Best Ao Dai designs honoured

The Vietnam Women’s Union held an awards ceremony for an Ao Dai design contest in Hanoi on October 7, with Le Thi Thuy from Hanoi wining the first prize for her Ao Dai collection themed Thang Long Imperial Citadel.

First prize winning Ao Dai collection themed ‘Thang Long Imperial Citadel’ by designer Le Thi Thuy (Photo: VNA)
First prize winning Ao Dai collection themed ‘Thang Long Imperial Citadel’ by designer Le Thi Thuy (Photo: VNA)

The two second prizes went to Nguyen Thi Hoang Oanh from Dak Lak and Phung Quoc Khanh from Buon Ma Thuot for their respective collections themed ‘Dear Mother’ and ‘Traditional costumes of E De ethnic groups’.

Three third prizes were also presented to other outstanding entries at the ceremony.

The contest was launched in March by the Union and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as an event to celebrate the union’s 90th founding anniversary. It aims to honour and popularise the value of the Vietnamese Ao Dai while encouraging participants to promote creativity and techniques in creating new designs for the traditional outfit.

The contest opened for both professional and amateur designers, tailors, students major in design, as well as Ao Dai lovers from both at home and abroad.

A total of 534 entries were sent to the contest by entrants in various ages and social backgrounds from 37 cities and provinces nationwide. The youngest competitor was 6 years old while the oldest was 64.

Utilising assorted materials such as silk and brocade, participants featured the country’s beautiful natural landscapes and distinctive cultural practices in their Ao Dai designs.