She was a senior fashion editor for Vogue magazine. She worked for Ralph Lauren as a design director for two years before she started her own design studio.
She is a Chinese American grown up in an affluent family. Her father started and owned a chemical company. Her fraternal grandfather was a military general in China. Her maternal grandfather was a warlord in China. She was well trained in ice-skating. When she failed to make the US Olympic team, she turned to her other passion, fashion.