STEFANI: THE ROCKER MOM

Leaving few excuses for moms everywhere, Gwen Stefani – in an always-unique mix of pattern and proportion –brings her avant-garde style to the carpool lane as she shepherds equally stylish sons Kingston and Zuma around L.A.

People

The ‘No Doubt’ singer who has two children – Kingston, four, and 20-month-old Zuma – with husband Gavin Rossdale, splits her time between the England capital and Los Angeles and enjoys the lifestyle she has in Britain because it’s more laid back, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

‘I miss my family when I’m in England. And when I’m in Los Angeles, I miss the role I have when I’m in London. Usually I’m not working in London, so Gavin spoils me and I get to be really dependent,’ she said.

‘I don’t drive when I’m there and I like that. It’s a different lifestyle to be able to walk to the little village and get milk. I take Kingston to the gym with me, with no nanny or assistant and that would be very rare in Los Angeles – that I could actually go somewhere on my own. Things can get out of hand with the paparazzi, so I don’t feel safe,’ she added.

From Sify News

Gwen Stefani has revealed that she can’t cook and when she does, her culinary skills stop at putting toast in a toaster!

Instead her husband and fellow musician, Gavin Rossdale is a whizz in the kitchen with Gwen telling InStyle magazine:

“I don’t cook. I can toast in the toaster. I can pour and set the table. No, Gavin is the one. It’s not even an option he is so passionate about it.

“He cooks every day. He loves to go grocery shopping and find different things. I’m really lucky. It’s actually lucky and hard at the same time, because sometimes you want to be fit and not eat it, but you have to eat it.”

From Entertainment Wise

The Sweet Escape singer, who launched her fashion line L.A.M.B in 2004, admitted that her fascination with beauty products is still the same, reported Contactmusic.

“I’ve always loved beauty. I was the girl who was like, ‘Ask your mom if we can play with clothes or makeup,’ And you know what? I’m doing the same thing now that I was doing when I was 10,” said Stefani.

The 40-year-old mother-of-two admitted she used to be more of a toyboy but even then she was fascinated with trying new brands of make-up.

“I know I’m vain. I have so much make-up – I’m not kidding. I’m the girl who would wear baggy jeans but didn’t forget to put on tons of makeup,” she said.

From NDTV

The singer’s collections for L.A.M.B. have been a critical and commercial success, and she loves coming up with ideas for new lines. Gwen is married to musician Gavin Rossdale, who she has two kids with. She loves his rock’n’roll sense of style, and says his look often makes it into her collections.

“We just do our own thing, and it always seems to work. He has such great style,” she told The July issue of British magazine InStyle. “I get ideas from a lot of his clothes for the women’s clothing line because I like that kind of mixture. I use a lot of stuff in his closet. I’ll be like, ‘Ooh, we should do a girl version of this!’”

Gavin also impacts another area of Gwen’s life. She is renowned for her polished appearance and dedication to make-up, and has revealed she always wears red lipstick because that is what Gavin likes.

“I wear it all the time. I wear pink, I wear gloss, I wear everything, but my husband prefers when I wear red. I want him to like me still!” she explained. “I remember the first time I wore dark red lipstick. I was maybe 18, and I can remember the moment I put it on — in my Honda Prelude that I bought for like, $3,000 — and looking in the mirror going, ‘Good, I like that.’ Never again did I stop wearing it.”

From Indy Posted

Although the group has redoubled their studio work in recent months, their new 2010 album has actually been in the works for a few years now. In 2006, the group told MTV that they were already starting on work on the album, even without lead singer Gwen Stefani, who was expecting a child at the time. Once Stefani returned, they were originally hoping to release an album in 2008, but eventually were forced to delay production once again as they decided to focus more on their 2009 comeback tour.

Now, however, it appears that the stars have aligned, and that everyone in the group is once again on the same page. There’s still no release date for the still-untitled album, nor has No Doubt released an official tracklist. In 2008, though, drummer Adrian Young spoke with MTV about the early sounds that were coming out of the studio thus far. “It seems like we’ve always come from an eclectic background musically,” he said. “But we seem to always gravitate towards reggae. I can’t say that’s what our record is going to be like, ’cause it’s too early to tell, but what makes us feel really good is reggae music. I can play reggae music to my grave.”

Fully aware that their devoted fans will seize any bit of information they can find, the group has also taken to Twitter, where they’ve been regularly updating the world on the record’s progress, as well as giving insight into the atmosphere of their studio. “Tony and Gwen are rocking the synth. Our little studio is warm and candlelit, above the glowing city. Tom,” is what guitarist Tom Dumont tweeted in January. Fans can thus take solace in the fact that not only is No Doubt definitely back in the studio and working diligently toward a new 2010 album, but that we’ll all be able to follow their every move along the way.

From AOL

Speaking on No Doubt’s current status, Stefani noted that while her bandmates had worked on some material while she was on her solo tours, now “things are kind of starting over, you know what I mean? We might revisit some of that stuff, but it’s the same old chase. It doesn’t matter how we get there — we want to get there, we will, and we’re having fun doing it.”

Stefani also said that the band has been inspired lately by the music of the ’80s. Stefani said, “The last few weeks, we’ve been listening to the worst of the ’80s, in the sense of bad but good. Pop songs, one-hit wonders, nifty songs, things like that. You just go back and find things that you love, and try to figure out how they made them. We just listen to good songs, and then writing our own stuff, we try to pull it out wherever we can.”

When asked, “What was the last thing I was listening to?,” she replied, “Lionel Richie. I love him.”

From FMQB

The No Doubt star says she’s no catwalk queen.

“I do get nervous right before the girls go out, and I don’t like going out there myself,” she said.

“The catwalk is just a different place to the stage. I find it so much more scary. Everyone is there and can be critical about your work. I’m proud of my work but it’s a daunting place to be.”

Stefani recently admitted the success of her fashion line has taken her by surprise.

“I’m still so blown away that we’ve got this far,” she said in September last year.

“When I first started, I really didn’t know what I was doing at all.

“I mean, I’ve made clothes my whole life, but I was just naïve about the fashion world. “But I think it’s [successful] because I’ve been really involved, you know?

“Picking the samples, inspirations, color palette. I have a great team of people helping me.”

From Showbiz Spy

Gwen – back with the band she found fame with prior to a massively successful solo career – has become mum to two kids, Kingston, three, and Zuma, one, with Scots husband Gavin Rossdale since taking time out.

And, having arrived in Singapore with Zuma for the band’s F1 Rocks concert tonight, Gwen admitted parenthood played a large part in it taking her so long to get the band back together.

“I had two babies,” she explained. “There’s nothing you can do to rush that. It just takes as long as it is going to take.

“During that time off I did my own records and toured a little bit but we got No Doubt back together as fast as we could.

“When I got pregnant with Zuma, we started writing again and went into the studio for six months.

“We tried to write a record and it wasn’t really coming out, so, after I had the baby, I suggested going out on tour.”

Founded in 1986, No Doubt became known for hits such as Don’t Speak and Just A Girl before Gwen went solo in 2004.

Her own albums, Love. Angel. Music. Baby. and The Sweet Escape, delivered up mammoth hits such as What You Waiting For?, Hollaback Girl and Wind It Up.

This time around the No Doubt dressing room is dramatically different since three of the band members have children – the exception being bassist Tony Kanal. So they certainly aren’t the hellraisers they used to be.

Guitarist Tom Dumont said: “It is a little mellower, it’s a different kind of wild. It’s three-year-olds running around and screaming and fighting.

“Our kids are an extension of us.

“It’s weird to see them playing together as friends. It’s fun actually.

“Like Gwen I have two boys – a one-year-old and a three-year-old.”

Tony added: “We just finished a tour of the States. Normally we have a backstage room for after-show parties. Now that’s a room for the kids to hang out with the nannies.”

I caught up with No Doubt in the Presidential Suite of the Swisshotel in the centre of Singapore, where Sunday’s Formula One race is the centre of attention.

Everywhere you look F1 Rocks, which is sponsored by LG, is in action. The F1 Rocks team have pitted racing drivers such as Jensen Button, Lewis Hamilton and Australian driver MarkWebber, against rock, pop and film stars to add some spice to the run-up to the Grand Prix.

Mark spent Wednesday afternoon learning how to kickbox with Ninja Assassin actor Rain, who has become Hollywood’s hottest martial arts star since Jackie Chan.

Jack Osbourne is here too and has been seen whizzing around in an F1 car as part of a challenge set down by Button. And free runners have been scaling Singapore landmarks, dressed in F1 race gear.

Singapore has also been invaded by rock and pop stars for three F1 Rocks shows that lead up to the race. Last night, the big names of Asian pop music played in Singapore’s Fort Canning Park to 10,000 people.

Tonight, it’s No Doubt’s turn to play, sharing the billing with Simple Minds and ZZ Top before Beyonce and Black Eyed Peas share the stage tomorrow. Scot Paul Morrison, who dreamed up F1 Rocks and founded T in the Park 16 years ago, has sold the TV rights to F1 Rocks to 147 countries, with Channel 4 broadcasting the shows at midnight on Sunday.

Paul, who has been working round the clock for the first of what is planned as a series of shows at Formula One destinations, said: “I thought we would get 40 countries, but it is going out to more places than the MTV awards and The Grammys.

“The TV deals are on a par with the World Cup and Olympics. I can’t believe it is this massive.”

Meanwhile Gwen, 39, admits the long flight back to the States with a teething baby could prove gruelling.

She said: “It was a 17-hour plane ride here. Zuma was amazing on the way over, but I think the flight back is going to be torture.

“Kingston has started school so I couldn’t bring him, but he is having special daddy time. It works out well to have just Zuma with me because now it is one-on-one for him, which is really special.

“He has really blossomed in the last few days. It has been perfect. I knew I couldn’t be without him.”

She added: “He loves music and I sing to him, lullabies and that kind of thing. The band’s kids would watch our shows on the US tour every night and they enjoyed it.”

Asked what tips she can give to working mothers, Gwen said: “I’m not good at advice or tips but somehow it just works out. Some days I am spread so thin that I think, how am I going to do all this? But it works out somehow.”

Meanwhile, Gwen revealed that becoming a parent has helped her to enjoy being on the road even more, because it gives her the perfect excuse to become a tourist.

She said: “During the tour there were five boys with us – Adrian has a seven-year-old and Tom and I have boys the same age; two one-year-olds and two three-year-olds.

“They all played together then they would go to sleep and we could all hang out together.

“Once they went to sleep at night it felt like the old No Doubt were together again.

“We brought nannies with us so we could sleep in. It’s impossible if you have to get up early.

“The tour in the US was fun. We did lots of stuff we wouldn’t normally do, like go to the zoos.

“Whatever city we were in we would find out what would be good to do with the kids, like go to museums for example.”

And Gwen insists she has turned her back on solo records and performances for good.

“My solo career is in the past,” she said. “That was never supposed to last. I just wanted to do a dance record and it fitted in with us taking a break.

“I definitely have no plans to do it again.

“I enjoyed it, but in the future I’m living in the modern world of No Doubt.”

From the Daily Record

The foursome say they are excited about their first big gig outside of the United States in 10 years. The band completed a 58-show nationwide tour that ended in August, and say they can’t wait to rock out.

“We’re probably not going to play as many songs,” said singer Gwen Stefani at a press event on Thursday. “Because the set is much shorter. And we’re not going to have as many costume changes, because I didn’t want to waste time changing clothes. That’s about the only difference between this show and the (ones in the US).”

“But we’ll be fresh, because we just did 58 shows and by the last eight shows, we were pretty burned out,” said bassist Tony Kanal. “But after having a month off now – we rehearsed last night and the rehearsals were really, really good. Surprisingly great. It’s like we should come here to rehearse all the time. It was like, ‘Wow, the band is really good!’”

After this show, the band say they want to work on a new record. “That’s the goal right now – to write some new music,” said Kanal. “But the tour was so much fun, we just want to keep playing. But we have to find that balance between playing live and recording.”

Just what kind of new music, Stefani said they had no idea. “It’s all a bit mystery.

It’s been this crazy thing trying to write the record, because I had a baby and it wasn’t working,” she said. “That’s why we went on the tour, to try to get inspired.”

And what can fans expect from their show on Friday? “Awesome-ness!” exclaimed drummer Adrian Young.

We’re definitely going to be there then.

From Channel News Asia

With her signature blonde pompadour, dressed in a blue military jacket and black silk parachute pants, Stefani politely took photos with star-struck fashionistas as she kept tabs on her two little boys, Kingston and Zuma Nesta Rock.

The look was California casual with an abundance of draping – blousey tunics, harem pants and jersey dresses – in bright solids, tribal prints or tie-dyed, all perfect attire for next summer’s hot outdoor music festival.

While not without some standard punk references, like a plaid corset and bomber jacket, judging by the number of models wearing only tights or no pants at all with their voluminous cocoon jackets, it brought to mind a more current musical reference, Lady Gaga. But for those inclined to wear pants, aside from the harem pants, there were also plenty of slouchy cropped silk or denim cargo pants.

“They’re clothes that people want to wear everyday,” said Stefani before dashing backstage again with her husband Gavin Rossdale and kids in tow.

From Fashion Wire Daily

Platforms, studs, skinny pants, plaid and acid-wash peppered Stefani’s collection, which is an ode not only to the ’90s, when her band first hit it big, but also to the rockers from the ’80s who so heavily influenced her band’s sound. Reflecting the downtown feel of the clothes themselves, the show took place not in the Bryant Park tents, but at fashion week’s alternate location downtown at the MAC at Milk Studios.

In addition to those touches, the collection also included harem pants, asymmetrical cuts and bodysuits. “I never thought it would turn out this good,” Stefani told USA Today. “I’m really spoiled. These jeans are as good as anything I have.”

She went on to describe the clothes as “casual, easy and accessible,” reports Fashion Wire Daily. “They’re clothes that people want to wear every day.”

The line will be moderately priced, with most items ranging from $48 to $345. And now, with the collection behind her, she has time to focus on her other priorities: being a mom, turning 40 and getting back to work with No Doubt. Speaking of her family, her husband, fellow rocker Gavin Rossdale, as well as her two sons, Zuma and Kingston, were on hand to cheer her on.

From MTV

“I never thought it would turn out this good,” she says, smiling as she traces the lines of an intricately tailored white jacket and opens it to reveal tie-dye silk lining.

The lead singer of the recently reunited No Doubt reveals the self-described “rebirth” of her L.A.M.B. line today after working in recent months alongside new partner Manhattan International Trade Inc. Most items will range from $48 to $345, and the line mixes draped separates, sturdy jackets, skinny jeans and leopard accents in neutral colors with pops of electric purple, red and yellow.

The line is a departure for Stefani, who wanted to inject more style and serious craftsmanship into L.A.M.B collections. “I’m really spoiled,” says the red-carpet maven, who is often photographed running errands with her children in sky-high stilettos and her signature bright-red lips. Now, “these jeans are as good as anything I have,” she says, showing off a pair of dark-wash tie-dye skinny jeans on her slender frame.

Pregnancy, or the absence of it, is the hidden theme in Stefani’s fashion rebirth. Sons Kingston, 3, and Zuma, 1, put Stefani on a yo-yo of weight gain and loss, and until recently, her closet was jammed with maternity clothes. (Her current super-trim figure is “no miracle,” she says, noting it took eight months to lose the weight after Zuma’s birth.)

When Stefani launched L.A.M.B seven years ago, she envisioned staying home and planning a family. Today, she’s still going 100 mph with husband Gavin Rossdale and sons cheering her on.

“I don’t get any sleep,” she admits.

Multiplatinum solo albums, a reunion tour and a hot new line aside, Stefani’s priorities are her children. She carries flip-flops in her purse for a quick stiletto change so she can manage carrying 25-pound Kingston. And time goes all too fast with baby Zuma, who quit breast-feeding this summer.

“I didn’t want him to (quit), it felt like a total rejection,” she says. “It was really hormonal, and trying to stop in the middle of the tour was insane.”

With her three guys attending the L.A.M.B. show Thursday (if naptime permits), her next task is writing for the upcoming No Doubt album. Then, there’s her 40th birthday on Oct. 3. “I want a really big cake!”

From USA Today