The Herald Sun (June 6th 2009)

What I Can’t Live Without: Gwen Stefani

FAMILY 

I have a dream about spending time in my house with my kids. Being a mum was all I ever dreamed about. Now that it's come true, it makes me feel like my life has come together. Nothing else matters. 

TRANQUILLITY 

I don't fight with people. Like, I can barely fight with my husband because I'll just start crying instead. 

EXPRESSING HERSELF 

That's always been most important to me. I'm lucky not to have a real job and to be able to be creative and relevant. My songs are basically my diaries. Some of my best songwriting has come out of a time when I've been going through a personal nightmare. 

RED LIPSTICK 

It's my signature. I have way too many tubes of red lipstick to count. 

L.A.M.B. 

It's my style - the clothing and the accessories. And now it's my essence. That's why I just did L fragrance. For me, L stands for love. I want to give every L wearer the opportunity to be unique. Fragrance is like a ghost. Anyone can wear it and own it. It's not like a handbag you can see and 100 other people might have. 

A HOUSEKEEPER 

That's the best reward for my financial success. A second two hands. 

HER NO DOUBT ROCK GROUP MATES 

They are my best friends, so when I told them I wanted to try something solo, they responded in the way best friends do. It was a matter of timing. We've all been growing up and our priorities have changed. Then I went and got married and had kids and my priorities certainly changed. 

MARILYN MONROE 

She was always my style mentor. I've always loved old movies and when I realised who Marilyn was, I just related to her. I always wanted to change my brown hair to blonde, but I could never afford it. Then, when I could, it hasn't been its natural colour since. 

PIZZA AND SPAGHETTI 

They're my favourite foods.