Born in Taiwan, Wu moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada at age nine and attended Eaglebrook School in Deerfield, Massachusetts and Loomis Chaffee, in Windsor, Connecticut. He learned how to sew by designing and sewing for dolls, and went on to study sculpture in Tokyo. Wu continued this career path at sixteen by learning to create freelance doll clothing designs for toy company Integrity Toys under the lines "Jason Wu dolls" and later "Fashion Royalty". The following year, he was named creative director of Integrity Toys. He decided to become a fashion designer while spending his senior year of high school inRennes before graduating from The Loomis Chaffee School in 2001, and studied at the Parsons The New School for Design at The New School. He later interned with Narciso Rodriguez.

Moments before he catapulted to household-name status, he was ordering a Domino's pizza before sitting down to watch the inaugural ball coverage on TV. When First Lady Michelle Obama wore his one-shouldered white chiffon-and-Swarovski-crystal dress, Wu's knack for timeless formalwear really began to shine. Not just a full-length gown designer, Wu's more recent collections have played with bright colors and feminine accents, including oversized bows and silk headscarves.

Jason Wu
Designer: Jason Wu
Launch: 2006
City: New York City
Famous Fans: Michelle Obama, Diane Kruger, Rachel Weisz
Signature Style: Effortlessly elegant