The work behind
the impact.
Design is where my career began. Explore the creative and product work behind a lifetime of building products, brands and businesses.
Many brands.
One creative perspective.
From first sketches to finished collections. Discover the work by brand, explore the galleries, and see the thinking behind the product.
15 projects · Explore a project to view the complete gallery.
adidas
A Trefoil capsule collection that helped lay the groundwork for adidas Originals.
adidas
An original. Before Originals.
Granted my own capsule collection with adidas AG, I pioneered a streetwear collection built around the Trefoil. The collection later expanded to include classic footwear and helped lay the groundwork for what would become adidas Originals.
The three-stripe Burdett jacket, identified in the portfolio as designed by Barbara Clarke Ruiz.
Early Originals / Trefoil concepts connecting athletic heritage with a distinct lifestyle expression.
adidas — three-stripe Burdett jacket and editorial imagery
adidas — three-stripe Burdett jacket and editorial imagery
adidas Originals — early incubator collection concepts
EleVen by Venus Williams
Re-igniting EleVen alongside Venus Williams through design, product development and commercialization.
EleVen by Venus Williams
Designing alongside a champion.
Recruited by Venus Williams to work alongside her in re-igniting EleVen by Venus Williams, I helped shape the brand across design, product development and commercialization. My designs were worn by Venus on courts around the world, including during her 2016 championship season.
Designed alongside Venus for every collection, with approximately 10 seasonal collections annually.
Collaborated across design, development, sourcing, merchandising, marketing and sales to deliver product launches.
EleVen — creative leadership, Barbara with Venus Williams, and testimonial
EleVen — Venus Williams interview coverage
EleVen — collection editorial
EleVen — WWD coverage
EleVen — media recognition strip
EleVen — black and floral performance collection
EleVen — pink and white performance collection
Kohl’s / Tek Gear
Ten activewear collections created to connect more deeply with an underserved consumer.
Kohl’s / Tek Gear
Consumer insight, expressed in color.
Kohl’s partnered with Barbara to create ten activewear collections. Combining consumer insight, product strategy and design, the collaboration launched online and in select Southern market stores. The gallery pairs collection imagery with launch and press material.
Kohl’s collaboration — Black Enterprise press coverage
Kohl’s Tek Gear collaboration — in-store launch display
Kohl’s Tek Gear — collection imagery
ASICS
Men’s and women’s running, Pinnacle performance apparel and the Ayami collection.
ASICS
Designed for movement.
A body of performance-apparel design spanning men’s and women’s running. The work includes Pinnacle range planning, technical apparel concepts, women’s running and Ayami design boards, alongside imagery of the finished collections.
ASICS — men’s running apparel in yellow
ASICS — running collection imagery
ASICS — Men’s Pinnacle collection concepts
ASICS — L1 Pinnacle range plan
ASICS — L1 performance apparel and construction details
ASICS — women’s running concept board
ASICS — women’s running collection presentation
ASICS — women’s running campaign imagery
ASICS — women’s running apparel
ASICS — Ayami collection design board
New Balance
Training and outerwear concepts developed through coordinated silhouettes and collection design.
New Balance
Performance with a point of view.
Training and outerwear design boards exploring performance silhouettes, coordinated apparel and a distinctive product language for New Balance.
New Balance — training collection design board
New Balance — outerwear concepts
Nike
Women’s collection design and editorial imagery that connects performance with fashion.
Nike
Sport, styled for a wider world.
The portfolio pairs a women’s collection concept board with Vogue Paris editorial imagery featuring Nike. Together they show the connection between apparel design, sport and fashion.
Nike — Vogue Paris editorial imagery
Nike — women’s collection concept board
ASICS / South Africa Rugby
Springboks team-kit concepts, from home and alternate designs to coordinated apparel.
ASICS / South Africa Rugby
A national identity, in kit form.
Concept work for the South Africa Rugby Union, including home and alternate team-kit directions and polo designs. Presented as concepts, with the original inspiration imagery and design boards preserved.
South Africa Rugby — team-kit inspiration image
ASICS / SARU — polo concepts 002
ASICS / SARU — polo concepts 003
ASICS / SARU — Springboks home kit concept
ASICS / SARU — alternate team-kit concepts
Eddie Bauer
An outdoor apparel story connecting functional layering, versatility and everyday adventure.
Eddie Bauer
Designed for life outdoors.
Outerwear work shown through product and lifestyle imagery, with a focus on versatile layering and an outdoor point of view.
Eddie Bauer — outdoor apparel collection
Walmart / Athletic Works
Boys’ and girls’ design directions from the Athletic Works business.
Walmart / Athletic Works
A clear direction for active kids.
Selected boys’ and girls’ apparel design boards from Athletic Works. These coordinated ranges show the creative work behind Barbara’s broader product and business leadership at Walmart.
Walmart Athletic Works — boys’ design direction
Walmart Athletic Works — girls’ design direction
Colosseum Athletics
Women’s performance running, from bold collection concepts to finished-product imagery.
Colosseum Athletics
Energy in every silhouette.
Women’s performance-running design work combining graphic treatments, coordinated silhouettes and an energetic color story. The gallery includes both the design board and collection imagery.
Colosseum Athletics — women’s collection imagery
Colosseum Athletics — performance running design board
Soul Pepper
Athleisure and swimwear concepts defined by graphic form, color and individual expression.
Soul Pepper
An expressive take on movement.
A collection of athleisure and swimwear design concepts. The boards explore coordinated looks, swim silhouettes and graphic color stories under the Soul Pepper name.
Soul Pepper — athleisure concepts
Soul Pepper — black and white swimwear concepts
Soul Pepper — red swimwear concepts
BCR Collection
A coordinated concept collection exploring print, proportion and an expressive color palette.
BCR Collection
A personal design vocabulary.
A BCR Collection concept board that brings together fashion illustration, apparel silhouettes, print and color into one coordinated design direction.
BCR Collection — apparel design concepts
Disney
A coordinated apparel concept translating an iconic character into a wearable product story.
Disney
Character becomes collection.
A Disney apparel design board exploring character graphics, coordinated silhouettes and a connected palette across a collection.
Disney — character-led apparel collection concept
Kawhi Leonard
Logo concepts requested by Kawhi Leonard’s team for a Nike pitch.
Kawhi Leonard
An identity in the making.
Part of a logo series developed at the request of Kawhi Leonard’s team for a Nike pitch. These are concept proposals, shown with identity applications and apparel mockups; they are not presented as an adopted official identity.
Kawhi Leonard — identity concept presentation
Kawhi Leonard — logo application concept 02
Kawhi Leonard — logo application concept 01
Lick You Silly Pet Products
A premium pet brand built from the ground up, applying the same consumer-first principles.
Lick You Silly Pet Products
From the first idea to a consumer brand.
Barbara founded Lick You Silly and built the business across naming, brand strategy, product development, packaging, positioning, marketing, e-commerce and retail partnerships.
Premium dog treats made in the U.S.A. with high-quality, grain-free ingredients.
The deck highlights Amazon recognition, selection by eight Kimpton Hotels as an exclusive pet amenity, and Best Dog Treat recognition from Cosmopolitan.
Lick You Silly — pet and product imagery
Lick You Silly — brand identity and packaging
Lick You Silly — premium dog-treat product range
Lick You Silly — press recognition
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