Two BA (Hons) Fashion students at the College have won a live brief set by the Business Confucius Institute, their prize a trip to China!
The two winning students, Jodie Reynolds and Bethan Smith were selected by a judging panel from the Business Confucius Institute, following their live brief to design an outfit based on the traditional Chinese dress, (the Cheongsam or Qipao).
The brief was open to all first year BA (Hons) Fashion students at the College, which asked the students to explore Chinese culture and utilise their findings when designing an outfit based on the Cheongsam (traditional Chinese dress). Throughout the brief students attended a range of workshops covering Mandarin language lessons, calligraphy, paper cutting and Chinese symbolism to inform and inspire their design development, whilst taking into consideration current trends, target markets, contemporary / traditional techniques and fabric. You can find out more about the workshops here
Jodie and Bethan have just flown out to China with the Confucius Institute Summer School, for a two week trip; where they will be taking their designs to China and will present to a number of fashion companies including MENG LUO CHUAN (one of the most famous traditional Chinese dress brands in China, they started in 1876 and now with over 108 branches in China) in Tianjin and LALABOBO (a contemporary high street label with decades of history and over 60 plus franchise in China) in Beijing. They have a packed itinerary whilst in China including, a visit to the British Council, cultural lectures, Chinese language classes and a visit to the Great Wall, museums and galleries.
Jodie Reynolds, from Manchester, designed a sports luxe Cheongsam created out of laser cut, scuba jersey and Chinese silk taking inspiration from traditional Chinese door culture. The silk was sponsored by Leeds based silk specialists James Hare.
Bethan Smith, from Bristol, created a fully lined digital printed tweed dress taking inspiration from the Qing Dynasty.
