Fashion designer Aoife Gowen is one of 16 finalists in the Hans Christian Andersen Foundation International Fashion Design Competition whose brief is to create "A Fairy Tale Dress of the Year".
The competition, a bicentenary celebration of the birth of the famous Danish writer, attracted entries from more than 100 fashion design colleges in 40 countries and is the first in a series aimed at fashion students worldwide. Ms Gowen is the only Irish finalist. The competition begins in Odense this weekend.
Kilkenny-born Ms Gowen (26), who lives in Dublin, holds a degree in theoretical physics from TCD, a master's degree in financial mathematics from DCU and is currently completing a PhD in Food Science at DIT.
During her third year in TCD, she did a three-week dressmaking course at the Grafton Academy.
"I was afraid of sewing machines until I did the course," she said.
"I just love making clothes and can spend days doing it, but at the same time doing something very academic makes me really creative."
Last August Ms Gowen won the New Designer of the Year competition run by the Kilkenny People, and completed a course in textile printing in NCAD.
Her entry, inspired by the story The Snow Queen, is a dress based on a paper cut-out of arrows and snowflakes made from black felt, ivory tulle and cream jersey. She will complete it in Denmark over the next two weeks for the €5,000 prize.
