Love Vivienne Tam's East meets West designs?

Then you're going to love her new collaboration with Monster -- the creator of buzzy headphones like Dr. Dre's Beats and Lady Gaga's Heartbeats.

Forward thinking and indulging in her passion for combining technology and fashion, Tam previewed her new Butterfly in-ear headphones at the Vivienne Tam SoHo, NYC boutique.

The delicate, gold-brushed headphones, with matching wires that mirror her Spring 2010 collection, feature a red butterfly on one earpiece and a blue butterfly on the other.

They'll debut in early April for $200 with limited product distribution and will include a toggle that allows you to control and answer calls on an iPhone.

StyleList got a chance to talk to the tiny, red-clad clothier about her new product and her clothing, as well as what makes her tick.

StyleList: What was your inspiration?
Vivienne Tam: The easy answer is transformation, romance and freedom. I love the violin concerto "Butterfly Lovers" which was written in 1959 by Chinese composers, about ten years after the Communist takeover of China. And though this was the theme of my spring collection, I also used a cultural reference for my fall collection, as well.

The Chinese Zodiac was my direct inspiration, but you can see in the army jackets and use of the color green that I also wanted to talk about the environment -- sort of an "Avatar" story. China is a beautiful place but is being built-up and surrounded by high-rises and pollution. So it's also about going green.

SL: How does your design process work?
VT: I start with a theme, I look at what women care about and I need to know what is going on in the world. I never start anything without knowing what's happening out there, what the message is that I want to get out. And then I stay on those topics.

SL: What are your favorite colors and fabrics?
VT: I love China Red and Champagne Gold. Not too gold, a more muted, soft gold, which is the color of the wires on the headphones. In terms of fabrics, I adore silk, which is so soft on the skin and so luxurious. I also like to use natural fibers -- cotton.

SL: What is your favorite decade for fashion?
VT: I like a lot of different decades, but I especially admire the '20s, Art Deco, Chinese influence, Chinoiserie; anything that has an East/West crossover.

SL: What item can you not live without?
VT: This may be surprising, but I can't live without my HP mini PC, Butterfly headphones and other technology. I need it to create and I use it absolutely every day. I want things that are good quality but as a designer, I also want it to look beautiful.

SL: Which celebrities do you like to dress?
VT: I don't have a favorite because everyone adds her their individual character and their own touch to my designs. But recently we did dress Taylor Swift.

And don't miss our exclusive interview with designer Roland Mouret.