The Bride Show Dubai organisers have picked out 10 amateur designers and 12 Middle Eastern fashion students to take part in the finals of the competition to win the Crystallized Young Designers award.

Final designs will be showcased and the winner announced at the fashion event to be held from April 8 to 11 at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre.

The amateur contestants hail from Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and are a diverse group, representing countries from Sudan to South Korea.

The student finalists have been short-listed from three different fashion schools: Preston University Ajman, the Centre for Executive Education based in Dubai Knowledge Village, and Millennium Institute of Technology & Management in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Now a decade old, the annual Crystallized Young Designers award consists of prizes and incentives, including an internship at a prominent fashion house. This year’s theme, Gypsy Rose, will give the finalists a source of inspiration providing a starting point for their imaginative wedding dress creations, a statement said.

On the final day of The Bride Show Dubai, designs from both the amateur and student categories will be presented on the catwalk by professional models, while a panel of leading fashion industry judges will evaluate each wedding dress.

“Every year, the Crystallized Young Designers award receives enthusiastic entries from incredibly talented individuals, and our chosen finalists this year are no exception,” said Daphne Cota, exhibition manager for The Bride Show.

“The Bride Show Dubai is a great place for our finalists to catapult their careers into the fashion world as their designs are proudly modelled, illuminating their innovative take on the theme and use of Crystallized – Swarovski Elements,” she added.

The Bride Show Dubai is the largest wedding and fashion event in the UAE with the 2008 exhibition welcoming more than 30,000 visitors. This year’s event is likely to see participation from more than 200 wedding industry experts and suppliers from around the world.

Women’s Healthcare and Bride Home will run alongside The Bride Show Dubai, broadening the appeal for visitors as brides and young women take an active interest in their health and wellbeing, particularly in preparation for their wedding, and newlywed couples start to decorate their marital homes.

The 12th edition of The Bride Show Dubai will offer exclusive discounts and daily competitions. Grand prizes include a diamond ring and a luxury honeymoon package with five-star accommodation in Seoul and Jeju Island in South Korea. – TradeArabia News Service