Video Nation

Lena's grandmother embroidered clothes for royalty in China back in the early 1900s. Communism then arrived and the elaborate art form was frowned upon.

The family sewing gene was redirected into the more prosaic manufacture of Maoist clothing.

Three generations on, those repressed skills have been revived, influencing Lena's career as a fashion designer in Britain.

Her delicately embroidered garments, drawing on traditional Chinese styling, are a hit with her largely western clientele.

Coming to Britain gave Lena and her daughter Michelle, who is studying fashion, the opportunity to infuse Chinese traditional dress with western styles and ideas.

For Lena it is important that the knowledge passed through the generations is continued despite no longer being in China.