It’s
been said many times, especially here in the south, “If I had some duck tape I could fix that…” Whether you say Duck tape or Duct tape, it
has been around for a long time. The
miracle tape was developed back in 1942 by Johnson & Johnson during WWII to
help fill the need for a strong, flexible, durable tape that could help the war
effort by sealing ammunition cases, jeeps, firearms, and aircrafts. Since then the tape has been used by NASA for
emergencies while orbiting in space and while on the moon, in early days used
in heating and air conditioning (duct tape), and most recently used to rig
reception issues with Apple’s Iphone.
Josh
Phillips, the instructor of The Design Studio, (former Drafting Design) at the LeCroy
Career Technology Center decided to challenge his students this semester by
combining the use of this versatile tape with the career of Fashion
Design. This project is perfect for this time of the year, Halloween. The idea is to challenge each student to design an outfit or costume using duck tape.
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Students Pictured: Design Studio AM Class
left to right: J. Miller, C. Talley, T. Reed, T. Curtis, B. Nichols, D. Shaner, O. Galvan, T. Bragg, W. Beaver, M. Mewhinny, J. Huang, A. Waldrop, and T. Brown.
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The project started with students sketching out several ideas such as prom dresses, tuxedos, cartoons, sports jerseys, video games and every day clothing. From there students created the patterns, used old sheets to line the tape, and built entire outfits.
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Students Pictured: Design Studio PM Class
left to right: R. Leige, D. Barron, C. Perkins, N. Rooney, K. Hunter, K. Cleckley
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Students were able to learn from special speakers like Fashion Designers from the Art Institute, and from Designer/Seamstress Delonna Hutto. Mrs. Hutto taught students how to measure, work with patterns and tips on sewing. With this project students learned assets of design, critical thinking, marketing, presentation, and financial budgeting. There are also many scholarships and competitions that support the use of Duck Tape. In the near future, the Design Studio will host a Fashion Show where students will model their work.
