Jaime King on Her New Baby Clothes Line, Pregnancy and Keeping Motherhood Real

Pregnant with her second child—and no stranger to fashion—actor and former model Jaime King is particularly suited to put her own spin on a line of babywear. Her new collection for the organic baby clothes brand Sapling Child debuts in July and reflects a bundle of inspirations, including her childhood in Nebraska and what currently catches the attention of her year-and-a-half-year-old son, James Knight. King, who met Sapling’s creator over Instagram, where she has nearly 700,000 followers, channeled her infinite ideas into a line featuring sweet prints (from constellation bears to Japanese-inspired florals), tiny T-shirts and even a cozy blanket.

King, who has spoken openly about her struggles with polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis and the difficulties she faced having her son, is determined to project an authentic life versus a carefully polished Hollywood version. In keeping with that, she chatted frankly with us about her creative process, being pregnant for the second time and keeping motherhood real.

A: I’ve always wanted to collaborate and do a great baby brand and I really loved ethically what Sapling was doing. I loved that it was non-toxic, organic. I loved the message of the company. So much was inspired by growing up in Nebraska and the big, wide-open skies. Daydreaming, looking up at the sky and the constellations—that’s what paved my way as a young girl and really allowed me the space to daydream. I also noticed that my son was very attracted to anything Japanese in its nature. That’s where the Japanese [influences] came from—the lotus and things like that.

A: Everything for me is very much creatively an intuitive flow. I never run out of ideas, but sometimes that’s my biggest curse. My team is like, “Just chill out.” I can’t help it. It’s just the way that I’ve always been. There’s a lot that I want to share with the world and a lot that I want to make and do.

A: I had no preconceived notion. I had no clue and was terrified. My husband was gone for five months directing a movie. So I was by myself and I was shooting up until the day before I gave birth and then I was shooting six hours a day with a newborn. It was really intense and scary, but at the same time very sacred. There was something about being with the baby by myself. Something about knowing my husband couldn’t be there that bonded me to him in a very sacred way. It’s going to be very different this time because my husband is going to be here. I’m very thankful for that.

A: I’ve been feeling like crap. It’s been difficult. I get really bad migraines. But I’m always so happy when I’m pregnant the happiness overrides the physical challenges. I just love being pregnant. I love, love, love being pregnant. As far as exercise is concerned, I like to do things that are really gentle. [Ballet Beautiful’s] Mary Helen Bowers has really beautiful and gentle workout DVDs. She’s a good friend of mine. I don’t like going to the gym and looking around and seeing everyone judging each other and looking miserable. If I’m going to do it, I’m going to put on ballet slippers and legwarmers and I want to look like a frickin’ ballerina and feel gorgeous.

A: It is such a celebration of femininity. It’s a celebration of being a woman. You don’t have to suck in. You have as many curves as you want and by all means wear things that are tighter because it’s the only time you’re going to be able to get away with it. There are so many weird things happening to your body. It’s nice to get your nails done or put a beautiful dress on.

A: I think that in Hollywood it’s so put upon us to put out there that somehow our lives are perfect and we live this glamorous, unattainable, beautiful existence. That’s just not the truth. My journey with having polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis and not finding out until I was 28 and having years of suffering and pain and not knowing why and being very confused about it—it took basically seven years from the first time I got pregnant to have my first child. I would see in the press—Jamie King is so beautiful and her beautiful baby and her beautiful family and her perfect existence and blah blah blah—and it really irritated me.

A: I was scared to come out and talk to people about what I went through because it’s so taboo and it’s not sexy. But it’s like, welcome to the real world. If I want to make an impact here, I’m going to use my voice so that I can change things. And if that means a young woman is diagnosed early because I bring out the awareness of what the symptoms are than I know I’ve done something right with my life. That I haven’t hidden in the shadows just because I thought it was the cooler, sexier way to sell myself.

A: It’s something that’s eco-friendly, something that looks beautiful—not only on your child, but also reminds you of something beautiful. Easy to use in the middle of the night when you’re changing diapers. Anything that’s easy, soft, beautiful, comfortable and makes your baby happy and you happy is really, I think, the best piece of clothing that you can get.