Thom Browne takes inspiration from closing his eyes.

The American fashion designer - who debuted his womenswear collection in 2003 - has revealed he's adopted an unusual approach to designing his clothes.

Explaining his creative process, Thom shared: ''I close my eyes and imagine.

''I try to remember and forget as much as I can. It makes it so much easier to create something new when you are not staring at things. Not knowing a lot makes it so much easier.''

Thom initially wanted to pursue a career as an actor but his life changed when he was introduced to menswear tailor Rocco Ciccarelli, who helped Thom to bring his fashion ambitions to reality.

He told the South China Morning Post newspaper: ''My biggest education was with Rocco. I was buying fabrics from this guy and I asked him if he knew a tailor and he recommended Rocco.

''So I walked into his place out of the blue, and he looked at me like he did every New York designer, and probably thought, 'here we go again'. But I think it was my conviction that eventually won him over.''