First Place: Elli Allen, Clone Cone Collection

Classification: Senior
Major: Apparel, Merchandising, and Design; focus in Creative and Technical Apparel Design 
Hometown: State Center, Iowa 
Products: Sweatshirt and t-shirt

Celebrating one of Iowa State’s most iconic (and delicious!) traditions, the Clone Cone collection features an embroidered design available on a sweatshirt or t-shirt. Allen aimed to create a design that evoked feelings of nostalgia, had a vintage feel and incorporated embroidery all while, “repping Iowa State without being spotted as a fan from a bajillion miles away.” She has fond memories of celebrating Cyclone wins and losses with a Clone Cone and wanted to create something that represented this unique tradition.  

“ learned a lot about the challenges that come with licensing design and that was a great experience. I had so much fun surveying friends, family, ISU students and alums to get their input on my designs.

Elli Allen

Second Place: Kai Huntoon, Vintage Cyclone Hooded Sweatshirt

Classification: Senior 
Major: Apparel Merchandising and Design  
Hometown: West Des Moines/Urbandale, Iowa 

Utilizing in-depth research, Huntoon knew that a design reflecting “vintage Cyclone pride, grounded with fluid and stationary graphics” would have broad appeal in the market. He started with the highest-performing product category, hoodies and fleece, as a base for the design. Huntoon leveraged data from the world’s top fashion forecasting companies who are predicting “#grandmacore” will influence collections on runways this fall. From there, he pulled inspiration from turn-of-the century Iowa State photography and vintage logos. The result is a fashion-forward, gender-fluid product that brings vintage Cyclone pride to life. 

I learned to continue to be confident in sharing my creative development processes in a professional setting. It was also a great experience to solidify portfolio experience and provide me with affirming actions that back my work and visions.

Kai Huntoon

Third Place: Piper Michalski, Cyclone Star Sweat Set

Classification: Junior 
Major: Apparel Merchandising and Design with a minor in Entrepreneurship 
Hometown: Elmhurst, Illinois 

Michalski leaned in to athleisure, creating a sweat set that can take a consumer through many aspects of their day, all while remaining comfortable and stylish. Her design inspiration came from various popular clothing lines featuring stars in their collections. Using the sweat set and idea of stars, Michalski then showcased Cyclone spirit by adding the words of the fight song and Iowa State marks. Her designs were well received by her peer throughout the research phase of her project as many look forward to a stylish, Cyclone-themed sweat set. 

I learned all about the different steps that go into the production process, from starting the design all the way through bringing it to life. I got to meet with the licensed vendor and they showed me what my design would look like on the clothing. It was an amazing experience to see everything come together and have my product go to market.

Piper Michalski