Tom Ford Admits The Unthinkable

Tom Ford may be used to shocking us with his boundary-pushing advertising campaigns and tendancy to speak his mind on any given topic, but his latest candid comments reveal something we never thought we would hear from the designer. One of fashion's most famous perfectionists (a condition so severe that Ford once described it as "almost a mental illness"), Ford previously revealed that he took up to five baths a day and groomed his appearance to perfection but, it seems that fatherhood - to two-and-a-half-year-old son Jack - has replaced his past focus on the superficial.

"When I got up this morning I was going to trim my beard because I knew I was having this interview and I needed to look good. It's going quite grey, which I sometimes camouflage with Just For Men beard dye - do not put that in the article! - and I just didn't even have the energy," he told The Evening Standard. But surely his sense of style hasn't also been impacted? "This old dirty suit! I literally just pick up the suit from the night before and put it on. Sometimes I have another uniform - jeans, a jean shirt and a different jacket - and it's one or the other of those outfits. I used to make more of an effort in the mornings but I don't any more."

And it's not just his approach to his personal appearance that has seen a shift. As well as stopping drinking, and not having been to the gym in over two years, Ford has also adopted a more laidback approach to his surroundings.

"Our house is covered in plastic toys," he laughed. "I cannot believe it! I mean, I used to just live for decorating. Our houses were flawless. I think for some gay men, their houses become their children. It was that case for me, but I just don't care as much anymore. I have moments where I think, 'Oh shit!' It's not exactly a pigsty, but it's not as immaculate," and the same is true of his work space. "I would never normally have papers on my desk if I knew a journalist was coming. There would be more flowers. Somebody would have spritzed perfume around. But I just don't care."