(09/12/2008)BFTA Design Competition 2009 competition now open for entries

The British Fur Trade Association (BFTA) is pleased to announce that students can send in their entries, from now onwards, for participation in the BFTA Design Competition 2009.

“This year we have several well-known fashion colleges on board,andwe hope that further colleges throughout the country will join during the next weeks”, says BFTA. The competition enables students to explore the use of fur in fashion and discover the endless opportunities that using fur can give the designer. All entries need to arrive at BFTA offices by Wednesday 4 February 2009.

The competition brief can be sent to colleges by email or post and requires students to design an innovative collection of garments or accessories with a commercial feel.

As every year, finalists will take part in a workshop with a designer and have the opportunity to learn more about the techniques possible when working with fur. Winners will have their garments made up.All materials are provided by BFTA.  There is also a cash prize and the overall winner will be entered into the International Fur Trade Federation’s international competition, Remix 2009.

Currently nearly 400 designers work with fur. The BFTA would like to raise consumer awareness and promotes the use of Origin Assured™ fur (OA).

Origin Assured™ is a new labelling programme designed to give consumers confidence about the provenance of the fur they are buying. Just as people wish increasingly to know the sources of their food, coffee and clothing, they would like to know about the source of their fur.

When consumers see the OA™ label, they can be certain that the fur comes from a country where national or local regulations or standards governing fur production are in force. 

For further details and a competition brief, please contact the BFTA

press@britishfur.co.uk