He made a tuxedo out of tape — and it got this SC teen a $10,000 scholarship
One South Carolina teenager is looking to stick around at college with some extra money to spend on his tuition.
Simpsonville native Charlie Hyman has entered a unique competition, which he won and will receive a $10,000 scholarship.
"Charlie impressed voters across the country with his funky and ferocious ensemble," said Rose Dolan, who is part of the public relations firm promoting the contest.
The recent graduate of Mauldin High School and the Fine Arts Center is getting help paying for his tuition at the University of Texas where he will study studio art.
What better way to raise money for college than to put his artistic skills on display? That's what Hyman did.
He made a tuxedo for his senior prom out of tape as a participant in Duck Tape’s Stuck at Prom Scholarship Contest.
Hyman's tux was so stylish, he was chosen as one of five national male finalists out of a field of 90 entrants for the $10,000 dollar scholarship prize.
"The purpose of the scholarship was to create a tuxedo entirely out of Duck Tape," Hyman said of the adhesive company's contest, not to be confused with the specific type of tape called duct tape. "For my tuxedo, I wanted to create something that was classic, but also very unique."
This is the 18th year that Duck Tape has awarded scholarships to high school students who create formal wear out of the sticky product, time.com reported.
In the first 15 years of the contest, nearly 8,000 high school students have submitted entries for consideration, according to bizjournals.com.
Hyman said his prom attire was "a modern version of the timeless black tuxedo". He used two colors, black and gold, to avoid distracting from the one-of-a-kind stripe pattern.
Unlike classical tuxedos, that might have the unique flair of tails, Hyman chose to adorn his suit with a head. Specifically, a tape pattern lion's head on the back of his dinner jacket.
"The hand-cut lion design on the back was sort of a spur-of-the-moment decision," Hyman said of his inspiration. "As I was cutting hundreds of gold stripes to go on the jacket and shoes, a show about lions was playing on the TV in the background. The lions on the TV inspired me to put the lion design on the back of the jacket."
That pattern sets Hyman apart from his competitors, who have some unique designs of their own — all made out of tape.
In addition to the lion's head, Hyman said he used some unique footwear to add more spice to his twist on the classical tuxedo. He used Converse Chuck Taylor All-Star sneakers instead of shiny dress shoes to make it "easier to dance."
Additionally, Hyman used tape to design a boutonniere (rose on the jacket), cufflinks, and a bow tie to go with the outfit.
"While this was an extremely tedious and difficult task, I'm so glad I did it," Hyman said, as he stumped for votes.
The lone South Carolina resident among the finalists designed only his outfit. Two of his competitors were part of couple designs, where tuxedos and prom dresses were constructed and designed out of tape creations.
Another thing setting Hyman apart is the amount of time and tape he used to fashion his tux. He used 12 rolls of tape and needed just 30 hours to tailor the suit. Both of those figures are significantly less than his competitors.
A look back at what Hyman wore to his prom in 2017 shows how far he strayed from the classic look of a tuxedo.
This story was originally published June 18, 2018 at 3:45 PM with the headline "He made a tuxedo out of tape — and it got this SC teen a $10,000 scholarship."