Seven months of work and hundreds of dollars of materials went in to Maureen Reinds' entry into the Brancott Estate World of Wearable Art Awards.
She paid the $45 entry fee and sent photographs to Wellington for pre-screening.
But the garment - representing restricted women - was rejected without any explanation.
Reinds accepts there will always be winners and losers but says entrants deserve more. "To be told 'no' with no explanation whatsoever is a bit of a shock," she said. "I'd like to see something as simple as a short, three sentence paragraph explaining the reasons why a garment is not chosen."
WOW marketing manager Shelley Doherty said 169 finalists were selected from 374 entries. That equated to more than $9000 in fees from unsuccessful entrants.
