Lea Michele Talks Her 'Comfortable' Mom Style as She Teams Up with Kohl's for a Touching New Campaign (Exclusive)

Lea Michele has a beautiful new partnership.

The actress and mom of two, as well as actress Sarah Hyland, are collaborating with Kohl’s on its new “Where Families Come First” platform, which celebrates every iteration of the idea of ​​family — and the meaningful moments, big and small, that connect us.

Specifically, the stars front the retailer’s new “When Life Gets Real, Start Here” campaign that highlights the joy of everyday experiences by showing candid, relatable shots of loved ones connecting.

For Kohl’s, which has been in the business of meeting the needs of families with its wide range of products for more than 60 years, there is no better person to help celebrate these life events than Michele, who recently gave birth to her second child with husband Zandy Reich, and Hyland, who got married to her longtime boyfriend Wells Adams in 2022 (the couple shares a dog, Boo).

It’s also a full-circle moment for Michele, 38, and Hyland, 33, who were both ambassadors for Kohl’s iconic Candie’s campaigns.

Lea Michele shares first look at daughter Emery after birth announcement as she celebrates 38

Lea Michele in the Kohl’s campaign “When Life Gets Real, Start Here”.

Yu Tsai

“I’m really, really excited to be a part of the Kohl family again,” Michele tells PEOPLE exclusively.

“I believe I did my first campaign with them in 2012 for Candie’s — and I remember getting the call and being honored to be a part of a campaign that is now so iconic,” she recalls.

Michele, who guided PEOPLE exclusively in her preparation process, recalls how her life looked different more than ten years ago.

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“I was so busy working in television and living in California,” she remembers. “I really uprooted my life in 2008 — I left New York City and came to California — and immediately started working in TV. It was a big life change for me, but I really fell in love with living and working there.”

“Now, here we are years later, living in New York and doing this campaign with Kohl’s that’s really about where I am in my life right now as a wife and a mother, and it really shows how Kohl’s can really be there for you in all the different stages of your life. It’s so exciting,” continues Michele.

The star, who was pregnant during the filming, is delighted with the timing of the campaign. “Being pregnant and taking those photos and having them in capsules to look back on is really cool,” she says.

Lea Michele is gearing up for Kohl’s “When Life Gets Real, Start Here” campaign.

Kohl’s

Twelve years ago, in the Michele’s Candie commercials for Kohl’s, fashion spoke of time.

“It was all about brightly colored high heels,” she says. “The more, the better. I don’t even know how [I walked]but I remember on set saying, ‘This is it exactly my style’ and I remember feeling so beautiful.”

He fondly remembers that fashion era. “It was so specific to the trends of the time. I really love seeing those campaign photos, because they really were so authentic to who I was then and the style of shoes I liked to wear.”

Michele’s life and style choices are now “completely different,” she says.

“So much has changed for me since then. When I was pregnant with my son [Ever Leo]it was 2020, so during the COVID-19 pandemic, and I didn’t really leave the house. Now I have an almost four-year-old and it’s completely different to be outside, running around, chasing after my little one.”

Lea Michele in the Kohl’s campaign “When Life Gets Real, Start Here”.

Kohl’s

When she’s not on the red carpet, Michele prioritizes comfort. “That’s what’s great about this campaign — it just shows me in this new phase of my life. I am very thankful for all the comfortable clothes I wore on the day of the shoot. During the first pregnancy, we were only at home. Now it’s like, ‘oh wait, what should I wear? How can I leave the house and look put together but feel comfortable?’ It was just such a different experience.”

Still, some of the photos are fun nods to her memorable Candie shoot. “The pictures on the stairs were a memory of Candie’s photos. I did one on the stairs back in 2012 for that campaign, and then we did some now that I’m pregnant,” explains Michele. (Fun fact: Photographer Yu Tsai, who shot Michele for this campaign, also shot Candie’s pictures of her all those years ago. “He was really great at capturing these moments,” says Michele, adding, “I love him so much.” )

Lea Michele’s Candie’s campaign; Lea Michele in the Kohl’s campaign “When Life Gets Real, Start Here”.

Yu Tsai

Kohl’s “When Life Gets Real, Start Here” goes a step beyond personal style to also showcase the extra things that make up those moments. For her, Hyland and Michele curated digital showcases of their favorite Kohl’s collections — and some of Michele’s can be seen in her campaign photos, including the Nine West zip-up sweater and straight-leg sweater pants she’s wearing in the photos on the stairs , as well as the child’s CRCKT front zipper backpack that he holds in those same pictures.

And in the shots of her kitchen, it’s easy to spot more things she loves, like the Food Network™ Farmstead 10-pc. Ceramic Non-Stick Cookware Set and 2-Pack of Striped Woven Kitchen Towels, Hamilton Beach 10-Speed ​​Smoothie Blender and JanSport Big Break Insulated Lunch Bag.

At the end of the shoot, Michele says she wanted to take “everything” from the set. “There was this women’s LC Lauren Conrad fitted jacket, and, even if you’re just wearing a simple black maxi dress, throwing on that jacket made me feel like I looked put together. Finding those little things now that I know I can walk out of my house and say, ‘Oh, I feel like I look beautiful now,’ really makes me feel good.”

Meanwhile, Hyland’s new campaign images also have fun flashbacks to her Candie ads from years ago, like the one below where she’s seen riding a bike with Adams. In one of her pictures, Hyland famously rode (with herself) on a bicycle made for two. Her shop window now includes must-haves.

Sarah Hyland and Wells Adams in Kohl’s “When Life Gets Real, Start Here” campaign.

Michael Schwartz

“I’m so grateful that this shoot mirrors mine [current] style and where I am in my life right now,” says Michele. “Kohl’s truly supports all of your family needs and is there for you at all different stages.”

“We started the day shooting a few shots in the kitchen, and that’s where I actually spend so much time at home. We made sure everything looked super authentic to what I actually do in my day-to-day life,” shares Michele.

“We started the day shooting a few shots in the kitchen, and that’s where I actually spend so much time at home. We made sure everything looked super authentic to what I actually do in my day-to-day life,” shares Michele.

Lea Michele’s Candie’s campaign; Lea Michele in the Kohl’s campaign “When Life Gets Real, Start Here”.

Yu Tsai

“I pack his lunch and snacks every morning and it really makes me very happy. And one of my favorite things to do with my son is to either cook together or sit at the table together. That was a big part of why I wanted to move back to New York: to be closer to our family because all of my most memorable family moments growing up were centered around the dinner table and just being in the kitchen together and smelling my grandma’s food.”

Michele is focused on “soaking up” this precious time, even on days when she misses it. “[The other day] I was running around and I knew that at the end of the day I would only have a short amount of time with my son, but I ran to the market and got some cake mix, and it was the simplest little thing. I came home and I said, ‘Do you want to bake cookies?’ And he was so excited. It literally took 20 minutes, but it was so great to have that little bit of time to do something special together.’

Lea Michele in the Kohl’s campaign “When Life Gets Real, Start Here”.

Yu Tsai

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The star says her days of following trends are behind her. There are some pieces that will never go out of style for her. “I feel like Jelly sandals are back and I love them. I feel like they’re easy to put on,” she says. Michele says she’s also team high-waisted jeans. “I’m a high-waisted jeans kind of girl.”

For her, if there’s one word that sums up her reunion with Kohl’s, it’s “grateful.”

“I’m so grateful to be a part of the Kohl’s family and to have this opportunity to show this wonderful journey from being Candie’s girlfriend in 2012, to being a mom now; from being so excited to wear my Candie shoes that are as tall as an inch to being super excited about baby clothes and items. Those are the things I’m excited about right now, and just knowing that Kohl’s is here to help me and that this time of my life is being documented in this amazing campaign makes me feel extremely grateful.”

Shop select Michele and Hyland collections now.

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education