Azzedine Alaia

“I even do my ready-to-wear samples like couture.”

“I want to create a foundation, like a maison, in my home in the Marais. I am going to leave everything there. I am only passing through. I'm not a proprietor of anything, even if I have homes and things.”

“Bill Cunningham... he knows fashion better than anybody.”

“In an ordinary suit and tie, I'd look like a little macho. I'd be ridiculous.”

“There was a woman in Tunisia called Madame Pinot. She was a midwife and had helped in the birth of my siblings and me. I assisted her. I helped women give birth to a lot of babies when I was very young.”

“I like black, because for me it is a very happy color.”

“If you're sad about what you see in the mirror when you wake up every morning, you must change it.”

“A human being is not a machine. Especially when it comes to creating.”

“When I was growing up, I never heard the word 'racism.' It was only in Paris I encountered that.”

“The present fashion system is too hard - there are too many collections. The designers have no time to think! Money is too important. Schedules are too crazy.”

“I learned French in Tunis, along with Arabic. I also learned French history. I knew the entire history of the kings of France. And I was fascinated by Versailles.”

“Ballet costumes are easier that opera because they are designed for movement.”

“I'm happier about my friends than I am about my work. I still have a long way to go with work. My friends, that's the one thing I'm sure about.”

“I am always in doubt; I am never sure of myself.”

“The danger is we're losing sight of what women really want to wear.”

“I used to spend my nights oversewing dresses for a local dressmaker in order to pay for my school equipment.”

“I put myself on the same level as everyone else around me - from the directrice to the workman, everyone. Except my pets - they are the Kings; you must treat them like royalty.”

“You know Sarkozy offered me the Legion d'honneur medal? I refused. People said I refused because I don't like Sarkozy, but that's ridiculous. I refused because I don't like decorations - except on women.”

“I have total confidence in Beaute Prestige International to accompany me in creating a perfume that interprets my work and my world.”

“In modelling, it's very hard to keep in touch with the people you knew when you started.”