From adventures at Central Saint Martins to The Great British Sewing Bee , go behind the scenes of Esme Young's amazing life... Young attended the Convent of the Holy Ghost, Bedford, where she learnt to draw and to sew. [11] She went on to Saint Martins School of Art. [11] [3] Career [ edit ] Swanky Modes [ edit ] Christie, Janet (11 June 2022). "Esme Young, star of The Great British Sewing Bee goes behind the seams with her new book". The Scotsman . Retrieved 22 September 2022. David Bailey photographed one collection and Vogue featured Brigitte Nielsen wearing a Swanky Modes lycra two-piece in the mid-1980s. As with most memoirs, I found the chapters about her early life slow going - these sections always take me longer to read as it’s not the part of the persons life you are familiar with but give a great insight into what makes this person who they are.

I came away buzzing and reassured that we still have in this century a wide ranging community fascinated not just by famous authors (I’ve rarely seen so many concentrated in one place) but by challenging ideas and questions. I could have taken it easy, and continued to teach at college part time, and make costumes for the rest of the time… but where would be the jeopardy in that. I like to try new things and different things, and I think it’s wonderful that I had the opportunity to start a new career when I was nearly 70”Since 2016, Young has been a judge on The Great British Sewing Bee. [4] One of Young's most famous designs was the 'Amorphous Dress' worn by Linda Kozlowski in the 1986 movie Crocodile Dundee; a dress that is now in the V&A Collection. [15] It was around this time that Esme met David Bowie, chatting to him on a ­windowsill at a party as they watched Notting Hill Carnival parade go past. What did they talk about? Hexham Book Festival is a Not For Profit CIC and delivers an annual festival that takes place in and around Hexham each year. His suit and his shoes,” she says, seeming amazed that I’d had to ask. “The tailoring was Italian.”

At age five, Esme was asked to write in her notebook, but instead, she filled it with drawings—the only way she knew to express herself. At seven, when it was discovered she was partially deaf, she found refuge in her sketchbooks. Shortly after, Esme made her first garment and a passion for sewing and designing was born. As a teenager, she made her way to London where her creative journey truly began. BBC Two - Richard Osman's House of Games, Series 6, Week 14: Thursday". BBC . Retrieved 11 December 2022. In her free time, Esme teaches Innovative Pattern Cutting for graduates and professionals students at Central Saint Martin’s College. Esme uses hands on experience of design, pattern cutting and clothes making to move students’s imagination and help them interpret their drawings so they can develop the designs into actual garments.She wouldn’t walk down the street with me when I was a teenager because of how I looked,” Esme says. While watching the last series of Sewing Bee I said to my parents “I wish Esme would bring a book out, she’s had an amazing life by the sounds of it!” , and then not long after, she did! There are times when she is really excited to talk about things she is truly passionate about and you can hear the joy - and I can relate to that. She’s not an actress, just retelling like it is.

Esme mentored and taught designer Ashish until he became a professional fashion designer. Following his success, she worked on his London Fashion Week collections, cutting patterns and creating the shape of the designs, making the toiles and doing the fittings. She was “great fun but far from easy”, Esme writes in her memoir. Her mother ­suffered from postnatal depression and her five children lived with their aunties while she recovered. Esme Young (born 19 February 1949) is an English fashion designer and television presenter. [2] [3] Since 2016, she has been a judge on the BBC reality series The Great British Sewing Bee. [4] Early life and education [ edit ]Often as an author, I only occasionally get to meet the public who buy and read my books. The Oxford Literary Festival was a special opportunity for me and certainly one of the highlights of my career – it was an honour I will never forget. It was she who ­introduced me and my sister to boutiques such as Mary Quant and Biba. She wasn’t keen when I went to jumble sales and wore second-hand clothes when I was older.” a b c d Young, Esme (2022). Behind the seams: my life in creativity, friendship and adventure. London. ISBN 978-1-78870-462-5. OCLC 1294284520. {{ cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher ( link)

As a teenager, she made her way to London and Central St Martins. Living in a squat with other young creatives, Esme made the most of the '70s and '80s: watching Notting Hill Carnival with David Bowie and starting a New Romantic clothing line called Swanky Modes, before moving into the film business and making costumes for films such as Bridget Jones's Diary. She tells her remarkable life story with warmth and wit. Living in a squat with other young creatives, Esme made the most of her time; studying at Central Saint Martins, launching a clothing line called Swanky Modes with three friends and GBP50 each, watching Notting Hill Carnival with David Bowie, and altering a dress for Cher. The '90s saw a career move into costumes for films, where she designed outfits for Trainspotting, Bridget Jones's Diary and The Beach, before she moved onto the small screen herself.

Covering her childhood, family life, career starts and many highs, friendships, teaching and ending up with her much loved time as a judge on The great British sewing bee (which is one of my favourite cosy shows). This was interesting, filled with heart and humour, and just also so inspiring reading of Esmes love for what she does and how she was fired up with that passion and self belief from the start. Hubby bought me Esme Young’s autobiography for my birthday as she always has such interesting snippets of stories dropped in the TV show (like sitting in a window with David Bowie) and I was keen to learn more about her career. In December 2022, she was a contestant on Richard Osman’s House of Games. [16] Academic career [ edit ]