Millie Cooper is a Hertfordshire-based mama-of-two, content creator and lover of beautiful, timeless style. Currently on maternity leave with eight-month-old Oscar, Millie is also mum to four-year-old Beatrix and shares snippets of family life, fashion and motherhood over on Instagram. Millie started her career in beauty marketing and now works as a PA to a General Manager of a Pharma company. From dressing her children in gorgeous heirloom-inspired pieces to finding her own balance between comfort and a little bit of glam, Millie chats to us about her style, the realities of motherhood, and mothering through grief.
Meet Millie Cooper: Motherhood, Mum Style… and grief
What made you want to start your Instagram and share your style and mum life online?
I have always had a creative flair and over the years there have been so many careers I had dreamt of having – from events and party planning, photography, travel, cooking and floristry, but somehow I ended up in the corporate world as a PA! I guess because of this, I first started my Instagram page to scratch my creative itch, as my personal little corner where I could experiment sharing all the things I love and most importantly my little loves. I get so much genuine joy from sharing our lives. At first I was just doing it for myself, but I had a few friends say, you should take it further, so it’s grown from that really. I LOVE that I can share all of my hobbies through this channel.
We love your style! Has the way you dress changed since becoming a mum, and if so, how?
I’ve always been on the bigger side, so I’ve always gone for baggier fits. This has worked so well for me postpartum too. I do like glam, but comfortable glam, so you’ll always find me in an oversized dress of some sort and then I tend to go big on shoes, jewellery or bags! An oversized shirt, velvet shoes and statement earrings are a must too. I shop differently to how I used to – it’s more important for me to buy well made pieces that are designed to last as opposed to multiple high street items that won’t even last me a season. When I shop I try to buy classic items that will stand the test of time as opposed to following the trend of the moment.
How do you approach dressing your kids?
First and foremost I want to make sure they are comfortable. Bea has always naturally been a girly girl and this has indulged me so much! I was always dressed in beautiful heirloom style dresses with smocking and the like and I’m so pleased I get to dress my daughter like this too. Although I do mix it up too with some more fun clothes and pops of colour, as she is a child who wants to have fun too after all! It’s funny as before she went to school she was at a forest school childminder and would look absolutely feral by the end of the day. Needless to say her nice dresses did not go there and the childminder would often laugh at how different she looked on instagram – real insta vs reality!
With Oscar I’m still trying to work out my boy mum style, but there certainly are a lot of incredible boy brands out there. When I found out I was having a boy, so many people would say urghhh boy clothes are boring, but after shopping for him, I now disagree, there are plenty of amazing brands out there.
What are your favourite brands or shops right now, for mums and minis?
I always head to If only if, Daughters of India, and RIXO for beautiful dresses in different colours and prints for myself. I am also loving a velvet shoe from Flableus, an oversized shirt from dissh and sezane can do no wrong!
For Bea I am loving Elma, Floess, Emile et Ida, Carlota Suip and sissel eldabo for more unique pieces. Then for the more classic heirloom pieces I head to Mini Boden, Pepa London, Trotters and La Coqueta. There is a new little online shop, Little Flossies which has great selection of brands.
For Oscar I want him in soft, well made baby clothes, so I head to Organic Zoo, Claude & Co, Wheat and MORI. I also look to Konges Slojd, Mini Rodini, and tinycottons for everyday pieces for both of them.
I have also just discovered an incredible kids wear rental service – or collective.
How do you balance showing your family life (especially your kids) while maintaining privacy and authenticity on social media?
Naturally I’m an over-sharer, so I do share quite a lot of our lives, but it is just a snapshot and not everything that goes on. I am generally a positive person, so a lot of what people will see on my page is the highlights, although I am trying to get better at showing the struggles too, so that people can see life isn’t perfect.
Are there any parts of Instagram you struggle with, or find tricky?
I think there’s a lot of shade and judgement that gets thrown at influencers on instagram. A lot of hard work and time goes into doing this, just like any job. I figure if I can make a career out of my little page, it means I can spend more time at home with my children, doing what I love. I have a long way to go, as this is just the start of my journey, but I’m really loving it and the sense of community I get from instagram. I have also met some truly amazing people through my page.
Recently I’ve also been feeling very conflicted about showing so much of my children, especially my daughter, as she is getting slightly older now. There’s so much chatter out there about the use of AI and children and it makes me incredibly nervous. It makes me so sad though as I love innocently sharing our lives.
What are the things you love most about motherhood?
When you feel a little body sneak into your bed in the middle of the night or when their face lights up when they see you enter a room. You are their safe space and the only person in the world who will make them feel that way and I think that’s all kinds of incredible.
How do you handle the motherload, and spin all the plates?
Being a mum is the biggest juxtaposition I have ever experienced. On the one hand it is the most mind blowingly incredible thing I have ever done and on the other hand it is the most gruelling and hardest thing too. There are days when I feel like I could take on the world and other days when I am just trying to survive. Naturally I’ve always been good at multitasking, but I am also incredibly lucky to have a hands on and supportive husband. I know I could do it by myself and he would let me if that’s what I wanted, but he’s always there to catch me when I need it too. I rely on his support as we don’t have any family nearby to help.
And finally, best bits and worst bits about being a mum?
Motherhood has been especially tough for me after experiencing a lot of grief. My mum passed away over 10 years ago and my Dad died very unexpectedly on my daughter’s due date. When my daughter then arrived 13 days later I didn’t have any choice but to be strong for her. There was then more sadness to come when my brother died in 2024, just before I fell pregnant with Oscar. My children are what’s helped me to survive through the heartache of all of this. Seeing them turn out ok and the bond they have makes everything worth it. It is incredibly tough though to parent without parents, or not having any of your own family to share this amazing rollercoaster of a journey with.
Read more motherhood interviews here.
