keep in touch.

Artist Selection Process: Panelists from Brit + Co and P&G Bounty's creative teams will judge the submissions and select 50 finalists on June 11, 2021 who will receive a Selfmade scholarship for our summer 2021 session. Then, up to 8 artists will be selected from the finalists and notified on June 18, 2021. The chosen designers will be announced publicly in 2022 ahead of the product launch.

For any outstanding contest Qs, please see our main competition page. Good luck & happy creating!

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. Open to legal residents of the 50 United States (D.C.), 18 years of age and older. Void where prohibited. Contest begins 5/21/21 and ends 6/7/21. For Official Rules, prize descriptions and odds disclosure, click here. Sponsor: The Procter & Gamble Distributing LLC, One P&G Plaza, Cincinnati, OH 45202.

Christmas cookie decorating is holiday tradition for us here at B+C, so we were so stoked to find this recipe for paleo cookies that adds a healthy twist to this classic holiday dessert. These sweet treats will shine among the rest of your Christmastime tablescape, and they are super easy to make. Plus, they'll pair well with just about any Christmas dessert. Just combine your paleo-friendly ingredients to prep the dough, let it sit overnight, then bake for ten minutes! The best part about this recipe is of course, all of the fun holiday-time shapes you can cut. Consider this recipe your go-to for healthy cookies, though, since you can make them year-round in any shape you like. Let's get to decorating!

Ingredients for Paleo Christmas Cookies

Brit + Co

For the cookies:

• 1/2 cup grass-fed salted butter, softened
• 6 tablespoons raw honey
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 3 cups almond flour
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For the frosting:

• 6 tablespoons coconut butter or coconut manna
• 1/4 cup cacao butter
• 1-2 tablespoons honey
• Plant-based food coloring
• Vegetable-dyed sprinkles, for topping*

* Look for vegetable and fruit-dyed food coloring and sprinkles in natural grocery stores or online, and avoid artificial colors to keep these cookies Paleo friendly!

How to Make Paleo Christmas Cookies

Brit + Co

1. Add the softened butter and honey to a large mixing bowl. Cream the mixture together using a handheld mixer until it is smooth. Add in the eggs, vanilla extract, and almond extract and whisk until they are well combined. Pour in the almond flour, coconut flour, and baking soda, and continue mixing until the batter has come together smoothly.
2. Separate the dough into two, and place each one on top of a piece of plastic wrap. Roll each dough into a ball, then flatten to a thick disk, cover completely with the plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator to firm up for at least 2 hours or overnight.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove one of the dough discs from the refrigerator, unwrap the plastic and place the dough on top of a piece of parchment paper, then top it with another piece of parchment paper. Use a roller to flatten out the dough to about 1/4 to 1/2 of an inch thick. Work quickly with your favorite Christmas cookie cutters, and use a thin spatula to lift the cut cookies onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake the cookies in the oven for 10 minutes. Let them cool for a few minutes, then place on a wire rack for further cooling. Gather the leftover scraps back into a ball in the plastic wrap or parchment paper and place it back in the refrigerator, while working with the other piece of dough. Do this in batches to keep the dough from getting too warm and so you don’t overcrowd the baking sheet.
5. While the batches of cookies are baking, use a small saucepan to lightly melt the coconut butter and cacao butter together over low heat on the stovetop. Remove the pan from the heat when the ingredients have just melted together. Stir in the desired amount of honey, then set aside to cool and thicken up slightly. If you are using food coloring, add in the desired amount into the frosting mixture (1-2 teaspoons of green or red should do the trick). If you plan on only using white frosting, only use a small amount of honey, as it can make the frosting an off-white or light brown color.
6. After the cookies have completely cooled, decorate them with the frosting and sprinkles as desired. If you don’t have any professional piping tools, an easy fix is to place the frosting in a plastic sandwich bag and remove all the air when sealing the top. Cut a tiny tip off one corner of the plastic bag, then gently squeeze and pipe over the cookies. Use one plastic bag or piping bag for each color of frosting. Top with corresponding sprinkles and enjoy!

Is your mouth watering yet? Check out our newsletter for more delicious holiday recipe ideas!

Recipe development and photography by Sarah Anderson.