Lioness-inspired fashion by UEL lecturer sells out
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Published
25 August 2023
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A gender-fluid selection of corsets made from England football jerseys by UEL fashion design lecturer Hattie Crowther has sold out.
The unique garments were part of a limited-edition collection on display on Sunday 6 August at Nike Town, Nike’s flagship store in Oxford Street. The event also included a workshop by Crowther, on how to turn upcycled jerseys into norm-bending corsets.
Crowther’s “Like a Lioness” collection, was built from upcycling England national team shirts from the 2022 Euros, and came in the middle of the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
When planning the collection, the designer said she envisioned a concept beyond simply celebrating women in sport, saying she wanted the collection to “shed a light on the significant disparities in resources available to female athletes, impacting their overall performance.” Her work, Crowther said, is a statement of the need for inclusivity, investment, and equal opportunities in women's football.
The designs were created by combining traditional masculine archetypes, such as the football shirt, with traditionally feminine symbols, such as tailoring and corsetry. Crowther explained her aim was to create gender-fluid pieces that celebrated queerness, “even though there may be existing tensions between football enthusiasts and queer communities, I remain committed to creating an inclusive and safe space for everyone.”
Crowther has long been interested in subverting sportswear and using it as a medium to transmit political messages. Last year during the World Cup in Qatar she produced a range of reworked football jerseys that featured slogans mimicking corporate sponsorship logos like "HUMAN RIGHTS" and "F-CK FIFA," in protest at the low-cost migrant labour used to build the Gulf state’s World Cup infrastructure.
She said on Instagram,
I believe that the freedoms that everyone has as individuals, being used as action to form unity within a team - is a powerful metaphor for how fashion and football can bring about social change."
Study fashion design at UEL.