Vera Thórdardóttir, a 24-year-old design student from Iceland, is among 14 students chosen from a group of 100 to participate in the final of the FAD competition. The winner will be announced at a show during London Fashion Week on February 22.
From London. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.
“It is very exciting; I get butterflies in my stomach when I think about it,” the young designer commented.
According to Fréttabladid, journalists from Vogue and other fashion magazines will attend the show in addition to scouts from fashion design companies and chain stores such as Selfridges.
“Everyone who is looking for young and talented designers will be there,” Thórdardóttir said, adding that the competition is rough. The finalists are from many of England’s foremost design schools. Thórdardóttir is studying at Istituto Marangoni in London.
Her designs, which earned her a place among the FAD finalists, were inspired by an avalanche which hit an empty building owned by her family in Dýrafjördur, the West Fjords, in 1995. The students were asked to base their designs on a memory.
“There is a lot of influence from snow in my design and I developed a textile myself which is made from silicone and Swarovski crystals. Swarovski sponsored me, which was very pleasing,” Thórdardóttir explained.
The winner will get a prize of GBP 2,000 (USD 3,200, EUR 2,300) and an intern position at a London fashion house. The jury includes British author Linda Grant and fashion show director Sonnet Stanfill.
FAD stands for Fashion Awareness Direct. The competition’s aim is to highlight and support creative young people at the earliest stages in their careers.
Click here to see sketches of Thórdardóttir’s designs.
