I studied philosophy at Columbia, then dropped out to do drama at the Lee Strasberg Institute.
I come from a family of compulsive collectors, and my first memories are really all about collecting. I remember visiting flea markets with my mother or my grandmother - she goes to local ones around Varese, Italy, every Sunday when she's at home.
My ambitions are less important than my well-being. My children come first.
When I became a mum myself, I really struggled to find great kids' clothes. Everything was either gorgeous but impossible to actually get open to change a nappy and expensive or poor quality.
I'm not keen on the Mini Me trend. In my opinion, kids' clothes should be kids' clothes.
Growing up in a very big family, working together and playing together, that is something that has been part of my life since ever I was born. It has advantages and disadvantages. It's like an older style of living where everyone works in the family business.
I lived in New York for five years; I've lived in Barcelona, Rome, and Paris at different times. When I was 18, I was dying to live in a city.
I'm happy living in the countryside. We are 30 minutes away from Milan, so I can drive in for dinner and drive out. It's not a question of living in the country or in the city, it's really a question of living in a tight, close-knit clan that makes the difference.
I've always tried to control everything and every aspect of my life, and this is maybe the biggest lesson I've learnt with motherhood - you just can't control everything, and I'm much more relaxed now about unexpected changes and things that happen.
I buy a lot of fashion, and I wear many different brands. Even though I'm not so conceptual in my style, I probably buy the most from Junya Watanabe. It's always so spot on and of-the-moment although it's also so sophisticated and conceptual. I also love Marco de Vincenzo, Azzedine Alaia, and Yohji Yamamoto.
I definitely inherited a lot of from both my grandmothers and from my mother. I wear a lot of pieces that used to belong to other people.
I love dressing for different occasions and having dress codes. For me, it's such a fun thing to have a reason to think about dressing within restraints or codes or rules, so it's something I have fun with.
I live for any excuse to 'dress for the occasion.'
Fashion is a real passion in my family. I never even realised it was something glamorous until much later. For me, it was my family's job.
Since I was a child, everyone would ask me what I wanted to do when I grew up. Was I going to be a designer? It's as if there was a path drawn for me, and I could see, from where I was standing, exactly where it ended.
When I was growing up, my family was serious about manners. I always wanted to put my elbow on the table to prop my head up. I didn't understand how other people looked awake. My head felt so heavy after the whole day.
I have a lot of Missoni tablecloths, but for breakfast, we use placemats - we call them 'American-style.' I have some in crazy patterns from the Swedish brand Svenskt Tenn. And I like plates from Grottaglie in Puglia, stained in wild colors.
Sometimes I have ice cream for lunch. Gelateria Sempione in Milan is the best in the world, hands down. The chocolate sorbetto is amazing.
I'm not a big sleeper. It just feels like wasting time. If I wake up, and it's after 5 A.M., I stay up.
I'm not a hang-out-on-the-beach type of girl.
