Skip to main content

Site navigation

  • University of Technology Sydney home
  • Home

    Home
  • For students

  • For industry

  • Research

Explore

  • Courses
  • Events
  • News
  • Stories
  • People

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt
  • Study at UTS

    • arrow_right_alt Find a course
    • arrow_right_alt Course areas
    • arrow_right_alt Undergraduate students
    • arrow_right_alt Postgraduate students
    • arrow_right_alt Research Masters and PhD
    • arrow_right_alt Online study and short courses
  • Student information

    • arrow_right_alt Current students
    • arrow_right_alt New UTS students
    • arrow_right_alt Graduates (Alumni)
    • arrow_right_alt High school students
    • arrow_right_alt Indigenous students
    • arrow_right_alt International students
  • Admissions

    • arrow_right_alt How to apply
    • arrow_right_alt Entry pathways
    • arrow_right_alt Eligibility
arrow_right_altVisit our hub for students

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt

POPULAR LINKS

  • Apply for a coursearrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt
  • Scholarshipsarrow_right_alt
  • Featured industries

    • arrow_right_alt Agriculture and food
    • arrow_right_alt Defence and space
    • arrow_right_alt Energy and transport
    • arrow_right_alt Government and policy
    • arrow_right_alt Health and medical
    • arrow_right_alt Corporate training
  • Explore

    • arrow_right_alt Tech Central
    • arrow_right_alt Case studies
    • arrow_right_alt Research
arrow_right_altVisit our hub for industry

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt

POPULAR LINKS

  • Find a UTS expertarrow_right_alt
  • Partner with usarrow_right_alt
  • Explore

    • arrow_right_alt Explore our research
    • arrow_right_alt Research centres and institutes
    • arrow_right_alt Graduate research
    • arrow_right_alt Research partnerships
arrow_right_altVisit our hub for research

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt

POPULAR LINKS

  • Find a UTS expertarrow_right_alt
  • Research centres and institutesarrow_right_alt
  • University of Technology Sydney home
Explore the University of Technology Sydney
Category Filters:
University of Technology Sydney home University of Technology Sydney home
  1. home
  2. arrow_forward_ios ... Newsroom
  3. arrow_forward_ios ... 2019
  4. arrow_forward_ios 08
  5. arrow_forward_ios Student fashion at the laser-cutting edge

Student fashion at the laser-cutting edge

9 August 2019

Design graduate Jessica Xie presented her collection – featuring laser-cut wood – at one of Australia's largest fashion festivals.

Close-up of fashion outfits worn by six models. The clothes are made from silk and wool in warm brown and cream tones. All include edgings or overlays made of laser-cut wood.

Close-ups of Jessica Xie’s fashion collection, made from silk, wool and laser-cut wood, just before hitting the National Graduate Showcase runway. Photo by Lucas Dawson.

Jessica Xie finishes in style

Recent design graduate Jessica Xie wrapped up her final year of study in style, presenting her laser-cut wood collection as one of just 12 candidates selected from across Australia to feature in the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival’s (VAMFF) National Graduate Showcase. 

Jessica describes her inspiration, her use of technology, and what it was like to see her innovative creations hit the catwalk at one of the fashion industry’s leading events.

JESSICA'S DEGREE: Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Fashion and Textiles

Inspiration, and why wood?

It may seem odd to some, but my choice to use wood to create my final-year project came about after I designed a womenswear collection that featured pleating.

I was fascinated by the way folding fabric completely changed the way the clothing moved. It gave me the idea to try slicing other materials to see the impact on form and shape.

I started hand-cutting materials like paper, plastics, and used a laser machine to cut fabric, then finally wood. I loved how that allowed what’s normally a rigid material to become so flexible.

It wasn’t until the end of the show when I walked down the catwalk with a model wearing one of my designs in front of industry representatives and family and friends that it felt real. Even now, I’m still in shock I got to do it.

Jessica Xie
Fashion and textiles graduate

Working with a laser cutter wasn’t easy. They’re quite small, varying in size from 80cm x 50cm up to 120cm x 70cm, so figuring out a way to create garments was a challenge. I had to carefully design each one in a way that ensured the pattern pieces would fit into the laser cutter dimensions.

As I’d never worked with wood before, I had to experiment with different thicknesses to find a size that worked. If the wood was too thin it would break, and if it was too thick it wouldn’t work.

It was actually my tutors and the design students and alumni who work in the Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building’s Digital Maker Space who suggested different wood types to try.

In the end, I chose 3mm birch plywood. But there was a lot of trial and error in bringing my final collection together!

At the National Graduate Showcase

Three images side-by-side of a brightly-lit fashion runway, with a seated crowd on either side. In each image, a model wears one of Jessica’s designs. The cuts in the wood allow the pieces to flow as the models walk.

Three looks from Jessica Xie’s collection, in action on the runway at the National Graduate Showcase. Photo by Lucas Dawson.

When I think back to those days of uncertain experimentation, I still can’t believe I was one of the 12 candidates selected from across the country to showcase my collection at VAMFF in March 2019.

The experience was completely surreal. It wasn’t until the end of the show when I walked down the catwalk with a model wearing one of my designs in front of industry representatives and family and friends that it felt real. Even now, I’m still in shock that I got to do it.

The experience was nerve-wracking! I was anxious about how my garments would look on the runway considering how fragile the material was – a well-founded fear, as one of the pieces actually snapped as I packed it for Melbourne!

SEE JESSICA'S COLLECTION:
Student Fashion 2019 exhibition
Powerhouse Museum
30 March - 13 October 2019

Luckily I had laser cut extras, so I fixed some of it before packing and fixed the rest at the fitting just a week before show day! The fitting also allowed us to see the whole look with accessories, which for my collection was nude heels and undergarments.

The show day dress rehearsal was even more nerve wracking. I had to trust the show’s volunteers to dress the models with my complicated designs while I sat waiting in the front row near the runway.

I showcased six looks on the night – four dresses, a jumpsuit and pants, layered with vests and tops – all made from silk and wool as well as the cut wood. Backstage was actually very calm as the show’s volunteers and stylists did most of the work. We briefed each volunteer about how to put our designs on and provided pictures from fitting day, so all we had to do was review the outfits before the models hit the catwalk.

Overall, the National Graduate Showcase ended up being less stressful than our UTS show, but I think having that already under my belt made a big difference.

I was also thrilled to be one of just three candidates chosen for Target’s graduate program (Target is partner to the National Graduate Showcase, which is also supported by Fashion Journal).

Launching a career in fashion and textiles

Jessica Xie smiling, between two models wearing looks from her fashion collection.

Jessica Xie (centre) at the 2018 UTS Fashion Show. Photo supplied by Jessica Xie.

Since finishing at UTS in May, I’ve moved to Melbourne, where I now work with the design team at the Target store support office.

Our role as graduate designers involves a three-month rotation in each of the design departments to support and shadow the designers and learn as much as we can from them. I’m trying to get as much experience as I can, before I figure out where my future focus will land.

Growing up, I always had an interest in design and drawing. My mum was always crafting, knitting or beading, so I was constantly surrounded by creative influences.

I always knew I wanted to be an artist of some sort. But, it wasn’t until I went to high school and got to study textiles that I knew I’d found my passion.

My personal style has evolved since my teenage days of op-shopping, wearing my cousins’ hand-me-downs and transforming my mum’s silk scarves into dresses or tops for fun, but I still love digging in her wardrobe to find beautifully made vintage items.

It’s such a contrast to today’s fast fashion, which dictates a different trend every season. This now influences how I buy and dress – I always opt for simple, minimal, comfortable items that I can get a lot of wear out of.

My placement at Target and showing my collection at VAMFF have definitely been great launching pads for my career. And coming out of my degree has certainly confirmed for me that textiles and materiality is where my interest lies.

While I had a different expectation of what studying design entailed when I left high school, I feel like I definitely had to go through the highs and lows of the last few years to get to what I’ve achieved.

See Jessica's full collection Adapt at Jessica Xie on Instagram.

Share
Share this on Facebook Share this on Twitter Share this on LinkedIn
Back to Technology and design

Related News

  • UTS Visual Communication students with their clients from Reverse Garbage
    One person’s trash? A designer’s treasure

Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation and the Boorooberongal People of the Dharug Nation upon whose ancestral lands our campuses now stand. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands. 

University of Technology Sydney

City Campus

15 Broadway, Ultimo, NSW 2007

Get in touch with UTS

Follow us

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Facebook

A member of

  • Australian Technology Network
Use arrow keys to navigate within each column of links. Press Tab to move between columns.

Study

  • Find a course
  • Undergraduate
  • Postgraduate
  • How to apply
  • Scholarships and prizes
  • International students
  • Campus maps
  • Accommodation

Engage

  • Find an expert
  • Industry
  • News
  • Events
  • Experience UTS
  • Research
  • Stories
  • Alumni

About

  • Who we are
  • Faculties
  • Learning and teaching
  • Sustainability
  • Initiatives
  • Equity, diversity and inclusion
  • Campus and locations
  • Awards and rankings
  • UTS governance

Staff and students

  • Current students
  • Help and support
  • Library
  • Policies
  • StaffConnect
  • Working at UTS
  • UTS Handbook
  • Contact us
  • Copyright © 2025
  • ABN: 77 257 686 961
  • CRICOS provider number: 00099F
  • TEQSA provider number: PRV12060
  • TEQSA category: Australian University
  • Privacy
  • Copyright
  • Disclaimer
  • Accessibility