Ruth Bradford the woman behind the brand

It's all about family. Ours and yours

Bringing together what I've learned as a parent and a passion for our planet, to support parents and children from day one.

Graphic designer, mother, animal lover, traveller, dreamer.

Hello, I’m Ruth Bradford, founder, owner and creator of The Little Black and White Book Project. I am passionate about the natural world and inspiring children from birth about the beauty of our wildlife. It's a huge part of why I started my business and why I hope one day I may just light a spark in the next Sir David Attenbrough. Here's a bit more about the business, where it started and hopefully where it is headed in the future.

Back in 2016

I was pregnant with my son. Like most first time parents I was reading up on all the things I could do to help his development when he arrived, and I learned about the benefits of showing him high contrast images.

We were living in Singapore at the time and my search for some black and white baby books wasn’t very fruitful. The selection was slim and the content dull. So as a graphic designer, I decided I could create some of my own illustrations, encapsulating my love for nature and wildlife and wrap them up in a picture book.

After sharing with some family and friends and of course babies, the wonderful feedback spurred me on to launch the business and create a whole wild black and white world for little ones.

There I found myself in those early months of motherhood, baby in a sling, bouncing on a yoga ball, listening to white noise designing the first products in the range!

"My mission is to inspire the next generation of animal lovers and conservationists from as early an age as possible, and black and white is the perfect vehicle to do that from day one."

Cutting through the baby clutter

How much stuff do you accumulate when you have a new baby? Answer; A LOT.

Do you need it all? Definitely not.

With that in mind it is important to me that all of our products have longevity. They're not a gimmick or something that will be discarded quickly.

This is the bar everything in the range is measured against.

So each of our products has a specific use in helping new born development and educating children as they go through multiple early development stages. They really do last years as they develop and grow!

Black and white is the perfect vehicle to start at birth but the high contrast will become part of everyday sensory play as children learn about the animals and the world around them.

Proud mum

I'm really proud that I, and the business have had some big moments over the last 6 years. From winning awards such as Made For Mums, Junior Design Awards and even the Female Start Up of The Year to visits to No 10 Downing Street and The House of Lords. It all helps the business be seen by as many people as possible.

But I'm really extra proud that during the pandemic I created the Wild Play blog chock full of free rescources to help entertain childen at home and give parents some resources,

And that I gave away over 1,000 free board books to charities, nurseries, hospitals and childcare professionals in 2020.

People, planet and profit

This is a statement I truly believe. I don't think that planet and business should operate exclusively, we shouldn't be looking exclusively at bottom lines, more the impact our businesses have and manufacturing methods that are kind and respectful.

I strive for eco-friendly materials such as FSC certified and recycled paper, trying to be as plastic free as possible (this is a hard task but we're almost there!) and use lots of environmentally thoughtful packaging. I want the business to have as small an impact on our planet and as big an impact on my customer as possible.

The business donates 25% of profits to wildlfe and conservation charities and my hope is that one day I will have a fund that charities and experts can apply to, to help fund their projects.

Who knows we might even be able to plant a forest one day too! Let's dream big.