Passionate and nimble multi-disciplinary design leader with over 12 years of experience shaping beloved IP at Mattel on American Girl’s product design team, delivering purpose-led, consumer-centric creative solutions that are innovative, insightful, and rooted in brand storytelling.
Collaborates seamlessly with cross-functional partners to bring aspirational product, retail experiences and new concepts to life—showcasing best in class pitch decks, creative direction, style guides, product art, and toy, fashion, and merchandise design and management.
Key highlights:
Led creative concepting and art direction for fashion and lifestyle collaborations with GAP, Crocs, Posh Peanut and Stoney Clover Lane—crafting cohesive, trend-aware merchandise collections that drove engagement across retail and digital, elevated brand storytelling, and earned executive trust.
Led end-to-end design and development for premium merchandise and immersive retail experiences across cafés, parties, hair salons, doll hospitals, and customized shopping—managing trend research, cost-saving innovation, executive reviews, final specs, and sample approvals.
Invented and launched Signature Studio, an innovative retail experience for flagship stores—merging digital UX, product innovation, customization, and experiential retail design. Delivered in a compressed timeline, driving increased foot traffic and deepening brand connection.
Led the development of signature style guides—streamlining toolkits that empowered internal teams and licensees to execute cohesive, on-brand collections across categories.
Managed and mentored a team of packaging and product art designers—balancing workloads, streamlining complex approval workflows and reviews, and championing growth through coaching and creative direction, including licensed assets for Trolls, Disney Princess, Harry Potter and other beloved properties.
-
Product Designer
Blending expertise in product art, brand collaborations, fashion, and merchandise design, I excel at both blue-sky ideation and agile, solutions-oriented execution. Known for translating bold, emotionally resonant concepts into consumer-centric experiences, I deliver innovative, trend-forward designs from vision to shelf.
-
Senior Creative
Equipped with a versatile creative toolkit, I bring deep expertise across illustration, graphic design, surface pattern, concept renderings, moodboards, pitch decks, style guides, image editing, logos, packaging dielines, typography, and production-ready files—ready to bring any vision to life with craft and clarity.
-
Brand Storyteller
I distill complex ideas into clear, compelling visuals and actionable style guides. A seasoned storyteller, I craft cohesive brand narratives across product, packaging, and physical environments—through strategic art direction, polished presentations, and brand-right design systems.
-
Collaborator & Leader
I thrive in cross-functional teams and creative partnerships—collaborating seamlessly across disciplines while mentoring and leading with empathy. I foster a team-first mindset, inspire momentum, and bring clarity to ambiguity, consistently driving thoughtful, high-impact results.
Recommendations
Christina Schick
Vice President Brand,
Product & Content
American Girl
“I had the absolute pleasure of working with Allie at American Girl, and she quickly became one of those rare talents you hope to work with again.
Allie’s design instincts are spot-on. She brought a fresh, thoughtful approach to product design—always grounded in a deep understanding of our brand and audience. Her work was not only beautiful but purposeful, helping bring new life to core product lines and licensed extensions.
She also has an incredible knack for visual storytelling. Her presentations were consistently best-in-class—clear, compelling, and visually stunning. Whether presenting internally or externally, Allie knew how to make ideas resonate.
One of her biggest contributions was developing our first-ever licensing guides—something we’d talked about for years but never executed until Allie stepped in. She built them from scratch, and they quickly became a vital resource for partners and teams across the organization.
On top of all that, Allie is just a joy to work with—collaborative, proactive, and always positive. I can’t recommend her highly enough.”
Erin McMillan
Director, Brand Strategies & Partnerships
American Girl
“Allie is a wonderful designer, and business partner. She understands the objective and dives right in. She's also great at bringing alternative ideas, and driving the conversation forward in a meaningful way. Allie would be a wonderful asset to any company looking for a fresh design perspective.”
Lora Brown
Senior Product Development Associate
American Girl
“It was a genuine pleasure working with Allie at Mattel and American Girl. As Product Developer for the American Girl Cafe, souvenirs, and brand collaborations, I saw firsthand her incredible talent as a designer.
Allie consistently impressed me with her fresh concepts and design solutions - especially when we were cost challenged. She took on cost challenges and always found a creative design solution to the problem. She has a great eye for detail and a true commitment to perfecting her work, which always led to high-quality outcomes with well thought out strategy behind it. Beyond her skills, Allie's strong work ethic made her a joy to have on the team! I would wholeheartedly recommend her!”
Holly Sinkule
Key Lead Designer
American Girl
“I had the pleasure of working alongside Allie at American Girl for 12 years, and I can say without hesitation that she is one of the most visionary and collaborative design leaders I’ve worked with. Her ability to bring ideas to life through purpose-driven storytelling and consumer-centric design is unmatched. Whether she was leading fashion collaborations or developing custom toolkits, her work consistently elevated the brand thanks to her unique vision and creativity.
Allie blends creative excellence with strategic thinking—her concepting, pitch decks, and style guides are not only beautifully executed but also highly effective tools for cross-functional alignment and execution. I was continually impressed by her leadership in managing projects, mentoring teams, and navigating complex workflows with clarity, grace and positivity.
She’s not just a talented designer—she’s a true brand builder and creative force. Any team would be lucky to have her.”
Steve DeSpirito
Principal Designer
American Girl
“I had the pleasure of working with Allie for over a decade at American Girl, and she’s hands-down one of the most creative and inspiring people I’ve worked with. Allie brings a rare combination of design talent, strategic thinking, and an endlessly positive attitude - even in the most high-pressure situations.
She has a true gift for expressing ideas in visual form - always finding fresh, on-brand ways to bring color, materials, and finishes to life. Her mood boards alone are legendary: beautifully curated, full of insight, and always capturing the exact essence of a project before anyone else could articulate it. Whether she was leading collaborations with partners like Williams Sonoma, or creating toolkits and style guides that brought new character worlds to life, Allie always brought both vision and precision.
What I’ve always admired most is how she stays so calm and upbeat no matter what’s going on. Deadlines, pivots, pressure - Allie handled it all with a smile and a fresh idea. Her creativity and problem-solving helped move so many projects forward, and her leadership and mentorship were a huge asset to our team.
If you’re looking for a creative partner who brings not just serious design skill, but great energy, fresh thinking, and a collaborative spirit - Allie’s the one you want with you from concept to completion!”
Resume
-
BACHELOR OF FINE ARTS - Graphic Design
Iowa State University, College of Design
Graduated with HonorsROME PROGRAM
Study Abroad, Rome, Italy -
STAFF PRODUCT DESIGNER
American Girl
2023 – 2025Licensed Partnerships & Collabs (Crocs, GAP, Disney, Barbie)
Consumer Products style guides & product design
Retail Events, Experiences & Souvenir product design
Lead product art, graphics and toolboxes across brands
PRODUCT DESIGN MANAGER
American Girl
2021 – 2023Lead product art & packaging teams
Sub-brand & Character style guides and toolboxes
New concept visuals and partnership pitch decks
LEAD PRODUCT DESIGNER
American Girl
2015 – 2021Lead team of product art designers and freelancers
Sub-brand & Character style guides and toolboxes
Manage & design Retail Events & Experiences
SENIOR DESIGNER
American Girl
2014 – 2015Design Retail Events, including crafts and doll product
Lead design and development of “Signature Studio” garment printing experience in flagship retail stores
GRAPHIC DESIGNER - TEMP
American Girl
2012 – 2014Design and illustrate product art & graphics across all brands, including print, apparel, & toy
-
DEVELOPMENT & COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR
EarthCorps, Seattle, WA
2011 – 2012Global center for applied environmental leadership and community based restoration
Responsible for all communications, social media, photography, alumni relations, fundraising, event planning, and 2012 rebrand.
AMERICORPS CORPSMEMBER & CREW LEADER
EarthCorps, Seattle, WA
2008 – 2010Trained, mentored and supervised crews of international young adults in environmental restoration & volunteer management
ART DIRECTOR
Salem Publishing, Nashville, TN
2005 – 2008Art direction and design of six monthly magazines, supervision of two associate designers
Exhibition and marketing design
-
AMERICAN GIRL SHINING STAR AWARD
Top honor from leadership to recognize work ethic and innovative project leadership of “Signature Studio” retail experience, 2015
EVANGELICAL PRESS ASSOCIATION
Publication Redesign, Second Place
Preaching Magazine, 2008 -
VOLUNTEER ART DOCENT
Kenmore Elementary School
Kenmore, WA
2023 – PresentBASE 2 SPACE
Fred Hutch Cancer Research Fundraiser
Climbed the 832 open-air stairs of Seattle's space needle, 2018MATTEL/MICROSOFT INNOVATION BRAINSTORM
Collaborative tech brainstorm participant and finalist
El Segundo, CA, 2016KRISTA FOUNDATION FOR GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP
Grant recipient, colleague and graphic designer
Seattle, WA, 2008 – 2012 -
SOFTWARE & PROGRAMS
Adobe Creative Suite
Microsoft Office Suite
Workfront
Midjourney AI
Keynote
PLM/AgileLEADERSHIP SKILLS
Product management
People management
Volunteer management
Team building
Art & Creative direction
Brainstorm sessions
Mentoring & coaching
Collaboration & communicationDESIGN SKILLS
Toy design
Merchandise design
Apparel design
Prints, patterns & textile design
Graphic design & branding
Illustration
Magazine & book publishing
Retail events & experiences
Crafts design
Photo editing
Packaging design
Trend research
Technology & innovation
Sublimation printing
Style guide creation