Kate Winslet

Kate Winslet talks about being a mum, twerking and time management 

how did your partnership with the brand come about?

They approached me to be an ‘ambassador of elegance’ in 2010. It was very important to me to know about them as a company, and what was a breath of fresh air was the fact they care so much about the people who work for them. They’re very innovative; they move with the times.

You would think a company that’s existed for such a long time could become quite set in its ways, but it isn’t. There’s a lot to be said for that.

You’re an ‘ambassador of elegance’. What’s elegance to you? I imagine it’s not twerking?
Elegance to me is a woman who keeps her clothes on! I do think it’s a very individual thing, isn’t it? Because it’s not one ‘thing’; it’s specific to a person. It has to come from inside.

I think it’s an attitude. One of the most unattainable things for a lot of women is that sense of absolute, 100 per cent confidence in who they are. It’s very hard for us to feel that way.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re fat, thin, perfect — well, there’s no such thing as ‘perfect’.

It’s all about feeling good in your own skin, and that’s hard. A woman who has that elegance has a sense of calm and inner happiness.

You kind of exude that, actually.

I’ll tell you this, though: through our twenties, I think we spend the first five years trying to figure it out. Then, from 25 onwards, we’re pretty sure we know who we are.

And then we hit 30 and suddenly realise our twenties were all just a period of messy discovery and, actually, it all comes together. I’m going to be 40 next year …

Same! Yeah? Well, I’m going to be 40 and that’s so exciting! Suddenly I don’t worry any more.

It just evaporates. It’s to do with ageing and knowledge, and a groundedness within one’s self and life experiences. It’s definitely to do with happiness, too. There were little things that would bother me. Like, when I was 26 and would look in the mirror at my bum and say, “Oh my god, there’s cellulite and it’s never ending. It’s cascading down to my ankles!” Now I just don’t care.

You don’t have time to care! [Winslet founded the Golden Hat Foundation to eliminate barriers for autism, and has a contract with Lancôme, as well as three films due out in 2015.]

No! I mean, I could spend years thinking about this stuff. It’s just such a waste of time.

As one mum to another — I have two kids; you have three [Winslet gave birth to Bear in December last year, her son with third husband Ned Rocknroll, whom she met while on holiday at his uncle Richard Branson’s island in 2011] — how does life change with a third? Should I go for it?

Yes! What’s wonderful in my dynamic, is my other two are 10 (Joe) and 13 (Mia), [and] my 13-year-old is like a mini mummy, so they absolutely adore this baby. The jump from one to two is quite big. But then the jump to three … well, you’ve got all the stuff! You’ve got the potty, the strollers, the high chair. The other thing is, being a little bit older and having another one, you’re so much calmer.

You went back to work quite easily as well — you didn’t seem to lose your mojo.

I read this quote where you said, “It’s time to get back to the ‘I don’t f*ck around,’ back to the KW basics of ‘Take some serious risks, put yourself out there and just really push it’.”

That’s the other thing I think is really hard, which you have to get over when you’re a working mother: the world is not going to end because you go to work. I want my children to know that I love my job. It gives them so much just to see that passion that I have, because one day, they’ll find something I hope they will have the same passion for. ‘Happy mummy’ is ‘happy family’ — it really is. It takes a long time to learn that. I don’t have to go away from them very often, and even if I do it’s never for any longer than seven days. I think if you could have a third, you should do it!

You’re about to start shooting The Dressmaker in Australia — are you looking forward to spending time here?

I’ve worked in Australia before, with Jane Campion [on 1999’s Holy Smoke], and one of the most rewarding things was working with such remarkable Australian actors. So I am genuinely looking forward to returning to such a beautiful country, for what will no doubt be a very creatively rewarding experience.