I saw young women in the street dressing in a way that I thought was influencing the designers. Fashion was being influenced by all sorts of different people, and culture and also across the street. So I saw more as a trickle up, than a trickle down influence. When I came to Vogue, that's what I wanted it to reflect.

If one comes across sometimes as being cold or brusque, it's simply because I'm striving for the best.

In the end I do respond to my own instincts. Sometimes they're successful, and obviously sometimes they're not. But you have to, I think, remain true to what you believe in.

Go get a job. Whether it’s working as a designer or working in a restaurant and then doing your own thing in your own time, it’s a reality of life. In the end it’s going to be helpful to you and so many others.

Fashion goes in only one direction -forward- and I am a firm believer in thinking that way too.

The gossip might make better reading, but the simple fact of the matter is that it isn't true.

I don't think of myself as a powerful person.