Kyly Clarke: ‘My daughter is 100 per cent my priority’
In an exclusive interview and stunning new photo shoot, the former wife of cricketer Michael Clarke opens up about why motherhood is all that matters as she takes on a new role.
Stellar
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To prepare for her gig as the interiors judge on new series House Rules: High Stakes, Kyly Clarke found inspiration in the unlikeliest of places: her four-year-old daughter Kelsey Lee.
“The other day we walked into the bathroom and she said, ‘Yeah, nice bathroom. But I don’t really like your tiles...’ It just cracked me up,” Clarke tells Stellar. “I kept thinking, ‘Where did that come from?’ But I know where that came from. Me!”
Clarke spends most days talking colour palettes, cushions, carpet and cracked tiles. The beauty therapist and TV presenter turned to interior design a decade ago, after a real-estate agent overheard her talking about the features of a property she was interested in buying.
“He said, ‘Oh, are you an interior designer? You sound like one,’” the 38-year-old explains. “I walked away from that seeing what someone else saw in me. I decided to study another trade. And I’ve never looked back.”
In 2015, she launched Lyfestyled by Kyly Clarke, through which she works alongside clients to renovate homes and also has a luxe candle and diffuser collection.
But the venture may have, at times, been overshadowed by her public persona as the former wife of retired Australian cricket captain Michael Clarke – the two announced their separation after seven years of marriage in February, and share custody of Kelsey Lee.
“I’m pretty much a private person in general,” Clarke says. “And maybe I haven’t shown that side of what I love doing when it comes to interiors.”
“Sometimes Instagram is just a highlight reel – people don’t see everything you do, or everything you can do. It will be interesting to see how people react to my comments or my knowledge [on House Rules]. Hopefully they enjoy it.”
As for her own home, Clarke tells Stellar, she long ago gave up on the idea that it will remain prim and proper, so long as a young child is under the roof.
“The main couch is a dark colour and that is quite specifically for small children’s hands,” she says with a laugh. “Crayola have ticked so many parents’ boxes by having something that is washable. When I read the word ‘washable’, I’m in heaven.”
Her personal style follows a similar theme. “It’s evolved and changed to be whatever is the easiest,” says Clarke. “I would love to say I’m a fashionista, but I’m in black long leggings and a gym outfit every day.”
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So taking part in Stellar’s shoot – which found her wearing romantic printed pieces that are soft and fluid – was something the former model was more than happy to do. “The nicest moments are when you do get to dress up. I think every woman likes that feeling.”
Clarke’s return to TV – she was eight years old when she first appeared in commercials – is one that has slotted into her life without much trouble.
Home-improvement shows were already a self-proclaimed guilty pleasure, and the seven-month filming schedule provided “a beautiful balance. And, I guess, why that’s so important to me is that Kelsey Lee is 100 per cent my priority. She’s this beautiful human being that I love being super-adventurous with. I will exhaust myself to give her everything I can.
“You create these little humans and they are following you around every single day. They are watching what you do and what you say, and they are wanting to be a little bit like you. I think it’s important I can show Kelsey Lee, just like my mum showed me, that you can achieve your career goals and have all the things you want in life by being a strong woman.”
House Rules: High Stakes starts next month on the Seven Network.
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Originally published as Kyly Clarke: ‘My daughter is 100 per cent my priority’