Five minutes with Reba McEntire
By HELEN CHONGRISThey came from as close as the Park Cities and Plano, and from as far as Waco and Wichita Falls. Mothers brought daughters they took out of school. Daughters brought mothers they took out of assisted-living centers.
More than 800 people – fathers and sons, too – packed the women's sportswear department of Dillard's NorthPark the morning of March 22 to see the queen of country music sashay into the garment business.
Most came for Reba McEntire, that pretty redhead-next-door from southeast Oklahoma with the chart-topping voice. Some came for the WB's Reba Hart, the most resilient soccer mom in sitcom Texas. And others just had to see Broadway's Annie Oakley, the one so good she got a New York Times critic cheering her on.
It wasn't until Dillard's vice president Drue Dillard Corbusier introduced her as a movie actress, author and mother of the year, too, that the multitasker's range hit home.
And then out on the runway she came, Reba Nell McEntire Blackstock, also a wife, a mother of one, stepmother of three and stepgrandmother of one. In a smart Reba sweater set and slacks, Ms. McEntire, who turned 50 on Monday, was outfitted more as a mom heading to a parent-teacher conference for her 15-year-old son, Shelby, than a diva touting her namesake clothing line.
The 28 Reba ensembles that followed are more kicky prep than splashy country. From this collection, you'd never know Dolly Parton's designer once dressed Ms. McEntire.
Yes, there are topstitched yokes and cuffs, but they're few and subtle; there are sequins, but they're matte and only outlines embellishing a skirt.
Overall the line is traditional: finely tailored suits, fitted pants, shawl-collar jackets, pencil skirts, silk-blend shells and cardigans, laminated-cotton trench coats and a cotton sateen little black dress. The pieces range from $48 to $289.
Ms. McEntire's not the first celebrity to put her name on a clothing line, but hers is the first star label for Dillard's, the Little Rock, Ark.-based chain.
And Ms. McEntire is the first big name behind a label to say the appeal of her line is not all about the look.
F!D: An old-fashioned thread runs through everything we see you do. Pinpoint what's old-fashioned about this line.
Ms. McEntire: Picking comfort over fashion. I don't care how fashionable things are – shoes, tops, pants, dresses, evening gowns, coats. If it's not comfortable, I'm not buying it; I don't want it in my closet. So comfort is the A-No. 1 thing here and I call that old-fashioned values.
F!D: Then was fabric selection something you fussed about?
Ms. McEntire: I was a stickler. Every fabric had to be thick enough to keep its shape and soft enough to feel good on your body.
Hilton Smith is the designer. He goes out and finds the fabrics for me. If he brings me back something flimsy, I don't like it.
If you go with something flimsy, it doesn't feel good and you see every bump and bulge. I don't want that.
F!D: Eighteen to 34 is the target audience for the WB. What's the age range for this line?
Ms. McEntire: My granddaughter, Chelsea, who's 11, can wear the T-shirts. My daughters, Chassidy and Shawna – they're 25 and 30 – can wear these clothes. So can my daughter-in-law, Melissa; she's 27. And then so can my sisters, Alice and Susie. My mother has them, too. She's 78. Eleven to 78 is not bad at all.
F!D: Will we see the WB's Reba Hart in Reba?
Ms. McEntire: You bet. Tune in Friday, May 13, and Friday, May 20, and you'll not only see me in these clothes, but Melissa Peterman, who plays Barbra Jean, will be in a Reba outfit, too.
F!D: Dallas is the last stop on your Dillard's tour. You've done fashion shows in six cities over four days. What's the feedback for this collection?
Ms. McEntire: Warm. Accepting. The audience is very excited. As a matter of fact, there's been ladies who have gone into the dressing rooms during the show, bought something, and while I was signing autographs afterward, they have the clothes on and bring me the tag – ready as can be to have me sign it.
And here, just now, I had to write a little girl a note telling her teacher where she was this morning.
F!D: The simple lines and classic tailoring in this collection can flatter several body types. But with only sizes 4 to 14 available, you're going to have petite and plus-size women frustrated that they can't wear Reba. Are there plans to bring out something for them?
Ms. McEntire: We're looking into that. We hope to have more sizes by fall.
F!D: Sure, your name is on the tags and the hangers. But it's woven into the linings, too. That's got to be fun to see.
Ms. McEntire: Yes, it is because I'm very proud of this clothing line. I own it and I'm very honored to have my name on it. (You know, it's on the little ribbon inside the pants, too.)
F!D: What names are in your closet?
Ms. McEntire: Everything from Donna Karan, Polo and Oscar de la Renta to Levi's and Wrangler and Blue Cult.
F!D: When you were growing up in Oklahoma, did you venture to Dallas to shop? Did you head to NorthPark then?
Ms. McEntire: No, Dallas never was in the picture for me, unfortunately. It was for my husband, Narvel, who's from Burleson.
But for my family back then, just to get to go to Sherman-Denison was a big thing.
F!D: There's lots of empowerment for women in your music. Even beyond the "I'm a Survivor" theme song for your sitcom, you've got lyrics about falling out of love and back on your feet. Is this collection another way women can feel confident?
Ms. McEntire: Absolutely. I try to sing songs that touch the heart. I want people to connect with their emotions when they're listening to my music. It's all about feeling.
And these clothes are about feeling, too: feeling good and comfortable. You'll have confidence when you wear them.
F!D: What makes you confident?
Ms. McEntire: Mama always said, "Beauty hurts." Well, I don't like that. I want to look good, but I want to feel good, too. That's what gives me the confidence to go out and do my work.
F!D: Let's talk a second about one particular day this month: March 28. One of those zero birthdays, right? You OK with that?
Ms. McEntire: I'm feeling excellent about that. I've got so many friends and family members who never made it to the five-O mark. I'm celebrating for myself and for all of them, too.
F!D: I don't see a 15-year-old boy around. Shelby – he's back in Los Angeles?
Ms. McEntire: Shelby's in school right now. He's got a big presentation this morning in Spanish, and I haven't had the chance to see what he's done with it yet. He should be starting about now. It's 9:15 in LA.
BUYERS' GUIDE
Reba (the clothing line) is available in one of every two Dillard's stores nationwide, 10 of them at malls in North Texas: NorthPark and Valley View malls in Dallas, the Shops at Willow Bend and Collin Creek Mall in Plano, Town East Mall in Mesquite, The Parks in Arlington, Vista Ridge Mall in Lewisville, Hulen Mall in Fort Worth, Northeast Mall in Hurst and Golden Triangle Mall in Denton.
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