mcx-0712-blake-lively-cover-style-%2810%29-xln.jpgMarie Claire

blake-lively-marie-claire-july-cover-230.jpgBlake Lively covers the new issue of Marie Claire, and the 24-year-old Savages starlet looks amazing in her shoot for the mag.

Blake may have been styled for this spread, but she says she doesn't have a personal stylist like so many other actresses do these days. Why not? "Because I love fashion," she says. "It’s such an expression of self. I often see people and they look great, but I can identify who styled them. Every stylist has a signature. Maybe it sounds jerky, but I’m lucky to be on such a fashion-centric show [Gossip Girl]. There’s no designer I don’t have access to.”

On the public’s perception of her, Blake tells the mag, "People like to draw parallels between my life and the scandalous stories on Gossip Girl. I dress the same as my character, so they think, She lives this life on and off set. I recently shared how many boyfriends I’ve had [four], and people were like, ‘That’s impossible!’ But it’s true. I’ve been with very few people. If I’m not with somebody who really excites or inspires me, then I’d rather be by myself." Well put!

We'll see Blake on the big screen in next month's Savages, and she reveals that she prepared for her role by practicing her firearms skills. "I went to the gun range and learned how to shoot a gun for the first time," she says. "It was awful. I asked myself, ‘Why were these things ever invented? But I did feel good that my first three shots were straight to the heart. It’s good to know – don’t mess with me in a gun battle." She can shoot AND dress to kill? Yet another reason why we love love love her!