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Update: July 9, 2021
Kate Hudson’s Happy x Nature clothing line popped up in early 2019 with a ton of fanfare. (Finally, a way to score the actress’s laid-back, boho look!) But, just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished. The website redirects to NY&Company’s Brands We Love page, which really seems like more of an error page, and there’s virtually no mention of it across Hudson’s social accounts.
Sadly, it seems she’s dropped the line to focus on other pursuits, like Fabletics, King St. Vodka and Inbloom supplements. You can still find tons of the clothes secondhand on Poshmark, however, so if you love the looks, there’s still hope!
Original Review: Posted Spring 2019
I had to know. Had to. This wasn’t just for me; this was for the greater good. I needed to buy a dress from Kate Hudson’s Happy Nature clothing line, so I could tell everyone I know what it’s like (because you’re dying to know some random person on the internet’s opinion, right?!). It’d also help me determine whether the Almost Famous star’s line would basically become my boho-driven capsule collection wardrobe for the foreseeable future. So, with that in mind, I shelled out $83 for the Serene dress, a midi length, linen number that seemed flowy in all the right ways. Except on my body, it isn’t. Let me explain.
The Fit:
Expectation:
Reality:
The top half of the dress is supposed to be loose, but on me, it felt so baggy that every time I look in the mirror, I can’t help but think of that scene in The Proposal, when Sandra Bullock’s character tries on her grandmother-in-law’s wedding dress, and the GIL (played by Betty White, no less) compares her chest under all that fabric to going “on an Easter egg hunt!” Still, I loved that it cinched at the waist, hit just below the knee—even on a taller figure, like mine—and that the linen had some heft to it. It didn’t feel like a flimsy or shoddily made outfit.
Even with those pros, I still couldn’t shake how frumpy Skywalker-ish I felt in it. And every time I caught my gaze in mirror, I was struck by how much stockier my body looked. All things that don’t exactly help you project your most confident self.
The Feel:
It’s incredibly soft, like slipping on a pair of well-worn pajamas. It’s the type of outfit I’d want to wear every day…if only it fit a bit better from the waist up. (The shoulder seams, sleeve length, everything else was great, so maybe I just need to come to terms with the fact that this dress was made for a different body type. Or is supposed to look like this, since the model’s top is pretty loose too.)
The Shipping Experience:
Shipping itself was pretty prompt, and Happy Nature wasted no time getting my order out the door. However, it was a little off-putting to see a $7 charge to use their enclosed shipping label for any returns—despite the banner at the top of the site stating there are free returns (which prompted me to buy in the first place!). It makes sense—they’re otherwise eating the cost of shipping it back and forth—but I’ve gotten so used to other brands doing so that when I saw “free returns” and then saw the charge, it felt like a bait-and-switch.
That silly, $7 charge was just high enough to convince me the dress is “all right,” but the truth of the matter is, I wait until I’ve nearly run out of laundry before wearing it. I don’t love it; now, I’m just looking for ways to style it to help me appreciate it more.
The Bottom Line:
Would I still buy clothes from Happy Nature? Yes. In fact, I’ve been eyeing a few tops from the brand. If I’m on the fence about a look, I’m more likely to wait to check out eBay or Poshmark for the styles—that same Serene dress is now being sold on both sites for anywhere from $15-$45. And, if I try a dress and I truly don’t love it, I’ll suck it up and pay to ship it back, rather than take up room in my closet.
