Francois Nars

It's not that I'm easily shocked. It takes a lot to shock me. And wildness I like. But vulgarity shocks me.

There was a time when you would dream about, say, movie stars. Now, you virtually follow them into their bathroom when they're going to the loo.

I'm not an easily depressed person.

My mother never wore much make-up, and she was a kind of natural beauty; she knew just how to enhance what she had.

It really has stayed practically the same. It wasn't like I used to do wild punk make-up: no, I always had the same vision.

I would find myself in these photo shoots with models and makeup, and I got swept up in it all.

You are born with this love; fashion and beauty are a part of who I am.

I fell in love with New York. I moved here 25 years ago in 1984 after I lived in Paris for six years. In the 1980s, it was the place to be. Here I was able to create NARS, which I would not have been able to create if I stayed in France.

I think if you take good care of your skin, you can achieve better make-up.

Women have to find their own personality, their own style, and what suits them the best.

I'm always scared of trends. The runways are always so trend-oriented, but I always feel for the women. The real women that buy cosmetics want to see the trends, but they don't necessarily go for them. And I always encourage women to find what looks best on them.

Was I a businessman to start with? I'm not sure. I mean, that comes slowly, when you start having the products out. But at the same time, I was very determined. I knew that I had to make it work. I had no choice.

My goal was always to make the girl look real and look beautiful. It didn't matter how much makeup. Sometimes it was none at all.

I was a very lucky child because at the age of 16, 17 years old, my parents would buy me clothes from Yves Saint Laurent, which was an incredible luxury at the time, but I was attracted to that whole world. I had a pretty nice little wardrobe by the age of 17.

My mother and my two grandmothers, I was lucky to have three women around me growing up that were very special, very elegant women, very beautiful women. They were my first step into the beauty world, let's say, and then the fashion world, of course.

My interpretation of the word 'ugly'... I like ugly beauty. That can happen. In France, we have phrase 'jolie laide.' We like certain women who are not pretty or cute - it's the opposite in France of pretty. It's more strange and interesting.

I think everyone deserves to look better and to look good.

Sometimes people are very not sure of themselves, so you really have to give them that confidence. Even models - they need to warm up sometimes on photo shoots.

I loved working with Avedon.

I'm very nostalgic - and I don't care.