The Shanghai Tourism Administration has handed out awards for 12 new souvenirs. Most of the award-winning souvenirs are more practical than before.

Award-winning designs are fun and practical

This is the third time Qiu Qi has attended the Shanghai Tourist Souvenir Design Competition. His designs were inspired by the city's four tallest buildings. He created a pen shaped like the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, a pen that looks like Shanghai World Financial Center, a pencil sharpener that looks like Shanghai Tower, and a set of 5 magnets that look like Jinmao Tower.

Qiu said he designed a wine bottle plug for last year's souvenir competition, but regretted that it wasn't practical for everyone. That's why he wanted to design more useful souvenirs this year. That turned out to be a wise decision. He picked up an award for his efforts.

"I don't want to make souvenirs just for decoration, I want to make things that are more practical and useful for people's daily lives. So I decided to make office supplies. The four models are scaled to the real heights of Shanghai's buildings," he said.

More than 1,000 products were entered for the competition. In the end, authorities selected 12 winners and presented awards to the designers. The souvenirs varied from carry-on items to food.

"Our winning design is for butterfly cookies, Shanghai's traditional snack. In the past these cookies were packed in plastic bags, but the cookie is very crispy so they can get smashed up pretty easily. We came up with this idea to pack them in boxes. Each butterfly wing has a different flavor," said Qian Ming, Park Hotel.

Authorities say practical use and good design, were important factors in determining the winners. All of the award-winning souvenirs will go on sale at tourist attractions in the city next year.