Designers Dish: Christian Siriano

Pret-a-Reporter sat down with the designer to talk tech: on the runway, on the newsstand and in the bedroom.

Are you super plugged in to social media?

I tweet, but to be honest, I don’t really read Twitter that much. I do look at Instagram a lot. [My fiance] Brad [Walsh] is pretty good at it, and if there’s something interesting, he keeps me in the loop. We look at our phones pretty much all night while in bed, but I read emails pretty late.

Flipping through magazines: newsstand or tablet?

No, no, no. I love magazines on paper. I buy magazines every day, all day. I downloaded a magazine app, but I’ve never, ever used it. I also like to buy really weird fashion magazines — that’s what I still love, seeing weird editorials. And I love when we’re in it, that’s always nice!

Do you sketch with tech?

Pencil and paper, all the way. This was cool because it’s such a digital idea, but I still approached it normally, like I do every day, nostalgic and old school.

This project was something small to get into digital — I don’t know if it would translate to one of my full collections, but I loved doing this to show what social interaction can do. At the end of the day, it’s so important now what people are talking about — retailers, buyers, customers, they’re posting what they love, and it is what it is. I think we’re all not ready for it yet, but it’s happening.

There are some cool things happening with fashion and tech — Rebecca Minkoff had everyone at her NYFW show wear 3D glasses for the show’s finale.

Oh, really? That’s so cool! I also think 3D-printed accessories are amazing; they’re their own art. The Apple Watch, it’s kind of cool but I don’t think I would use it. I’m not wearing it, let’s just say that. Google Glass — I love the idea, but they need to look cool, on normal frames. They’re pretty ugly as it is. Thank goodness for DVF!