Quotes from Jason Wu

A lot of my peers don't think about collaborating the way I do. My approach is to imagine my world. The Jason Wu woman isn't just floating around in a beautiful dress. I like to know where she's going, what she likes. I'm not just in the fashion business. I'm in the lifestyle business.

A perfectly fitted sheath dress that can take you from day to night is something that every woman should have in her closet. You can't go wrong with black, but a little bit of color is nice. I love a lot of color, personally. You can accessorize a sheath dress. Look at how Michelle Obama accessorizes clothes to make them her own.

We all want to be a little glamorous, a little playful and a little mischievous at times.

My Chinese zodiac is a dog. But I'm an exception because of how much I love cats.

My inspirations come from everywhere. It's important to look at everything and anything. I think what I create is serious fashion, but I don't want to keep my focus on that. You have to look at a lot of different things. I mean, people are always surprised when they find out that my favorite show is 'RuPaul's Drag Race.'

I love the idea of working with women because I always feel like a man designing womenswear needs women around him to really have a sense of what they're doing.

There is always going to be that luxury customer out there. I have clients who buy $10, 000 dresses and clients who buy $60 dresses. It's not so much about the money. Design is a mentality.

I have been wanting to do beauty for years and to pair with an international beauty company. It will solidify the image of Jason Wu as a world. All my shows have a distinctive hair and makeup look. It feels so natural for me; the woman who wears my clothes would have my makeup as part of her beauty regime.

I don't feel comfortable talking about the specifics of how it all comes together, but the truth is, I don't ever know when Michelle Obama is going to wear my clothes! She, like everyone else, picks her outfits and wears them when she wants - sometimes two or three times. It's not ever calculated.

My favorite thing about Taiwan is the food.

I am an Asian designer. I was born in Taiwan. That is who I am. But I am a designer, like any designer of any race. Growing up in the '80s in Taiwan, the arts were not considered a career.

A lot happened in Vancouver. It was my first Western experience. I learned English, which is my second language. I became very acquainted with Western culture. I had my first sewing machine when I was 9. I trained in fashion illustration when I was in school.

I never thought of myself as being limited to fashion. I'm a designer, and if you have a vision, you can apply that to anything.

There's something to be said about a girl who knows what she wants. One of my favorite girls to dress is Diane Kruger. It's always so easy with her. I know her body and what works. When it's right, it's not a lot of effort.

The Taiwanese are big on tea. I think it's nice to slow down a bit. It's very much a custom.

I call white the most powerful non-color; it's clean, optimistic, powerful.

I hope I am the antithesis of disposable fashion.

I make very proper clothes. But I was never that person. For a long time, I thought that was the image I needed to have for my brand. And I thought that's the person that I needed to be. Because it gave me a distinct image that no one can deny.

Being feminine in the way you dress doesn't have to compromise who you are as a woman or your career.

I don't believe that you have to dress in a masculine way to seem powerful. I think that the way a woman dresses doesn't have to be so aggressive. Being feminine is a powerful feature in itself. Power is in a person's demeanor.

I've been known to create clothes that are very formfitting and feminine.

I think clothing is transformative. When you put something really beautiful on, you feel something. In so many ways, we're always playing a form of dress-up - it's just a grown-up, much chicer version of it. It's nice to be able to be whoever you want to be.

It's quite a pure relationship, designer and muse. I think a beautiful dress on the wrong woman could mean nothing. It has to be the right woman and the right clothes. That's why you need that personal touch.

I made a rule not to be on reality shows.