Karma (October 2003)
Blonde Ambition
No Doubt is on hiatus, but Gwen’s still busy. Her clothing line is gearing to launch this fall and she’s getting ready to work with DiCaprio and Scorsese. Is it still a Simple Kind of Life?
As a musician, Stefani has welcomed the evolution of the band’s sound while holding true to her roots. She’s a chameleon in the best possible sense. Her openness to collaborate has also been a part of her continued success. The L.A.M.B line of apparel is all part of the agenda.
There’s no doubt marriage has changed Gwen Stefani. Since saying ‘I do’ to Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale three times last September, she has put her music career on hold to concentrate on creating and marketing her unique fashion designs.
Fans of No Doubt may be in mourning as the Californian plans for life away from the group, but the fashion conscious should start celebrating as the style queen attempts to be the new Stella McCartney.
Stefani has a range of ideas she’s hoping to turn into must-haves-from handbags to wallets. Not bad for a girl whose strict Catholic parents made sure their daughter didn’t step out in anything even remotely risqué or eye-catching.
“My parents were very strict,” she said. “I had to wear white underwear until I finished high school.”
Nowadays, Stefani, 33, is all about color and setting fashion trends that thrill. After friends told her to make more of her crazy clothes and accessories, she started the L.A.M.B clothing line of sportwear with designer friend Andrea Lieberman.
“I’m so excited to be able to give my friends a pair of pants from my line and say, ‘They’re mine. I made them,’” she said. “I’ve designed tons of things for myself, but to do something for other people – that’s cool. I never thought I’d have an impact on anyone.”
The L.A.M.B name, which will be featured in bold old-English letters on her designs, is a tribute to her beloved late Lhasa Apso. The name is also inspired by her favorite words: lamb, love, angel, music and baby.
She admits working with Lieberman has really helped turn her crazy outlandish ideas into solid designs. Her line will hit stores early next year.
“She has totally streamlined me,” she said. “To me, there’s not such thing as too much.” John Galliano, who designed the wedding gown Gwen wore to ceremonies in London and Los Angeles, is convinced the starlet and her L.A.M.B partner are sure to become a leading light in fashion circles in the coming years.
“Gwen’s an old-fashioned romantic at heart with a love of breaking with convention,” Galliano said. “That’s good for fashion.”
As if to give the world a taste of things to come, Stefani has collaborated with LeSportsac to create a limited edition of handbags, purses, pouches, wallets and CD cases, which will be available online and at department stores from mid-August.
The accessories, with their eye-catching colors and Stefani’s favorite words “tattooed” on them, are sure to be the thing to be caught carrying this autumn. Stefani has even given her new bags a little rock star chic including some with woven guitar strap handles. She admits her daredevil style comes from a range of influences: her grandmother, ska music fashions, the Far East and vintage Hollywood glamour to name just a few.
Mix them all together and you start to see Stefani’s eclectic creations coming together. Her new clothing line does pose one big problem for the pop star – if it really takes off, will she ever be able to get back to the simple kind of life she once sang about?
Life away from the band has been pretty simple so far. She spends her days contemplating musical collaborations with the likes of Eurythmics musician Dave Stewart and Dr. Dre and enjoying married life. She’s even being considered for film roles after losing the chance to appear in “Chicago” to Mya.
Stefani has been linked to several projects, including Leonardo DiCaprio’s new Howard Hughes movie The Aviator. Director Martin Scorsese and co-starring Cate Blanchett and Kate Beckinsale, it’s a chance to impress in her very first film, where she’ll play silver screen diva Jean Harlow.
She insists she’s up for the challenge. “I’ve auditioned for lots of things, but always when the band was about to make a record or go out on tour,” she said. “I think that to do something like acting, which is so difficult, really well, I have to put all my passion into it. I’m ready to focus on it now.”
Stefani’s biological clock seems to be ticking pretty loud these days too – one of the main reason why a break from No Doubt was important to her was her keenness to become a mother.
“We’re taking a little break,” she said. “We’ve never taken a break before even and this is our 16th anniversary and this is a perfect time for the group. We’re starting families now for the first time and we’re enjoying taking a break. For me, I want to be a grandma. I love my 30s so far. I just want to live life right now.”
That’s not to say Stefani and Rossdale are already making plans for a child, but surely the announcement isn’t far away. “Maybe next year, we’ll have some babies,” she said.
Her bandmates couldn’t be happier for their singer. “She wanted to be a mom when we first met. She’ll make a great mom. I think it’s a good time for her to take stock,” said drummer Adrian Young.
Stefani also seems to be very in touch with her own sexuality – highlighted by her revealing outfits and her stint as a dancer with Hollywood burlesque troupe The Pussycat Dolls. Dolls founder Robin Antin is convinced the singer is “a child of the night,” who loves to be noticed – and she’s convinced her clothing line will help other girls achieve stunning results.
“She can stop traffic. She came to see a Pussycat Dolls show at the Viper Room in Los Angeles and she just loved it,” Antin said. “She was like, ‘Oh, my God, this is exactly what I’ve always wanted to do.’ So, we got her in the show one night and she was amazing. So sexy.”
Stefani admits it’s often hard to believe that she’s living the busy life she always dreamed of.
“It’s like a platinum blonde life,” she laughed. “Sometimes I have to remember to keep walking forward, because it all blows my mind.”