Pint-sized pop princess Kylie Minogue has lent a hand to a group of hard-up Sussex design students.

The Australian singer produced a palm print on the back of a postcard to help students at the University of Brighton.

The final-year 3D designers approached Kylie and a host of respected artists to design postcards for an auction.

Other people who have already returned postcards include Raymond Briggs, the author and illustrator of The Snowman, and textiles artist Lucy Brown.

Proceeds from next month's sale will go towards helping the students take their degree show to London.

Maisie Broadhead, a 21-year-old undergraduate, said: "We sent out blank postcards to as many well-known artists and designers as we had contacts with.

"We got them to create an image on the blank side and to sign the postcard on the back."

Maisie said the 36 final-year students were trying to raise £10,000 to exhibit at the New Designers' Centre in Islington in July.

Fellow organiser Georgi Gilpin, 32, said students from the Royal College of Art regularly approached artists to design postcards for auction and this would be a smaller event on the same lines.

She said Kylie was the only person not involved in the art world to have returned a postcard.

But they hoped her palm print would prove a big draw for the auction.

Georgi added: "As well as the postcards, we will also auction an object donated by the ceramicist John Colbeck, who is a lecturer at the university.

"There will be a small entrance fee and people will get a bidding number.

"We are hoping people will also donate wine for the event, which we will be able to sell by the glass to raise more money."

The auction is being held by experts from Lewes auctioneers Gorringes at the Sallis Benney Theatre at Brighton University on February 7.