I started collecting couture when I was about 10 or 11 years old, and the very first piece I bought was a Balenciaga suit from 1962.

The whole scale and scope of the decorating and fashion business in this country are incomparably grander than in London. Whats thrilling about America in general, and the New York fashion scene in particular, is its optimism. It makes the whole experience energizing and uplifting.

I have Tom Ford, Gucci, Saint Laurent, McQueen, and odd pieces that Ive just acquired because I happened to have come across them and felt they have some historical resonance.

I don't have an off-duty wardrobe.

Essentially what you're doing is collaborating with the photographer to create an image that reflects the fashion you're trying to capture and also hold a mirror up to the zeitgeist at the moment.

I was ten years old when my first Vogue cover sang me its siren call and dashed me against the treacherous rocks of fashion obsession.

Marrakech in May is unseasonably tagine-hot.