The new university plaid design has made its way onto shelves in Lexington stores, but merchandising students aren’t finished creating products.

Christina Criollo and Jena Everhard, UK alumni who studied in the School of Human Environmental Sciences, created the winning design for the UK Plaid Project competition in May 2008. Now, the products that feature the new pattern are being sold in stores and online, said Cassie Bernardi, creative director at Pomegranate Inc., a local company that produced the merchandise.

“We’ve sold mostly to retail stores,” Bernardi said. “We started selling (the merchandise) online two days ago and it’s been really popular. We’re doing really well.”

Some proceeds of the products will go to the College of Agriculture and the School of Human Environmental Sciences, said Rita Smart, the UK Plaid Project Advisory Board chairwoman and coordinator.  However, the amount has not yet been determined.

“We hope proceeds will go to students for learning activities … or things the university can’t pay for, things that have been cut out,” Smart said.

The development of the university plaid is the first of many steps in other projects for merchandising, apparel and textiles students, Smart said.

“It will be an ongoing project,” Smart said. “Students will come up with new products, research new products and trends … and new marketing ideas.

“That’s what makes this so unique — it’s an actual learning experience. Instead of reading out of a book, they learn to make it work. The pressure is on them to do research and get a good product.”

The competition also called for a logo design to be featured on the tag of the plaid products. The design, which is a combination of three entries, includes the work of students Kristin Kover, Whitney Whitmer, Cyntrale Johnson and Erin O’Brien.

Scarlett Wesley, assistant professor in the MAT department and faculty coordinator for the project, said she told her students the colors to use — white, black, grey and Kentucky blue — but not much else.

“We didn’t want to give them too many instructions,” Wesley said. “We wanted them to be as creative as possible.”

The UK Plaid Project includes 11 items, ranging from $9.99 to $60, and can be found in retail stores such as the UK Bookstore, Kennedy’s and Joseph-Beth Booksellers. The merchandise can also be purchased online at www.ukplaid.com.