To me, design and style should work toward making you look good

“To me, design and style should work toward making you look good and feel good without a lot of effort — so you can get on with the things that matter.” Thus spoke Donna Karan, the designer who reshaped modern fashion not with extravagance, but with empathy. In these words lies a wisdom both elegant and profound — a reminder that true design serves life, not vanity; and true style is not a mask, but a mirror of confidence and ease. Karan’s philosophy, born from both artistry and compassion, teaches that what we wear — and how we present ourselves — should never imprison the soul, but rather liberate it to live more fully, more purposefully, and with greater grace.

In the modern world, many have come to see fashion as a theater of excess — a realm where appearance overshadows authenticity. Yet Donna Karan, who rose to prominence in the 1980s amidst the rise of the working woman, sought to restore balance. She understood that women, newly entering the halls of power, needed garments that would not distract them from their mission but empower them to move through life with dignity and comfort. Her designs were not armor, but extensions of the self — simple, fluid, and functional, yet undeniably beautiful. Through them, she redefined elegance as something accessible, not ornamental; something practical, yet timeless.

In her words, we find an echo of the ancient principle of utility and beauty — the harmony that philosophers and artists have long revered. The Greeks called it kalokagathia, the union of the good and the beautiful. They believed that the external form should reflect the inner spirit, that simplicity was not absence, but clarity. Karan’s vision flows from this same lineage. She reminds us that ease is not laziness, but mastery — that when design works perfectly, it disappears into the rhythm of life, leaving the wearer free to focus on what truly matters: love, purpose, creation, and connection.

Consider the story of Coco Chanel, another woman who, like Karan, transformed the meaning of style in her age. In the early twentieth century, Chanel freed women from the corsets and cages of Victorian fashion. She introduced softness, movement, and freedom — garments that allowed women to breathe, to walk, to live. Both Chanel and Karan saw that fashion, when stripped of pretense, could become an instrument of freedom. It is no coincidence that their creations share a simplicity that whispers rather than shouts, a beauty that does not demand attention but commands respect.

Karan’s philosophy also carries a deeper moral resonance. When she says that style should help us “get on with the things that matter,” she reminds us that the purpose of design is not to distract us from life, but to enhance it. The goal is not endless self-adornment, but self-realization. Clothing, like all design, should serve as a bridge between the outer and the inner world — a quiet ally that gives us confidence to meet our challenges. Just as the architect designs buildings that shape the way people live, the designer shapes the tools through which we express ourselves. The best designs, in any field, fade into the background, allowing life itself to take center stage.

In this way, Karan’s words speak to more than fashion — they speak to the philosophy of living well. To live beautifully is not to chase extravagance, but to cultivate effortless harmony between form and purpose, between appearance and substance. Whether one is designing clothing, a home, a career, or a life, the goal remains the same: to create structures that support freedom, not structures that demand constant attention. The ancient sculptors of Athens knew this truth when they shaped columns that seemed to stand without strain, their beauty born from balance rather than burden. So too must we design our lives — so that we may live them with grace, not exhaustion.

Thus, let Karan’s words become both compass and counsel for all creators and seekers: strive for simplicity, not for show; build things that serve, not enslave; and adorn your life in ways that amplify your essence, rather than hide it. When your choices — of clothing, work, or path — make you feel free, you will move through the world with quiet strength. Let your style, whatever form it takes, reflect not the noise of the crowd but the clarity of your own spirit.

For in the end, the highest design is the one that disappears into living — where beauty requires no effort, and every moment becomes a work of art. As Donna Karan teaches, do not live to maintain appearances; live to fulfill purpose. Look good, feel good, and then go forth and do good — for that is where true elegance begins.