Published: August 24, 2021

AVON, Ohio (July 21, 2021) – It’s official! After tallying your votes, Duck® brand is excited to announce the Grand Prize winners of the 21st Annual Stuck at Prom® Scholarship Contest. Larissa Leon of Sunnyside, Washington, takes the prize for Best Dress and Ryan Bekic of LaSalle, Ontario, wins Best Tux.

The two crafty teens wowed the judges with their inspirational Duck Tape® designs, making it as finalists of the competition before catching the public’s eye to be deemed royalty of the contest. Leon and Bekic will each earn a $10,000 cash college scholarship to assist in their future creative endeavors.

“Each of our participants pushed the boundaries with their designs to enter this year’s contest and we’re beyond impressed by their determination and skill to make never-before-seen looks out of Duck Tape® ,” says Ashley Luke, Senior Product Manager and Global Brand Manager at Duck® Brand’s parent company, Shurtape Technologies, LLC. “We applaud Larissa, Ryan and all of our finalists for using their creativity, culture and interests to design extraordinary pieces, winning over their communities and the public in the process.”

Learn more about this year’s winners and their standout Duck Tape® promwear:

2021 Stuck at Prom® Grand Prize Dress Winner: Larissa Leon

Leon spent 163 hours designing her dress with 47 rolls of Duck® brand duct tape. Honoring her heritage and the traditional Spanish dances that emphasize local folk culture, her folklorico gown is accessorized with flowers, Duck Tape® lace, ribbon and a full flowy skirt. Leon’s passion for design blossomed when she began using Duck Tape® at an early age to make toys, clothing, hair accessories and even her school backpack. The Stuck at Prom® Scholarship Contest was her opportunity to showcase her talent to win big scholarship money.

“When I heard Duck Tape® had a scholarship, I knew I had to make a special creation. The gown was designed to honor my culture, helping me pay homage to my roots, along with making a beautiful dress for prom that’s made out of Duck Tape® , something that many of my friends and family thought to be impossible,” Leon says of her design.

2021 Stuck at Prom® Grand Prize Tux Winner: Ryan Bekic

Bekic spent 160 hours crafting his entry using 27 rolls of Duck Tape®. Inspired by the runway, his 2-in-1 design features moving (and removable) Duck Tape® wings. He used various “high fashion” looks as inspiration and black, white, red and gold colors to represent good and evil. The double-sided tux is dark on the front and light on the back, with handcrafted gold roses lining the back of his suit.

Bekic will use his Stuck at Prom® winnings to support his studies in interdisciplinary arts and sciences. He says he’s most proud of his original pattern that he spent hours and weeks making to bring his vision to life.

After being selected by a panel of judges for their craftmanship, originality and use of Duck Tape®, the 10 finalists gained support from their community and public through social media, local news outlets and other creative methods. The eight runners-up will each receive $500 scholarships and Duck® brand prize packs worth $100. These finalists include: Meihuan Yu, Zaineb Aljumayaat, Erika Avellaneda, Giles Ferrell, Vaughn Westerman, Aaron Leal, Casey Alferink and Zoe Tibbs.

Learn more about the 21st Annual Duck® Brand Stuck at Prom® Scholarship Contest at StuckAtProm.com. For more information on Duck Tape and to get inspired with craft ideas and instructions, visit DuckBrand.com.