Dec 20, 2016 @ 9:45 AM
Actors often have access to a world of which we could only dream: the most luxurious travel, the most decadent shopping, and the hottest restaurants. That atmosphere has mostly been enveloped in mystery, until now. Suits actress Meghan Markle launched The Tig, her new lifestyle site, to give an insider's access to all things fabulous—and without any pretentiousness. Markle spoke with InStyle.com and shared an exclusive look at the site.
Why did you start The Tig? A company approached me to start a website, but I figured that if I was going to start something that was an extension of me, it really needed to feel organic, so I decided to do it myself—I write all of the content myself in order to keep the content feeling authentic. I really wanted to start a site that's the "go-to" for everything—that's why I have insider travel guides, food posts from famous chefs, fashion with the guidance of the likes of Wes Gordon and Edie Parker, and beauty, which I am involved in a lot because of Suits.
Tell us a little bit more detail about your categories—food, travel, fashion, and beauty. Food was a no-brainer to me because I love to cook. I grew up gardening; I'm from California and farm-to-table is very much in our ethos. Beyond that, I work on a show that's so heavily fashion driven and has given me the opportunity to go to New York fashion weeks, which has really evolved my style from growing up in L.A. and wearing cutoffs and flip-flops to really wearing beautiful pieces and finding my own taste level, which I want to share with readers. For my beauty category, I didn't want to just do make-up and hair tips—it's really about the internal beauty, too. For my birthday, I did a post about being comfortable in your own skin.
Your travel category is so fun—from your insider's guides to your own travel posts. Travel is hugely important to me. My mom was a travel agent, so I've always loved off-the-beaten-track, indie, super cool places. I've always gotten requests from people who ask things like, "where should I eat in Bangkok?" or "where should I stay in Paris?" So I wanted to make this the go-to site for those insider-y type guides. I also want to know where the cool kids go, so I turn to people like interior designer Natasha Baradaran who wrote the "Insider's Guide to Milan" [for the site]. I am fortunate to travel a lot, so I want to share that as well—like my travels to Tulum, [Mexico,] where I took my new Tig bag!
Tell us about your collaboration with Edie Parker. I really want to do collaborations for the site with people who really get my voice, like Edie Parker (and designer Brett Heyman). Brett is a California girl, like me, and I love that her designs feel vintage and seem like heirlooms. So when I found out that Edie Parker was relaunching their custom design e-comm site and they asked me to come into their showroom and create my own The Tig bag (below), I couldn't pass it up!
To create your own, custom Edie Parker clutch, visit edie-parker.com.
