Betsey Johnson: I spend thousands on my hair

Betsey Johnson spends $20,000 a year on hair extensions.

The flamboyant designer is the latest name to be interviewed by Fern Mallis as part of her Fashion Icons series in New York City.

Betsey arrived on stage doing a cartwheel, wearing a pair of black leggings and a salmon coloured tutu. The 70-year-old was happy to talk about all aspects of her life, from her hair care routine to her boundless energy.

'It costs 5,000 a pop to look this cheap and trashy,' she said of her tresses, after revealing she drops $20,000 annually at the hairstylists.

'When I was growing up there were no initials. Now I’ve been told that I have the ADD and the XYZ and whatever.'

Betsey added she hates shopping, but will make an exception for anything by Lanvin or Giuseppe Zanotti shoes.

On a more serious note, she opened up about her on-going business problems. Betsey Johnson LLC filed for bankruptcy in April 2012, causing all the label’s 63 shops to shut and its 350 employees to lose their jobs. She is still upset by what happened and doesn't think it was all her fault.

'You know what they do, these equity people? They buy you, you owe the money and the interest on the loan. They give you money that you borrow: they don’t just give you money, you have to pay it back. So between all the consultants and all the wrong people and the upside-down backwards that were hired we had to pay $6 million a year on the stupid $56 million [loan],' she fumed.

The star has taken time to think about her business' decline and has decided to focus on the positive. She has enjoyed her time in fashion and is proud that she is now back with a lower-priced line of dresses available at department stores.

'It was only my fans and people on the street that made me realise what I built for 35 years, and that what I had built was special,' she said. 'I realised that it couldn’t last. It was a long time, 35 years - it outlasted any marriage I’d ever had.'

She also announced she won't be showing at next month's New York Fashion Week.