UNIVERSITY NEWS LAST UPDATED : 20 APRIL 2017
A recent graduate from Birmingham City University’s School of Fashion and Textiles has joined a star-studded line-up set to judge a national contest which asks budding designers to create couture designs and works of wearable art from everyday ‘junk’.
Rhys Ellis, originally from Kings Norton in Birmingham and now living in Shoreditch, secured a place on the Junk Kouture judging panel after wowing with his handmade dress designs - made out of repurposed coffee pods.
The 25-year-old joins X Factor judge Louis Walsh, singer-songwriter Una Healy and model Katie Brill on the panel, who are judging designs by secondary school students throughout Scotland and Ireland before the Grand Final in Dublin on 27 April.
Rhys graduated from Birmingham City University in 2016 with a degree in Fashion Design and recently showcased his work in Selfridges’ Birmingham department store.
“Talking to students and understanding their views on the world highlights how they’re going to have an impact on our future”, said Rhys.