As Taylor Swift (muse for this year’s competition theme, “Your Eras Tour”) would ask, “Are you ready for it?!” Well, I sure hope so, because the results of the 2024 Julia M. Usher’s Cookie Art Competition™ are now in! But first, a few observations about this year’s competition.
To my great pleasure, the return to an online format allowed entries to flow in from all over the world, with nearly 40% coming from countries other than the United States. Further, more registrants than ever stuck to their guns and landed cookies on the virtual judging table, resulting in an uptick in entries over the last two years and a judging process that was tougher than ever. As I have been known to say, and as I firmly believe, submitting an entry is 90% of any competition. Every entrant should consider herself a winner just for having overcome any barriers to entry and for stretching her skills in the process. The judges were extremely impressed with all of the submitted projects, and had to splice many a hair to come to their final determinations! On another note . . . while learning and growth are the true objectives of my competition, the prizes are, without a doubt, the best in the business. As it so happens, they set another competition record this year, topping out at just over $25,500 USD, thanks to 17 very generous sponsor companies! All in all, I couldn’t be more thrilled about this year’s participation and caliber of entries, or more thankful for my amazing team of judges and sponsors.
To see the winners of the 2024 competition and their impressive entries, please check out the official winner reveal on my site Cookie Connection, which is the home base for my online competitions. Also, if you’re a prospective 2025 competitor, please stay tuned because I plan to announce details of the 2025 competition by year end. It will once again be online, as I love nothing more than knowing that my competition reaches cookie artists in every corner of the globe!