The fashion industry at large has been the worst public relations vehicle for larger women and petite women, they are both maligned and neglected. And I honestly do believe it's getting better.

I'm conflicted. On one hand, I don't want to say that because you were a man and now you're a woman, you can't be in a women's fashion show. But I feel it's a dicey issue. The fact of the matter is, when you are transgender - if you go, say, male to female - you're not having your pelvis broken and having it expanded surgically. You still have the anatomical bone structure of a man.

The clothes we wear send a message about how the world perceives us.

I found early on in teaching, if you're too blunt an instrument, the students discredit you and think you're just being mean. They're not interested in what you have to say.

I just think the Kardashians have an absence of taste and I don’t think that that should be perpetuated. I’m sorry I’m sounding like an old farty, snob, but it bothers me.

What's interesting about textiles is that they are determined about three seasons in advance, that's why when you walk into a store you think "Gee, everything looks about the same."

I'm very budget-minded myself, and it serves me well.