Behind the Seams: The perfect gift for fans of The Great British Sewing Bee

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She's good at recognising the contribution of others to her success - not always the case in autobiographies - and it's a book I'd enjoy reading again. Her own voice comes over very strongly, and she had a most interesting life: at the forefront of fashion in the 60s and 70s with her Swanky Modes, a tutor at Central St Martins, and then a judge on Sewing Bee. I learnt a lot about pattern cutting I didn't know - in fact enough to make me not only respect the pattern cutter a great deal more, but to make me want to learn more and try to be a bit more adventurous myself. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products. Like many, I was first introduced to Esme Young via the Great British Sewing Bee, where she is a judge along with Patrick Grant.

It's packed full of surprising references to musicians and other artists - I don't know why I'm surprised, but it's maybe because Esme looks so prim and proper and she is so clearly not. She is not only innovative, courageous and radical, but she's also kind, generous and gives credit where credit is due. I love the Sewing Bee and I love Esme's eagle-eyed critiques of the clothes, and the fun relationship she has with Patrick. The fact that life is to be living and enjoyed and that new experiences are far more important that finances. Esme Young is a fashion designer and a judge on the much-loved tv series The Great British Sewing Bee .Her whole life has revolved around fashion and creativity and her enthusiasm for her subject leaps out of her autobiography.

I felt, as a reader, almost as though she was sitting with me, telling her story - it's that immediate. Her cheeky wit and flare for the unusual explain the transformation challenges in the show but also show her dedication to being one step ahead of the trend. The midsection of the book however became a catalogue of her Swanky Modes design collections and lacked the intimacy that made the other parts of the book so endearing.Esme is over 70 now and has lived a fascinating and creative life, there’s just not enough pages for her to go into great depth but gives you just enough. I still fear the stay pressed, flat fronted nylon trouser, but admire it as a part of our wonderful textiles heritage and history.

It's not that I wanted scandal, I cannot imagine Esme is the type of person to dish the dirt, but it was all a bit nice.A romp through fashion and stars from the sixties to current day Esme has met and made for the best. In the last series in particular, there have been some tantalising hints about her previous life as a designer for the avant garde Swanky Modes, so I was really looking forward to learning more. Esme has a great attitude to life and tells some great and interesting stories about her time in the fashion industry. But this generosity has come back to her too, as she gleefully tells of being taken on incredible trips overseas, and huge parties with friends to celebrate significant birthdays. Ik hou niet zo van het ruwe papier dat gebruikt werd maar voor deze prijs kan je niet alles verlangen en het doet natuurlijk niets af aan de inhoud.

I found that the need for sewing tips should have been put at the back of the book instead of in between the chapters. I didn't understand any of the sewing bits but then I love watching Sewing Bee because watching people being creative is really what it's all about.

I remember reading about her 70’s/80’s label Swanky Modes back in the day and being so influenced by the London punk, New Romantic and new wave scenes. The diminutive judge of ‘The Great British Sewing Bee’ has a sharp eye for a wonky seam, and an even sharper eye for a good necklace. It is more of a memoir than an autobiography, I would say, in that it is a chronological collection of recollections and stories (I don't think she does 'deep' - we never, for example, learn of the ways in which her mother was a 'bad mum'), but of its kind it's very good.