Graduate Fashion Week gala sees cardboard coats, shin pad sleeves and built-in iPads as students capitalise on their creativity
Shin pad sleeve coats, trousers made of plastic bags and ball gowns with built in iPads - it can only be Graduate Fashion Week.
At a blockbuster showcase, which provided a spectacular finale to the four-day extravaganza at East London's Truman Brewery, designs spanned the ridiculous to the sublime during an event which saw some 1,500 students from 68 universities vie for the attention of the industry.
Of the 25 selected students who unveiled their collections on the catwalk last night Halina North came out on top, scooping the coveted Christopher Bailey Gold Award for collection of the year with her innovative line of dresses and coats which were moulded from cardboard.
The Edinburgh College of Art student, who also took home the Trailblazer Award, was praised by a panel of judges which included designers Sadie Frost and Holly Fulton for her ability to "look beyond the normal confines of how we define fashion".
Fellow Edinburgh College of Art graduate Maddie Williams claimed the Catwalk Textiles Award for her show-stopping collection which was handwoven entirely from plastic bags.
Her designs included super-wide leg trousers trimmed with shredded strips and high-shine puffer jackets stuffed with the material.
Among the winners were Irene D'Antonio, who bagged the M&S Womenswear Award for her colourful collection of ornate floral-print kimono jackets and wrap trousers, and Debenhams Menswear Award winner Daniel Rynne from the Arts University Bournemouth, who delivered an artist-inspired line of paint splattered denim shirts and apron bibs stuffed with brushes.
Other star pupils were Visionary Knitwear Award winner Ruth Williams for her lattice leather and crochet creations and Bath Spa University Graduate Laura Capello, whose wearable take on monochrome body-con dresses and cropped evening jackets saw her claim the George Catwalk to Store Award.
Kasubika Chola from Kingston University also won praise from the audience for their innovative use of denim cast offs, creating coats and jackets from disused dungarees, which were presented alongside bags made from old rice sacks.
Students capitalise on creativity at Graduate Fashion Week galaGraduate Fashion WeekEdinburgh College of ArtKingston UniversityUniversity Of SalfordBath Spa UniversityChristopher BaileyArts University BournemouthLondon College of FashionGraduate Fashion Week gala sees cardboard coats, shin pad sleeves and built-in iPadsGraduate Fashion Week 2017 Gala - the runway
Graduate Fashion Week 2017 Gala - the runway
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Models backstage wearing Maddie Williams - Edinburgh College of Art
Wayne Tippetts/Rex
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Maddie Williams - Edinburgh College of Art
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Hallina North - Edinburgh College of Art
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Irene D'Antonio - Edinburgh College of art
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Maddie Williams - Edinburgh College of Art
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Maddie Williams - Edinburgh College of Art
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Hallina North - Edinburgh College of Art
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Hallina North - Edinburgh College of Art
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Claire Tagg - UCA Rochester
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Claire Tagg - UCA Rochester
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Claire Tagg - UCA Rochester
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Irene D'Antonio - Edinburgh College of art
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Irene D'Antonio - Edinburgh College of art
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Bethany Griffiths - De Montford University
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Bethany Griffiths - De Montford University
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Abisola Akanni - De Montford University
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Abisola Akanni - De Montford University
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Kasubika Chola - Kingston University
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Kasubika Chola - Kingston University
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Ophelia Liu Hiu Ying - Ravensbourne
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Ophelia Liu Hiu Ying - Ravensbourne
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Sarah Louise Frances - University Of Salford
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Sarah Louise Frances - University Of Salford
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Sarah Louise Frances - University Of Salford
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Sarah Louise Frances - University Of Salford
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Lauren McArthur - UCA Rochester
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Lauren McArthur - UCA Rochester
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Zexi Yu - Kingston University
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Zexi Yu - Kingston University
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Zsofia Juhasz - Manchester School Of Art
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Zsofia Juhasz - Manchester School Of Art
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Ruth Williams - Edinburgh College of Art
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Ruth Williams - Edinburgh College of Art
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Ruth Williams - Edinburgh College of Art
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Laura Capello - Bath Spa University
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Laura Capello - Bath Spa University
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Laura Capello - Bath Spa University
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Daniel Rynne - Arts University Bournemouth
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Daniel Rynne - Arts University Bournemouth
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Daniel Rynne - Arts University Bournemouth
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Abigail Coop - Nottingham Trent University
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Abigail Coop - Nottingham Trent University
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Beth Woolley - Liverpool John Moores University
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Beth Woolley - Liverpool John Moores University
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Emily Clark - Kingston University
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Emily Clark - Kingston University
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Emily Clark - Kingston University
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Frankie Dean - Edinburgh Of Edinburgh
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Frankie Dean - Edinburgh Of Edinburgh
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Kaitlyn Morgan - Sheffield Hallam
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Kaitlyn Morgan - Sheffield Hallam
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Lisa Crump - Sheffield Hallam
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Lisa Crump - Sheffield Hallam
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Ryan Brockbank - Brighton University
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Ryan Brockbank - Brighton University
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Sarah Rafferty - Nottingham Trent University
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Sarah Rafferty - Nottingham Trent University
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Susan Forrest - Manchester School of Art
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Susan Forrest - Manchester School of Art
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Yingi Goma - UCA Rochester
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Yingi Goma - UCA Rochester
The fashion week showcase saw some 1,500 students vie for the attention of the industry