That’s Drew Barrymore talking to Good Housekeeping and giving us an inside peak into her personal life. “My girlfriends are my first family, and they know that I would lie down and die for them. My love for them is unbreakable.”
The actress, author, mother, and entrepreneur opens up about why being CEO of Flower beauty is ‘pretty gangster’, why girls can do anything, and making the choice to be happy. She also dishes about why she’d never let her daughters become child actors, how Olive and Frankie make her who she is and why she’s fine with her ‘Pillsbury Doughboy abs.’
Here’s some:
Drew on being a CEO and why girls can do anything: “I always fantasized about having a desk job, because it seemed like such a consistent life, and nothing about mine was grounded. And being a CEO? I mean, it’s pretty gangster. I just really want to be part of a team that makes business and creative decisions. I care so much about messaging, and for me, my message has been completely consistent my whole life. Girls can do anything. Girls should have fun. Life is an all-ages party, and everyone’s invited.”
Drew on how there is a ‘warrior aspect to being happy’: “I first loved Nan [longtime friend and producing partner Nancy Juvonen] because she loved the word ‘happiness’ so much. But last year, I called her with tears in my eyes, going, ‘Nan! I’ve finally figured it out! It’s not the word “happiness” that’s so powerful. It’s the word “choice”!’ Happiness is not this yellow, blithe, floating thing. It’s something that takes a tremendous amount of work. There’s a warrior aspect to being happy. You’ve got to fight for it. And only when you’ve got that kind of earned happiness is it really good.
Drew on BFF Cameron Diaz and why she would ‘lie down and die’ for her female friends: “If you are in scary prison in the middle of nowhere, call Cameron. She’ll get you out. If you’re looking for the best dinner-cooking partner and watching- TV-on-the-couch friend, call her. If someone is in a medical situation, call her! She’s the most loyal, fierce, fun, cozy friend. We have incredible honesty with each other, and we work hard on our lives and our friendship. My girlfriends are my first family, and they know that I would lie down and die for them. My love for them is unbreakable.”
Drew on how her daughters Olive, 3, and Frankie, 2 make her who she is: “I thought I knew what love was, but holy cow, I did not. I could never have imagined the kind of love I have for my children. I am who I am because of my daughters. I’m an overachiever parent, and not because I think I’m going to repeat the patterns of my parents. That’s not my fear — I’ve already broken that pattern in my life. But having grown up in the opposite way, I’m raising my children with all consistency, all protection. This is my chance to get it right.”
Drew’s nonnegotiable family rule: No showbiz for her kids until they turn 18: “I’d never let them become child actors. They’ll have a chastity belt, a tracker system, no cell phones and we’ll live in the middle of nowhere,” she jokes. “In reality, I’ll just lead by example by being spirited, classy, consistent, philanthropic, hardworking, loyal to my friends and there any second they might need me.”
Drew’s healthy body image and why having ‘Pillsbury Doughboy abs’ is just fine with her: “I’d love to have six-pack abs, but I’m genetically predisposed to having Pillsbury Doughboy abs,” she laughs. “Six-pack abs are not a priority for me, because that takes a lot of time.”
Drew’s style crush on Lady Gaga and why she “is our Bowie now”: “Lady Gaga for me has carried the torch from the David Bowie’s of the world like nobody else. Everything she does is extraordinary, and I think if I had the biggest girl crush on earth it would be her. She is our Bowie now, and it’s ironic that she was the one who did the tribute to him [at the Grammy’s] and I see that kids are so inspired by her, and that means everything. She has reached across the gamut and connected people in their inspiration and enthusiasm, and the more powerful her message gets, I think there’s no stopping her.”
Drew on how ‘anything goes’ with beauty: “You can be as wild and crazy or as demure and sort of traditional. There’s no mistakes to be made with makeup. You get a free pass always with beauty because it’s an expression of your mood, whereas fashion can cut your body in weird ways, makeup doesn’t do that. It’s just to play, it’s just a moment, and you never really get in trouble for it.”
On what beauty trend she’d like to see take hold next: “What I want to see is an uncoiffed brow. We’ve had very large brows at play and a lot of products driven towards catering to brows. I want to see a wild brow, so a few outgrown, a few untamed in the lines. I don’t think you have to have perfect manicured large brows.”
www.goodhousekeeping.com/
Drew wears Jill Stuart blouse, Kate Spade skirt and Kenneth Jay Lane earrings.