A fashion competition is about those who dare to dream the loudest. When the Cebu Young Designers Competition (CYDC) 2025 opened its doors in September 2024, it summoned visionaries from across the region to bring their artistry to the fore.Thirty-six answered the call until their numbers gradually whittled down to eight.
Then came March 22, 2025, the night when talent and ambition intertwined at SM J Mall’s The Atrium. And after 13 long years, history was rewritten as a Cebuana designer rose to claim the top title.Grand winnerSarah Tutor, a student from the Fashion Institute of the Philippines, emerged as the grand winner of the CYDC 2025 with her debut couture collection, “Hosanna.
” While first attempts are rarely perfect for most people, for Sarah, this moment was nothing short of divine.“This collection is inspired by a story from the Bible — when Jesus entered Jerusalem riding a donkey, and people welcomed Him by waving palm branches,” she explained. Tying into the significance of Palm Sunday in March, her designs symbolized devotion.
Rooted in her passion for quilting and patchwork, Sarah’s designs told a story of faith and nature intertwined. Palm-inspired patterns appeared in fringes, sculpted cutouts and sweeping drapes, while voluminous layers mirrored the sway of palm leaves in the wind.“When you make a collection, it feels like it’s all about you.
Sometimes, you get burned out thinking about yourself, about winning, about how tired you are. But wh.
