HÀ NỘI Young designer Vũ Tá Linh from Hà Nội has just won the annual designed-by-Việt Nam contest’s fashion category with his creations from old clothes.

Linh combined some of his old clothes with a piece of cloth embroidered by Thái ethnic minority people in the central province of Nghệ An to create a collection of six items.

“I also applied a few more Vietnamese traditional handworks to support the old cloth such as hand quilting, thread drawing, hand-stitching, patch-working, and crocheting,” Linh told Việt Nam News. “I crafted the whole outfit myself.”

A design in Linh's collection. Courtesy Photo of Vũ Tá Linh

With his collection N.A.M, Linh expresses a profound meaning: limitations can be a barrier, but they do not prevent creative aspirations or desires being transformed to adapt to new living conditions.

“It brings up a strange emotion that I have never ever experienced before. I call it a form of metamorphosis,” he said.

The fashion contest themed “Awakening traditions” was part of Vietnam Design Week, a series of events that seek to honour and apply distinguished designs practical to serve several fields in everyday life: Food & Beverage, Living, Fashion, Souvenirs, and Public Art.

The judges highly appreciated Linh’s capability to turn limitation into the advantage, while his collection used recycled cloth, which is a sustainable trend of the future.

Linh's collection follows a sustainable trend. Courtesy Photo of Vũ Tá Linh

In the Souvenir category, HCM City-based Lưu Như Ngọc won first prize for her creations from broken pieces of ceramic made from Bát Tràng Village.

Her work titled Returned Tickets bears the image of doctorate students at the Temple of Literature in Hà Nội, which transmits a clear message praising traditional values in the modern era.

The contest was launched in mid July and ends in August, gathering 183 designs, 30 of which will enter the final round.

The competition is a co-operation between Vietnam Design Group, the Vietnam Institute of Culture and Art Studies, Ashui Company, Hà Nội Culture & Sport Department, Temple of Literature – Quốc Tử Giám Culture and Science Centre and other agencies. VNS

A souvenir collection by Lưu Như Ngọc