Following the footsteps of Gwyneth Paltrow with goop.com and Blake Lively with preserve.us, Reese Witherspoon has launched her own lifestyle and fashion brand – Draper James.
Unlike Gwynie and new mummy Blake, Reese Witherspoon’s new project won’t have such a strong focus on food and recipes. Instead, the Hollywood star, who shot to fame after her portrayal of blonde fashionista Elle Woods in Legally Blonde, is concentrating more on lifestyle, launching her own fashion brand which sells clothing, accessories, homeware and gifts inspired but her Deep South heritage.
A range of times that can be bought on Draper James
In an interview with WWD she said: “What’s wrong with being pretty? That went out the window a long time ago. In the South, there’s a lot of colour, prints, tradition, traditional fabrics like gingham, plaids, stripes. There’s also definitely a feeling that what you wear makes you feel better, especially if you’re wearing colour, prints or joyful things.”
The clothing line is playful yet chic
Taking a hands on approach, the actress, who has two children with her ex-husband Ryan Phillippe and who is now married to talent agent Tim Toth, works heavily on the designs and choosing materials. As she says, she isn’t an actress playing the part of a fashion entrepreneur – “It is a lot of work. It is a lot more working than standing pretending to be a designer in a movie. When things came back and they weren’t good enough, I was like, ‘Not good enough. Not good enough.’ It’s a big deal that my name is on something. It’s not just my name. It’s my grandparents’ name (Dorothea Draper and William James Witherspoon), which is a big, big deal. And you know I feel very emotional about it.”
The rapidly popular tote bags
According to the star, the motivation behind Draper James is to inspire shoppers to travel to Southern American cities. She said: “I hope that it sort of opens people’s eyes to how much the South has changed and to all of the cultural experiences happening there.”
Price-wise Reese has positioned Draper James in the midrange market with slogan totes starting from US$155 and jewellery pieces, which strike a strong resemblance to C Wonder trinkets, starting from US$25 for charms. The clothing range is chic and full of dainty prints while the homeware is our favourite with cute and quirky pieces from embroidered coasters to personalised stationery.
