Yes, you saw that right! We've got not just one, but TWO cookie artists who will be sharing our banner and backdrop in the month of May. You might call it a delicious double feature! 
As you'll soon see, both artists' site submissions* are bolder than bold, with super-saturated colors that will knock your socks off. Yet, their color palettes and themes are completely different. (Though, even with these differences, one could argue that they're a match made in heaven - after all, who wouldn't love to take a spot of Kim's tea in Sandra's garden?)
We'll start off this month with @Sandra Garvey's glorious garden-themed imagery on our site . . .
And then close out the latter half of the month with @Kim Damon's delightful tea set (double entendre intended!) . . .
We featured some of Kim's cookies back in February as well, so we've already had the good fortune of learning about her in a Cookier Close-up, and also in our forum introduction of February artists, here. I encourage you to read both of those pieces; here's the CliffsNote's version in the meantime . . .
Kim Damon, a hobbyist cookie decorator and family daycare owner from Potsdam, New York, USA, loves every art medium she’s ever tried – from clay, watercolor, and oil painting to hand-sewing and jewelry making.
One night, when she and her friend Rebecca (aka The Cookie Architect) got together to work on one of Rebecca’s cookie challenges, Kim first touched fondant and was hooked! Soon after, she was introduced to the cookie challenges on Cookie Connection and fell in love with the cookie community and the format of this site. Friendships developed, as did Kim’s experimentation with her new cookie art medium.
Kim’s love of God, people, color, design, and nature have all woven their way into her cookies, which she both sells and gives away. Her 29-year-old son named her business (Mom Makes Cookies), and, because he’s the oldest of her kids, that name just seemed right! Kim has been married to her best friend Tim for 29 years, and together they have six kids ranging in age from 15 to 29. For more of Kim's work, check out her Cookie Connection portfolio here.
Photo credit: Kim Damon
Sandra, on the other hand, is a newcomer to our site submissions, so we'll be casting a spotlight on her in a Close-up coming later in May. 'Til then, please learn more about her in her bio below.
Sandra Garvey grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin, USA, the third youngest of eleven children. One of the fondest memories she has of her childhood is all of her siblings gathered together to frost Christmas cookies. Her mother would bake a couple of large batches of very misshapen cookies, mix up some buttercream icing, set out some sprinkles and butter knives to spread the frosting, and then just let the kids get creative. What a mess they made, but, oh, the fun they had!
When Sandra got married, she moved to Houston, and had four boys of her own. She would bake for her boys and try to get them involved, but they weren't too interested. After 24 years of marriage, Sandra divorced in 2010 and moved back to Appleton. It wasn't until 2012 that she became interested in cookies. Her sister-in-law would bring the yummiest cookies made with buttercream icing to her family gatherings, so Sandra thought she would try to frost cookies by using a piping bag like she did. After watching videos from the cookie greats like Sweet Sugarbelle, SweetAmbs, Julia Usher, Sweetopia, and others, Sandra embarked on an obsession with royal icing. To this day, she is always on the hunt for the newest, most exciting developments in icing techniques; she just can't seem to get enough!
Sandra now makes cookies about twice a month for family, friends, co-workers, and charities, but there soon may be a change to Wisconsin cottage food laws, which could affect her life's path. In 2014, Sandra earned an associates degree in business management, and she currently works full-time as a supervisor for a retail establishment. In 2015, the Springbok Company approached Sandra for some of her cookie images for their jigsaw puzzles. They have since contracted two of her images for their puzzle line-up, and Sandra has already sent them cookie assortments for future puzzles! For more views of Sandra's work, check out her Cookie Connection portfolio here.
Photo credit: Sandra Garvey
A huge thank you to both Sandra and Kim for taking the time to make cookie art for our site. Cookie Connection wouldn't as colorful and beautiful as it is without the contributions of these ladies and our other site artists who have come before them.
* If you would like your own cookie art to be considered for use on the site, I would love to see it at any time. Guidelines for submitting cookie art can be found here. Please note that we have artwork for every month in 2017, except for September and December, so, if you plan to submit, please focus on those months. Thanks!
