DESIGN LAB WINNERS

Designing or making something out of materials is not as simple as what I thought it would be. I mean, what's so hard about turning paper into an outfit, right? It's so simple. Not!

Yes, designing is not as simple as what some of us think. I was talking to one Project Runway contestant and he was telling me how churning out clothes day after day in Project Runway made him crazy. You get drained and all. It wasn't easy. He said if you are just watching it seems so simple (that word again) and one would think, ' I can do better than that!'

Experiencing it for himself, he's been understanding about contestants in other Project Runway. It's never simple. It's actually very hard.

But this entry is not about Project Runway. I mentioned it because out of the many who said they are submitting an entry (you know who you are) only 2 designers were bold enough to present their creations. I concluded that it must have been difficult for the others to design something.

So hail to the winners!

LYKA BERGEN

Origami inspired, armorial elegance. The artisanship is quite evident in the shredded detail of the skirt. As what I've said to Lyka before, his strength in designing is not with soft, drapey materials but in sculptural and architectural designs.

I could just imagine this in stiff couture fabric like duchess satin or felt. And so wearable. Don't you think it's very Chanel?

KIKS

Aptly titled, "British Picasso on Patchwork", its designer explains it as "a combination of Bathing Ape swirling ape patterns with a Mondrian-esque feel. I wanted to make some more of the "British judge's locks" but I had little time - it would have become a whole wig-like hood that would swirl into Van-Gogh-esque circles at the back."

There's avant garde sensibility in the core of this design. There's a desdain for conventionality, an attempt to experiment and create cubism as a style. It succeeds in giving new meaning to wearable art. No, I don't see this as everyday wear but more of a statement and a protest. An apt thought and a perfect musing if you know the background of the designer.

So, yes, we have a tie!