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Dedication to creating original designs during a global pandemic has earned valuable industry recognition for Contour Fashion students at Â鶹´«Ã½ Leicester (Â鶹´«Ã½).

Second-year students on Â鶹´«Ã½’s world-renowned degree designed their end-of-year collections with specialist input from leading lingerie and swimwear house Starkers Group.

Winning design by Meg White

As well as visiting students on campus where possible, company representatives provided vital one-to-one tuition online during lockdown, ensuring that students working remotely from as far as Poland and China benefitted from their expertise.

Finalists chosen based on their research, sketchbook development and 3D outcomes were invited to present their concepts in person to Creative Director Jessica Prebble, Commercial Director Mark Pyne and Abigail Smith, Marketing Co-ordinator for Starkers brand Tutti Rouge.

First, second and third place prizes were awarded to students , and , while Sonica Signey and Shiming Deng were commended for their creativity, and Ruby Godefroy and Katie Downard were commended for their commercial concepts.

Mark Pyne said: “When faced with real adversity, we were astounded at the quality of work that was delivered by the students. It was some of the best work we have seen in eight years of judging.

“Students have sewn at home on domestic machines and embraced the technology of remote tutoring, while proving resourceful and committed. Those who were recognised with a place or commendation should be truly proud, as the competition was tough with real depth in the quality.

“The tutoring team have also faced many challenges due to the unfolding events surrounding the pandemic. Every resource was re-worked, ‘Zoomed’ and intensely scrutinised to ensure the students had the very best possible opportunity to shine, and for this, they should be recognised also.”

Meg's collection inspired by copper mining in Cornwall

First-place winner Meg impressed the judges with a mesh bodysuit inspired by Cornish copper mining, featuring contemporary crossover and cut-out details, underwire cups and French seams.

The 19-year-old from Cornwall photographed copper rocks at her local beach, which she then edited to make the copper more prominent and to create geometric shapes. She printed her design on fusible webbing and ironed it onto her bodysuit pieces before construction.

She said: “I made every bit of my design in my room because lockdown meant we couldn’t be on campus. It was actually quite fun but it took me a week and a half of straight sewing.

“Getting feedback from an external client was really interesting, especially hearing their expert opinions on what will sell well. We talked through my sketches before the design process and that really helped me to narrow down my ideas.

“The support we had during this project was amazing. Our tutors and technicians were only an email away when we needed help, and once lockdown lifted, final-years gave up some of their studio time so we could attend night classes to finalise our work.”

Runner-up Yoonjung's playful take on the brief

A playful corset with detachable sleeves and matching bloomers landed Yoonjung in second place. Her bold print was inspired by her love of miniature art on a backdrop of the Brighton landscape and amusement parks. Yoonjung achieved a structural look by using cotton twill and heavy organza.

“It was very challenging completing a project like this during the pandemic and I had to take into consideration a design that I could make on my domestic sewing machine in my room,” said the 25-year-old from South Korea.

“I was very nervous for my presentation and I knew other people’s work was amazing, so I was really happy to get such a high score. I’ve made a massive improvement since my first year.

“Our course is very practical, so working close with industry makes me feel like I’m stepping closer to real life after graduation. I think it’s really worth it.”

Details of Yoonjung's collection

Rachel Toner, Programme Leader for Contour Fashion at Â鶹´«Ã½, said: “This year was particularly challenging for students as they had reduced machine room access due to lockdown, working with a blend of online and face-to-face support. Yet they managed to maintain a resilience and rose to the challenge.

“Students very much appreciated the fantastic guidance from Starkers, who we are grateful to have as staunch supporters of our course for eight years running, and were able to take much from the advice provided.”