Los Angeles teen who made profitable duct tape promenade gown describes course of and inspiration behind jaw-dropping robe
Simply days after being topped the winner of Duck Model’s nationwide Caught at Promenade contest for her elegant and jaw-dropping duct tape robe, Karla Torres described the inspiration, consideration to element and the lengthy, tedious job of creating her profitable gown a actuality.
“Properly, it took a variety of trial and error,” Torres mentioned throughout an look on the KTLA 5 Weekend Morning Information. “My mother has a variety of like crafting machines, so possibly that gave us a bonus.”
Torres mentioned the bottom of the gown is a petticoat and a deconstructed bra was important in giving the gown its form.
“Many of the half is utilizing wax paper after which placing duct tape on prime of it, which helped us with creating the entire robe,” Torres mentioned.
The robe was impressed by 18th-century French artwork, with pastel colours and gold highlights. She stumbled onto her artistic inspiration whereas visiting the Getty Museum.
“I took a subject journey to the Getty in January,” Torres mentioned. “So I used to be very impressed by just like the French work that I noticed, very elegant gown. So I knew I needed to create a sublime gown as properly.”
A current graduate of Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet Excessive Faculty, Torres credited her mother as enjoying a important function in serving to information the robe from tough sketch to actuality.
Collectively they used a press machine and steel stencils to chop via the thick wax paper and duct tape layers. They weren’t positive if the tactic would yield outcomes, however their method truly made it potential to craft the robe’s finer particulars.
“We weren’t positive if it was truly going to work. It’s supposed to chop paper,” Torres mentioned. “And it truly did work and it’s what helped us make the trim, the necklace and different flowers. So this discovery helped us loads with the design.”
Her mother additionally performed an essential function as her dressing assistant. The underside a part of the robe, the petticoat, was straightforward to get into on her personal, however the prime half required some creativity.
“For the highest half, I truly needed to get it taped on,” Torres mentioned. “So my mother would assist me tape it on. After which to take it off, she’d have to tear it off or lower it.”
The gown consumed 120 hours of her life and the price of 12 rolls of tape, however Torres mentioned it was all price it, despite the fact that she almost missed the decision informing her of the honour.
“They really known as me and I used to be sleeping,” Torres mentioned. “So I used to be like. ‘Hiya?’ After which once they advised me I used to be the winner, I used to be so excited and I simply needed to inform my mother.”
As a result of she was topped the winner of the competition, the gown will now have to depart her aspect. It’ll be taken to the Duck Model headquarters to be displayed together with previous winners.
However her style journey doesn’t finish with the robe. She hopes to make different outstanding items sooner or later as soon as finishing her diploma in enterprise administration.
Her $10,000 scholarship from Duck Manufacturers will go a good distance in making these goals a actuality.
