These are exciting times for London-based Chinese fashion designer Masha Ma. She is planning to shoot a short film in Paris with photographer Bruno Dayan for the coming season, and her MA collection was selected for a show at London Fashion Week. It was subsequently bought by the edgy bStore in London. Recently, her spring-summer 2011 collection was launched in the Isetan Shanghai department store, in a city where she has just started a second studio. In 2009, Ma won the Mouse Ji Best International Innovation Award in the China Contemporary Design Contest. Today her designs are featured in many of the international leading fashion glossies from Vogue to Harper's Bazaar. A graduate of London's Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design and a rising star in the fashion world, Ma says the sheer size of China makes it difficult to sum up a general sense of taste. Instead, she sees information coming in from all sides, distracting people and giving them no time to think or develop ideas. 'The trend in modern China is chaos, with a constant search for balance,' she says. Against this backdrop, Ma, who grew up in Beijing, also notes that people in China follow and understand international trends very well. 'Whatever you find in Paris, London and New York, you can now find in China, especially with all the major brands opening here over the past decade.' She describes Hong Kong as 'a city where you are able to get anything you want in fashion, an extremely trendy city'. Ma says that it was her grandmother, formerly an actress in Shanghai, who shaped her early appreciation of style, elegance and design. One of her most treasured childhood memories was looking through her grandmother's photo albums, her wardrobe was a mix of international brands and Chinese tailor-made dresses. 'The pieces that amazed me most were my grandmother's old, tailor-made traditional Chinese gowns, the qipao,' says Ma. 'The craftsmanship was exquisite, and the fabric was very luxurious. It takes more than 300 steps to finish a traditional qipao, with even the silk buttons being handmade.' It was this early experience, Ma says, that made her aware of quality - and is her guiding principle today. This respect for craftsmanship was honed when she worked in the studio of the late Alexander McQueen. He had learned the art of cutting and draping as a young apprentice on London's Savile Row, famed for its bespoke tailoring. Ma cites McQueen as a major inspiration and someone she deeply respected. It was he who inspired Ma to study for her master's in womenswear at Central Saint Martins. Critical reviews have been good to Ma's young label. 'It's bold, yet intricate, to show the female form,' she says. 'It is modern, chic and brave but not shouting for attention.' She is being noticed by the leading fashion journals, which are predicting a bright future for her distinctive designs. Her London Fashion Week debut - spring-summer 2011 collection, entitled 'Icebreaker' - is based around pristine white with accents of gold, silver and mint green. The skirts and trousers are simple, elegant and glamorous, while jackets and tops are layered, flowing and strikingly draped, displaying superb craftsmanship. Expectations were high for her autumn-winter 2011 collection, and she didn't disappoint. The fabrics are cashmere, satin, silk crepe and organza, in a palette of eggshell blue, soft dove greys, beige, black and an occasional flash of red. This is a highly feminine collection, with figure-hugging lines but little flesh on show. Minimalist styling was fused with touches such as high collars, oversized lapels, zips and nipped-in waists. The clothes are sculpted yet soft, highly wearable and flatter the female shape. Ma has no problem keeping her imagination alive in what is a very demanding, seasonal business. Interestingly, she finds the written word more influential on her imagination than visual images. 'Reading allows you to create whatever you imagine differently from others, even if you are reading the same line or book' she says, unlike the impact of visual images, which can lead to similar results. She reads widely and especially enjoys the works of Oscar Wilde, Franz Kafka and F Scott Fitzgerald, although, she says: 'His novels are always heart-breaking.' At present she is inspired by a novel by Fitzgerald's wife, Zelda, called Save Me the Waltz. 'It's a vivid and moving story centred on the life of a famous glamour girl and aspiring ballerina in the affluent 1920s. It really captures the spirit of the era,' she says. 'I don't get inspired directly by the stories, and the characters are not directly relevant to my themes, but somehow my inspiration comes through my reading.' Ma has been based in London for a few years, but she also spends time in Paris. She is considering a move to the world's fashion capital possibly at the end of this year. 'In my opinion, Paris has a better understanding of quality,' Ma says. 'People enjoy decent fabric and appreciate it more. In Paris, women will dress for the day and sit in cafes under the sun for the whole afternoon. London girls will pop on a Mary Quant miniskirt and go to gigs. 'London has this obsession with young designers unlike any other place in the world. But Paris gives you maturity. I find myself lucky to get there and start so quickly, as everyone wants to be there.' At present Ma says that her products are limited and selective in China as a younger label. 'I don't really let the pressure affect me, as it is always there and always will be,' she says. 'I have learned one thing, which is that it is better to keep yourself focused on solving problems than worrying about them. Things move on and situations change, so you have to find your own balance within.'