by Benedetta Mancusi
Football and fashion share a long history of cross-contamination; from famous footballers lending their faces to global fashion brands and sporting limited edition trainers, to the inception of micro-trends like ‘blokette’ - the Frankenstein-esque child of ‘coquette’ and ‘blokecore’ seeing pearl necklaces and ribbons paired with football shirts and trainers.
Not to mention, the famous and culture-shifting Virgil Abloh’s Off-White x Nike collaboration in 2017, titled ‘The Ten’, which stemmed from the late designer’s deep love for the sport and his desire to bridge a gap between two worlds that had been often perceived as rather far from one another.
Years after that, the UEFA Euro 2024 is well under way and it is refreshing to see how emerging designers are keeping that connection alive and giving their own unique spin to football fashion.
Cosily nestled in the heart of Shoreditch, Bread & Butter has become a sort of vintage, creative haven - and safe refuge for emerging designers who upcycle and give new life to second-hand fabrics and clothes.
As a multifunctional space, it acts as both a shop on the ground floor and a bar/co-working/events space on the first and second floors. This is the second event I find myself attending at the venue and, once again, I am welcomed by a buzzing crowd of young faces.
This time, however, my fellow attendees are immersed in a football match, passing around drinks while waiting for a half-time fashion show to start.
I’ve accidentally caught a glimpse of the models getting ready on the ground floor, and it almost feels sacrilegious, like seeing the bride moments before the wedding. After a short wait, we are all ushered outside, where the halftime fashion show is about to take place.
Twill the Messenger (Julian Leon), BODAWEAR, MiW!, Jasmine Etuaté, and Kristian Kaiser are the designers who accepted the challenge of giving a football-themed makeover to their designs. The best part is probably seeing how each of them kept their own unique style, looking for different ways to give a sportswear and football spin to these unique pieces.
Having relocated to London from LA, Julian Leon is specialising in turning industrial workwear into deconstructed and repurposed garments. His designs are the first to appear, and I immediately recognise the distinctive fiery red that tends to dominate.
Not unlike his fellow designers, Leon has a penchant for playing with different materials. His creations range from asymmetric skirts, shackets, football tees turned crop tops, and a fun and funky double-belted low waist pair of menswear trousers.
Twill and Kristian Kaiser's work perhaps lends itself more readily to the challenge, while MiW! and BODAWEAR take a completely different direction with sensually gothic designs and elements of religious imagery. The former’s include a cone bodice, a metal-like corset that seems to be a nod to Joan of Arc, and a black latex gown with silver accents. All designs that normally would not scream ‘football,’ but do, however, present some carefully inserted, sports-related elements. It makes for a fun contrast that does not come across as too forced.
Westminster graduate Jasmine Etuaté has one goal: to create sustainable (and genderless) clothes that are meant to last, minimising the fashion carbon footprint. Her designs belong on a catwalk: classic silhouettes with a punk spin, patterns and colours that should not go together so well but just do.
Overall, the event showcased the most fun and lighthearted side of fashion while conveying a celebration of what can be achieved with little resources, little time, and little budgets. Which is quite a lot, apparently.
Edited by Emily Duff