Embroidering, upcycling and thrifting, a seamstress has showcased her talents at a football fashion festival in the Fabric District of Liverpool.
Naida Evans has just launched her brand-new venture, Pitch to Pouch and put her work in front of the public at last weekend’s ‘Get Your Kits Out’ festival.
The event, set up in 2024 in partnership with Schuh, was created to celebrate female voices and so called ‘grassroots’ fashion designers.
Evans attended the event for the first time to debut Pitch to Pouch.
The business creates embodied bags out of old and unused football kits, sourced from Students Of The Game, a football memorabilia store.
Sustainability is a big factor in why Evans recycles football shirts.
She said: “So it started out with charity shop finds and friends would say that they have material for me to use and now I’m sourcing it from students of the game as well.
“Because it’s not going to be used for anything else and it’s just sat there, the guy from Students Of The Game didn’t know what to do with it, so it works for both of us.”
The idea was inspired by her love Newcastle United and her family’s positive attitude towards upcycling throughout her childhood, which initially translated into sewing bespoke garments and content creation.
This generated a large following across TikTok, Instagram and Pinterest.
Pitch to Pouch itself is Evans’ newest business venture and she reflected on the moment that ignited this dream.
She said: “It was kind of by accident; I upcycled some footballs shorts of my daughters that got ripped in the wash and made them into a bag.
“So, I started doing other things like when her lionesses kit was stained so I embroidered it and then thought this is actually a good idea, let’s make something of this.”
The Get Your Kits Out festival is also a new idea and was held for the second time ever last weekend, where there was a female lead panel discussing all things football fashion, craft tables and a stand showing off the Adobe Women’s FA Cup trophy.
Of course, there were also an abundance of stalls, where seamstresses and creators were showcasing their work, including Evan’s stall showing off an array of her very own embroidered and upcycled bags and pouches.
Evans said: “It was the first time I had all my bags together and because I haven’t put loads online yet, it was almost like mini launch.
“It felt especially important at an event with where there were all those inspirational people.”
Being a new venture, Evans hope for the future is for more people to be wearing her bags, and for her success in the embroidery industry to continue.
Featured image by Lucy King
