I believe my love, interest and appreciation of beading and embroidery came from watching Sonny & Cher, as well as The Cher Show Show in the 70's as a child. I came to know who Bob Mackie was because at the time television programs ran credits and I wanted to know who did what.
When I designed for my former group Shalamar, some of our costumes gave me the opportunity to work a few hard to find local specialists who did the work by hand.
This video about Francois Lesage of the legendary Maison Lesage, Paris provides a meaningful glimpse into the traditions and beauty of the craft of beading and embroidery as well as fabric creation. There's a sweet and poignant moment when he mentions that when he started out taking over for his parents at Maison Lesage that he was the youngest, and now he is the oldest. There's also a nice recollection of creating a beaded crocodile for Yves St Laurent among other experiences he shares here.
Check it out!
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