Lusitania or Titanic: You Be the Judge

When I made the decision to blog, I also made the decision to devote time to educating myself (to the best of my ability) on my chosen subject matter. To that affect, I immediately ordered subscriptions to several publications: Vogue, W, Elle, Marie Claire, etc. I anxiously began to check the mail everyday (who am I kidding, most times I sent PS out to the mailbox), in anticipation of receiving these harbingers of style, my connection to the world of fashion at large.

See, up to this point, my day, my life, my world has revolved around being a wife and mother. I live and breath for my family. Every month I got no less than four parenting magazines and Women's Health (in an effort to motivate me and give me direction as far as losing the baby fat). But my subscriptions to In Style and Glamour...I let those lapse. And somewhere along the line, I let myself lapse too.

Life is about balance. Recognizing all the things that you are (to yourself and others) and endeavoring to give them equal play in your life is a challenge we all face. I struggled in that race for equilibrium for a while. But doing this has helped to restore some of my balance.

Imagine my delight when PS came back from the mailbox with the first Vogue from my subscription (prior to that, I had purchased the September issue sometime in August and the October issue in September) and then my sudden dismay at discovering that, though it was October (and my subscription had been placed in late August), I had received...the September issue. Though slightly annoyed, I calmly called customer service and explained the situation and the nice lady on the phone was very sympathetic and understanding and resolved the issue to the best of her ability. All in all, I was appeased (though still slightly annoyed) and decided to give one of the copies to my budding fashion designer. Problem solved, right?




Not so much. A few days later, I am once again overjoyed when PS returns from the mailbox with a publication I immediately recognize because of it's distinctive size, W. While I had at a point in my life been a regular reader of Vogue, this was my first experience with W and I was beyond ecstatic to familiarize myself with it's sophisticated style. So you can bet I was crestfallen when I discovered that it is not the November (or even October) issue that one would expect at this time, but the September issue...




So I hop on the phone with customer service, once again, and come to a similar resolution, once again. Then I come to a realization-both periodicals are owned by Conde Nast. And the mothership is having issues, n’est-ce pas ? Six of their major publications have been discontinued in the last two months or so (Domino, Cookie, Gourmet, Conde Nast Portfolio and two of their wedding titles) and layoffs abound. So maybe I should just be happy that I received my magazines at all; they seriously have bigger things to deal with right now.

But now I'm worried. Are these beloved bastions of style and taste and fashion and pretty in danger? Will we wake up one morning to discover (probably on Twitter if you're anything like me) that the fashion Bible that is Vogue is no longer to be printed (though if they wanted to drop the guillotine on French Vogue it could be forgiven. I mean really, black face as an artistic statement, COME ON!)? Oh fashion gods, let that black day never come!

Well darlings, mommyhood is calling me, so I must be off. Do you have any suggestions as far as additional magazines I may be interested in? What are your must read monthlies? Let me know. 'Til next time...


(And don't forget, through the month of October, you can get 15% off at Anique Michelle boutique by using the promo code "mama" at check out!)

(Oh and the covers pictured here are both October issues and obtained from Conde Nast)

Fashion Forever...


Quinn