50 of the Most Iconic Fashion Quotes of All Time
Fashions fade, wit is eternal (and shade is even better).
![Fashion Quotes](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/G9YgMxZLinBZS23fhkUJe9-415-80.jpg)
In the immortal words of Heidi Klum: "In fashion, one day you're in and the next you're out." And while this may be true, a well-placed maxim can surely outlive one's fashionability. Some fashion quotes have become so iconic that they now live far beyond their initial context and have entered fully into the pop-culture vernacular. By now, who doesn't know that "florals for spring" are "groundbreaking" thanks to Miranda Priestly, or that Carrie Bradshaw likes her "money right where I can see it: hanging in my closet"? Fashion designers create the clothes that shape the way we look, so why should they not also provide us with a motto or two about we should live—to help guide us to be the most stylish and fashionable versions of ourselves? So whether they be words to live by, be inspired by, or just a perfectly bitchy backhanded quip to make you cackle, to follow are some musings on fashion, style and a life well-lived.
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![Azzedine Alaïa](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/7A4r8u6zLmjV9QHR4qQZnb-415-80.jpg)
Azzedine Alaïa
"I make clothes, women make fashion."
![Giorgio Armani](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZebESEoqai7MmAkJHqQKib-415-80.jpg)
Giorgio Armani
"The difference between style and fashion is quality."
![Cristóbal Balenciaga](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/NuUEZA6peoMPffHhr9vwdb-415-80.jpg)
Cristóbal Balenciaga
"Elegance is elimination."
![Pierre Balmain](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GSKJWueHHEENUuA3FtFFZb-415-80.jpg)
Pierre Balmain
"The trick of wearing a mink coat is to look as though you were wearing a cloth coat. The trick of wearing a cloth coat is to look as though you are wearing a mink."
![Isabella Blow](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/AufBKQFJnqEei3KbpXfPUb-415-80.jpg)
Isabella Blow
"My style icon is anyone who makes a bloody effort."
![Naomi Campbell](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/JtpG6mqafGof33mACyNMNb-415-80.jpg)
Naomi Campbell
"You better check your lipstick before you come and talk to me."
![Marchesa Luisa Casati](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/qrhxe4486sen5GFRBu9WHb-415-80.jpg)
Marchesa Luisa Casati
"Women of the world today dress alike. They are like so many loaves of bread. To be beautiful one must be unhurried. Personality is needed. There is too much sameness. The world seems only to have a desire for more of this sameness. To be different is to be alone."
![Coco Chanel](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/CbCHeSctFsqwYYF5848ACb-415-80.jpg)
Coco Chanel
"Dress like you are going to meet your worst enemy today."
![Jean Cocteau](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XJBMcYB7d8jkNgxssNjM7b-415-80.jpg)
Jean Cocteau
"The prettiest dresses are worn to be taken off."
![Ann Demeulemeester](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/L2BkTtKkvUiLRqxWbM683b-415-80.jpg)
Ann Demeulemeester
"Good fashion for me is like rock ‘n’ roll—there’s always a little rebellion in it."
![Christian Dior](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/oUFJuWmY7kjntkTPyENgva-415-80.jpg)
Christian Dior
"There is no such thing as an ugly woman—there are only ones who do not know how to make themselves attractive."
![Tom Ford](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/eVicaEUqVmPTKNp38ss8qa-415-80.jpg)
Tom Ford
"Dressing well is a form of good manners."
![Thomas Fuller](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3R8GwZ4ogqLVH3oGyLPyka-415-80.jpg)
Thomas Fuller
"Good clothes open all doors."
![John Galliano](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZfiPpqK34sjfnEKtfpXmea-415-80.jpg)
John Galliano
"Style is wearing an evening dress to McDonalds, wearing heels to play football. It is personality, confidence and seduction."
![Valentino Garavani](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/NvKxGQb7scSZ8LACe8LnYa-415-80.jpg)
Valentino Garavani
"Elegance is the balance between proportion, emotion and surprise."
![Jean-Paul Gaultier](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/cQCFWCtzHTBFGccc9kzzTa-415-80.jpg)
Jean-Paul Gaultier
"It’s always the badly dressed people who are most interesting."
![Hubert de Givenchy](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/e52JojRknHMRiZE2koCQQa-415-80.jpg)
Hubert de Givenchy
"The little black dress is the hardest thing to realize because you must keep it simple."
![Rudi Gernreich](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/2xrqeeNLDoNDvQBUtVLWKa-415-80.jpg)
Rudi Gernreich
"Fashion will go out of fashion."
![Edith Head](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Fa5P6ZSk3ThSVN8YqDTPFa-415-80.jpg)
Edith Head
"You can have anything you want in life if you dress for it."
![Marc Jacobs](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/p3FMG3RTUYmUEobsLryp8a-415-80.jpg)
Marc Jacobs
"Life is a fashion show, the world is your runway."
![Rei Kawakubo](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/uRo7ze7Cs7kY3hpNJU6o3a-415-80.jpg)
Rei Kawakubo
"For something to be beautiful it doesn’t have to be pretty."
![Junior LeBeija](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/MFXEpdeg7qXiQnDj8EvfxZ-415-80.jpg)
Junior LeBeija
"Come on, now. It is a known fact, that a woman do carry an evening bag at dinnertime. There is no getting around that!...An evening bag is a must. You have to carry something. No lady is sure at night."
![Karl Lagerfeld](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vM2GtzeBwr9mBd7pVXXMtZ-415-80.jpg)
Karl Lagerfeld
"Trendy is the last stage before tacky."
![Fran Lebowitz](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8UkfpDHmhUEfre8PLqRXnZ-415-80.jpg)
Fran Lebowitz
"I don't believe in God, I believe in cashmere."
![Christian Louboutin](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/jZ2t2fkeyMqwAR7uyQ72iZ-415-80.jpg)
Christian Louboutin
"A good shoe is one that doesn’t dress you but undresses you."
![Alexander McQueen](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/7WPD4vtA6bxVH8CHGgTqdZ-415-80.jpg)
Alexander McQueen
"Fashion should be a form of escapism, and not a form of imprisonment."
![Polly Mellen](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/xxagxY8Vmo4vjsr49AnAaZ-415-80.jpg)
Polly Mellen
"Style doesn’t have seasons."
![Isaac Mizrahi](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ybTnr7953FTeHnN5VMj2WZ-415-80.jpg)
Isaac Mizrahi
"Remember this: No one is looking at your imperfections; they’re all too busy worrying about their own."
![Edina Monsoon](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/cDLiBXZa9ESxr3RAbT6kRZ-415-80.jpg)
Edina Monsoon
"Lacroix, sweetie."
![Franco Moschino](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8PA6bBUAqo5RrcuLzR2mLZ-415-80.jpg)
Franco Moschino
"Good taste doesn’t exist. It is our taste. We have to be proud of it."
![Thierry Mugler](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o2d26G3LFYYRC3r5KfC5GZ-415-80.jpg)
Thierry Mugler
"Fashion is a movie. Every morning when you get dressed you direct yourself."
![Rick Owens](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yQstoWmPWkW5LTzGzzKUCZ-415-80.jpg)
Rick Owens
"The coolest thing is when you don’t care about being cool anymore. Indifference is the greatest aphrodisiac—that’s what really sums up style for me."
![Dorothy Parker](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/a35HvsChQT43aRFHTzXw5Z-415-80.jpg)
Dorothy Parker
"If you wear a short enough skirt, the party will come to you."
![Paul Poiret](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/pyxVBtBW7rxDs9mExAe2zY-415-80.jpg)
Paul Poiret
"It is what a woman leaves off, not what she puts on that gives her cachet."
![Miuccia Prada](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/mPhv7qH7bNgHnZAaxUYEuY-415-80.jpg)
Miuccia Prada
"Fashion is instant language."
![Mary Quant](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XXBXZYutiFQnKApJQrbzpY-415-80.jpg)
Mary Quant
"The fashionable woman wears clothes. The clothes don’t wear her."
![Carine Roitfeld](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/FcxhuDAq39sHJky5MDmYjY-415-80.jpg)
Carine Roitfeld
"I think you are born chic. You cannot be chic. It is something you cannot learn."
![RuPaul](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/rbF34nSquhKurVh66bQZdY-415-80.jpg)
RuPaul
"We’re all born naked, the rest is drag."
![Sonia Rykiel](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GAcBRH78qjKpnAWGb92CWY-415-80.jpg)
Sonia Rykiel
"How can you live the high life if you do not wear the high heels?"
![Yves Saint Laurent](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3hyxVVgL67R4C8W4TwT8PY-415-80.jpg)
Yves Saint Laurent
"We must never confuse elegance with snobbery."
![Elsa Schiaparelli](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vbqFmrtQjkWnZcDnhjT7JY-415-80.jpg)
Elsa Schiaparelli
"In difficult times fashion is always outrageous."
![Patsy Stone](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/UChGFb5fRskj2hCBqDyD7Y-415-80.jpg)
Patsy Stone
"You can never have enough hats, gloves and shoes."
![Donatella Versace](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/HnubvTSkYjihK5WwVD4W2Y-415-80.jpg)
Donatella Versace
"What is comfortable fashion? To be comfortable, that can’t be in the vocabulary of fashion. If you want to be comfortable, stay home in your pajamas."
![Gianni Versace](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/sLfG23GghYBzqLKQ2mDCwX-415-80.jpg)
Gianni Versace
"You dress elegant women. You dress sophisticated women. I dress sluts."
![Diana Vreeland](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/wSjVUToBj9pfiyzMrdUUrX-415-80.jpg)
Diana Vreeland
"A little bad taste is like a splash of paprika. We all need a splash of bad taste—it’s hearty, it’s healthy, it’s physical. I think we could use more of it. NO taste is what I’m against."
![Andy Warhol](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/dByXuXtmWYZwGdQJ4b5LnX-415-80.jpg)
Andy Warhol
"I’d rather buy a dress and put it up on the wall than put up a painting, wouldn’t you?"
![Oscar Wilde](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/epEH79CvJxXYp7MC9kBwhX-415-80.jpg)
Oscar Wilde
"You can never be overdressed or overeducated."
![Harry Winston](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/oufN9pbnxfaJnkhnWYkidX-415-80.jpg)
Harry Winston
"People will stare. Make it work their while."
![Anna Wintour](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/UqUXFgKvYSQdHejwCvymYX-415-80.jpg)
Anna Wintour
"Either you know fashion or you don't."
![Yohji Yamamoto](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZNQx5ckmDv5G9GxUx6MLTX-415-80.jpg)
Yohji Yamamoto
"Fashion cannot make you sexy. Experience makes you sexy. Imagination makes people sexy. You have to train yourself, you have to study. and you have to live your life."
Joseph Errico is Marie Claire’s Fashion Director. As a career-long fashion editor and celebrity stylist, he has had the opportunity to work alongside the world’s top image makers and talent. He has styled editorial and advertising, red carpet, music videos, fashion shows and writes about fashion, culture and most anything bon vivant-y for marieclaire.com. He feels most at home in an airport lounge, a beach, a disco or gossiping front row at the collections. His blood type is Gaultier.
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