I do think I know more about clothes than any 500 designers, because there's nothing like wearing them. You buy them, you study them, and you start to understand how they're crafted.

Success isn't about the end result; it's about what you learn along the way.

A woman is never sexier than when she is comfortable in her clothes.

When I design a wedding dress with a bustle, it has to be one the bride can dance in. I love the idea that something is practical and still looks great.

I was stigmatized by being a bridal designer for a long time. I am amazed I have been able to move beyond it. I had really all but given up trying, but I did it because it was my lifelong dream.

Don't be afraid to take time to learn. It's good to work for other people. I worked for others for 20 years. They paid me to learn.

I want people to see the dress, but focus on the woman.

Fashion offers no greater challenge than finding what works for night without looking like you are wearing a costume.

Even the most understated ceremony involves a certain respect for ritual and pageantry. No one plays more of a significant role than the bride's attendants.

When you have a passion for something then you tend not only to be better at it, but you work harder at it too.

Design is about point of view, and there should be some sort of woman or lifestyle or attitude in one's head as a designer.

…and there, in the background, the sky’s sediment had sunk to a place where all the woe of the words ‘I am’ dissolved into blue peace. He said it. ‘The ocean.

The days are long, but the years are short.

It is very difficult to get people to focus on the most important things when you're in boom times.

The brain doesn't care about change. As the world's most sophisticated survival organ, the brain cares about loss.

Ugly design should be rejected, just like nonfunctional design is rejected, just like nonenvironmentally conscious design should be rejected. It's a value.

I've never cackled with laughter at a single line I've ever written. None of it has given me pleasure.

Nuclear power must be dealt with irrationally. . . . Nuclear plants are carcinogens. Let's get that story out. . . . Their lies will catch up to them. We need endless Chernobyl reminders.

The Beloved is with you in the midst of your seeking! He holds your hand wherever you wander.

Chopsticks are one of the reasons the Chinese never invented custard.

The very meaninglessness of life forces man to create his own meaning.