Returning home from traveling in the United States, Canada and Europe, I am always asked, "What did you see?" "What did you do?" "What are they wearing?" A few even ask, "What did you learn?"

   Aside from learning to negotiate the maze of narrow one-way streets and adjusting to living out of a suitcase, I’ve visited great buildings, the wonderful museums, and fashion houses from New York to Chicago and Los Angeles, from Toronto to Calgary and Vancouver, from Amsterdam to Vienna and Budapest, from Hamburg to Milan, Florence, and Rome, from Paris to Munich and Moscow.

   I came away with a sure knowledge, a confirmation of what I know to be true—that in art, you can harmoniously combine virtually any line, shape, color, texture, or pattern with any other line, shape, color, texture, or pattern.

   All too often, in considering the use of a line, color or fabric, we accept the idea that "it can’t be done." When it comes to clothing, someone often says, "You can’t wear that line, that color, that fabric. It won’t work, or "It’s not your type."

   Respond to this advice by saying to yourself, "It can be done. You just don’t know how to do it." If it’s something you’d really like to try, simply add, "I’ll just have to learn how to do it—how to make it work for me, to meet my needs."

   It’s not only artists and practitioners of today who place limits on artistic combinations. Each of the great masters of yesterday—some well known and some lesser known—had his own ideas, theories, and methods. Each was searching for truth in the use of line, shape, color, texture, and pattern. Each found a portion of that truth—some more than others.

   As you study their ideas and look at their works, contradictions are evident even among the masters in painting. Michelangelo and Leonardo de Vinci were often at odds. Perhaps this competitive spirit contributed to their individual greatness.

   Ingres disagreed with Delacroix, arguing that line was more important than color. Rembrandt, Picasso, and Itten had opposing views on how to use color. Exactly how to use a line was as different for Ingres, Botticelli, and Credi, as was the use of texture for Chanel and St. Laurent.

   Each artist had ideas and methods that rang true for what they were doing at the time. But given a different set of circumstances, a different goal, a different time, what didn’t work for one, worked for another. What one didn’t know how to do, another learned, and progress was made.

   Who, thirty years ago, would have thought denim and lace would work together in the same outfit? Fashion experts said it wouldn’t work. Along came Ralph Lauren and today we see lace trim and accessories paired with denim clothes of all sorts. Some combinations are better than others, to be sure. But some are wonderful, and we’ve learned that lace can be worn with denim—it’s possible.

   And so, with centuries of learning and examples to guide us, and having seen that virtually all things are possible, what a shame in this modern day to believe there is some limited way to use or combine a line, a shape, a color, a texture, or pattern—be it in a painting, a room, or in fashion.

   I love the idea that you can wear virtually any line, shape, color, texture, or pattern that you want to wear. Keep in mind that it’s not only what you wear, but how you wear it. Lines, shapes, colors, textures, and patterns in combination make the difference! It’s all in the wearing!

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