Maura Pozek always had an eye for fashion, and she showed off her latest creation at her senior prom.
The Missouri high school student created a cardboard prom dress just in time for her high school dance, KY3-TV reports.
The creation consisted of corrugated cardboard, hot glue, tacky glue, spray paint, brown shopping bags, and, of course, glitter, dad Steve Pozek told The Huffington Post in an email.
Maura's handmade dresses weren't always well-received among school officials, though.
"[The school principal] needed a parent's reassurance that the [Doritos] dress would be appropriate for prom," Steve Pozek told HuffPost. "Once he and I came to an agreement, Maura was good to go."
Despite the minor controversy, the dress was Maura's favorite for a simple reason.
"I got to eat a lot of Doritos," she said.
In addition, the gown took only a few afternoons to put together, unlike her cardboard dress, which took roughly four months and a lot of patience.
"It was quite possibly the most evil thing I've worked with," Maura said of the cardboard's inability to easily bend or fold.
Construction difficulties aside, Maura's dress was the probably the highlight of her prom night, she said as she recalled the DJ's lame music.
"It was fun wearing it; everyone was telling me how good it looked," she said.
With the prom industry valued at nearly $4 billion, the teen's imaginative, yet thrifty concoctions might just be the way to go.
According to USA Today, the cost of prom dresses and other expenditures, including prom hairstyles, prom limousines and prom dinner, can balloon up to $1,000 to $2,000. And that's not to mention costs for miscellaneous items, such as prom queen campaigns, in which one Texas mother spent nearly $1,300 on fliers, ads and a billboard promoting her daughter.
To cut down prom costs, some suggest borrowing a dress, splitting bills with friends and nixing unnecessary extras, such as professional prom photos.
Besides, no matter how great the outfits might seem at the time, prom usually winds up being an event adults later look back on and laugh.
Need proof? Just watch Ellen DeGeneres and Michelle Obama reflect on their prom dances. And if you're still not convinced, just click through pictures of some HuffPost editors and their dashing dates.
Click through the slideshow below for a peek at some of Maura Pozek's unique dresses.
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Maura Pozek always had an eye for fashion, and she showed off her latest creation at her senior prom.
The Missouri high school student created a cardboard prom dress just in time for her high scho...
Maura Pozek always had an eye for fashion, and she showed off her latest creation at her senior prom.
The Missouri high school student created a cardboard prom dress just in time for her high scho...
Maura was selected as a finalist for Stephens College Creative Competition for her pop-tab prom dress that she had made the previous year. The dress was actually a design that she copied offline from someone else's original idea. Stephens College has a nationally recognized school of fashion design and Maura had the opportunity to participate in our Prom Competition. She had her makeup and hair professionally styled and was able to wear a dress from Sassy Chic boutique (a pageant owned, high-end gown shop). Maura was very unappreciative of the experience and expressed her dissatisfaction. After winning the competition for her pop-tab dress (which was actually an unoriginal design) she was awarded a scholarship to Stephens and later commented on her Facebook that she didn't need to go to school to be a designer and that she would be attending University of MIssouri, Kansas. Her attitude was very arrogant and rude. I am honestly happy that she chose not to go to Stephens and I highly doubt she could progress far as a designer since her ideas were copied and creativity is a vital component of being a designer.
stphensstudent: Maura was selected as a finalist for Stephens College Creative
Yes, going to school to be a designer is sort of a silly idea. Better to start your own business, pay a graduate of Stephens 30k a year to design things for you and manufacture your clothes in China and stick your name on them. This is, after all, what successful designers do.
Filthy: Yes, going to school to be a designer is sort
That is actually pretty inaccurate. Although some designers do pay others for their creativity the prominent and well-known designers have attended design school before achieving success.
stphensstudent: That is actually pretty inaccurate. Although some designers do pay
Hi, Maura's dad. Maura did apply and was accepted at Stephens College, one of oldest woman's colleges in the country. She actually was awarded $13,000 in scholarship money, $12000 for grades and $1000 from the competition she won (along with a limo for prom and was asked to participate in their prom fashion show, which was lots of fun). We were all impressed with Stephens. Cost of attendence? $33-38,000 per year. The remaining $20-25,000 (per yr) was too much for our family to bear. Maura opted for a public university. She's always had a unique style, makes many of her own clothes, and has been very careful not to mention any of the other schools where she may have or may not have applied. Those considering Stephens will find it a very unique and special university with a great reputation.
spozek: Hi, Maura's dad. Maura did apply and was accepted at
My daughter had the same dilemma. The money is really hard. But you have an exceptionally talented daughter (don't we all?!) and I would love to see her at a top design school, such as FIT in NY. Design school is really good to hone technique, learn the history of your field and to develop critical thinking skills. The comments from Stphenstudent and Filthy were off base.
That said, I heard her on NPR last week, and I was very impressed with her. You should be proud, Dad, you raised a great child!
left_in_vermont: My daughter had the same dilemma. The money is really
Hope it doesn't rain. But I have to admit, it is a bit of a turn on to have unconventional repurposed things that have been created for other things and having a history of their own and have that material between you and your date. Next time, maybe recycled tires, shoes, gum, chicken nuggets, foil, and saran wrap. She definitely has talent, but still would worry about durability, and also potentially injuring your partner, especially during grinding.
jh2: Hope it doesn't rain. But I have to admit, it
Brilliant! Fashionable! Smart! You deserve a full ride fashion design scholarship to every college out there. You go girl!! LOVE! I highly doubt this is the last we have heard from you. Look forward to hearing your name in the future!!
hmnunn: Brilliant! Fashionable! Smart! You deserve a full ride fashion design
Three cheers for this young lady for eschewing the multi-billion dollar prom night industry and blazing her own path, using her imagination and using recycled materials. I am shocked at how much my friends' kids spend on dresses, transportation, venues and entertainment for prom. For our prom we decorated the gym with home made decorations -- our theme was Stairway to Heaven," so guess how old I am . I bought my dress on sale -- I'm sure it did not cost $40. My date picked me up in his dad's car and we ate at an Italian restaurant. I think our pictures, taken by the school photographer, cost $10 for a set of two -- one for you, one for your date. Today, prom has exploded to wedding-like proportions. So nice to see a kid tone down the cost while doing something of Fonzie-level coolness. Watch out, fashion world, a bright bulb is on its way to you!
Dez_Crawford: Three cheers for this young lady for eschewing the multi-billion
I totally agree that someone should give her a fashion design scholarship! Wow, is she talented--already she has more fashion sense and creativity than many fashion designers who've been working in the business for years, IMO. I hope this article is enough to get her discovered by the industry...
LisaKat: I totally agree that someone should give her a fashion
Maura actually won a scholarship to Stephens College, which has a nationally recognized Fashion Design School. She won't the scholarship for her pop-tab dress which was actually an unoriginal design that she copied off of someone else's idea on the internet. She rejected the scholarship stating on her Facebook that she did not need to go to school to be a designer.
stphensstudent: Maura actually won a scholarship to Stephens College, which has
I hope this girl goes to design school, she's really talented, and her use of unusual choices of materials is inspired. I could see her going far in the fashion world, especially in costume design or haute couture.
dil123: I hope this girl goes to design school, she's really
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The Huffington Post | By Ileana Llorens Posted: 04/23/2012 5:46 pm Updated: 04/23/2012 10:08 pm