Durban fashionistas were in for a treat at the Annual DUT Fashion Show held on Wednesday 3 October 2012, at the Fred Crookes Sports Centre.

The spectacular show forms part of the third-year DUT Fashion and Textiles Programme curriculum. This year’s show is themed “Fibres of my Avatar” and is meant for each designer to make their personal style glamorous and ready for catwalk.

Forty third-year DUT students have worked tooth and nail to impress a panel of judges, one who is a lecturer in the Fashion and Textiles Department and three who are bigwigs in the local fashion industry.

Meena Bagwandin, who lectures the final-year Fashion and Textiles students, was very proud to see what her students had produced.

She said what makes this year’s show unique is that the judges scrutinise the garments closely behind the scenes, unlike in previous years where they only saw the clothes on the runway and made their judgment by looking from a distance. “This year we are stressing fabric quality, we do not want students to cheat and use cheap material. Quality is what sells”, Bagwandin said.

One of the third-year students; Daniel Panton says his range is an anatomy of his creativity. He used cell prints and ink with non conventional fabric such as dogs’ blanket and dye to make his range unique. “I really did not plan this range, it was basically an experiment gone wrong and I used my creativity from my Graphic Design experience to make it look presentable”, said Panton.

Panton intended to create a range that is wearable on the runway but that also appeals to the average person for everyday wear.

Another third year student; Banu Bulose used her religion as her muse, seeking to alter the stereotypes about Muslim women’s fashion. In her range, Bulose used landscape colors of the Saudi Arabia desert and Arabic prints which define Islam culture. “It is important to me because I am a Muslim woman and I hope the message I was trying to send with my range was received and understood,” she said.

The show runs until this Friday (October 5, 2012) where the best twenty ranges will be shown.

Friday will also culminate in the announcement of the winners of the Best Range on Show, Best Menswear Range, Most Commercial Range, Most Innovative Range and Best Technical Range.

– Nomvula Sikakane

Caption: DUT Fashion and Textiles third-year students bedazzle judges and the audience at this year’s Annual DUT Fashion Show held at the Fred Crookes Sports Centre, Steve Biko Campus. The three-day fashion show started yesterday (Wednesday October 3, 2012).