The winning design was unveiled Friday during Homecoming week in the office of Washington State University(WSU)President Elson S.Floyd.Students from the Department of Apparel,Merchandising,Design and Textiles(AMDT),department faculty chair Karen Leonas and Butch,the university's beloved mascot,made the announcement.
The students presented Floyd with the first WSU tartan product:a necktie featuring the university's crimson and gray colors in a traditional pattern of interlocking horizontal and vertical bands.
"We were absolutely delighted to see the enthusiastic participation by Cougars of all stripes in the Prowling for Plaid campaign,"Leonas said.She laid the groundwork for the campaign and involved AMDT students in guiding development of the tartan designs,from concept to market,and in turning out the vote.
Voters selected from among three designs.The winning design,which finished some 5,000 votes ahead of the runner-up tartan,is arguably the most sophisticated of the three.It represents the complexity of WSU and its many facets,Leonas noted,an appropriate choice to represent a 122-year-old teaching and research institution that serves citizens statewide and beyond.
"We saw trans-generational support from the Cougar faithful during the campaign,"she said."Alumni of all ages,students and die-hard sports fans participated in the voting."
The winning tartan will be registered with the International Tartan Registry,a Scotland-based agency that has indexed some 7,000 tartans created worldwide.
Benefits for students
Besides creation of a new WSU tradition and the pride-building aspects of the campaign,selection of a tartan will deliver a tangible benefit to students:a portion of the revenues generated by sales of tartan merchandise will support and enhance the student learning experience.
"We work very hard in AMDT to provide our students with the type of experiences that prepare them for leadership positions in the textile,apparel and retail industries in the Pacific Northwest,"Leonas said.Funds generated from the sale of tartan merchandise might provide opportunities for students to visit Scotland,for example,to gain first-hand knowledge about the Scottish textile industry.
Source:
http://www.fibre2fashion.com/news/apparel-news/newsdetails.aspx?news_id=116186
