Tan encountered more challenges during the competition in Australia.

"The project that I was involved in was called fashion technology," he said. "It covered nearly all aspects of the design and production process, including sketching, pattern-making, cutting and construction techniques for different types of garments."

For the competition, competitors were asked to design a Russian-style coat with a decorative knot button.

"The organizers told us that the colors we would use were army green and red, but they were changed to light gray and blue when the challenge began," he said.

The mannequin the organizers offered him was also different from what he was used to in China, posing yet another challenge.

"The mannequin had the body curves of foreigners, who have chubby breasts and buttocks, very different from those of Asians," Tan said.

The competition lasted about 18 hours, with the competitors able to take a break every two or three hours before submitting their finished piece.

Since beginning his fashion studies, Tan has enjoyed sharing his achievements with his parents and has taken to making suits for them each Spring Festival.

He now hopes to find a job in fashion design in Shanghai or Shenzhen, Guangdong province.

"I've studied garment design for six years. I won't give it up," he said. "The most important thing is that I really love it and want to do something great in this field."

Zhou Mojun in Changsha contributed to this story.