In Defence Of Women's Magazines.......
By : Sara McCorquodale | Editor MyDaily
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In their upcoming book The Vagenda: A Zero Tolerance Guide to the Media,
writers Holly Baxter and Rhiannon Lucy Coslett are fairly clear on
their opinion of women's magazines. They're bad. They make women feel
rubbish. Reading them is stupid.
But am I the only one who doesn't get this? My experience of 18
years' women's mag fandom has been brilliant. They've influenced me in a
positive way and I'm pretty sure I'm not alone on this point.
So, here's five reasons why I love this form of media - and why I
really don't think it deserves the poisonous reputation it's acquired.
1. They're pure escapism. The beautiful dresses, the
glamorous parties, the way people can get away with actually wearing
Philip Treacy hats - God, everything in mags like Vogue, Tatler and
Harper's Bazaar just always seems so brilliant. They document a fizzy
existence, ushering you directly to the most champagne-y places in the
world. Hurrah! Is there no value in that window to something dreamier
than the mundane, shuffling everyday? Who cares if your job's rubbish?
So what if you can only afford Topshop? You can forget bills, bad news
and boredom when reading a good glossy.
2. They start or make conversations better. My
friends and I still do it when talking about men, jobs, houses,
everything. One of us pours out all our woes about an idiot boyfriend or
boss, and another one pipes up with, "well, I read in Glamour/Cosmopolitan/Grazia..."
You can always count on women's mags to have a relatable story that
makes you believe a) things might turn out okay or b) things could be so
much worse. Also, there was nothing more fun as a teenager than
shrieking at the crazy sex stories in More with friends or flicking through Cosmopolitan and vowing you'd never, NEVER, give a guy a blow job anyway.
3. They genuinely provide style and beauty
inspiration (even when you've got no money and a terrible wardrobe).
Look, learning how to dress perfectly is a lifelong process. At
university, my friends and I would browse Glamour and Elle
and then go seek out cheaper versions of the looks in their pages. When
I was planning my wedding, I spent six months lugging around at least
three mammoth copies of Brides. Sometimes I've nailed looks copied from
magazines, other times I've ended up looking completely absurd. I blame a
particularly amazing Glamour shoot in 2003 for thinking it was
a good idea to cut stupidly short fringe. Some things, you accept, only
look good on the spectacularly beautiful.
4. They make you give yourself a break. Like,
literally sit down. 18 years into my magazine obsession, I still believe
there's nothing lovelier than buying a fresh glossy and reading it
cover to cover. If I wasn't reading that copy of Vogue, Elle or Glamour, I'd be working. Or doing the dishes (okay, thinking about doing the dishes).
5. They have features I actually want to read.
Women's mags are consistently overlooked when it comes to the standard
of their content. Yes, they have list-y style features around lipstick,
dating tips and celebrity style spreads, but they also have brilliant
columns and essays that are just as good as anything you'll find in a
broadsheet. The best thing published during everyone's 2013 obsession
with The Great Gatsby? Cressida Connolly's incredible feature on Zelda Fitzgerald in Vogue. Also, Avril Mair's Beauty Extremist column in Elle
was so brilliant and honest it made me feel like I actually understood
why and how women have cosmetic procedures. Compelling words and
beautiful pictures - a brilliant combination, if you ask me.
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