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Natalie Bassingthwaighte: "I'm not going to be a slave to this industry"

Natalie Bassingthwaighte is the ultimate slashie. Always looking to add to her talent arsenal of singing, dancing, acting, mum-ing and designing, she credits the steel in her spine to her loving hubby, musician Cam McGlinchey.

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Former bandmates in The Rogue Traders, Nat confesses told me she feels incredibly lucky to have him.

I like to think that couples are each others mirror, which says a lot about Nat, too.

Nat describes children Harper and Hendrix and hubby Cam as
Nat describes children Harper and Hendrix and hubby Cam as

Nat and I go way back - I first interviewed her when she was leaving Neighbours and I accidentally said her name wrong (oops!). Lucky Nat didn't hold it against me, and was full of energy and surprises during our chat, like did you know she's a secret interior design guru?

Nat studied a course online, but only managed to power through five months of it before her first child, daughter Harper arrived.

Nat hasn't ruled out revisiting the books, admitting: "I love design and I love colour, structure. In another world I’d love to study architecture". Who knows, she may even design a building one day.

Dedicated mum Nat put her children before her love for interior design.
Dedicated mum Nat put her children before her love for interior design.

The birth of Harper in 2010 and her son Hendrix in 2013 may have put a stop to her interior design dreams, but the magical combination of the right timing and a desire to really see what she was capable of saw the birth of Chi-Khi, her kids fashion label.

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"You are always waiting for the phone to ring for the next job, and you're wondering 'Am I just going to be a slave to this industry forever?'" Nat honestly admits.

The idea of doing something new ticked a huge box, with Nat revealing: “I want to do things that challenge me and inspire me and make me happy ultimately.”

Nat started her eco-friendly kids line Chi-Ki last year. Photo: Instagram
Nat started her eco-friendly kids line Chi-Ki last year. Photo: Instagram
Proud Nat now has celebs such as Jessica Alba, Cate Blanchett and Fergie buying her Chi-Ki range for their kids. Photo: Instagram
Proud Nat now has celebs such as Jessica Alba, Cate Blanchett and Fergie buying her Chi-Ki range for their kids. Photo: Instagram

As sweet as pie, Nat won’t even crack it at you if get her surname wrong, and in the big bad world of being in "the spotlight" she's learned that it's more than ok to say "no" to things that don’t sit with your integrity, no matter what money is on offer.

“If something’s offered to you and you’re like, “Oh, I’m so excited!” then I’ll fight for it to the end," she says.



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