Go out there and try on everything - short skirts, long skirts, mid length, little jackets, men's clothing - and really look at yourself; really walk around in the clothes. Don't just take someone else's advice. You must feel you in these clothes and feel what it's like to live in them.

When I started, I knew nothing about fashion. I remember, my first day going to my agency, I was wearing these huge bell-bottoms - they were patchwork corduroy and denim, which, at the time, I thought were amazing. My agent told me, 'You have a casting with Prada - you have to burn those jeans.'

Elegance isn't solely defined by what you wear. It's how you carry yourself, how you speak, what you read.

The great thing about American women is their energy and the way they love to dress. French women don't really dress; they are too conservative, as it's always a question of money. In America, women are powerful and strong, determined. If they want to be an object, they choose to be in control.

The thing I always try to remember is that feet are attached to the leg, and that you must prolong the silhouette. The shoe elongates the leg and does it discreetly. The goal is to get people to look at a woman's legs. It's all about the leg. No, it's not about the leg. It's about the woman.

I love black dresses. I think everyone should own a lot, but black dresses don't sell online because on the computer they don't read like anything.