Carine Roitfeld Quotes & Sayings

In my 10 years, I never put a girl that was too skinny in French 'Vogue.' — Carine Roitfeld

I started wearing high heels when I first worked with Mario Testino. He is tall; I had to be at his height. And I have never stopped since then. — Carine Roitfeld

Ballet is good, because it makes you stand up tall. — Carine Roitfeld

When you have confidence, when you feel loved by people, you can tell them the truth. It's important that I can say the photo isn't beautiful or the photo shoot sucks. — Carine Roitfeld

I discovered the slip dress, which I think is one of the more French things because when you take off your clothes, even when to go into a shop to buy something, or you're going to Riccardo Tisci to try on a suit, it's like having protection. — Carine Roitfeld

I know that people in fashion and people in general hate to be filmed. — Carine Roitfeld

Fashion's about extravagance, and everyone needs a bit of that. — Carine Roitfeld

I like to provoke. I'm very French. — Carine Roitfeld

I think that something needs to be weird in order to have a real beauty. — Carine Roitfeld

I want to be the Joan of Arc of fashion. I want to be the link between the runway and the real woman. — Carine Roitfeld

I am Parisian. I don't love the French. — Carine Roitfeld

You're not on your own. You're doing things with other people. This is very important for me. — Carine Roitfeld

If I could choose something besides fashion, I would love to be a ballerina. — Carine Roitfeld

One time, a burglar came to my apartment, so we called the police. My son was here, so I think they left before they tried to steal something. So the police come to my apartment, and they say, 'Oh my God, did they steal everything?' I was like, 'No, it was like that!' — Carine Roitfeld

Monsieur Saint Laurent was pathologically shy, and he made the Saint Laurent woman in his own image. Like her, I am shy. And to protect myself, I adopted something of an androgynous look, just as his women did. — Carine Roitfeld

I've always used black girls on the runway, because I think they're beautiful. I don't need people to tell me, 'You need to use black girls.' I did for 20 years; it's not a new thing for me. — Carine Roitfeld

At the start, I had no idea to go into fashion, because I thought people would think I was stupid. I don't worry about those things anymore. — Carine Roitfeld

I definitely want to work on a project with young designers, not just French but international. — Carine Roitfeld

I'm so tired of this vision of fashion of a diva with a big ego, and you think of big dark glasses to be pretentious and keep far away from the people. — Carine Roitfeld

I like to surprise people. I try to take risks. — Carine Roitfeld

When I left French 'Vogue,' New York welcomed me with a big, big hug. — Carine Roitfeld

Pregnancy is something that I always love. It's about hope and the future and a new baby. — Carine Roitfeld

I have a lot to say about fashion - not just about fashion, but beauty, art. — Carine Roitfeld

We are very luck to be women, so even if we're wearing trousers, I always wear them with some lace underwear or a very feminine bra - I like that. — Carine Roitfeld

I never think I have to prove something. — Carine Roitfeld

Coco Chanel was always doing things with ballet, so it is a tradition clashing fashion and ballet. — Carine Roitfeld

It's always fun when people ask you for advice. — Carine Roitfeld

Fashion shows used to be more crazy. Now they've become a bit too serious. — Carine Roitfeld

Enthusiasm is something so positive. — Carine Roitfeld

What I hope I would do is something new, but I still love print. I love to touch paper. I'm not sure if I will ever do a magazine again, but I have plenty of ideas on the subject. — Carine Roitfeld

The true test of a man's style is the haircut. There are some men who look good no matter how their hair is styled, whether it's trendy or not. A man can change his haircut many times, but to pull off any haircut, you have to be very chic. Like Brad Pitt. — Carine Roitfeld

When you have the baby, there is no BlackBerry, no computer; you just have the baby on your stomach, and your heart is beating the same time as the baby's. It's very nice. — Carine Roitfeld

When you have a magazine like 'Vogue,' you know a lot of kids are going to follow your pictures. — Carine Roitfeld

People always say, 'You look like Iggy Pop.' — Carine Roitfeld

You can be covered and be very sexy. It's not what you show; it's what you have in mind, the way you cross your legs, the way you talk to people. — Carine Roitfeld

Paris is mostly retired people - I love it, and it's a beautiful city, but it's quite slow. — Carine Roitfeld

My private life is a lot more ladylike and less sultry than the fashion photos I imagine. — Carine Roitfeld

I think, in many ways, certain people sought me out maybe because they liked my body language or they liked the way I wore a slit skirt, the way I cross my legs or carry my purse. It's quite inspiring to play the seduction card. — Carine Roitfeld

Amidst globalisation, trends are becoming worldwide, so it's important to take a unique approach to what fashion has to offer. Be yourself in the middle of it all; fashion shouldn't be 'try hard.' — Carine Roitfeld

I don't think the woman in French 'Vogue' was an object. She was always a real woman. — Carine Roitfeld

When you go to a show, Americans in New York are very proper, much more so than the French. Everything is perfect. Their hair, the nails, everything. The look. Everything is perfection. — Carine Roitfeld

The most important thing is posture: when you get old, it's the way you walk, the way you stand, that shows it. — Carine Roitfeld

When a designer creates, he looks at the world around him. — Carine Roitfeld

Just because someone is holding a gun doesn't make an image controversial. It all depends on where you put the gun, who is holding it. — Carine Roitfeld

I have good legs, so I prefer my skirt lengths and my high heels. It's like my uniform. — Carine Roitfeld

Here in France, I've seen some very good young designers, but they don't have this ability to be good businessmen, too. I think America gives you this. — Carine Roitfeld

My hair and make-up secret is 'the messier the better.' — Carine Roitfeld

It's true I always like to mix femininity and something a bit masculine. It's the reason I love skirts with high heels and tights, and no handbag because I love having my hands in my pockets. — Carine Roitfeld

I could live very quietly, do advertising to earn money. — Carine Roitfeld

When you get older, you have to stay a bit rock n' roll so that young people will still be interested in you. The way you move, the way you talk, maybe the way you have your hair in your face a little bit - this keeps you interesting. — Carine Roitfeld

I would never share my daughter's wardrobe. Every five years you have to go through your wardrobe and say, 'This is possible, this is not possible.' But you have to be happy with yourself. — Carine Roitfeld

There is always a bit of seduction to it when one person is clothed and the other is naked, which can be a little weird. Everybody should be naked. In that case, it would be easier. Let's do a huge naked photo shoot! — Carine Roitfeld

I was never conscious that I was becoming an icon or I'm not an icon, because my family, my kids, my husband keep me down-to-earth. — Carine Roitfeld

Dancing is the last sport with no sponsor. — Carine Roitfeld

I always try to be nice to the paparazzi because finally, maybe one day, they won't ask for me, and I will regret it. — Carine Roitfeld

I am from the age of magazines, so the Internet is terrifying to me. But I am learning. — Carine Roitfeld

There are people who give you the confidence that you're lacking and once you have confidence, you're free and finally you can let out what's inside of you. — Carine Roitfeld

If people ask me to describe my look, I always say: 'Quite classic with an edge.' — Carine Roitfeld

If you are a reader of 'Harper's Bazaar,' to me, you are a woman who loves fashion, but not just fashion; you love fashion, you love travel, you love art, you love music. — Carine Roitfeld

We are very lucky to work in fashion and not work in a hospital or something where the biggest deal we come across is perhaps the length of a skirt. — Carine Roitfeld

You lose attitude when you feel too comfortable, so I prefer to wear clothes that have a certain edge to them. — Carine Roitfeld

I am just doing photo shoots. It's not something that extraordinary. I'm not a great artist, I'm not writing books, I'm not a painter, and people in the streets ask me for a picture or a note, and I say, 'Why?' — Carine Roitfeld

I see girls who are so skinny on the catwalks, and I know so many of them destroy their lives and their family's lives. — Carine Roitfeld

I don't have a big appetite. I don't eat a lot, to be honest - never. I'm a bit like a little bird, picking all day long, but I'm not getting pasta or getting all those things, you know? — Carine Roitfeld

I am very obsessed with ballet now because it is a very difficult sport and a beautiful one because it is not about money. It's not like playing football or tennis - dance has no sponsors, it's just for the beauty. Maybe it is the only last pure sport. — Carine Roitfeld

If I'm doing something in fashion, I will try to respect the 'laws' of the business, but I will try to keep my integrity and my respect for the designers and for my readers. — Carine Roitfeld

Sometimes, when you go to airport and look at the people, you see the worst looks - but the worst looks can give you more ideas than the best looks. — Carine Roitfeld

Working for a magazine, you have a boss; you are not free. — Carine Roitfeld

I hate people who over intellectualize. It bores me deeply. — Carine Roitfeld

Yves Saint Laurent liked women to put their hands in their pockets, or to hold cigarettes, and act a bit like boys. It was to give an impression of composure, some self-assurance, and to counter the feminine appearance. — Carine Roitfeld

Fashion is a language, for sure, and it is a reflection of society. — Carine Roitfeld

I don't have problems with my weight, I don't change weight but I think when you're gaining in age your position has to be beautiful. — Carine Roitfeld

Designers have told me that their collections are so me, but I don't always recognise it because if you ask me what my style is, I'm really not that sure. — Carine Roitfeld

I am very lucky in that I can eat what I want and don't have to follow any special diet. — Carine Roitfeld

I love if someone invites me to a restaurant, so I don't know if that's a feminist. — Carine Roitfeld

When I was young, no one got married. Now, all the young people, they want to get married, they want security. Now that my children's friends are getting married, I go to more weddings than I ever did when I was young. — Carine Roitfeld

Fashion isn't something you can buy; you need to have the sense of it, and most people don't. — Carine Roitfeld

I'm still like a butterfly going from one job to another job. But it's quite lovely - I hope to keep this freedom, to have fun. — Carine Roitfeld

I actually love the 'rappers look,' with the saggy pants and oversized clothes. It's very deliberate. — Carine Roitfeld

You can be beautiful with big breasts; you can be beautiful in your 40s. If you don't have perfect ankles, still you can move your legs in a certain way and look very sexy. — Carine Roitfeld

I never like to wear too much makeup, and sometimes the best makeup is when it's not too perfect. I like to sometimes apply my makeup with my fingers. — Carine Roitfeld

Fashion is not about clothes, it is about a look. — Carine Roitfeld

If you don't want to get bored with what you're doing, you have to change. — Carine Roitfeld

When you're editor-in-chief of a big magazine, you cannot be a cover girl for MAC; you cannot be the face of Givenchy - of course you can't; it's doesn't go with the job. — Carine Roitfeld

To see yourself on the big screen, you're big, you hate your voice, your vocabulary. You say the same words, you speak bad. — Carine Roitfeld

I have a couture body. — Carine Roitfeld

I think it's difficult to do fashion for men, because either you become very over-homosexual fashion or very boring fashion. You don't want a boy who looks 15 in a little pair of shorts with some strange art ... But to see just a jacket and tie is boring. — Carine Roitfeld

I think that when you're taking pictures with my principles, you can try anything. Dare to do a lot of things - dare with sexuality, dare to break taboos as long as it remains photogenic. As long as I find an elegance and beauty in it, I am not afraid to tackle anything. — Carine Roitfeld

My name has become a brand - it could be make-up, clothing, perfume. — Carine Roitfeld

I am not a good professional of fashion. I am not an expert about how clothes are constructed or the history of fashion. I never start with fashion. I always think of the girl and her personality - because all that matters to me when you look at a page is, "Do you want to be that girl?" — Carine Roitfeld

My mom read French 'Elle' when I was a little girl, and so, when I was 15 or 16, I said, 'I want to work in fashion.' — Carine Roitfeld

'Grandmother' doesn't mean that you have gray hair and you retire and stay home cooking cakes for your grandchildren. — Carine Roitfeld

Maybe it's good a thing that people see me this way [in the documentary film]. They expect to see me with the high heels, the glamour looks, but now they will see me running through an airport with flat shoes! Also, they'll discover that stylists with "names" are in general nicer, sweeter, have a heart, have great relationships with family and friends, and that's important. It shows that people in fashion aren't just freaks. — Carine Roitfeld

Imitation always stinks. When I take photos, I don't go back. I don't look at the past. I'm always original. — Carine Roitfeld

I think that Americans, they love comfort more than Europeans. Americans created the T-shirt, the sweat pants, and they create the best sporting shoes. — Carine Roitfeld

Makeup can help you capture a moment. — Carine Roitfeld

I think beauty can be everywhere. — Carine Roitfeld

I love the free spirit in London. — Carine Roitfeld

French 'Vogue' was always a photographer's magazine. — Carine Roitfeld

Blogs are quite a new development - now, everyone wants to know you, everyone wants to know everything about you. And you can build a following that way. In a way, it's a good thing if you want to create a buzz around yourself. — Carine Roitfeld