Chris Benz

Growing up in Seattle, I was always that kid who didn't subscribe to what everyone else was wearing.

I always like a woman in power in politics. I think they're pretty inspirational in terms of looks to begin with. It's very calculated.

I think Seattle has a great sort of luxury and comfort sensibility, which I oftentimes think is lost in fashion for fashion's sake.

I particularly like Facebook because it straddles the gap between seeing people and not seeing them.

I often feel like Facebook is a giant friend portfolio, and sometimes it can be a much more socially appropriate way of contacting a person as compared with texting or telephone. And never mind the fact that it's integrated into the iPhone. Makes me crazy in a super good way.

Let me tell you, I'm not sure if America runs on donuts, but I sure do! Nothin' like a little simple sugar icing to get the blood pumping at 9:00 A.M.

The best part of fashion is the interns - having them or being one.

I love how New York as an idea is less a paradigm of manifest destiny and more a romance for the social orphans of the world. We live here to be among the towers and the crowds.

Life in New York is one of succumbing to a tidal wave of control and direction, of numbing oneself to emotion.

I have a fleet of Rimowa Topas aluminum suitcases! They're all covered in stickers from around the world.

I have specific playlists for arrivals in different cities. Tokyo skews new wave, Paris more jazz, and New York is Top 40.

I always knew I wanted to start my own line. Nights and weekends, I would work on my business plan.

I interned with Marc Jacobs in college, then worked at J. Crew. I learned a lot about how to fit clothes and what kinds of things sell and why.

I used to sit in bed at night and flip through design-school catalogs. I found out that Parsons accepted a small number of high school juniors, so I applied my sophomore year and got in.

I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, where it's all about being comfortable. I try to bring that undercurrent to what I do. It's great to have beautiful, dressed-up clothes that still feel casual.

Designers and musicians are primed to keep thinking forward. Once an album or collection launches, you can only think about doing the next one.

I'm drawn to girls with a certain self-effacing, humorous quality and an innate independence and point of view. I love the notion of never taking yourself too seriously or being too put together.

I feel like girls should dress down a little bit on the holidays, even though the instinct is to get really dressed up.

There is a lack of humor in fashion. To me, it's always been the fun, cool industry to work in, and I always wanted people to be on my side and see how much fun we really have behind the scenes.

I feel like everyone should dye their hair a weird color. If you hate it, you can just dye it back.

While at Parsons, I interned at Marc Jacobs, which was great. When I graduated, I went to work at J. Crew; that was also really great.

I have no problem with being underdressed.

I went to Parsons. American sportswear was my education, and that is what is important to me.

As a designer looking to the future, you don't want to get lost in the archives.

I'd call my work 'instinctual design.' I like to find the spirit of a piece that defies time, age, and occasion. My clothes give the wearer the chance to develop their own voice within a wardrobe, and I think of them as curators of their personal style.