The happiest moments of my childhood were spent on my grandmother's front porch in Durham, N.C., or at her sister's farmhouse in Orange County, where chickens paraded outside the kitchen's screen door and hams were cured in the smokehouse.

Uggs can be as chic as heels for women.

Wearing clothes should be a personal narrative of emotion. I always respond to fashion in an emotional way.

Russia is a place of great culture. If you've read Tolstoy's "War and Peace", Dostoyevsky, Pushkin, Chekhov...the culture of the great Russian literature is amazing. The human narrative you get out of "War and Peace" is universal.

Waiting in line for something mundane is very boring. Waiting for my doctor to see me and waiting for my dentist to see me, yes, that is boring.

Money isn't everything, but it is when you start thinking about putting money away for your retirement days.

I think people look great in black. I love that what stands out is the person, especially. Black just conveys a kind of drama, even if it can be quiet drama. It does lend to the wearer a sense of confidence.