Meet the 2025 Semi-finalists

Carla Zhang

Redress Design Award

  • 2025
 Finalist

Meet The Designer

“Being resourceful means rethinking traditional design processes, finding value in overlooked or discarded materials, and ensuring that every creation serves a purpose beyond fleeting trends.”
Carla Zhang
“Being resourceful means rethinking traditional design processes, finding value in overlooked or discarded materials, and ensuring that every creation serves a purpose beyond fleeting trends.”
Carla Zhang

Bio

Carla Zhang is a Finalist of the Redress Design Award 2025. She holds a BA in Fashion Design and Marketing from SoFA Design Institute, the Philippines.

Region

  • Mainland China

Collection

  • Womenswear

Design Techniques

  • Upcycling, Zero Waste

Redress Design Award Collection

Carla’s Redress Design Award collection, ‘Glitch Theory’, explores duality and randomness through varied line forms. The collection is entirely handwoven with factory surplus cords and yarns, using only the necessary materials to ensure zero waste. Carla reinterprets the recurring design element of lines from her previous collections, uncovering structure amidst chaos and embracing the uncertainties inherent in every creative choice. Her looks are made free-style without rigid patterns or structured looms, allowing creativity to flow organically.

Q&A with the designer

It was during my second year of college, amid the pandemic and quarantine, while reorganising my wardrobe, that I realised how many unused clothes I had accumulated. That moment led me to rework those garments and create a capsule collection for a school assignment. It was a turning point that made me reflect on fashion waste and sparked my interest in more conscious design practices.

For this collection, all materials were sourced from deadstock and leftover textiles. Each piece was shaped through freestyle hand-weaving without generating any material waste.

I focus on designing for longevity, creating timeless, handcrafted pieces that resist trends and are built to last. All materials are sourced from deadstock, leftovers, or damaged goods purchased in bulk online—random in colour and texture. Rather than seeing this as a limitation, I treat it as a creative opportunity, turning unpredictability into surprise. Each piece is one-of-a-kind, freestyle handwoven to embrace the beauty of uncertainty and allow creativity to flow organically.

My designs are versatile—suitable for formal events or layered with blouses, dresses, bodysuits, and leggings for everyday wear. By prioritising craftsmanship, durable materials, and flexibility, I ensure each design remains relevant over time. These are not disposable garments but enduring pieces meant to be worn again and again, redefining fashion as a long-term investment. Even after their life cycle, they can live on as decorative artworks or be recycled into new functional forms.

As a fashion designer, I believe sustainability is rooted in resourcefulness—maximising the potential of every material, minimising waste, repurposing the overlooked, and innovating within limitations. It’s about rethinking traditional design processes and creating with intention and longevity.

My career goal is to build a sustainable fashion brand that balances environmental responsibility, economic viability, and ethical labor. Through this, I hope to redefine fashion as a purposeful, lasting investment.

Cellphone, of course—but also my sunglasses, as long as I’m carrying a bag!

The collection is titled ‘Glitch Theory’. ‘Glitch’ refers to an unexpected, often chaotic error or malfunction—something typically seen as random or disruptive. ‘Theory’ implies a system of thought or interpretation.

The concept was inspired by my new journey to Shanghai, filled with curiosity but also the fears that come with entering the unknown. Much like the freestyle weaving technique used throughout the collection—which combines spontaneous choices of materials and colours—it reflects the process of finding structure within chaos and embracing the uncertainty present in every decision.

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