betty catroux began her modeling career in the early sixties at the age of 17. her first employer was coco chanel who has been a big fashion name in paris for decades. it only lasted for two years before she left, claiming, " i hated it, so i decided to take some pictures just to earn money to pay for my own chez regine glasses ." she then met yves saint laurent in 1967 who became her sidekick. she inspired him and his fashion work until his death in 2008, but she had never actually worked for him. she just wanted to have fun. the two were inseparable, spending the majority of their free time together. they had a friendly relationship until his death. reminiscing on their friendship, catroux said: "i had a fairytale life with him."