WELLINGTON - A pair of Chinese design students took the top two awards at the World of WearableArt Awards in Wellington with two separate creations on Friday night.

The Shanghai-based design duo of Yuru Ma and Mengyue Wu, 22, who are fashion students at Donghua University, have taken home 42,000 NZ dollars ($34,400) in prizes for their entries Delight of Light and Revive.

Delight of Light won the show's open section and supreme award, and Revive won the avant garde section and was placed runner-up for the supreme award.

Delight of Light is a skeletal-looking design made from semi- transparent white plastic, which the designers said was inspired by architecture, "with a tough silhouette and streamlined design".

Revive is a tough-looking suit of armour made from abandoned tyres.

Other award-winning entries came from China's Hong Kong and Taiwan, Australia, the United States and around New Zealand.

The 2012 show features 164 finalists, in seven sections including Bizarre Bras, Illumination Illusion and a Visual Symphony-Themed Creative Excellence section.

Among the 164 finalists, forty-three works won awards, including 16 from overseas.