IT'S amazing what you can find in a charity shop these days.

This stunning mini-dress, which includes an iconic image of 1960s model Twiggy, was made from a bridesmaid's dress found in the British Heart Foundation's shop in Galashiels and is enough to set pulses racing.

It was created by local fashion student Scott Holme and modelled by Laura Mackenzie and is one of a range of quirky outfits due to be featured at a fashion show in the town next week.

The Bring Home Fashion Show is being organised by third year students on the Textiles and Fashion Design Management course at Heriot-Watt University to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the British Heart Foundation and will be staged at the Scottish Borders Campus in Galashiels on Tuesday, February 22, at 7.30pm.

They have created outfits from second hand garments following the trend of upcycling, where old clothes and fabrics are recycled and customised to create new garments.

It is designed to raise money and awareness for the charity by reflecting on some of the best fashions over the past five decades.

Speaking to the Border Telegraph this week, Scott, who revealed the students only had a few days to put their designs together, said: "The show is really all about bringing home the message that people can experiment with clothes they find in charity shops and make them look their own.

"Our group took our inspiration from the 1960s. I basically found a huge big bridesmaid's dress in the charity shop and recut all the panels down to make a wee A-line dress. I cut the helmline up to make it like a mini and then printed on the iconic image of Twiggy in metallic gold print." The students revealed upcycling is a growing trend among the fashion conscious after receiving support from top designers such as Vivien Westwood and is not just confined to the catwalks.

And they admitted they hoped the fashion show might encourage more people in the Borders to buy their clothes from charity shops in future.

Kim Higton, who chose an eighties theme for her denim design which is modelled by Fifi Evelyn, said: "Upcycling now is a really big deal and a lot of fashion designers are really into it, including Vivien Westwood because she wanted to reuse fabrics, and not waste anything, to be environmentally friendly." Another student, 20-year-old Laura Gregson, transformed a size 20 gold t-shirt into a stunning play suit after taking her inspiration from the 1970s. And she revealed she got so engrossed in the project her iTunes are now full of disco songs from that era.

"I'm generally really pleased," Laura said. "It took me about one day in the workshop, it was really simple to do. All we had to do was take it in and then do the crotch area, which was a bit uncomfortable for the model as there were pins everywhere." But she added: "I think our collection looks really good so I'm really looking forward to the fashion show." Tickets for the show, priced £10 or £8 concession, are available from the British Heart Foundation store in Channel Street, Galashiels, or from the main campus reception.