Of Bling & Blonde

(NEW YORK) On Sunday evening, stylish Italian minds gathered at the third annual Sunday with the Magazine series, held at the Times Center. T editor Stefano Tonchi conducted a discussion with Donatella Versace entitled "What We Wear," which was simulcast live on the Web. The duo discussed fashion, politics, and growing up Versace. Below, a few priceless tidbits from the quintessentially Italian designer:

Her fashion motto:
"Don't let the rappers wear more bling than you do!"

On doing a line with H&M:
"I was asked to do that, too, and the reason I didn't and said no is because I worked very hard to put Versace in the luxury segment and I didn't want to confuse the brands."

On Milan:
"Milan needs a lot of work as a city. It's not great."

On American politics:
"I look forward to meeting Obama; I found Bush to be a simple man."

On becoming blonde:
"When I was 11-and-a-half, Gianni said, 'Why don't you use some highlights?' At 14, I was a little blonde; at 16, I was platinum. Gianni was delighted; my mother was not."

Her definition of modern:
"Free, fearless, and forceful."

On the first time she realized fashion would be important in her life:
"Fashion was my life. Since I was a little girl, my brothers dressed me and dolled me up. When I was 11-and-a-half I remember wearing a miniskirt in patent leather with yellow patent leather boots. I was the most stylish girl in the south of Italy."

On her mother's influence:
"She had an atelier and was a pattern maker. In one ad campaign with [Steven] Meisel of Madonna, she is wearing a ladylike suit and pushing a baby carriage. That's the picture I remember of my mother. My mother's sense of style is still in me now."

On her late brother Gianni:
"Gianni was very vibrant--giving color, happiness and life. He had the courage to dare."

On dressing to intimidate:
"I went through a lot of pain, and I didn't want people to get too close to me. When it came time to ask for help, I broke the barriers."

Lesson she learned from drug-related issues:
"It's a problem of loneliness. Superwoman or Superman, no one, can help you have courage to face. I'm human, I'm weak. Best advice was not being afraid to ask for help."

On her creative process:
"Versace is still a family business so it's very free. But still you have to follow the market. Gianni used pop color; I use vivid color because the technology is there. There were no computers then."

On being her own model:
"I never fit the clothes on me. I think Gisele Bündchen is a much better fit model."

Working on menswear:
"I love men. I can't cut a men's suit and I know that. The heart of men's fashion is tailoring, which is why [I brought in] Alexandre Plokhov to keep the Versace brand and spirit alive. When you fall in love with the past, your fashion dies."

On what she'll be doing and wearing in 10 years:
"Flat shoes! Or perhaps I will have short hair, black. You can ask me what I'll be doing in 10 minutes, not 10 years."

On retirement:
"When I have nothing else to say, I'll find something else to do. It's wrong to think you're going to be somewhere forever."

On travel:
"I like traveling to cities, not exotic places. I'm opening a seven-star hotel in Dubai with a beach that has sand that stays the same temperature all the time."

Who she would like to be reborn as:
 "Maya Rudolph!" [The actress spoofed the designer on SNL.]

On celebrity fashion lines:
"Sometimes I think, 'What are the celebrities thinking?'"