'Secret Lives of Mormon Wives' Cast On Whose Closet They'd Steal — or Burn!

When the member of Utah's self-proclaimed "MomTok" were catapulted into the mainstream by a mega-viral story time from core member — and newly christened Bachelorette star — Taylor Frankie Paul, amid various other videos and controversies and trends, Hulu almost immediately flew in a camera crew and got to work. The resulting show, Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, became an overnight sensation, garnering the women brand deals, followers, and a global spotlight on Mormon culture shared only with Bravo's parallel reality TV hit, The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.

But unlike the otherworldly Real Housewives, viewers praised MomTok for their honest portrayals of young motherhood, unafraid to film in sweats and a messy bun, or all done up in glam and a beautiful dress. PAPER, meanwhile, became fixated on the various fashions showcased by the TikTok trend cycle time-capsule. From "pilgrim" chic dresses to co-ord sets and "Utah curls," television had never seen anything like these women before.

The group's hair expert, Jessi Draper Ngatikaura, explains that "Utah has a very specific look," which Mikayla Matthews echoes. "Blogging and social media was huge in Utah too. So I remember being 14, 15, 16 and wanting these boots that these influencers were wearing, or this bag that every influencer had."

Layla Taylor sees the comfort as the Utah staple. "I feel like Utah is really big into active wear. I feel like a lot of leisure — that’s what I’m wearing right now." Jen Affleck, fresh off an appearance on Dancing With the Stars, says that "You can tell when someone’s from Utah. They’re wearing either Free People, or what’s that brand? Made by Mary?" Jessi interjects, saying that "Bohme is a big Utah boutique as well."

As for trends they wished they'd have skipped, Mayci laughs when I ask. "My husband hated the white, chunky Fila sneakers. He hated those, unfortunately I had those." Mikayla tells us that "Looking back at our videos from like 2020, I wanted to actually throw up."

Jessi explains that for her first season on the show, "I had heavy lash extensions, just stuff that’s not as in now. I changed all of that, and stepped into my own the following seasons." She has a more holistic approach now. "To be honest, our clothes, yeah, we’re elevating a little bit more now, but we only started filming the show a year and a half ago, so I feel like trends haven’t changed that much. But you always watch yourself back, and wish you could do things a little differently."

There's more, of course, so much more. From who has a stylist in the group to whose wardrobe they'd like to burn — run, Taylor and Whitney! — the group was unafraid to dish on every fashion question we threw at them. Read our entire interview below, and watch the new season of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives when it premieres on November 13, streaming on Hulu and Disney+.

I’m curious: how into fashion and trends were you before joining MomTok, or doing this show?

Layla: I've always loved fashion and expressing myself through clothing. I feel like it's such a cool thing to do. You can kind of show who you are as a person before you're even able to open your mouth. I have a shopping addiction.

Jen: Jessi has inspired me, because now I have the same stylist as her, and my stylist happens to live five minutes from me, so, all thanks to Jessi.

Jessi: I feel like growing up, I was always the one that was dressing up. I just always wanted to do my hair and makeup, but I’m in the hair industry, so it kind of goes hand in hand. I’ve always loved that. I feel like Utah has a very specific look. We have a Utah fashion thing going on, so I always got into that. But now that we’re in this world, it’s been opened up to me, and I’ve worked with stylists and different brands, and it’s been really fun.

Mayci: I think we are always interested in trends and things like that. At least for me, I have two older sisters, so I feel like I always relied on them growing up to teach me the trends and style and things like that. But I feel like I have a different style than them, and it probably just comes from all being together and the trends and what you’re seeing online.

I think you gravitate a lot of the time to what you see in society, and I say that because I’m really obsessed with maroon right now. I don’t think I really loved maroon until this year. I don’t know, I had my eye on this maroon Prada bag, and I’m like, I need that bag, but I could never see myself buying maroon before. I weirdly love it now.

Mikayla: I don’t know if I’d have the money, before, to buy it. Back then, I wouldn’t even be able.

Mayci: That’s true.

Mikayla: I think we’ve always grown up with the trends, because I feel like blogging and social media was huge in Utah too. So I remember being 14, 15, 16 and wanting these boots that these influencers were wearing, or this bag that every influencer had. I feel like that’s always been a thing. I think now we’re immersed in it more, and have more resources.

Mayci: I think its hard to find time though, with our schedules, to be so on trend. One thing I do love is European style. Like, when I went to France last summer. I was like, I just love this style. I always hear that they’re the taste makers, and the trends start there, and then they make it to the US.

Do you have a trend that you picked up, either because of TikTok or MomTok, that looking back now, you’re like: I wish I skipped that.

Mikayla: Oh my lord, a ton.

Mayci: I’m sure there’s probably a ton. My husband hated the white, chunky Fila sneakers. He hated those, unfortunately I had those. I’m thinking of a trend… this is before MomTok, this was the end of my college years, like 2016. Those chokers came back, the black ones? I definitely was guilty of the chokers. There’s some photos where I look back and I’m like: Why? Why did you do that?

Mikayla: Looking back at our videos from like 2020, I wanted to actually throw up. Oh, my gosh…

Jessi: I would say for me, looking back on how I looked in season one, I had so much filler. I had heavy lash extensions, just stuff that’s not as in now. I changed all of that, and stepped into my own the following seasons. But to be honest, our clothes, yeah, we’re elevating a little bit more now, but we only started filming the show a year and a half ago, so I feel like trends haven’t changed that much. But you always watch yourself back, and wish you could do things a little differently.

Jen: Honestly, for me, I wouldn’t change anything. Even me not washing my hair everyday. I have no regrets towards that, because that was the reality of my situation. I was postpartum, I wasn’t getting a lot of sleep, we were filming all day, and the reality of being a mom is sometimes you look like a bum, sometimes your hair doesn’t look perfect, and even though people had issues with it, and my main hashtag was #JenAffleckGreasyHair… I was like, relatable.

Being on the show, and wanting to feel put together while being filmed… do those feel like added pressures, when you’re pregnant at the same time?

Jen: I could never really put too much pressure on that. I think the main pressure always is just the drama that we’re bringing, the story that we’re telling, and then the clothes and hair? Obviously, those things are very important. They’re fun, but it’s not my number one priority, hence why everyone’s always giving me crap for my hair and a lot of things. I definitely think it’s fun, though, and now that I have a stylist, the same stylist as Jessi, it’s definitely been a game changer.

Are there any favorite outfits that you’ve worn on the show, or wear repeatedly in your everyday life?

Layla: I feel like one of my favorite looks was my reunion look. I love dressing up, and we don’t do that a lot in this group. I love it. I feel like we are very… pro-being comfortable. When we go to other people’s houses, we’re not going to be glammed up. I love that, when we are able to dress up, and put on a pretty dress and get all cute.

Is there a staple you would say is essential to Utah fashion, or essential to your group?

Layla: I feel like Utah is really big into active wear. I feel like a lot of leisure — that’s what I’m wearing right now.

Miranda: Neither one of us are really dressed up.

Jessi: It’s very boho. I feel like everyone wears Free People, and it’s boho-esque. Maybe it’s the modesty of it all too, because the Mormon culture. We have a lot of that, but you could definitely just tell when someone’s wearing stuff from Utah.

Jen: I feel like, yes, you can tell when someone’s from Utah. They’re wearing either Free People, or what’s that brand? Made by Mary?

Jessi: Bohme is a big Utah boutique as well.

Jessi, since you’re in the hair business: Is there a look with hair that you think of as the “Utah haircut.”

Jessi: Oh my god, the Utah curls, the long extensions. The typical curl we all had in season one and two. I feel like when the hair was the focus when the show came out, I reid to evolve a little bit, and help us all elevate our hair. We are trying new looks now — we took Jen dark, instead of the typical Utah blonde. It’s been fun to play around with that.

Once you started working more in the public eye, on this show, did you start working with a stylist? Did you start working with brands?

Layla: I mostly pick them. I don’t work with a stylist. I personally enjoy picking out outfits and putting pieces together. It’s really fun. I don’t work with any brands in particular. I just shop everywhere, if I find pieces I like. I love looking on The RealReal. There’s also a place in Utah that Natalie, Miranda’s mother-in-law, actually introduced us to. It’s called Name Droppers, and they have vintage, couture pieces and stuff like that. I like finding unique things that just make you feel confident.

Miranda: There’s a few girls that I think have a stylist, but we, for the most part, pick out everything that we wear. And Mason and Chase’s mom, she’s a stylist, so she’ll send me and Layla stuff sometimes, she has great taste. But for the most part, we pick out our stuff.

If there was anyone else’s closet that could steal for a moment, who would it and why?

Mikayla: I think I would have to say Jessi’s, but the sizes…. Her pants wouldn’t fit over my one leg. She is the teeniest, tiniest little thing. But her closet is probably as big as my main living area.

Mayci: I would have to say Jessi, for the same reason. I could find anything that was my style in her closet, because it’s so big, and she has so many shoes.

Layla: I was going to say Miranda.

Miranda: My number one would be Layla for sure. Probably Demi would be my second.

Layla: I was going to say Demi for sure. Or, actually, Whitney. Hot take.

Miranda: She switched it up.

Jessi: I would say Miranda, actually. I feel like she has really unique pieces, and she has such a unique style, for her. I would probably say her.

Jen: I would say Jessi would be my first pick, because I’ve already don’t that.

Jessi: You’ve crashed my closet a few times.

Is there anyone’s closet you would burn?

Jen: It would be Taylor… because it would be…

Jessi: Just Crocs and sweats.

Jen: Sorry, the cros and sweats have to go.

Jessi: I would agree with that. Or, season one Whitney, when she dressed like she was on the prairie. Season one Whitney’s style was interesting…

Jen: Season two Whitney too…

Miranda: Early day Whitney, that would be burn. Now, Whitney? I would definitely be rummaging through her stuff.

Layla: Don’t shoot me, Taylor stans…

Miranda: Oh yeah, probably Taylor…

Layla: I just would love to see her… she’s our comfy queen. She loves a good pair of sweatpants, and more power to you! But I feel like I would love to see her in more elevates looks from day to day.

Miranda: Yes, I would love to see her really find her style and come into her style a bit, while also maintaining the comfy Taylor.

You had your first reunion last year. Did you feel nervous going into that format, fashion wise? Did you work with a stylist? Did you have anything you hoped to achieve, with your look?

Mayci: I was pregnant, so I was like: I’m not wearing any color. So when I get pregnant, I just get swollen and puffy. And so for me, I was like: I just want to wear black. I did actually have like, five options and I let the show producers choose for the reunion. I actually didn’t love my dress, I’ll be honest. It was probably my least favorite of the five but it was still good enough. But there was nothing special about it. I look back, and I could have done better, but it was good enough.

Mikayla: Being pregnant is hard, and then being postpartum is even harder, because its like that awkward in-between. I bought a bunch of stuff for being pregnant, and they don’t fit me now. So your clothes are either too small or you’re, like, Adam Sandler and you’re drowning in your clothes. But I was pregnant also for the reunion.

Jessi: The reunion was funny, because we found out about it at the very last minute, so I just had to use a dress that was in my closet. I’m hoping if we get future reunions, we can have a little more time to put looks together, now that we have a stylist too. It’s fun to plan for those things.

If there was a Utah staple, fashion or trend wise, that the rest of the country should adopt — what would it be and why? Or, is there a Utah trend you want to see go away forever?

Miranda: Go away forever? I feel like we’re coming out of the short, wide legged pants. They’re supposed to be high waters, almost… I feel like those are super popular in Utah, and I think they look great on some people, but it’s just a really hard shape for everyone’s body. It’s not really flattering on everyone. I was, unfortunately, one of the people that I didn’t feel like it was very flattering on.

Layla: Knee length shorts that are tighter… I love a good pair of shorts, or like, knee length shorts, but the ones that are tight? Also, it’s because women that wear garments in Utah in the summer, that’s what they have to wear, unfortunately. The bermuda, really 2000s mom short? I’m like, no no no.