Best of people: Colleen Quen

Women of substance and style who want to compete with the artwork at museum openings—or float down the aisle—visit the storied Heron Street–based atelier of Colleen Quen. Though daring and often fantastical, her couture creations are made by hand using centuries-old techniques and are custom fitted to each woman’s body. Quen, a fourth-generation Chinese American who spent a decade designing for various labels like WilkesSport and Gap, studied under a Parisian couturier before launching her own line 12 years ago. Now she’s headed to the City of Light for a prestigious turn at Fashion Week, where she’ll show a 30-piece collection that incorporates the ancient batik, embroidery, and silverwork traditions of villagers in China’s Guizhou Province into modern architectural silhouettes. Trust us, this is only the beginning. Colleen Quen Couture: 7 Heron St., 415-551-0013

Quen's obsessions

True couture: “It is about the form and the cut, [the] lines, where the darts are placed. There’s a purpose for every cut I make. I’m really obsessed with the shape and how it com­plements the body, but also with making it very unusual, trying to extract out a new form.”

Discovering the next big thing: “There are enough people doing ‘the next big thing’ already. In couture, you create your own path and vision. I hope to be known as an innovator, and to inspire people.”

Keeping it real: “For me, the joy is to do everything by hand. I don’t even use computer drafting. Feeling the design as an art piece is a different mental state; it comes from a different motivation, and it requires different skills.”

Going beyond fashion: “I do sword tai chi. I don’t pro­mote violence or fighting; it’s more about internal strength. I med­itate an hour a day and do my tai chi—there are 70 positions. It grounds me for my day. I love having the sound and beauty of nature around me.”

Her design mentors: “Charles James was able to do everything, from the sketch to making his own patterns [to] sewing. He was so into the cut and the form, and that’s so much like the way I like to work. And I love Christian Lacroix’s use of color—it’s very painterly.”

Learning from her travels: “The tribal people [in Guizhou Pro­vince] were outside all the time—they did all their work outside.”

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