Ahead of the release of his upcoming second memoir, Tom Ford is doing the press rounds, revealing snippets of what’s inside his new 416-page book that promises to “take readers through the illustrious trajectory of his billion-dollar luxury empire.”
One such snippet is an inside look at the designer’s day on a plate, which, unlike the models and actresses who generally dish out diet advice, includes donuts. A lot of donuts. Three donuts per day, in fact.
You might, at first read, think we’re exaggerating—or worse, that he is. But Ford swears by his donuts. So much so he dubs his lifestyle the “donut diet plan”. Ford says friends will often ask him how he’s stayed the same weight since he was in his late 20s and that he’s “convinced” of the answer: “it’s the donut diet plan.”
Ford says this obsession with donuts began when he was a child. Early on Sunday mornings, he would go with his father in the car “while the sun was coming up, to a little shop that only sold warm homemade donuts from 6 a.m. until 10 a.m.” Ford says they would buy a dozen and drive home to his mother and sister, eating at least three on the way back.
Since then, donuts have become not only a reminder of Ford’s childhood, but a medicine and therapy all rolled into one sugar-coated ball. “They are happy”, he writes in an essay for InStyle. “It is hard to imagine that anything in the world is not right when I have a doughnut in my hand. They relieve stress, stop headaches, provide energy, and are, as far as I’m concerned, the best antidepressant on the market.”
As for what donuts Ford goes for, he says that he’s a “basic donut guy.”
Instead of extravagant toppings and intense inner layers, Ford prefers simple donuts. Donuts “that are not too tortured with breakfast cereal sprinkled on them or, God forbid, bacon.”
“Who even thought of that?” He writes of bacon. “It goes against the sacred laws of the donut!”
Ford also notes that despite having been vegan for several years now, he allows himself “a bit of slack when it comes to donuts” because “Vegan ones simply don’t cut it.”
As for brands, the former creative director of Gucci says he can’t go past Hostess Donettes, due to the compact size allowing for him to be able to “carry a six-pack of Donettes” in his designer pockets. “One never knows when a donut emergency might occur,” he concedes. Hear, hear.