I'd take in my clothes all the time. Traveling around the world has inspired many of Monica's creations. She's taken educational tours with Textiles professor Kim Lyles to places like Egypt and Australia, and many of the pieces in her 1998 spring collection used Asian fabrics. I get design ideas that way. But everything inspires me.
Life is an inspiration.
Many of Monica's designs mix classic concepts with a sense of drama. One of her favorite designers is the flamboyant Alexander McQueen. And she hopes to get involved in costume design someday. Costume design is the best way to capture a time period. Both my parents are in the medical field and we just had a bunch of rubber gloves lying around the house, I started playing with them and that's how it went.