It pains me physically to see a woman victimized, rendered pathetic, by fashion. We must never confuse elegance with snobbery. I didn’t want to be a fashion designer, and for a good half of my career I didn’t like it. I always wanted to do other things. Fashion is a very stressful place to work because of the demands of doing the shows – no one expects a writer to produce two books a year on the dot – but it’s also a very toxic place to work. I didn’t want to be a fashion designer, and for a good half of my career I didn’t like it. I always wanted to do other things.

I like things simple. Design is a series of creative choices – it’s a collaborative effort, an evolutionary process. You choose your fabrics depending upon what you want to say, then you work with mills to get those fabrics. Through the process, you realize what you want it to be. I can design a collection in a day and I always do, cause I’ve always got a load of Italians on my back, moaning that it’s late. Fashion to me has become very disposable; I wanted to get back to craft, to clothes that could last. Men don’t want another man to look at their woman because they don’t know how to handle it.

It’s really easy to get colors right. It’s really hard to get black – and neutrals – right. Black is certainly a color but it’s also an illusion. I sometimes feel that a pattern is almost a fashion statement in itself. I can design a collection in a day and I always do, cause I’ve always got a load of Italians on my back, moaning that it’s late. I was the first person to have a punk rock hairstyle. For me, the summer will be pure gray – mother-of-pearl gray, very pale gray. To me, this is the big statement for summer. Then we have light blue, light turquoise, lots of pink.

Never in my wildest dreams did I entertain the idea that I would become a fashion designer. I love my beauty. It’s not my fault. Clothes can transform your mood and confidence. I have an obsession with details and pattern. I’ve always thought of the T-shirt as the Alpha and Omega of the fashion alphabet.

I like the body. I like to design everything to do with the body. I didn’t like the ’80s at all; it was a vulgar moment of fashion. I always thought what you wore underneath was as important as what you wear on top. The great thing about fashion is that it always looks forward. Give me time and I’ll give you a revolution.