Judges will soon announce which costume H’Hen Nie, Miss Universe Vietnam 2017, will don at the international Miss Universe 2018 pageant after making their final selection from six shortlisted designs.

The call for local fashion designers to submit their ideas for Vietnam’s national costumer at the international beauty pageant has been held annually since 2016.

Judges evaluated the ideas and concepts from each designer before narrowing their options to six final costume designs in October 2017, months before a representative was chose to represent the country at Miss Universe 2018. 

Now, those finalists will have to present their final products.

The final designs include “Banh mi” (Vietnamese Bread) by Pham Phuoc Dien; “Hoa dang sac Viet” (Vietnamese Lantern) by Nguyen Vu Hung and Thach Thanh Dat; “Pho co” (Ancient Town) by Nguyen Dinh Thuan; “Ngu ho” (Five Tigers) by Nguyen Dang Thanh Nhan; “Thang thu” (Elevating Fall) by Nguyen Duc Hai; and “Nu quyen” (Feminism) by Pham Minh Phuc.

The costume design contest has been on hold since January 2018, when Nie was crowned the winner of Miss Universe Vietnam 2017 to allow time for each designer to personalize their work for the beauty queen.

H’Hen Nie, Miss Universe Vietnam 2017. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The designers behind Pho co and Nu quyen, however, have chosen to keep their designs the way they are. 

Now, a final panel of judges will be responsible for selecting the single costume whose esthetics and inspiration are a true embodiment of Vietnamese culture.

The winner of the contest will be awarded the opportunity to join Nie at the beauty contest, alongside a medal and a cash prize of VND15 million (US$645).

A certificate and award will also be presented to the winner of a popular vote to be held on Nie’s Instagram and the Miss Universe Vietnam Facebook page.

The host country for Miss Universe is still a mystery, though the list of contenders grew small when the Philippines dropped its hosting bid due to budget constraints and other concerns in May.

Rumor has it that Vietnam now goes it alone in the negotiation to host the pageant.

Below are the six final designs:

“Thang thu” (Elevating Fall) by Nguyen Duc Hai

“Ngu ho” (Five Tigers) by Nguyen Dang Thanh Nhan

“Hoa dang sac Viet” (Vietnamese Lantern) by Nguyen Vu Hung and Thach Thanh Dat

“Banh mi” (Vietnamese Bread) by Pham Phuoc Dien

“Nu quyen” (Feminism) by Pham Minh Phuc and “Pho co” (Ancient Town) by Nguyen Dinh Thuan

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!