I never said to myself, "I'm going to be the greatest." I just wanted to do my own thing.

I don't like it when a woman looks like a fashion victim. Some women think that if the look this season is minis, they have to wear minis. If you don't have great legs, there are plenty of alternatives.

My father was an artist. When life was harder and he couldn't get jobs, he painted houses, but he was artistic. When I went to see his work, it was special. Somewhere along the line, I felt I was special. I didn't know why.

I try to find people who love and believe in what I do - and people I can respect because they do what I don't do. I've had to bring in financial people and put them in positions where they could tell me, "Ralph, let's not do that."

Some days I have a knot in my stomach because I've got to sit down and come up with something in womenswear that no one else came up with.

Books open windows to the world and have the power to transform lives.

Love the fun of clothes, not the status of fashion.