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2023 Stuck at Prom Entry Gallery

Stuck At Prom®

Janiyah W.

4 Rolls

9 Hours

Inspiration:

My inspiration, for my dress was my love for outer space, and my love for the unknown.

Stuck At Prom®

Lilah C.

6 Rolls

11 Hours

Inspiration:

I went with an 80's music video theme for my outfit. I used 4 rolls of black Duck Tape, 1 roll of White Duck Tape, and 1 roll of metallic gold Duck Tape. The coat was made using a modified version of the pattern "Reconstructing History #902." The gear shapes on the coat were cut out using my silhouette machine. I wanted a kind of asymmetrical color scheme so I used metallic gold on one side of the collar and black on the other. The pants were patterned using a pair of pants that I already owned and the bowtie is a rectangle of black Duck Tape with metallic gold gear shapes.

Stuck At Prom®

Sarah S.

11 Rolls

22 Hours

Inspiration:

My dress was inspired by both the waves in the ocean and the clouds in the sky. I wanted to illustrate how waves engulfed the sand on the sea in waves and how the blue in the sky is covered and consumed by the clouds. The harmony of blue and white is an ode to nature's beauty and perfection, and I was reminded of it as I created the design for the dress.

Stuck At Prom®

Jada B.

4 Rolls

8 Hours

Inspiration:

My mom is very important to me. She does everything for me, including taking these pictures. She loves zebras, so I made this dress as a tribute to her. Although her life is complex, her love for me is simple. Therefore, with the help of a little black and white duct tape, I made a simple, yet loving (hence the hearts) dress.

Stuck At Prom®

Sophia L.

13 Rolls

34 Hours

Inspiration:

Growing up, I spent my summers at my school's summer camp program. There were always several activities to choose from, but I would always go to the duck tape station. It was always exciting when there was a brand new duck tape pattern at the table. I made several things from duck tape, like wallets, flowers, and bracelets, but my absolute favorite thing to make were bows. I'd make hair bows for me and my friends to wear each summer. So when I heard about Duck Tape's Stuck At Prom Scholarship Contest, I knew that I had to enter, and on my dress, there had to be a bow. My dress was inspired by both the Regency era as well as the evening gowns of the early 2000s. From the regency era, I took inspiration from their empire waistline. From the early 2000s I took inspiration from the silhouette and simplicity of their evening gowns. Another strong inspiration I had while making my dress were my mother's plates. For as long as I can remember, she has always displayed blue and white plates in our kitchen. The plates were white and covered in blue details. I took inspiration from the details of their designs and included them in my dress. The dress that I created includes all of the eras, things and experiences that inspire me.

Stuck At Prom®

Isabel I.

4 Rolls

6 Hours

Inspiration:

As mentioned in my written journey, I looked up prom dresses on Pinterest that I liked that I could, hopefully, recreate via duct tape. I also wanted an excuse to use some shiny duct tape that I had been eyeing earlier in the craft store.

Stuck At Prom®

Erica R.

15 Rolls

27 Hours

Inspiration:

I was inspired by my culture, I am often only seen for my black half but I fully recognize my Mexican blood. I am proud of my ethnicity, and I wanted to highlight that with a dress. I didn’t have the fancy equipment to make what I’d imagined but I put a lot of love into what I am showcasing. Everywhere I go, people assume I’m mixed with white, and while I don’t mind, I love to clarify and talk about my culture. I grew up having Christmas tamales and thanksgiving pozole, and every piece of how I was raised in a combination of black and Mexican comes together to shape who I am today, thank you

Stuck At Prom®

Brooke T.

9 Rolls

15 Hours

Inspiration:

My dress was inspired by my love of astronomy and Greek/Roman mythology. The dress is inspired by Neptune. It is made with shades of blue to represent the ocean. Neptune, also known as Poseidon is the god of the sea. As the ocean gets deeper, the color gets darker which is represented by the colors of the dress. The five parts of the dress represent the five rings the planet Neptune has. Four skirts and the corset top. I constructed the dress over the course of several weeks, making each layer one by one, and putting them all together at the end.

Stuck At Prom®

Scarlett Y.

6 Rolls

74 Hours

Inspiration:

My inspiration for my dress originated from my name. My mother named me after Scarlett O'Hara from the novel "Gone With The Wind" by Margaret Mitchell. The colors, shape, and designs within my dress were crafted to represent the strength, power, elegance, and perseverance that Scarlett displayed through out the novel. Despite some of Scarlett's other beliefs, it was these specific traits and how Scarlett responded to tough situations and society expectations that my mother admired. And because these traits are connected to me and my name, I felt obligated to also express them in my dress. In my dress the structure is rough and ridged on some parts in order to represent Scarlett's tougher traits while the smoother sections and curves such as the neckline were meant to represent Scarlett's beauty and grace as a southern belle. The silver detailing was supposed to loosely resemble a piece of armor symbolizing how in the novel Scarlett had to toughen up and provide for herself and others during the civil war. The asymmetrical element also symbolizes how although people are individual and have unique traits, they are still beautiful and complete as a whole.

Stuck At Prom®

Maria L.

15 Rolls

32 Hours

Inspiration:

I wanted to take on the challenge of making a duck tape dress while staying true to some “classic Maria elements”. For example, in many of the garments I sew I try to incorporate a corset structure as seen in this dress. Secondly I love flowers in general, so I thought they would be a nice element to add to the dress. With the addition of the flowers, and the flowers being some of my favorite colors, plus the structure of top, this dress felt very true to me while working with a material I had never used before.

Stuck At Prom®

Beats U.

10 Rolls

20 Hours

Inspiration:

The main inspiration for my dress was the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with lacquer mixed with gold dust, called Kintsugi. The message behind Kintsugi is to allow cracks in the piece to be highlighted and help make it even more beautiful. I found this really relating to my last year of high school as there have been more than enough struggles, but I see the value in them, and I allow myself to learn from them and better my understanding and perspective of the world.

Stuck At Prom®

Malena P.

12 Rolls

54 Hours

Inspiration:

This design was inspired by the symbolism behind the color orange and butterflies. Orange has become the color associated with rallying against gun violence, a tragedy my community of Oxford, Michigan and too many others have had to endure over several decades here in the United States. Additionally butterflies are symbols of endurance, transformation, and hope. I used brown paper bags and plastic bags as a base for each part of my design, covering them in tape of course. As my final project in my high school career, I hope this touches the hearts of those who have experienced similar tragedies and of those who have the power to change the state of our country.

Stuck At Prom®

Camille V.

8 Rolls

87 Hours

Inspiration:

For this contest, I wanted to create something symbolic. Upon realizing that the colors of the Philadelphia and Ukraine flags were identical, I decided to focus on a yellow and navy theme. I incorporated light blue as a base color to symbolize clean air and safe water. The navy and yellow diamonds represent immigration and fleeing from persecution, drawing inspiration from Picasso's arlequine series, which he painted while in France after escaping Spain under Franco. The flowers are crafted from hearts, symbolizing Philadelphia's nickname, the "city of brotherly love." Each flower consists of five hearts, representing the five major crops essential to Ukraine's economy and agriculture in Europe.

Stuck At Prom®

Alexys A.

10 Rolls

20 Hours

Inspiration:

Katy Perry was the inspiration for my Stuck at Prom Scholarship Contest dress submission. This is because she is known as an artist who wears very unique, colorful, and creative outfits. Throughout the process of making the dress, I was very apprehensive as I had never gone out of my comfort zone to wear something so attention-grabbing. In the end, I had zero regrets as I felt more confident than ever because I was able to achieve my goal look. I thank Katy Perry for inspiring me to trust the process in making my dress.

Stuck At Prom®

Eliza P.

23 Rolls

75 Hours

Inspiration:

I was inspired by Shakespeare, particularly the line "That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet". I have also always wanted to make a dress with huge puffed sleeves (inspired by Anne of Green Gables). Though putting the sleeves on was a bit of a logistical challenge it was definitely worth it.

Stuck At Prom®

Sofia C.

11 Rolls

16 Hours

Inspiration:

I’m incredibly interested in fashion and fashion history - I have books, listen to podcasts, and try to design my own clothes. One of the most influential designers in my eyes would be Vivienne Westwood. I particularly admire her corset style tops and dresses. I was inspired to make a dress with a similarly designed bodice, with a circle skirt that had sort of jagged edges similar to her other styles. I made an under-layer with sheer fabric, then put all of the Duck Tape on top.

Stuck At Prom®

Shannon A.

16 Rolls

54 Hours

Inspiration:

My outfit was inspired by Van Gogh's "Irises". I love to take inspiration from works of art and turn them into fashion. I loved the minimalistic contrasting colors and I felt like the contrast with the industrial materials like Duck Tape and the irises from nature was interesting.

Stuck At Prom®

Hailey Z.

13 Rolls

24 Hours

Inspiration:

When I was a little girl, as an aspiring fashion designer, I would create duct tape dresses for my Barbie dolls as I didn't have access to an actual sewing machine nor fabric. So, when I saw this contest, it really hit close to home, and I wanted to create a piece inspired by the little girl who dreamed of being able to one day create real dresses out of real fabric. With this piece, I took one of my old designs, but I didn't just want to copy it. Instead, I wanted to reimagine the design and show growth as I enter the last year of my high school career. As I grow older, suits have become a more frequent staple in my everyday attire, and represents a sort of maturity in me. Additionally, since I started sewing, I have never created a suit, so I decided to take a step outside my comfort zone with this project. After completing my suit and taking a step back, I got a bit teary-eyed because I know little me would have been in awe if she saw how I had come :')