Our winner, Rachel, has chosen to have her collection benefit the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness Foundation.
Power of Connection is available in our Chill Toque and can be paired up with a coordinating Throat Coat.
New This Year!
Each winning hat design is now available to purchase and can be combined with a coordinating Throat Coat. Sales from both pieces will benefit the winner's chosen charity.
Introducing 'Power Of Connection'
Rachel Cudmore is an artist, outdoor enthusiast and dog mom! Originally from northern Idaho, she moved to Bozeman for college in the early 2000s and now lives and works in Yellowstone National Park full time with her partner Doug and dog Sola. During her free time she enjoys making art, sewing, playing music and getting outside to hike, ski or bike in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. In 2013, Rachel started a small business making dog collars using quilting fabric and black webbing; now, 10 years later, her artwork is printed directly onto webbing and has expanded to products for both dogs and humans- which soon will include Sauce Hats! Check out her website at www.Kintlacouture.com to learn more.
Sauce: What was the inspiration behind your design?
Rachel: My design is titled “Power of Connection” illustrating the important relationship between the Whitebark Pine, Grizzly Bear, Red Squirrel and Clark’s Nutcracker. A topographic representation of the Beartooth plateau surrounds the bottom of the hat with Pilot and Index (two prominent peaks just outside Yellowstone's northeast entrance) in the background. This illustration includes a horizon of silhouetted Whitebark Pines with the animals moving their nuts/seeds throughout the ecosystem which will ultimately contribute to the survival of these species! Over the past 20 years living, working and playing in the GYE, the story of whitebark is one of my favorites. I wanted to illustrate that story here, and use this opportunity to give back to a well deserving local organization.
Sauce: Where would you like the proceeds from the sales of your hats to go?
Rachel: I would like proceeds of my design to go to the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness Foundation to help them continue their important work “Supporting stewardship of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness and fostering appreciation of wild lands” in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem!
Sauce: Thank you very much for your thoughtful and attractive design this year!
Introducing 'Snow Globe'
Our other winner, Glenda, has chosen to have her collection benefit The Cure Starts Now, an organization that funds pediatric brain cancer research.
'Snow Globe' is available in our Fleece N' Swift and can be paired up with a coordinating Throat Coat.
Given the whimsical nature of the illustration and the mission of The Cure Starts Now, we also thought this would be a great design to make available for kids! 'Snow Globe' is also available in our NEW youth size Fleece N' Swift (designed for 4-7 years).
Sauce: Congratulations on another victory, Glenda! We're thrilled to have you back again and are certain 'Snow Globe' will be just as popular with our community as your previous winning design 'Starry Night' was. Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
Glenda: I am a retired art teacher, living in Paducah, Kentucky. I taught high school art for McCracken County public schools in Paducah for 34 years and loved almost every minute of it! I am a wife to Paul, mother to Zach and Jenny, Mother-In-Law to Alison and Mary Beth, grandmother to Sam. Paul and I love the outdoors, we hike, camp, and do a little kayaking. I continue to do some art work, but also garden and can the green beans and tomatoes that we grow. I also make a lot of strawberry and peach jam. I love to bake. We have apple trees and make home made cider when we have a good crop of apples.
Sauce: What was the inspiration behind 'Snow Globe'?
Glenda: I was introduced to Sauce hats by our dear friend, Gina, who lives in Helena, Montana. She gave me my first one and told me about the contest 3 years ago, I won that year with my design 'Starry Night'. I love to enter this contest because it gives me an excuse to do some design work. I had multiple design ideas this year and asked my husband and daughter to help me choose which one to submit. Paul chose the snowman design and Jenny said it reminded her of a snow globe that you could shake up. I just wanted to create a winter design and I wanted it to be happy! I think this design accomplishes both of those things. I have a lot of ideas for hats and can't wait to try again next year! I know I wouldn't win without all the friends and family who took a minute to vote for my design. I really wanted to win this year because of the charity I wanted to benefit, so I want to say thanks to everyone who voted!
Sauce: Where would you like the proceeds from the sales of your hat to go?
Glenda: The charity I have chosen to benefit is The Cure Starts Now based in Cincinnati, Ohio. It funds pediatric brain cancer research. A dear friend of mine, Lynne, has a 4 year old grandson, Wyatt, who is currently being treated for a rare form of brain cancer. So I want the donation to be made in his honor.
Sauce: Thank you for submitting your design. We love the expression of joy on the snowman's face! We feel that way about winter, too ;).
Do you have the Special Sauce? Join us again next year!
Click here to receive our PDF template. Use any means you wish to design your hat. Crayons, markers, decoupage, design software... As long as you're not sending us copyrighted artwork, it all goes!
This year's contest is closed, but join us again in Fall 2024!
Join our newsletter to stay in the contest loop! We send emails with deadline reminders and updates.
Voting will take place on our website. Be sure to join our newsletter or follow us @SauceActive on social media to stay in the contest loop!
The design(s) with the most votes at the end of the voting period will win the contest and be announced the week following the close of the contest. The winner(s) will receive one of their hats and a gift card to purchase any of the products in our online store - including their own hat!
AND Sauce will donate a portion of the sales from your design over the next 10 months to your charity of choice. Learn more about Sauce for a Cause and how this contest has benefited charities in the past.