Design is about point of view, and there should be some sort of woman or lifestyle or attitude in one's head as a designer.

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It's a remarkable exercise to sit and look at your own work over the years.

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I've been designing since I was 8. I started sketching dresses I could wear when skating. I was always involved in all aspects of skating, not just the technique, the choreography, the music, but the visual aspects, too - what I should wear.

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It's hard to balance everything. It's always challenging.

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I used to get tons of letters that said, "I'll never get to wear you," or "I'll never get married in one of your dresses," or "I'll never have an evening gown like the one I saw on the red carpet." I thought that was sad, because you give your life to this and you end up reaching very few people. So that was a major goal for me - to be able to reach and encourage more women, to encourage them to express themselves and be what they want to be.

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I never thought I'd be successful. It seems in my own mind that in everything I've undertaken I've never quite made the mark. But I've always been able to put disappointments aside. Success isn't about the end result; it's about what you learn along the way.

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Fashion to me has become very disposable; I wanted to get back to craft, to clothes that could last.

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Service is a prerequisite for anything relating to luxury. That makes it (shopping) sensual and pleasurable.

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Every woman hates her own body. I don't know a woman who doesn't . . . well, I do know a few who love themselves but in the case of most women it's like, "ugh." And when I dress a woman, my design intention is to give them an attitude or a grace, no matter whether it's a wedding gown or ready-to-wear.

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Success isn't about the end result; it's about what you learn along the way.

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