TikTok UK Fashion Design competition: Winner's design modelled at London Fashion Week by influencer Tube Girl

The young fashion designer who won a TikTok competition has seen her design walk the catwalk at London Fashion Week, modelled by influencer Tube Girl.

The hugely popular social media site launched its very own fashion design competition - the #TikTokFashion design competition - last year. Entrants were asked to create either an upcycled piece or a brand new, original design, document the creative process from start to finish, and submit their finished video on TikTok.

The winner was promised a spot at this month's London Fashion Week, along with representation by SheerLuxe's brand new fashion talent agency, Blush Talent Management, for six months and funding towards creating a brand film to build their portfolio

The industry expert judges, including Andrea Cheong (@andreacheong_), Bernard Garby (@bernardgarby) Verona Farrell, (@secondhandhuns) and Charlotte Collins, Editor-in-Chief of @sheerluxe, eventually chose a winner after receiving many entries.

One entry caught their eyes, due to how it blended a unique approach upcycling with high fashion. That design came from TikToker Eva Clarkson, who is a Fashion Designer and Tailor, according to her bio. Her winning entry was showcased at an exclusive TikTok fashion event yesterday (Thursday February 15) at a central London location, and it was even modelled by TikTok icon Sabrina Bahsoon, aka Tube Girl.

'Social media, creativity and fashion coming together'

If that wasn't enough, Clarkson's winning design and the garments from her wider collection have been produced professionally. Originally from Bicester, Oxfordshire, Clarkson studied Bespoke Tailoring at the London College of Fashion for three years. She was inspired to follow a path in fashion by her nan, who had a career as a seamstress, and after graduating, she secured an internship with British retailer Hobbs.

She later returned to university to study for a Postgraduate Diploma in Fashion at Central Saint Martin's. Studying there motivated her to create her own brand. It was her combination of unique tailoring and material reinvention in her submission that led to the judging panel to choose her as the winner of the contest.

Working with an old saddle, Clarkson upcycled a piece of riding equipment into a bespoke corset. The judges decided that her design reinvents old materials and transformed the saddle into a wearable fashion item fit for the fashion front row.

Clarkson said: "I believe TikTok is an amazing platform to support emerging designers and creatives, because you can come from a trained or untrained background. You can also showcase your work with like-minded creatives, who are all very supportive and intrigued by the end result, but most importantly, the process".

TikTok has paved the way for social media and creativity to come together through hashtags such as #TikTokFashion, #LondonFashionWeek, #NewYorkFashionWeek and #ParisFashionWeek which I know, from personal experience, is how I look for motivation and inspiration."

Yazmin How, Head of Lifestyle & Education, TikTok UK said: "The TikTok creator community continues to amaze us with its creativity, and we were overwhelmed by the quality of the designs submitted to the UK's first TikTok Fashion design competition. Clarkson's eye for detail and passion for pushing boundaries with tailoring really impressed our judging panel, so it was only right that she has been crowned the winner.

There's an new generation of creative talent flourishing on TikTok, and we're proud to help connect them with opportunities to turn their passions into careers. We're so excited to watch Clarkson's next steps as she starts to build her creative portfolio."