By Alfa Garcia
By most measures, Lauren Conrad has broken the reality TV star mold. A career that could have ended with drastic plastic surgeries, a trip to jail or public mockery has instead continued with Conrad, 24, positioning herself to become the style icon for ladies in the teen-to-20s age bracket.
After ditching MTV's "The Hills," Conrad released the first of three teen-lit books (the final, "Sugar & Spice," hits stores Tuesday), inspired by her travails on reality TV. Then she put her fashion background to work on a clothing line at Kohl's. Also Tuesday, the Orange County, Calif., native will release "Lauren Conrad: Style," a comprehensive handbook of tips on everything from shopping and makeup to packing for travel and posing for the cameras.
"I think it's really written for anyone who has an interest in style or who is looking to fine-tune their own and learn a few things," says Conrad, speaking from her home in California.
"Lauren Conrad: Style" is a rite of passage into legitimacy for the celebrity, who built her career on MTV's "Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County" as well as "The Hills," both series that were popular but largely seen as superficial. Conrad embraced her stint on the shows as opportunities to launch her real love: fashion.
"To be honest, I think a little bit of it was luck," she says. "And I just did things that I loved. Ever since I was young I knew I wanted to work in fashion, and that was just something I stuck with and was very fortunate to have some great opportunities [with]."
It was announced in late September that Conrad will appear in an upcoming MTV reality show, "Lauren Conrad: Fiercely Fashionable," which will focus on the launch of Paper Crown, her new upscale clothing brand.
"I'm doing this on my own, which I've never had the opportunity to do," says Conrad, who adds that her line will offer specialty apparel, a different take from her casual offerings at Kohl's. "I'm also working with a couple of my very good friends who will be in it as well. … It should be really fun."
Shooting has yet to begin on the documentary-style series. Unlike "The Hills," the show will not focus on Conrad's personal life. Nonetheless, interest in the young star continues — so much so that Conrad recently moved 20 minutes outside of Hollywood to escape the paparazzo's eye.
My last house, it was a challenge, because you were getting photographed every day. Now I get to be a little more unseen," she says, withholding the name of her new neighborhood.
Yet despite her attempts at a normal life, Conrad embraces the attention. After all, the public fascination that keeps the cameras flashing also sells books, clothes and TV shows, and Conrad is a master at working the publicity machine, whether through her million-plus followers on Twitter or her two-week tour for both book releases. With her entrepreneurial smarts, it seems Conrad was never bound for the pitfalls of reality TV.
"I think that I knew from the very beginning that television was going to launch my career," she says. "I don't know that it's bad that people know where you came from. I think it's always important to remember that."
credit - Alfa Garcia @ northjersey.com
Lauren will be at Bookends, 211 E. Ridgewood Ave, in Ridgewood NJ on Wednesday. Call 201-445-0726 or check out bookends.com for more information..
~Kelli at
Hills Freak
