Industrial Design students open eyes, nab awards

Students from Western Washington University’s Industrial Design program captured multiple awards in two recent design contests.

Larisa Schulze of Gig Harbor won a Silver Award at the Shaggies, a biennial design competition open to designers all across the Western United States and Canada. She was recognized for the design of her wood laminated reading bench, “Dip,” designed for children.

Samuel Martin of Seattle won a Bronze Award at the Shaggies for "Enfold," a design of eyeglass frames constructed of laser-cut tensile steel, rolled and press-broken to shape, and then powder coated to finish. The frames may be fit with any standard polycarbonate reading or corrective lens.

Recent Industrial Design graduate Thomas Kloucek won a Bronze Award in the "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" category for his “Bloom” handbag, a collapsible handbag made from used window shades.

Kristen-Lehua Barcheski of Wailuku, Hawaii won the 2011 Student Design Scholarship for Rotationally Molded Products for the design of "Saddle Stand,” an equestrian product that serves both storage and educational needs. The scholarship included $3,000 and a paid trip to Chicago, Ill., to attend the Association of Rotational Molders 2011 Meeting.

At that competition, Bellingham’s Noah Jack also won second place for "BikeTank," a water tank that mounts to the back of any standard bicycle, designed to make water transport easier for people in the developing world.

For more information on the contests or on Western’s Industrial design program, contact Jason Morris at (360) 650-2514.