Before the age of thirty, Sara Blakely had already revolutionized the way women dress. Spanx, her billion-dollar company, accomplished the impossible: Suddenly, shapewear was considered cool. Then in 2010, Blakely’s life was once again turned upside down when she welcomed her first child into the world. Since our shoot and interview for The Glow book, Sara has gone on to grow her brand and her family–she is now the mother of four beautiful children. And just last week, she released her book, The Belly Project, a seven-year labor of love which benefits Christy Turlington’s organization Every Mother Counts. One hundred percent of proceeds go to helping make pregnancy and childbirth safe for all women. Ever since our shoot with this inspiring mama, we’ve always remembered an especially poignant piece of advice she shared with us, which she credits for getting her to where she is today: “Growing up, my father used to encourage my brother and me to fail. This changed the course of my life. When a parent gives you permission to fail, and in fact celebrates it, life opens up to you in amazing ways.”
At home with …Sara Blakely & Lazer
Favorite time of day...
“Bedtime. I get into bed with Lazer and read him books. I scratch his back until he falls asleep.”
A Few of Her Favorite Things...
Style...
School: “I spend half the day in my Spanx Active workout pants, a T-shirt, and jeans. I call it the extended workout look—it’s so easy! So that’s what I usually wear when I drop my son off at school.”
Work: “It’s usually jeans and a cute top.”
Date nights: “Jeans and an even cuter top! Did I mention I like jeans?!”
On Sara: Marc Jacobs top, J Brand jeans
“I have been to many events all glammed-out, only to look down and realize I have severely chipped nail polish. Not subtle chips, but half the polish gone from my nails, and some nails with no polish left on them at all. I’ve been that way my whole life. My grandmother still chases me around with nail polish remover. I like to wear fun fake jewelry from gumball machines, and even wore an edible candy jewelry necklace with my gown to the SAG Awards. My style secret is maintaining a sense of humor; polished I am not!”
On Sara: Alexander McQueen dress
On Lazer: Targetspiderman costume
“During my pregnancy, I didn’t adjust my style that much—I just bought bigger sizes in regular clothes. I did, however, live in maternity jeans and mySpanx Power Mama® (our maternity shaping short). As my boobs grew, our bra, Spanx Bra-llelujah!®, grew with me because of the all-hosiery back. I also used the bra during breast-feeding, as it was easy to lift up.”
On Sara: Proenza Schoulerdress
Proudest moment:
“Giving more than twenty million dollars away to help women. I just can’t believe that the girl who failed the LSAT and sold fax machines door-to-door for years has been able to give back in such a big way.”
On Sara: Proenza Schoulerdress
“Growing up, my father used to encourage my brother and me to fail. This changed the course of my life. When a parent gives you permission to fail, and in fact celebrates it, life opens up to you in amazing ways. You take more risks, and view failure as not trying instead of the outcome. My son is only three, but I will be encouraging him to fail, spread his wings, and maybe even high-five him too when he tells me he tried out for something and was horrible at it!”
Sara, on the copper lights in her kitchen: “My husband’s idea of making our kitchen feel like a pub.”
Most surprising thing about being a mother (that no one tells you):
“How hard breast feeding is! Everyone focuses on the birth, but breast feeding was by far one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life. I didn’t sleep through the night for 7 months.”
Most humbling motherhood moment:
“When my son pointed out that I was doing something that I had told him not to do. He was right, and I was humbled! They are little mirrors reflecting back to us, and well…let’s just say it’s much harder to get away with things now!”
“It’s been three years since my son was born and I just started working out. I finally made it a priority. I had to formally commit to having a trainer and put it on my schedule for it to happen. I feel so much better-I just wish I’d done it sooner!”
On Sara: Alexander McQueen dress, Givenchy cuffs (which Lazer calls “super mom” cuffs)
On Lazer: Target spiderman costume
“A very smart mom invented a red light/green light alarm clock called TheStopLight Alarm Clock that’s a lifesaver. The light stays red for as long as you want your child to stay in bed and turns green when it’s time for them to get up.”Lazer’s toy bin, an antique wagon from the early 1900s
Hardest part about being a mom:
“Holding back. Allowing my child to learn his own lessons. As parents we want everything to be perfect for our children but that doesn’t raise the best kids. A great book about this is Blessings of a Skinned Knee by Wendy Mogel, PH.D.
On Sara: Alexander McQueen dress
On Lazer: Target spiderman costume
Best part about being a mom:
“The arms thrown around my neck, heart-pressed-against-heart hugs!
On Sara: Marc Jacobs top, J Brand jeans
Lazer’s room
“My husband and I were walking in Central Park with Lazer when we came across a 200-yard race for kids four years-old and up. Lazer is only three, but he wanted to run so we signed him up on the spot. He sprinted for the first 50 yards and tripped over his feet and fell down hard. He took a second, bounced back up and kept running the race. He didn’t cry, he didn’t run to me…he came in last, but he didn’t care. He was determined to finish. I was so proud of him!”
On Sara: Marc Jacobs sweater, Spanx Slimplicity Camisole, AG jeans
If you had more time…:
“I’d write a book, invent comfortable high heels, and sleep!”
If you hadn’t created Spanx…:
“My friends call me a ‘frustrated beautician.’ I was the girl who did everybody’s hair and make-up for prom. If Spanx didn’t exist I would probably own my own salon.”
On Sara: Marc Jacobs top, J Brand jeans
“I splurge on experiences for friends and family, on things that save me time, organic food, and water in glass bottles. For savings, I have a lucky red backpack I carried for years instead of a purse. My friends would beg me to buy a Prada bag or something more ‘appropriate’ instead, but I just couldn’t! So I’ve saved lots of money on purses through the years. In general, I’m not a purse person. I carry the same one forever. Now my red backpack is hanging in a glass case at Spanx. The company convinced me to preserve it as company history, which was probably just a ploy to get me to stop carrying it!”
Mama and son guitars: “The big guitar is mine from the one semester I took in college and the little guitar is Lazer’s. We like to play together.”
Time-Saving Beauty...
“Dry shampoo gives me an extra day before I need to wash my hair. I gave up routine manicures about eight months ago. Now I just keep my nails short and clean. I get my eyelashes tinted black, so I don’t have to wear mascara. Sometimes I’ll throw a clear gloss on them to make them look shinier. And Sally Hansen airbrush bodyspray to even out my skin tone and make me look like I got a professional spray tan.”
On Sara: Alexander McQueen dress
On Lazer: Target spiderman costume
Favorite Kids' Clothes...
Splendid, Kickee Pants, Mini Boden, City Threads. Anything soft! He only wants to wear it if it’s comfortable. I keep telling him how ‘cool’ he looks in jeans and he says, ‘Mommy, I don’t want to look cool, I want to be comfortable!’ Maybe he will invent something that will make millions of men more comfortable in their clothes!
On Sara: Marc Jacobs top, J Brand jeans
“Since becoming a mom, I’ve really embraced a more casual, comfortable style. I’ll wear a great pair of flats or some Converse instead of heels, and a lot of jeans. I’m also spending half a day now in my Spanx Active workout pants and a t- shirt. I call it the extended workout look… but it’s so easy! And despite my friends’ pleas to give it up, there is usually a scrunchie in my hair too. In terms of decor, most of the fabrics in my house are actually indoor/outdoor because they’re so easy to clean and they don’t stain. I have a great set of white chairs that look like leather, but they’re actually vinyl: You can spill anything on them and it wipes right off. And all our coffee tables have rounded edges.”
On Sara: Proenza Schouler dress
Sara, on the pillow pictured behind her in this photo: “I tend to collect things with women on them.”
When do you feel most sexy?
“When I’m wearing jeans and anything that makes me look good but is still comfortable. I don’t subscribe to the saying ‘beauty is pain’. I call that B.S. (Before Spanx). Basically once women got involved, we proved things can be a lot more comfortable. That’s what Spanx did for the girdle and is what we are now determined to do in all categories of fashion.”
On Sara: Proenza Schouler dress
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