Blake Lively is currently the cover girl for the American edition of Marie Claire – I covered that interview last week, that was where she was talking about her baby’s “meaty eyelids.” Well, Blake covers the August issue of Marie Claire UK and it feels vaguely like this is just a reprint of the American editorial, but… maybe not? What can I tell you? The photos are different, the quotes are different and Marie Claire UK says they spoke to Blake. Maybe the problem is that Blake looks the same in every editorial and she sounds the same in every interview? You always get a sense of déjà vu, only you’re too bored to even notice. Some highlights from this new interview:
Baby James won’t be trotted out for photo-ops: “My husband and I chose a profession and a side effect of that is your personal life is public. Our child hasn’t had the opportunity to choose whether or not she wants her personal life to be public or not. So in order to give her as much normality as possible, we want her to have a childhood like we had. So we can’t really throw her into the lion’s den that is LA, not that we really want to.’
She hasn’t been transformed by motherhood: “When women become mothers, it’s all: ‘How’s your style?’, ‘Do you dress differently?’, ‘Do you go to Mommy & Me classes?’ I wanted to go to a Mommy & Me class before I was a mom. People really expect that you’re suddenly a different woman, and I think it strips a woman’s identity in a way that is kind of strange, because I’ve always been innately maternal my whole life.”
Her work-life balance: “I’m always ambitious about film-making. But I love my personal life so much—and my family so much—that it takes a lot to make me want to leave the house. Most of the things I do, I fight for. But to want to fight for something? I have to be really stimulated by it.”
While I eye-rolled a lot at “I wanted to go to a Mommy & Me class before I was a mom,” there are absolutely women like that in the world. And there’s nothing wrong with that – some women know from a young age that they want to have children, that motherhood is their goal and they want to be young mothers and all of that. Some women ARE maternal without ever giving birth too. But the way Blake describes herself… she exhausts me. At the start of that quote, I thought she was standing up for women who still want to retain their identity separate from motherhood, but nope! Blake wants you to know that motherhood was always her identity, even before she was a mother. While she may be completely authentic about all of this, doesn’t she often come across as pandering to the mommy-mafia types?
Photos courtesy of Marie Claire UK.
Eh, she seems sincerely into the whole domestic goddess/mommy thing. And I, too, knew in my bones from a very young age that I wanted children (but didn’t care how that came to be).
I think it’s sweet and if that is truly her desire in life, I wish her the very best. I have always known I did not want to be a mom but I adore other people’s children. I loved my time as a teacher because I got to have a whole room full of children but they also went home to their parents!
It’s lovely to see people so in love with being parents. I always felt like my parents’ generation hated being parents; that’s probably not true but it’s neat to see my generation be so excited about their kids.
Kate, my father often says something similar. He feels there was a lot of pressure in his generation to get married and have children and many of his peers weren’t that happy as parents. He looks at my friends and me and says it is easier to choose to have children or not and that a greater percentage of parents wanted to be parents. We discuss that may be another reason we seem so focused on our children.
Kate, I love reading this. I work in a Early Learning Center and am enamored with the the kids that come in but don’t want any of my own. So glad I am not the only one!
Yeah she like a few others have been very open about wanting to be young mothers.
Nowt wrong with that at all.
LOL, I remember The Spice Girls and All Saints getting pregnant and talking about being mothers at the height of their fame – – the *horror* from some quarters!
Because she comes from a fairly large family by Western standards, I can believe this has always been her ambition (along with having a career of some kind).
I’ve been a mom for almost 17 years and a “Mommy and Me” class still isn’t on my to-do list. Although I did take my kids to a little music class when they were babies, I guess that counts? I just thought they’d like the music and have fun shaking the little maracas.
Aw, cute!
The personification of a bowl of oatmeal.
She is physically genetically blessed. That doesn’t make her worth listening to.
although that nose job really helped
And the boob job
Sad reflection on our society as a whole, but without the nose job, we wouldn’t know who she is. I didn’t dislike her until she started this campaign on how to be the perfect …………….. fill in the blank. Her public adoration of a man like Woody Allen turned me off to her completely. Trying to remember why I liked Gossip Girl…..but now the title makes sense, the girl likes to spill the tea. xoxo
I came here to say what sb and Jules already said. 😎
I have only ever felt slightly annoyed by Goop so never really understood the extreme irritation with her, but now I empathize. This one is really getting to me. It’s the Woody comments followed by the rest of it. She just chooses to be stupid. Not IQ stupid, the stupid where you make a decision not to learn about the world around you. Watching the news, reading, paying attention. She is a vacuous, spoiled, foolish woman. I bet she knows enough to not let Woody babysit though…….
Agreed. She is boring. She was born 40.
I’m in my late 20s and my friends just started having babies. One of them recently said that motherhood is her identity and that the fact that’s she’s a also a wife daughter and a nurse are so much lower on the totem pole. She’s still the same awesome woman from before she has kids .. But yeah her role as a mom is #1 now. So I can see how that can be your be how you identify without losing your sense of self as well.
Yeah. This is common place, so I don’t see anything controversial here. *shrug*
It’s tough to not let “motherhood” overshadow everything else. I’ve tried to resist that and I’ve seen others struggle with it. My MIL really went off the deep end once her kids were grown because she felt like she had no purpose left in life. In my case, I really pushed my mom away emotionally because I felt utterly smothered for much of my childhood. I felt like every thing I did was scrutinized so intensely by her and I felt guilty whenever I thought I might be disappointing her. So unhealthy.
I think kids are much better off when “mom” isn’t the only hat their mother wants to wear.
@Esmom I stayed home with my kids until they went to elementary school and I will never regret that, however I am so glad I went back to work. I LOVE being a mom but I didn’t want it to be my only identity. I think I have found a nice balance for my kids and for me.
@Esmom
You speak ALL the truths and I am pretty sure we had the same mother.
The bf had the opposite childhood where he was left to fend for himself. We’re talking about kids but I’m worried he is going to push me into being SuperMom, whereas I know how that kind of intense focus can affect kids…
I had a mom like that too. It was just too much pressure, and I can’t imagine putting that kind of responsibility on my own kids. Yes, they are a huge part of my life, though it’s easier to regain more of your own identity as the littles leave the high maintenance baby stage. As we try to give folks the reminder: you have to take care of yourself if you want to do a good job of taking care of others.
“I’m always ambitious about film-making…I have to be really stimulated by it.”
…k.
Yeah, that’s hysterical. Cliche alert! She also read the Hollywood mom’s PR handbook when she said she really has to love the project to be away from her family.
It’s the same interview just with selected ‘exclusive’ quotes.
As a Londoner, I’ve seen Marie Claire UK and US do the same cover star with different pictures. The covers are front and centre in WH Smith. Depending on the celeb having an across the Atlantic following.
Can’t wait to catch The Shallows at the O2.
Hey fellow Londoner here,
Barnet bred, Half London/Half Lagos.
Gagging to see The Shallows as well.
I’ve always enjoyed Lively ever since her gorgeous turn in Elvis & Anabelle – co-starring with the equally gorgeous Anthony Minghella – and I always have a soft spot for that.
As well as SOTTP.
Happy for her it’s doing well.
Only it takes a bit for me to get off my ar$e and go to the cinema but some movies ARE better on the largest screens.
The last films I enjoyed were Civil War (though them saying Laa-gos rather then Lay-gos was annoying); then Love & Friendship with K Beckinsale.
Shallows is not out here till August, but the 2 UK publications that have reviewed it here, Time Out & Guardian, have been raves.
Some of my US friends tell me it’s the business.
Now I’m gonna need my lovely stateside celebitchy gals to give me an up or a down.
So ‘Kitten’, ‘Sam’, ‘Erin’, ‘Mimz’, ‘I Choose Me’ – any of you 5 kind enough with a heads up?
Haven’t seen it.
With the exception of a kitten in a do-rag (“Keanu” was FANTASTIC btw) there’s almost nothing that would get me into a theater these days.
Hey Jegede, you didn’t mention me but I can tel you that saw it in LA.
And it’s actually dope. Not as good as Open Water, or The Reef, but close enough. Blake and the seagull were gorgeous.
Oh heeeey! I’ve been MIA here but so nice to stumble upon your comment 🙂
I don’t know many of her movies but I thoroughly enjoyed Adaline, and I think she’s a decent actress, and better than most people assume because of GG.
In any case.., I’m worse than you, I have a real issue watching movies at all, I’m a series person. I can watch 10 episodes on a row but I can’t seem to watch even one movie… I take a weekend to do so probably once or twice a year, so, I’m the wrong person to give you advice on that!!! xxx
The reviews are rather good. I was struck by her in The Private Lives of Pippa Lee. I thought she had a bright future as an actress. Very expressive face. Not bland or boring at all.
“But I love my personal life so much—and my family so much—that it takes a lot to make me want to leave the house”
Im sure its her family that means so much to her. she probably turns down Oscar winning and BO record smashing roles left and right! good for her for setting priorities!
Ha ha..yeah.. I was gonna pick on her for that but she kind of saved it for me with this: “Most of the things I do, I fight for”.
To me that implied that she isn’t getting offered a ton of roles and that she has to fight for the ones she wants.
Or maybe I’m just feeling generous because it’s a long holiday weekend…
It’s true I was not so interested in her on a magazine cover when I visited my nail salon i realized she doesn’t really sell a magazine. It’s like blah……I will look it this or her section only if I have to wait here for a real long awhile and I’m truly BORED!
I don’t know why I like her so much while at the same time think she’s the most exhausting actress out there. Most of the things she says are perfectly acceptable (let’s leave WA out of that statement because … yeah) IF another woman said them. But coming from her, all this baking and procreating just looks and sounds like she was born in the wrong decade. Century, really. I like to bake. But I don’t act like I re-invented the concept of the cupcake.
I think what bothers me most is her continued success because while she hustles, I’m not sure what the foundation of that success is except that she’s blonde, leggy, and likes to talk about glittery things like fashion and baked goods. And her perfect husband. And LOVE for everything baby. If that is, in this day and age, enough to be successful, I really have no idea how I would ever explain this to a young girl. “You need an education.” Sounds wrong when I look at her.
You and I feel the same way about her. This interview was eyeroll-inducing on a few levels.
But at the same time, this is who she is: someone who I absolutely cannot relate to on any level, someone who I have zero in common with. Yet there’s something really consistent about her personality that seems genuine to me. She’s genuinely a 1950s housewife, basically. I’m kidding (sort of) but let’s just say that Blake’s thing is not my thing. Not even a little bit.
I hate myself on a profound level for what I’m about to write but sometimes I look at her and go “Damn, I wish I could live her life. She just sails through without a care in the world.” And then I remember her lack of intellect (not that I’m a MENSA member or anything) and her cookie cutter interests and wonder if it’s worth it. She looks like she has the easiest live ever but is that a good thing?
Hi Kitt,
Always respect your views but I disagree with you here.
I think Lively’s always been consistent in her love of family (same with Megan Fox).
And I got a question for you on up please.
Enjoy your 4th of July!
I’ve said it before: I have friends EXACTLY like her. They’re nice people, not my closest friends though because there’s not a lot of intellectual meat there. And I’m not even sure that matters, aside from the fact that I get easily bored by them. That probably makes me sound like an awful person ugh.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that I can only discuss superficial sh*t for so long before my mind starts to wander.
But HELL YES I absolutely admire those people because they have life figured out in a way that I don’t. Someone who’s had their life trajectory planned since they were 7-years-old already has all the answers. I would imagine that would be really comforting. They get to experience a security and peacefulness that I’ve never had the pleasure of enjoying. So yeah, on some level I am envious of the Blake Livelys of this world. At the same time, I accept that I’m just not wired that way.
@Jegede-??? I don’t understand. This was my comment: “Yet there’s something really consistent about her personality that seems genuine to me.”
See, I don’t have friends like that. I have, however, quite a few people in my life who thought they knew what they wanted, got it, and are now supremely unhappy and don’t understand why. I have nothing figured out (I’ve never had a plan or anything) and just live my life waiting for what’s next or what I want to try next. It’s worked so far. But no, that comforting feeling of “This is it, that’s how it’s going to be.” is not something I know. It would be nice. Not going to lie, that kind of money wouldn’t be terrible either. But like you said, talking about the perfect buttercream recipe all day is not for me.
@littlemissnaughty: I’ve always thought that people who were a little less intellectually-minded were happier in life.
This is probably why I am so happy. 😂
Tadpole eyebrows.
Yeah, that’s all I got.
I always adored being around children from my early 20s on and was very nurturing. The little girls next door were always coming over to the apartment my sister and I had, and I always had my five-year-old niece over babysitting. I still didn’t have the desire to have the complete responsibility of my own child in my 20s, though.
My sister, on the other hand, wasn’t as nurturing as I was, yet she was the one from very young in her mid twenties that was longing for a child. She said it was just inate in her. And she had been a fun-loving party girl in her early 20s and was going strong in her profession as she hit her mid twenties. But that longing became stronger and stronger and I believe her first marriage, which didn’t last, was partly because of that, the desire to settle down and create a home and have a child. She had her first child, and she was the happiest I had ever seen her. She was a tremendous mother. I was younger in my early 20s and couldn’t imagine having a baby in my 20s. But she was a natural, and she knew she wanted more and she did down the road in her 30s..
I always wanted to be a mother and assumed I would be, but I never wanted that to be my only identity. Good thing, since it didn’t work out for me. But what struck me was her attitude that it didn’t change her at all. In my experience with my friends and family, parenthood changes you in some ways. Maybe it deepens you because you have to access new strengths in yourself or humbles you because it looks easier than it is or something. I think life can do both of those things and more without having children, in fact my struggle with infertility did both of those things, but she just insists that she remained untouched. She seems a very superficial sort of person.
Superficial, yes. And/or maybe someone who has been fortunate enough not to have faced any real trials or hardships.
Good point.
One can have a maternal instinct without having children. You, GNAT, seem to be such a nurturing, kind person. Not having a child doesn’t change that fact. I’m positive you have had a mothering effect on those who have been In your life. You reach out to people just on this site to give them support and comfort. I think you’d be a great guidance counselor or psychologist. People love to hate sometimes, so I just wanted to give some credit to this site’s voice of reason.
I don’t know about maternal instinct.
I think some women confuse a strong desire to have children, for whatever reason, be it legitimate or shallow, with maternal instinct.
Also, I am almost 31 and still have no desire to have a child, although I am very protective and maternal towards my nephew (I would say, a lot more than his mother).
I think if you are a decent human being, you just want people around you, including the little ones, to be happy and taken care of.
That does’t necessarily mean you were BORN to be a mother or have stronger instinct than anyone else.
That’s a good point. I know women who wanted and had children whom I would never describe as maternal. And I certainly have maternal feelings towards many younger people, most especially my nieces and nephews.
Blake, stop talking. Thanks!
Yes, this. Why are we seeing an article on her every day now?
SECOND nose job.
YES. Gotta admit, this is the good one.
No. I think that the cover might be airbrushed, while she shows her old nose in the second photo. Why are people scandalized that she had rhinoplasty and keep bringing this thing up? She is an actress, for heaven’s sake. Do you think that others were born the way you see them now?
I always wanted to be a Mommy, from a very young age. When my dream finally came true, I was head over heels for my son. But, being a stay at home Mom, for me, wasn’t the wonderous experience I thought it would be. Most of my friends were still working full time jobs, my husband went to work everyday. It was just baby and me. And I felt so guilty, that sometimes, I just wanted to go out and talk to adults, and that my baby wasn’t “enough” for me. I beat myself up about that pretty bad for years…You can be maternal, and want children, but they shouldn’t be your whole life….at least, that was how I felt….
Such a good point. I feel so bad for new stay at home mothers sometimes. Of course you miss certain things, but nobody talks about it. They are all “over the moon” and you must feel odd that yes, you fiercely adore your child but sometimes you’re bored or lonely. I think you said a key thing about life – nothing should be your whole life. You need balance and time for yourself.
Oh Mrs. Pitt, no reason for guilt. It’s not easy living daily in a child’s company alone. I worked along side my husband for years, then had the family…….and was fortunate enough to work at home. I have the best of both worlds, having kids, yet still going to the office or courthouse when needed. In some respects being a stay at home mom is a thankless job, but just try to imagine your life without them…..the other day I finished working on estate planning documents, came home and did a buzz quiz: can you name all the characters in Toy Story? I scored 100!
“Mommy and Me before I was a Mom, Lamaze classes before I was pregnant, sex education before I realized guys have a doodle and girls have a woo-hoo, and a baby shower instead of a birthday when I was 5.”
Also it cracked me up seeing all the quotes about her being the same inspite of different photos. The Internet can be a very strange place at times. I was on a photo website yesterday where someone decided their entire album would be ‘just porridge’. Yup. Same bowl. Different porridge. Every. Single. Photo. The fact that somehow Blake has made a career out of being ‘Just Porridge’ can only make me laugh. Different magazines. Different dresses. Just Blake. You’ve read one interview, you’ve read every interview. Just Blake.
Good for her that she’s found fulfillment in motherhood but I have literally no idea what she’s trying to say here.
Nice pictures.
I prefer this Marie Claire cover, to her American MC cover.
I just really, really want her to stop talking. Her interviews…it’s like having a fly buzzing near your head.
Love her dress.
I didn’t get the mommy bug until I was 26. I guess that’s still young but I am always in awe to hear that there are women who have always known they wanted to be moms. I didn’t actually have a kid until I was in my 30s and I can’t imagine having any before that, at least for me, I wouldn’t have survived – barely getting by now!